World Story of the Day

The writer's classic 18th-century work took aim at intolerance in the Catholic Church. Now it's flying off the shelves as the French seek answers following deadly shootings by Islamic extremists.

One of the top schools competing in the Carnival parade received $3.5 million from Equatorial Guinea, sparking outrage in Brazil. The move puts a spotlight on Carnival's questionable sponsorships.

Mohamed Fahmy, one of the Al-Jazeera journalists just freed from Egyptian custody, recounts what he calls the nightmare of the last 14 months and talks about what comes next.

Led by a celebrated Yazidi fighter, a small band of Kurdish peshmerga survived a months-long ISIS onslaught. Unlike others in Syria and Iraq, this sacred place still stands, nearly unscathed.

Restaurants are using disposable cutlery and plates. Residents only have water for a few hours. Food prices are soaring. Now, Sao Paulo faces draconian rationing of up to five days a week.

The deployment of troops to build treatment centers and train health workers didn't pan out as planned. But as most of the troops are being withdrawn, it is clear the U.S. still made a difference.

It's a scene that reflects China's competing trends: Buddhist monks release fish into Shanghai's Huangpu River to "free" them. A few yards downstream, fishermen quickly scoop them up.

Getting skateboarding off the ground in Amman, Jordan, was a bit of a challenge. Donations helped build the first skate park in the country. Newly opened, it's attracting a lot of curious onlookers.

Abderrahmane Sissako's film was inspired by the seizure of the Malian city by Islamist fighters in 2012. It has won international accolades with its lyrical beauty and critique of religious extremism.

Officials in Rio de Janeiro say they will use the 2016 Olympics to transform the city, but massive sports events like the Olympics carry a huge price tag, and often leave only white elephants behind.