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A Bosnian song about disillusionment with the American Dream becomes a World Cup banger

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina | The opening lyrics couldn’t be plainer: “I am from Bosnia; take me to America.” But by rewriting its classic “USA,” the Bosnian band Dubioza Kolektiv has transformed a song about disillusionment with the American Dream into a viral anthem powering Bosnia-Herzegovina’s own World Cup dreams. On the eve of Friday’s match between […]

6 mins read

World Cup close up: Mexico starts with big win while the US and Canada prepare for openers

Mexico opened the World Cup on Thursday with a dominant 2-0 win over South Africa in front of a boisterous home crowd at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium. On Friday, the United States and Canada both get their opportunity for a fast start in front of their respective home countries. Julián Quiñones scored the first goal […]

7 mins read

US strikes Iran and Tehran fires back. Trump says Iran will ‘pay the price’ for stalled talks

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates | The United States launched airstrikes early Wednesday against Iran, and Tehran fired back at countries in the region. The escalating attacks threatened to derail efforts to end the war, as U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Tehran would “pay the price” for stalled peace negotiations. Trump’s warning came hours after […]

5 mins read

Putin slams Western sanctions as damaging to the global economy

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia | Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that developing countries have gained an increasingly important role in the global economy, while the share of output by Western countries has shrunk. In a speech to the annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin accused the West of undermining the global economy and finances […]

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North Korea unveils a new plant to produce fuel for nuclear weapons

SEOUL, South Korea | North Korea on Thursday unveiled a new facility to produce nuclear bomb fuels, with leader Kim Jong Un announcing plans to bolster the country’s nuclear forces “at an exponential rate.” Some experts still question whether North Korea has functioning nuclear missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland. But the nuclear plant’s […]

7 mins read

Raúl Castro turns 95 as Cuba celebrates enigmatic figure

Raúl Castro turned 95 on Wednesday, a landmark birthday for a man still helping lead one of the last communist countries in the world. His name and face became synonymous with the 1959 revolution led by his brother, Fidel Castro. Decades after the triumphant revolution, Fidel Castro stepped down, and Raúl Castro served as Cuba’s […]

5 mins read

Iran stops talking to mediators over Israel fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon, Iranian reports say

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates | Iran stopped communicating with mediators after Israel threatened to bomb Beirut as it fights the Iranian-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah, two semiofficial Iranian news agencies reported Tuesday. Halting communication likely is a means to further pressure U.S. President Donald Trump over negotiations on the ceasefire, which include trying to loosen Iran’s […]

7 mins read

Rubio is optimistic on eventual Iran nuclear talks despite congressional skepticism

WASHINGTON | Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday he is optimistic about the potential for a resumption in nuclear talks with Iran despite a shaky ceasefire in the war that is looking increasingly in doubt. In his first public testimony since the Iran war began at the end of February, Rubio told the Senate […]

2 mins read

The cheesehead hat is a sunny nod to America’s ‘Hold my beer’ exuberance

Americans long have leavened their powerful global image with goofiness, a cheerful confidence that can deflect international wonder over certain strains of ignorance into a smile. Behold, for example, the cheesehead hat. Made of sofa foam and sunny yellow defiance, the hat was created in the late 1980s in response to the taunting faced by […]

6 mins read

US bombs Iranian military sites and Tehran targets American troops in Kuwait

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates | The United States said Monday that it bombed radar and drone sites in Iran after Tehran shot down an American drone over the weekend. Iran then said it targeted American soldiers in Kuwait with missiles, which the U.S. says it shot down. The nominal ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. […]