‘Situation Could Not Be More Dire,’ Syrians In Besieged City Say
From inside the Syrian city of Homs, where activists say several hundred people have been killed by government forces in the past week and troops are preparing for what could be a “ground offensive” in coming days, residents say the “situation could not be more dire,” NPR’s Kelly McEvers reports. Speaking to Morning Edition co-host [...]
Fighting Fit, Venezuela’s Chavez Roars Back
Last year was a tough one for Venezuela’s firebrand leftist president, Hugo Chavez, who has frequently taunted the United States during his 13 years in power. In June, a cancerous tumor was discovered in Chavez’s abdomen, forcing him to dramatically scale back public appearances as he sought treatment in Cuba. Some predicted that the end [...]
More Than Miso: Food Writer In Japan Records Struggling Region’s Cuisine
If there was a Julia Child of Japanese cooking – a witty and passionate interpreter of the cuisine – Elizabeth Andoh would fit the bill nicely. As an exchange student back in the 1960s, Andoh came to Japan from New York to pursue anthropology. She fell in love, but not just with a local businessman. [...]
Global Trends Expected To Dominate Fashion Week
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week kicks off Thursday in New York City, where designers will be showing off their fall collections. Robin Givhan, special correspondent for style and culture at Newsweek and The Daily Beast, is in New York to cover the shows. She tells NPR’s Michel Martin that she goes into each Fashion Week with an [...]
Wael Ghonim: Creating A ‘Revolution 2.0′ In Egypt
The protests that led to the Egyptian revolution last year were organized in part by an anonymous Facebook page administrator. When the police found out who he was, they arrested and interrogated him. After his release, Wael Ghonim became the public face of the Egyptian revolution. In Revolution 2.0, Ghonim traces the planning that took [...]
Does Russia Have A Cogent Middle East Strategy?
Russia’s support for Syrian President Bashar Assad has put it at odds with other countries in the Arab world. Russia drew a lot of flack from Arab countries and the West when it vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution aimed at pressuring Assad to stop his crackdown on protesters. That has some analysts in Russia [...]
China Laces Up Its Chuck Taylors
Stroll along a street in downtown Shanghai for very long and you’re likely to run into someone wearing Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars. One recent afternoon a woman named Xu Jing, was heading back from lunch to her job at an ad company in a pair of raspberry-colored Chuck Taylors. “They have a young image, [...]
Israel Isn’t Going To Attack Us, Iran’s U.N. Ambassador Says
Asked this afternoon if he thinks Israel will attack his nation anytime soon in a bid to destroy work Iran is doing on nuclear technology, the Persian nation’s ambassador to the United Nations told NPR, “I don’t think that is going to happen.” “Iran is so strong,” said Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee, and “the consequences would [...]
China’s Demolition Derby Turns History Into Rubble
Down a quiet Beijing alleyway on a recent day, as the winter wind whistles, two men stand guard over a pile of bricks hidden behind a corrugated iron fence. The pile of rubble was once the home of the man known as the father of modern Chinese architecture, Liang Sicheng. The Orwellian reason for its [...]
In Restive Syrian City, Signs Of Sectarian Violence
Hundreds of people have died from tank, mortars and rocket fire in the Syrian city of Homs, the target of bombardment by government forces for the fifth day in a row. And activists say three families, including women and children, were stabbed or shot at close range just outside their houses Tuesday. Activists in Homs [...]













