After five years and nearly 3,500 stories — from Pakistan to Papua New Guinea and Paris — the Parallels blog is closing. You'll now find all of NPR's coverage from around the globe at npr.org/world.
The recent abortion referendum in Ireland is setting off calls for change in neighboring Northern Ireland, which still has strict laws on the procedure that date to Victorian times.
King Abdullah appointed economist Omar Razzaz as his new prime minister. It will be up to Razzaz to defuse a crisis over a plan that would levy income tax even on those earning $11,000 a year.
Sketches on the walls of a once hidden room of a museum in Florence help shed light on the Renaissance artist's creative process — and on a mysterious and dangerous period in his life.
Nearly a decade after the Pakistani army pushed out the Taliban from a scenic mountain region known as the "Switzerland of Pakistan," residents say the military has overstayed its welcome.
"There's a big risk for the North Koreans in telegraphing too much to their own people ahead of time," says Martyn Williams, who monitors North Korean TV. "So what they do," he says, "is wait."
The partial ban went into effect Thursday. Many Germans question whether the ban is an environmental milestone or a political shell game that could end up creating more pollution.
President Trump has said U.S. forces are not on the table for potential negotiations with North Korea, but he has also complained about the cost of keeping them there.
"So much of what I've seen is, quite frankly, just deeply disturbing," U.S. aid chief Mark Green said after visiting a camp for Rohingya in Myanmar. For some, "this is the only reality they know."
Students are again occupying universities and workers are protesting an overhaul of the state railway. "The struggle is still the same," says a labor leader. But the protests are on a smaller scale.
As Americans accuse the Kremlin of interfering in their elections, and Russians fiercely deny it, there's no debating that the U.S. once intervened militarily in Russia — with few, if any, results.
Furious over President Sergio Mattarella's rejection of the populist coalition's euroskeptic pick for economic minister, 5-Star Movement leader Luigi Di Maio called for Mattarella's impeachment.
The U.S. and North Korea are moving ahead with plans for a potential summit between President Trump and Kim Jong Un. It comes as South Korea's president held a surprise second summit with Kim.
Two weeks after parliamentary elections delivered a surprise win for allies of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, Iraq's divided political leaders are scrambling to put together a coalition government.
In the Eastern Highlands, the accusation of sorcery is a vigilante's rallying cry. Such accusations often lead to violence and are believed to be responsible for dozens of deaths every year.
Following the attacks in East Java, we may not see family suicide bombers again. But they serve as a useful wake-up call to seriously evaluate deradicalization programs.
Journalists observed as North Korea blew up tunnels it uses for nuclear testing. But experts say it was mostly for show, and closing the site will have little impact on the nation's capabilities.
The Philippines is one of only two countries where divorce remains illegal. But a new bill permitting it has passed the House. A recent survey found 53 percent of Filipinos favor allowing divorce.
Venezuela's latest vote will worsen its crisis as it consolidates its socialist authoritarian system. But Washington is not well-positioned to lead the charge to stop it, writes Ted Piccone.
The arrested women "could have been powerful ambassadors for the new Saudi Arabia. Instead, they are being branded as traitors," says Kristian Ulrichsen of Rice University.
The talks are still expected to happen next month in Singapore, despite North Korea's threats to back out. The South Korean president is playing mediator to keep things on track.
