Comet Borisov is hurtling toward our sun, on track for its nearest approach on Dec. 8. But this isn’t an ordinary comet. Borisov hails from another star system. And it’s only the second time scientists have observed such an interstellar visitor. The first was a peculiar asteroid dubbed
Less than a decade after its popular revolution transformed Tunisia from a closed dictatorship to a hub of democracy and political activism, the country is emerging as a center for LGBTQ rights advocacy in the region. The first openly gay presidential candidate in the Arab world vied for votes
Ever since losing its original purpose in 1991 – the collective defense of the West against Soviet aggression – NATO has somehow survived as a military alliance. At a 70th anniversary summit this week, this club of democracies showed why. Despite serious squabbles and huffy encounters, its
For Johannesburg, a scrappy gold mining camp that grew into a metropolis of millions, skyscrapers have long been a way of announcing that it too belongs among the world’s powers. It is no coincidence then, that Africa’s tallest tower – and a new one vying for that title – both took
New York A no-name entrant at this month’s New York City Marathon – literally, he didn’t even qualify to have his name printed on his bib –Girma Bekele Gebre crashed the elite field and finished third in the largest 26.2-mile race in the world. A week later, the Ethiopian
LONDON UK counterterrorism police on Saturday searched for clues into how a man imprisoned for terrorism offenses before his release last year managed to stab several people before being tackled by bystanders and shot dead by officers on London Bridge. Two people were killed and three wounded.
Magazine changes I had to write in to say that as I was looking through the Oct. 21 Monitor Weekly, I noticed the double-page “Points of Progress” with the world map! I love it. Thank you. In that issue, there was also a longer crossword and no sudoku puzzle; I was glad to see sudoku […]
BAGHDAD Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi announced his resignation on Friday after the country’s top Shi’ite Muslim cleric urged lawmakers to reconsider their support for a government rocked by weeks of deadly anti-establishment unrest. The move was the latest twist in an
Latin America More women are entering the workforce across Latin America. New data from the United Nations shows an 11% increase of women working in the region over the past 30 years. Despite this rise, however, the report highlights women’s earnings remain on average 17% below those of men
Anderson Jones Sr. had lived through floods before, but he says, “2019 outdid all of them.” More than half a million acres of land in Mississippi went underwater in late February, and remained submerged for more than six months. Two people drowned, hundreds of homes were affected, and about
As I was reading this week’s cover story – not able to put it down, more like – I came to the part I liked most of all. The gratitude. The article is about the people who save Thanksgiving – the plumbers who unstick pipes, the hotline helpers who answer our panicked cooking questions. And […]
Chicago Many know the violent repute of parts of this city, the shootings, gangs, forgotten main streets, and residential blocks plagued with boarded-up houses and apartment buildings. Chicago Lawn on the city’s South Side was once all that; its streets were littered with abandoned homes,
The view from Russia Regarding “Who is Putin? Even to Russians, a mystery (audio)” in the Oct. 23 Monitor Daily: To begin with, no Kremlin ruler is a mystery to us, as in our daily affairs we go by a Russian proverb: “God is high above, and the czar is far away.” Even when our […]
Two weeks of public hearings in the House impeachment inquiry were an attempt to present a coherent story about a complicated situation: irregularities in the conduct of American foreign relations with Ukraine, a nation still struggling with the effects of domination as part of the former
On a recent Saturday in Harare, outside Zimbabwe’s largest hospital, the parking lots are empty. Inside, operations run with a skeleton staff, and most arrivals are turned away – or find their own way in the hospital’s ghostly wards. Since early September, hundreds of young doctors
San Francisco Google is making it harder for political advertisers to target specific types of people. The company said that as of January, advertisers will only be able to target U.S. political ads based on broad categories such as gender, age, and postal code. Currently, ads can be tailored
WASHINGTON – A Trump-appointed ambassador acknowledges there was a quid pro quo and then seemingly undercut his own testimony. Both sides are claiming victory after US Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland’s testimony in Wednesday’s impeachment inquiry hearings.
New York Iyleah Hernandez was slightly hesitant last year when a Muslim student leader asked her to speak at the next interfaith coffeehouse on campus. A self-described agnostic at the time, Ms. Hernandez wasn’t sure what she’d have to say to interfaith discussion group attendees at Dominican
Indianapolis Thousands of teachers in Indiana are planning to pack the state Capitol on Tuesday to voice their frustration over low salaries and evaluation policies, forcing half the state’s school districts to cancel classes for the day. The Indiana State Teachers Association said it
Hong Kong As night fell in Hong Kong, police tightened a siege Monday at a university campus as hundreds of anti-government protesters trapped inside sought to escape. Huge crowds of supporters advanced on foot toward the police from outside the cordon to try to disrupt the police operation,