Europe

World News

Belarus' Longtime President Faces Unexpected Competition In Upcoming Election

7:09am August 07, 2020

by Lucian Kim

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, in power for 26 years, is facing unprecedented opposition in Sunday's election from a political novice who says she only wants a clean vote.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Italian Wine Windows Open During Pandemic, Bringing Back Bubonic Plague Tradition

5:40am August 07, 2020

Businesses in Italy are beginning to sell wine and other drinks out of small pint-sized holes. The tradition dates back to the 1600s during the bubonic plague pandemic.

People walk in Stockholm on July 27, most without the face masks that have become common on the streets of many other countries as a method of fighting the spread of the coronavirus.

Sweden Records Largest GDP Drop Since 1980, But Outperforms Many Other EU Countries

8:05pm August 06, 2020

by H.J. Mai

The coronavirus pandemic has taken a toll on Sweden's economy. Despite the country's relaxed response to the virus, its gross domestic product recorded the largest quarterly drop in modern history.

Aboubakar Soumahoro speaks at a protest in Rome last month. "If the workers lack dignity and rights, the food they provide is virtually rotten," he says in a new short documentary, The Invisibles.

World News

In Italy, A Migrants' Advocate Fights For The 'Invisibles'

11:01am August 05, 2020

by Sylvia Poggioli

"The reality is that laborers work at the limit of human dignity," Aboubakar Soumahoro tells NPR. He's the subject of a new documentary, The Invisibles, shot at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

Queue Listen Now

Stimulus checks are prepared on May 8, 2008, in Philadelphia. In 2020, stimulus checks again went to many Americans, this time during the pandemic's economic fallout. Some of that money went to thousands of foreign workers not eligible to receive the fund

Foreign Workers Living Overseas Mistakenly Received $1,200 U.S. Stimulus Checks

8:08am August 05, 2020

by Sacha Pfeiffer

Thousands of foreign workers who entered the U.S. on temporary work visas received $1,200 pandemic stimulus checks in error, and many of them are spending the money in their home countries.

Queue Listen Now

Americans Can Travel To Ireland, But Locals May Not Want Them

6:19am August 05, 2020

by Teri Schultz

Americans can now travel to Ireland, although they have to quarantine when they arrive – and while many Irish people say they miss the Americans, they'd prefer they stay at home.

Queue Listen Now

Rafael Nadal had hoped to win his 20th Grand Slam at this year's U.S. Open, which would have tied him for most men's wins in that category.

Rafael Nadal Opts Out Of U.S. Open, Citing Coronavirus Concerns

6:19pm August 04, 2020

by Alana Wise

The tennis star had hoped to win his 20th Grand Slam at this year's meet, which would have tied him for most men's wins in that category.

World News

Parisian Businesses Say Lack Of Tourists Can Feel Frustrating

4:18pm August 04, 2020

by Rebecca Rosman

Every August Parisians leave and the tourists head to the French capital. But this year, the tourism industry is hurting, even as some Parisians enjoy a rare chance to explore their city.

Felix Zeltner lives with his wife, Christina Horsten, and their daughter, Emma, in Long Island City, N.Y. Visiting his native Germany this summer, he was struck by the differences in how the coronavirus has been handled.

'It's A Disaster': German Expats Love U.S. But Not Its Handling Of Coronavirus

1:28pm August 04, 2020

by Sally Herships

Germany has flattened its curve, and unemployment has barely budged. Some Germans living in the U.S. are mystified by how politicized the pandemic has become here.

Thousands of couples have been separated by pandemic-related travel restrictions. Lots of them are unmarried.

Can Love Conquer Travel Bans? Couples Divided By Pandemic Are Rallying To Reunite

1:16pm August 04, 2020

by Joanna Kakissis

Couples discuss how travel restrictions have kept them oceans apart for months. While they lobby governments to allow them to see each other, some have had to delay weddings or even miss a childbirth.

Queue Listen Now