LONDON — In his last Prime Minister’s Questions before handing over the reins of power to Theresa May, David Cameron said he wanted to put one rumor to rest. “The rumor that somehow I don’t love Larry. I do, and I have photographic evidence to prove it,” said Cameron, brandishing a picture of himself with […]
Israeli army wants to appoint controversial rabbi as spiritual chief
JERUSALEM — The Israeli army wants to appoint a controversial rabbi as its new chief spiritual adviser. Rabbi Col. Eyal Krim is being criticized for giving an ambiguous response to a question on whether rape is permissible during wartime. He has also in the past said women should not serve in the military. Krim’s comments, made before he joined the […]
Ethiopia shuts down social media to keep from ‘distracting’ students
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — It started over the weekend, when social media applications on Ethiopian phones and computers stopped working. Then, on Monday afternoon, the entire Internet shut down for nearly 24 hours. The next day it was running again, but Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Viber and other social media apps were still blocked along with WhatsApp and downloading […]
Zimbabwe’s crackdown on nationwide protests seems to be working, for now
A week ago, a burgeoning anti-corruption movement in Zimbabwe successfully organized a nationwide “stayaway” that left businesses and schools closed. It was by far the most meaningful affront to 92-year-old Robert Mugabe’s ruling party in years. The protest was precipitated by an economic implosion that has left banks cashless and government workers unpaid. There’s no fix for those […]
Every new British prime minister pens a handwritten ‘letter of last resort’ outlining nuclear retaliation
After a tumultuous few weeks in British politics, Theresa May will officially become Britain’s prime minister on Wednesday. The day will be full of tradition and pomp. Her predecessor, David Cameron, must travel to Buckingham Palace to formally tender his resignation to Queen Elizabeth II and announce May as his successor. The queen will then meet […]
Despite Islamic fatwa, Pokémon Go is the rage of the Arab world
CAIRO — Like elsewhere, Pokémon Go is the rage of the Arab world. But there’s one huge difference: The game has long been deemed un-Islamic by many influential clerics, from Egypt to Qatar. In 2001, one of Egypt’s most senior Muslim leaders — Nasser Farid Waseel, the grand mufti — issued a fatwa, or religious edict, […]
Theresa May and Angela Merkel: Europe’s two most powerful women have a lot in common
LONDON — When Britain voted to leave the European Union less than three weeks ago, some people also blamed German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Her pro-refugee policies, critics said, had helped the Brexit movement gain ground in the first place. Anger at Merkel’s pro-refugee policies may have been one reason why a majority of Britons voted for Brexit, causing Prime Minister David […]
Europe’s citizenship tests are so hard not even citizens can pass
LONDON — The 75-year-old American professor had lived in the Swiss town of Einsiedeln for nearly 40 years when he decided to take a citizenship test to acquire a Swiss passport. The unnamed man spoke fluent German and had few reasons to believe that anyone could have objections to him being eligible for a Swiss passport, local media reported in […]
Theresa May is the Queen’s 13th British prime minister. And she probably won’t be her last.
LONDON — Queen Elizabeth II has seen it all before — 12 times before, to be precise. On Wednesday, she will say goodbye to her David Cameron, her 12th prime minister, and hello to Theresa May, her 13th. While a political earthquake has shook Westminster to its core and triggered the resignations of a number […]
The child bride who still haunts me
I met Fayrouz Ahmed Haider in a grim refugee camp in Yemen. Just 11 years old, she was already married. She reminded me of someone else: a girl I had met thousands of miles away in the West African nation of Niger. Her name was Balki Souley. Like Fayrouz, she had also been married off as […]
One year after Iran nuclear deal, poll shows growing disappointment among Iranians
A year ago, the United States and other world powers reached a historic deal with Iran. Economic sanctions that had hobbled the Islamic republic’s economy and led to international isolation would be lifted. In return, Iran agreed to terms that would restrict its nuclear capability, including strict international monitoring. For many in Iran, the immediate response to the […]
What the South China Sea ruling means for the world
A verdict delivered by an international court in the Hague sent geopolitical shock waves through Asia. The panel of judges at the Permanent Court of Arbitration said that China’s exclusive claims to a vast swath of territory in the South China Sea had no historical or legal basis, siding with the Philippines in a case that Manila […]
In Kashmir, Indian security forces use pellet guns that often blind protesters
After four days of chaotic and violent protests in Indian-administered Kashmir, at least 24 people are dead and hundreds injured. Doctors at the main hospital in Srinagar, the region’s capital, have struggled to cope with the casualties. Many of the wounded are lying two to a bed. Violence periodically flares up in Kashmir. The mountainous region is claimed by […]
ISIS releases a new video of captive British journalist John Cantlie in Iraq
The media arm of the Islamic State released a new video Tuesday showing captive British journalist John Cantlie in the Iraqi city of Mosul. It is the 12th video he has been featured in since mid-2014. Cantlie was kidnapped alongside American journalist James Foley in 2012 in Syria. In the three-minute video, Cantlie stands in front […]
Egyptian newspaper apologizes for a cartoon that made light of sexual harassment
CAIRO — It wasn’t funny. Al-Masry al-Youm, the most widely circulated privately owned newspaper in Egypt, sparked outrage when it published a cartoon that many viewed as condoning sexual harassment. The cartoon depicted a man meeting with a woman’s father to ask for her hand in marriage. He told the father that he should feel […]
