The World Briefly

February 22, 2023

The Roar

Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused demonstrators of “trampling on democracy,” as huge protests continued this week against the ruling right-wing coalition’s plan to overhaul Israel’s judiciary, the Guardian reported. More than 100,000 people protested outside the country’s parliament in Jerusalem on Monday, as a preliminary...

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The World Briefly

February 22, 2023

The Leave to Leave

Spain

Spain passed a law this month that will allow employees to take paid “menstrual leave” from work, becoming the first European country to do so, Euronews reported. Under the new rules, women will have the right to a three-day menstrual leave of absence a month, which...

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The World Briefly

February 21, 2023

The Grand Gestures

Ukraine

US President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital on Monday, a trip aimed at assuring allies and also Kyiv about the United States’ continued support for Ukraine as the anniversary of Russia’s invasion approaches, the Wall Street Journal reported. Biden met with...

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The World Briefly

February 21, 2023

Tricky Ties

Israel

The African Union (AU) confirmed this week that Israel’s observer status to the pan-African bloc was suspended, an announcement that came shortly after an incident where an Israeli representative was prevented from attending this year’s summit, Al Jazeera reported. Over the weekend, videos circulated on social...

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The World Briefly

February 21, 2023

Worrisome Trend

South Korea

South Korea’s capital plans to remove its women-only parking spaces 14 years after introducing them, a move critics described as the latest example of “anti-feminist” policies in the country, the BBC reported. Introduced in 2009, the special parking spots were aimed to protect women following a...

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The World Briefly

February 20, 2023

The Freedom to Avert Crisis

Canada

An independent panel found the Canadian government was justified in its decision to invoke emergency measures last year to disperse trucker protests that had gridlocked the country’s capital and blocked US-Canada border crossings, Al Jazeera reported. The Public Order Emergency Commission submitted a report to Canadian lawmakers...

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The World Briefly

February 20, 2023

Deflated Relations

China

Top diplomats from China and the US met Saturday for the first time since Washington shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon off the South Carolina coast, with China failing to offer an apology and instead asking the US to mend the damage to the relationship,...

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The World Briefly

February 20, 2023

Boiling Over

Suriname

Hundreds of protesters stormed Suriname’s parliament over the weekend to protest the government’s austerity measures, as the South American nation grapples with spiking inflation and rising electricity prices, the Associated Press reported. Peaceful demonstrations began in the capital, Paramaribo, on Friday, with thousands of people criticizing...

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The World Briefly

February 17, 2023

Cash Crunch

Nigeria

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari extended the deadline to turn in older banknotes after cash shortages in the country sparked anger and riots just over a week before Nigeria’s highly anticipated general elections, Al Jazeera noted. Last year, Nigeria’s central bank began circulating newly designed notes: 1,000...

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The World Briefly

February 17, 2023

Weaponizing Taxes

India

Indian tax officials raided the BBC’s offices in Delhi and Mumbai this week, soon after the British broadcaster aired a documentary critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, NPR reported. Dozens of tax officials entered the broadcaster’s newsrooms, seizing laptops, financial documents and phones of employees as...

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The World Briefly

February 17, 2023

‘Death, Inside the Bones’

Chile

World-renowned Chilean poet and Nobel Prize laureate Pablo Neruda died of poisoning just days after the 1973 coup that brought General Augusto Pinochet to power, according to a recent forensic report that challenges the state’s long-held position about the writer’s death as having been “natural”,...

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The World Briefly

February 16, 2023

The Lingering Mystery

World

The World Health Organization (WHO) will not continue its investigation into the origins of the coronavirus, citing difficulties in collaborating with China, Politico reported Wednesday. The scientific advisory group tasked with investigating the origin of the virus called last year for new studies, including audits of...

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The World Briefly

February 16, 2023

The Untouchables

Italy

An Italian court acquitted former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of witness tampering on Wednesday, in a case related to the infamous, sexually charged “bunga bunga” parties he held at his villa near Milan while he was in office, the Associated Press reported. The trial, which has...

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The World Briefly

February 16, 2023

Only the Loyal

Myanmar

Myanmar’s military junta will allow citizens “loyal to the state” to apply for licenses to carry weapons, as the army continues to face armed resistance following its coup two years ago, Al Jazeera reported. The new policy will allow civilians over the age of 18 to...

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The World Briefly

February 15, 2023

A Valentine Gesture

Philippines

A mayor in the Philippines handed out extra pay to single employees during Valentine’s Day on Tuesday, in a show of gratitude for the extra hours they work and to say that “someone loves them,” Agence France Presse reported. Employees at General Luna town hall in...

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The World Briefly

February 15, 2023

Test of Wills

Israel

The Israeli opposition warned Tuesday that mass protests a day before against legislation to overhaul the country’s top court was “just the start” if the bill continues to advance through parliament, the Times of Israel reported. On Monday, tens of thousands of Israelis protested in front...

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The World Briefly

February 15, 2023

‘Exporting’ History

Greece

Greece’s parliament approved a new law this week that will allow the exhibition of rare antiquities outside the country, a move that has raised concerns among archaeologists that it could lead to the long-term “export” of rare artifacts, Agence France-Presse reported. The legislation affects five of...

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The World Briefly

February 14, 2023

The Ballooning Counterpunch

China

China accused the United States of flying high-altitude balloons over its airspace without permission since last year, the latest accusation in an ongoing row that began last week when Washington ordered the shooting down of an alleged Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South...

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The World Briefly

February 14, 2023

Poor, Sexy, and Right

Germany

The conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party won elections in the German capital of Berlin over the weekend, in a rerun poll that marked a major defeat for the center-left party of Chancellor Olaf Scholz that had governed the city since 1999, the Financial Times...

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The World Briefly

February 14, 2023

Enemy of My Enemy

Iran

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Tuesday, in a three-day trip aimed at shoring up ties and strengthening cooperation between the two US rivals, the Associated Press reported. The official visit comes months after Raisi and Xi met during...

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