World News

World News

After Protests, Evaluating Turkey's Role As A Democracy

4:06pm June 05, 2013

What started as a small sit-in on Friday in Istanbul grew into a massive demonstration against the Turkish government. That government dismissed the demonstrators as extremists. Steven Cook, of the Council on Foreign Relations, talks about Turkey's changing role as a democracy in the region.

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Egyptian Court Verdict Complicates Relations With Washington

9:20am June 05, 2013

by Michele Kelemen

The State Department and several U.S. pro-democracy organizations have reacted strongly to a Cairo court ruling Tuesday. More than 40 foreign and local NGO workers were sentenced to prison for operating without a license. The ruling will likely spur calls in Congress for retaliation.

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Sandwich Throwing: Australian For Protest

8:07pm June 04, 2013

Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon takes note of two instances of sandwich throwing, aimed at the Australian prime minister.

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Fierce fighting has been reported between President Bashar Assad's forces and rebels around the ancient citadel in Aleppo.

Syrian Conflict Reaches Beyond Borders

6:54pm June 04, 2013

The civil war in Syria is attracting fighters from all over, threatening the region's tenuous stability. Robert Malley of the International Crisis Group tells Fresh Air that "a war in Syria with regional spillover has now become a regional war with a Syrian focus."

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In 2005, Lance Cpl. Travis Williams lost his squad to an IED. He was the only survivor.

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Sole Survivor: Iraq Rescue Mission Ended In Tragedy

3:52pm June 04, 2013

by NPR Staff

In our latest installment of the StoryCorps Military Voices Initiative, we hear from Lance Cpl. Travis Williams. In 2005, while serving in Iraq, Williams lost his 12-man squad lost his squad to an IED. He was the only survivor.

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Obama Meets Xi: A Chance To Make History

2:34pm June 04, 2013

President Barack Obama will meet with Chinese president Xi Jinping in California June 7-8. The rare, informal meeting offers an opportunity to discuss economic, security and environmental objectives. Douglas Paal, of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, discusses possible outcomes.

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The Spanish city of Santander is using a network of sensors to help improve services and save money. Incidents reported to Santander's command-and-control center, where the city manages data from sensors and smartphone reports made by citizens, are plotte

High-Tech Sensors Help Old Port City Leap Into Smart Future

1:53pm June 04, 2013

by Lauren Frayer

On Spain's Atlantic coast, the city of Santander has installed 12,000 sensors that measure everything from when streetlights need to be dimmed to when trash dumpsters are full — saving millions for cash-strapped public coffers. It's becoming a model for cities worldwide.

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U.S. Worries Afghan Forces Will Divide Along Ethnic Lines

8:11am June 04, 2013

by Tom Bowman

The American combat mission in Afghanistan will end in 2014. One concern for U.S. officials is the possibility that Afghan security forces will splinter along ethnic lines. The worry then is that those troops will start taking orders from warlords.

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Mired In Recession, EU Eases Some Austerity Measures

3:39pm June 03, 2013

by John Ydstie

This week, the European Union gave some of its member nations more time to meet deficit-reduction targets — in other words, to ease back on austerity. The programs have crushed growth and sent European unemployment to a record high 12 percent.

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Sushi Chef Was Confidant To North Korea's Kim Jong Il

1:36pm June 03, 2013

Little is known about the men who have led North Korea. But one person with great insights into Kim Jong Il and his successor Kim Jong Un is a Japanese sushi chef. He provided Kim Jong Il both sushi and loyalty for many years. Renee Montagne talks to novelist Adam Johnson about his encounter with the chef, which he writes about in the latest issue of GQ magazine.

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