Police in Pakistan hunt Christian accused of blasphemy for online poem
A Christian man in Pakistan, accused of sending a poem online that insults Islam, is being hunted by police on charges of blasphemy, which is a capital crime in the Muslim-majority country of 180 million. The man allegedly sent the poem to a Muslim friend, who publicly denounced him to authorities. The accused, a villager […]
Britain’s Parliament will debate a possible do-over on Brexit
Britain’s Parliament will debate whether the country should have a second referendum on European Union membership after more than 4.1 million people signed a petition calling for one. The Petitions Committee for Britain’s Parliament announced Tuesday that the debate will take place Sept. 5 at 4:30 p.m. local time. Britain has had one recent referendum on […]
Chinese state media melt down over South China Sea ruling
BEIJING — Chinese state media and nationalistic netizens want the world to know that they really, definitely, absolutely don’t care about the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s landmark ruling on the South China Sea. How much do they not care? They don’t care enough to put out what may be the world’s most awkward music video. The militaristic […]
At last, some stability: Larry the Cat will remain at 10 Downing Street
LONDON — Outgoing British Prime Minister David Cameron has one day to pack up his belongings and leave 10 Downing Street, making way for his successor, Theresa May. But he won’t be packing everything into the blue vans spotted outside the residence: Officials say Larry the Cat will be allowed to stay. “Larry is staying. He’s […]
By ignoring the South China Sea ruling, China follows a long line of big powers
BRUSSELS — After a landmark ruling against China’s historical claims over the South China Sea, Beijing followed Tuesday in the tradition of other big nations when they lose such cases: ignore the decision. Put the word “international” in front of a court, tribunal or panel, and the effect is frequently to sap judges of their […]
5 stories you need to read to understand the South China Sea ruling
An international tribunal on Tuesday ruled that China does not have “historic rights” to the South China Sea, specifically within the nine-dash line that Beijing has used to designate its sovereignty in the waterway since 1947. The verdict, though nonbinding, is likely to stoke tensions between China and its neighbors, especially the Philippines, which took Beijing to court […]
Map: What’s at issue in the South China Sea dispute
An international tribunal in The Hague ruled Tuesday that Beijing has no legal claim to its “historic right” over disputed territory in the South China Sea. The Philippines took Beijing to court in 2013 after the Chinese navy seized the Scarborough Shoal, a cluster of reef and rocks that served as a rich fishing ground for […]
Tired of waiting on Google Maps, Faroe Islanders initiate ‘Sheep View’
On 18 gorgeous, isolated, windswept islands in the North Atlantic, residents have decided to take matters into their own hands. They want Google Maps’ street view, and they’re tired of waiting. “Here in the Faroe Islands we have to do things our way,” said Durita Dahl Andreassen, who works with islands’ tourism board, in an interview with the Guardian. The […]
Black Lives Matter is a global cause
In many respects, the furor around police shootings in the United States is and will remain a uniquely American story. Few major Western nations suffer the epidemic of gun violence that exists in the United States. Few major Western nations contend with the entrenched history of systemic racism that exists in the United States. Few major […]
How big disputes reach most powerful court no one’s ever heard of
BRUSSELS — It is a small institution with an outsize influence on the world map. And Tuesday’s ruling by The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration — on a territorial dispute between China and the Philippines — will be just the latest judgment from an institution that has reshaped borders and taken on powerful governments and public companies […]
Russia may have lied about losing a gunship to ISIS
MOSCOW — It was a heroic and straightforward story, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense. It also wasn’t true, say military analysts and news reports. Two Russian pilots were killed Friday in Syria when a Syrian Mi-25 helicopter was shot down by the Islamic State near the city of Palmyra, the ministry said. The pilots were on a […]
Anti-Muslim views rise across Europe
Europe’s relationship with its Muslim minority has long been fraught. Over the past year, it seems to have become worse. A wave of migrants and refugees from Muslim-majority nations have inflamed the debate about immigration on the continent, fueling the rise of far-right parties and probably contributing to Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. At the same time, […]
David Cameron leaves office humming a happy tune
LONDON — For a man who had just handed in his (two-day) notice at work, David Cameron seemed in remarkably good spirits. After announcing that he would tender his resignation to Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday to make way for Theresa May, the British prime minister was caught on camera humming a happy little tune. […]
The strikingly undemocratic result of Britain’s big Brexit vote
Referendums might be the closest we can get to a pure democracy, giving the voting public a direct say in how their country is governed. But they can also present problems when they butt up against the more established representative democracy found often in the Western world. This can be seen right now in what […]
Why it took half a year for the full extent of the New Year’s Eve assaults in Germany to be known
LONDON — When Europeans discuss whether the continent should accept more refugees, conversations often quickly turn toward one particular night: New Year’s Eve. Six months ago, groups of perpetrators assaulted women in Cologne, Hamburg and other cities. A new, leaked police document which was published by Germany’s Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper and broadcasters NDR and WDR indicates that […]
This violent militant was a folk hero on social media. Now his death has roiled Indian Kashmir.
