"I have never seen anything like this," said tree surgeon Hiroyuki Wada. Two typhoons that recently struck the country are a likely cause of the sudden flowering.
Top leaders in Kandahar province in Afghanistan have been assassinated two days before the country votes in parliamentary elections. The top U.S. military commander escaped injury. The Taliban have claimed responsibility in the attack.
The Trump administration has been working to contain the political and diplomatic fallout from the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. President Trump has criticized a rush to judgment and efforts to implicate the kingdom as judging as guilty before proven innocent.
Amid rising political tensions, veteran rocker Roger Waters is using his tour to urge Brazilians not to vote for the far-right presidential candidate — prompting confrontations between fans.
Shooting broke out at the end of a meeting at the governor's palace in Kandahar on how to maintain security during in in Afghanistan's upcoming parliamentary elections.
De Mistura told the U.N. Security Council he was leaving for "purely personal reasons." In his final month, he plans to make a major push to try to lay the groundwork for a new constitution in Syria.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is under increased scrutiny as Turkey and other nations accuse the Saudis of having journalist Jamal Khashoggi killed. Salman is said to have no tolerance for critics.
Noel King talks to Karen Attiah, of The Washington Post, about the column which was filed before Khashoggi disappeared. He wrote passionately about the need for a free press in the Arab world.
Talks between Britain and the rest of the EU over Brexit appear to be at a stalemate over the issue of Northern Ireland's border. There are only six months to go before the U.K. leaves the EU.