Breathing Room
NEED TO KNOW Breathing Room SOUTH SUDAN Rather than hold elections in December as previously planned under a 2018 peace agreement that […]
From the Energiewende and Back
NEED TO KNOW From the Energiewende and Back GERMANY German officials this winter may keep open three nuclear power plants that they […]
The Little Country That Could
NEED TO KNOW The Little Country That Could LATVIA Latvian authorities began dismantling a 262-foot-tall Soviet-era monument that commemorates the Allies’ victory […]
Lights Off
NEED TO KNOW Lights Off EUROPE Not a drop of rain has fallen this summer on the reservoir in Sau, a town […]
Twisting and Turning
NEED TO KNOW Twisting and Turning IRAQ From 2003 to 2009, the Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr waged an insurgency against American troops […]
The Old, the New and the Dead
NEED TO KNOW The Old, the New and the Dead ANGOLA The recent return of the body of the late president of […]
Door Fees
NEED TO KNOW Door Fees SINGAPORE In the 2013 novel (and 2018 hit film) “Crazy Rich Asians,” the ingénue travels to Singapore […]
A Changing Country
NEED TO KNOW A Changing Country UKRAINE Before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, Ukraine had 40 million people. Now it is […]
Two Diamonds
NEED TO KNOW Two Diamonds INDIA/ PAKISTAN India and Pakistan had the rare experience of separating from one another at the same […]
A Grave Hour
NEED TO KNOW A Grave Hour UKRAINE The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 was among the worst nuclear accidents in world history. Now, […]
The War Dividend
NEED TO KNOW The War Dividend CAMEROON A few months ago, elite government soldiers in Ndop in the Northwest region of Cameroon […]
Terror, Redux
NEED TO KNOW Terror, Redux AFGHANISTAN On Monday, the Taliban marked the first anniversary of their takeover of Afghanistan with a national […]
Suffer the Monkeys
NEED TO KNOW Suffer the Monkeys WORLD What’s in a name, Shakespeare once wrote. Well for monkeys these days, everything. Since May, […]
Having a Cow
NEED TO KNOW Having a Cow NETHERLANDS Near the prime minister’s office in The Hague, the seat of the government of the […]
The Girls Next Door
NEED TO KNOW The Girls Next Door BANGLADESH Indian investigators recently busted an alleged human trafficking ring that was smuggling ethnic Rohingya […]
A Tiger’s Tail
NEED TO KNOW A Tiger’s Tail WEST BANK & GAZA Palestinian lawyers took to the streets in Ramallah in the Israel-occupied territories […]
We’re Jammin’
NEED TO KNOW We’re Jammin’ KENYA Everywhere in Kenya these days, people are jamming, on corners, at gas stations, and even on […]
War-Life Balance
NEED TO KNOW War-Life Balance UKRAINE An emergency worker recently proposed to his girlfriend. Dressed in his first responder gear as his […]
Same Old, Same Old
NEED TO KNOW Same Old, Same Old IRAN Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi, a conservative former judge, won office a year ago promising […]
Il Duce’s Smile
NEED TO KNOW Il Duce’s Smile ITALY Europe’s first fascist leader, Benito Mussolini, once said that “Democracy is beautiful in theory; in […]
The Bidding War
NEED TO KNOW The Bidding War CHINA American and Chinese ships and planes are more frequently encountering each other in the western […]
Floating On
NEED TO KNOW Floating On EGYPT The houseboats of the Nile River in Egypt have a storied past. Many believe the pharaohs […]
The Revanchist’s Folly
NEED TO KNOW The Revanchist’s Folly UKRAINE/ RUSSIA Russia plans to hold elections in the occupied Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Kherson, […]
A Grand Companion
NEED TO KNOW A Grand Companion HONDURAS A judge in Honduras recently sentenced Roberto David Castillo, a top business executive and graduate […]