Burhan Wani was just 22 when he died, but he was already a folk hero to many in Indian-administered Kashmir. The telegenic insurgent — a leader of a group designated a foreign terrorist organization by the State Department — played his social media persona to the hilt, mugging for pictures with automatic weapons and posting videos […]
China believes it is the real victim in the South China Sea dispute
After months of posturing and news releases, Beijing on Monday published what may be its definitive domestic statement on the South China Sea arbitration case. And, boy, is it revealing. In a front-page editorial published the day before the Permanent Court of Arbitration is set to rule, the People’s Daily, a Communist Party mouthpiece, argues that it […]
How the Black Lives Matter movement is sweeping the globe
After a shocking week of gun violence on American soil, people worldwide staged protests to show solidarity with U.S. protesters. The deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota caused outrage last week, with millions of people watching video footage of two deaths within 48 hours of each other, both at the hands of police. In Dallas, five […]
Portuguese kid comforts sobbing Frenchman after Euro 2016 final
An emotional French fan got cheered up by a young Portuguese supporter after yesterday’s #Euro2016 final https://t.co/0eKFHGhVYQ — Sky News (@SkyNews) July 11, 2016 In the stunned aftermath of Sunday’s Euro 2016 final — when Portugal’s soccer team upset the much-fancied hosts, France, to lift the trophy — TV cameras caught a tender moment of […]
Hungary built a razor-wire fence to keep refugees out. Now, it’s desperate for migrants.
LONDON — Hungary went further than most of its neighbors last year to keep fleeing foreigners out of the country: It built a more than 100-mile-long razor-wire border fence and in a strongly criticized practice, still sends refugees who entered the country illegally to prison. Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International condemned the country for showing “blatant disregard […]
The U.S. midwifed South Sudan five years ago. Now it is on the brink of falling apart.
Saturday was the fifth birthday of the world’s youngest country. But instead of celebrations in South Sudan’s capital, Juba, there was fierce battle. Reports put the death toll at more than 300, but accurate figures are hard to come by amid the chaos. The U.N. Security Council held a meeting behind closed doors on Sunday to discuss the situation. […]
Leaked document says 2,000 men allegedly assaulted 1,200 German women on New Year’s Eve
LONDON — At first, there was complete silence from officials. As rumors spread on social media, police had nothing to say about allegations of mass sexual assaults and other crimes carried out on New Year’s Eve in the German city of Cologne. It was only days later that officials reported that hundreds of women were victims of assault in Cologne, Hamburg and other German […]
Why Black Lives Matter has gained momentum in a country where police shootings are rare
Amid anger and anxiety over two fatal police shootings in the United States, Black Lives Matter protests have erupted in Britain, where police patrol unarmed and have fatally shot very few people over the years. In the days after the police shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota — and deadly sniper fire in Texas, where five officers were killed and others were […]
Why everyone loves Antoine Griezmann, France’s star forward
PARIS — France has a new avatar, one who is barely 25. His name is Antoine Griezmann, the star but somewhat petite forward of the French national soccer team, competing Sunday night against Portugal in the final match of the Euro 2016 tournament. Regardless of which team takes the title, one thing is certain: Griezmann is here […]
Ethiopian-born Jews on life in Israel: ‘It was always my dream to come to Jerusalem’
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