WORLD NEWS

Will Biden Be an Activist President on the World Stage?

Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Dr. Jill Biden arriving at Joint Base Andrews on Tuesday. There’s reason to believe Mr. Biden will be more visible on the global stage than some expect.

Trump’s Last-Minute Moves Against China Complicate Biden’s Agenda

The former president addressing supporters on Wednesday. His administration’s final acts toward China created challenges for the next phase of U.S. foreign policy.

Iraqis Flout Coronavirus Precautions Amid Belief in Immunity

Customers at Dawa restaurant’s Sky Lounge ignoring internationally accepted anti-virus protocols.

U.S. Declaration of China’s ‘Genocide’ in Xinjiang, Explained

China’s leader, Xi Jinping, on a screen in Kashgar, in the Xinjiang region, in 2018.

Trump Bequeaths Biden an Upended World

President Trump with other G7 leaders in Canada in 2018. His “America First” positions galvanized other nations to put themselves first, too.

A Chinese Celebrity Scandal Puts Surrogate Births on Trial

Zheng Shuang, the Chinese actress at the center of the online furor, and her then partner, Zhang Heng, in Shanghai in 2019.

American Woman to Be Deported From Bali After Calling It ‘Queer Friendly’

Kristen Gray, an American living in Bali, was criticized over Twitter posts in which she praised the Indonesian island as “queer friendly” and offered to help foreigners evade travel restrictions to move there.

Report Aims at ‘Reconciling’ France and Algeria, Its Former Colony

French soldiers marching with Algerian prisoners in 1956. The French colonial past in Algeria is a trauma that continues to shape modern France.

Madrid Explosion Leaves at Least 3 Dead

The aftermath of an explosion that tore through a building in central Madrid on Wednesday.

As Political Crisis Meets Pandemic, Italians Wonder, Why?

The leader of Italia Viva, Matteo Renzi, in the backstage of a television show on Sunday. The government began to teeter last week, when he withdrew two ministers.

In Saudi Arabia, Quiet Changes May Ease Tensions With Biden

President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. has called for a broad reassessment of the American-Saudi relationship.

Teenager’s Snow Cave Enters Canadian Survival Lore

Families of Indonesia Plane Crash Victims Begin Their Anguished Goodbyes

Iriyaningsih, center, the mother of the flight attendant Isti Yudha Prastika, cries during her daughter’s funeral in Jakarta, on Saturday.

India Celebrates as Cricket Team Humbles Australia on Its Own Turf

India’s cricket team celebrating victory against Australia in Brisbane on Tuesday. The Indian team had to play without many of its biggest names.

Your Thursday Briefing

Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th President of the United States on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC on January 20, 2020.

Italy says it will sue Pfizer over delays in vaccine delivery.

Preparing a dose of coronavirus vaccine in Rome on Monday. On Friday, Pfizer announced a reduction in planned deliveries to E.U. countries this week.

Zimbabwe's Foreign Minister Dies From Covid-19

Zimbabwe’s minister of foreign affairs and international trade, Sibusiso Busi Moyo, in 2019. 

A Capital Under Siege

FDR spoke from the South Portico of the White House during his final inauguration in 1945.

The departing C.D.C. director discusses his time at the agency.

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is leaving his post on Wednesday.

Stinky strips of paper could, in theory, help drive down virus transmission.

A health worker performing a smell test in La Plata, Argentina, last summer.

Barbara Shelley, England’s leading lady of horror movies, dies at 88.

The actress Barbara Shelley in London in 1957.

Here are steps you can take to protect yourself from the new coronavirus variant.

A bus in Oklahoma City carried a message about coronavirus safety last week.

The Times's 24-Hour Global Relay: New York to Hong Kong and Seoul to London

The London newsroom, shown last year, collaborates with operations in New York and Asia.

Your Wednesday Briefing

President Donald Trump greets the crow as he walks on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One on January 12, 2021 in Washington, DC., for a trip to Alamo, Texas to

Biden at Ceremony for Coronavirus Victims Says 'To Heal, we Must Remember'

Lights shine around the Reflecting Pool between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.

Could a Small Test Screen People for Covid-19?

A health worker in Altos de San Lorenzo, a neighborhood outside Buenos Aires, Argentina, administered a smell test last year.

Canadian officials say changes to Pfizer’s production schedule will not delay vaccinations.

A dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine being prepared at the Michener Institute in Toronto earlier this month.

Navalny, From Jail, Issues Report Describing an Opulent Putin ‘Palace’

Supporters of the opposition leader Alexei A. Navalny outside a Moscow police station  on Monday.

Coronavirus Death Toll in the U.S. Passes 400,000

A woman whose parents died of Covid-19 placed flowers on their grave near Fort Yates, N.D., last month.

Your Wednesday Briefing

A field of flags was planted on the National Mall to represent the thousands of Americans who would normally attend the inauguration.

Vegan Restaurant ONA Gets Michelin Star in France, a First

Claire Vallée, the chef at ONA, which opened five years ago in southwest France.

Violence in Sudan’s Darfur Region Dims Hopes of a Long-Sought Peace

Members of the United Nations and African Union peacekeeping mission at a protest against the mission’s withdrawal, in a displaced people’s camp in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, in late 2020.

U.S. Says China’s Repression of Uighurs Is ‘Genocide’

A facility in 2019 that is believed to be a re-education camp in Xinjiang.

Russia Mulls 'Covid-19 Passports' to Let People with Some Immunity Travel More Easily

People wait in line to receive the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine at the State Department Store GUM in Moscow.

Skylar Mack Apologizes for Breaking Quarantine in Cayman Islands

Theaters aid Britain’s pandemic-struck courts, and not everyone is applauding.

The Birmingham Repertory Theater, closed by Britain’s pandemic restrictions, is serving as a makeshift courthouse.

A Child of China’s Gilded Elite Strikes a Nerve Over Wealth and Privilege

Annabel Yao, the daughter of a Chinese billionaire, received widespread criticism after releasing a music video.

Inside the Capitol Attack

Trump supporters broke through a police barrier outside the Capitol.

Medical tourism is drawing patients, even in a pandemic.

The U.S. border between Arizona and Nogales, Mexico. Even during the pandemic there has been an increase in travel for medical tourism.

Pandemic teacher shortages imperil in-person schooling.

A longstanding teacher shortage in the United States has been exacerbated by the pandemic.

As the pandemic’s toll mounts and his inauguration approaches, Biden takes charge.

A field of flags from U.S. states planted on the National Mall on Monday to represent the thousands of Americans who would normally attend the inauguration.

One day in the pandemic: Portraits of lives cut short.

Jose H. Garcia is one of 2,048 people who died of the coronavirus on Jan. 4. He was a longtime police chief in Roma, Texas.

On Arab Spring Anniversary, Tunisia, Its Birthplace, Erupts

Protesters marching through Tunis last week on the 10th anniversary of the revolution.

Why Medical Tourism Is Drawing Patients, Even in a Pandemic

Despite rising Covid cases, patients are still opting to travel for affordable medical treatment in destinations such as Mexicali, a border city in northern Mexico, above.  

Court in Thailand Sentences Woman to 43 Years for Criticizing Monarchy

The former Thai civil servant identified as Anchan P. arrived at court in Bangkok on Tuesday before her sentencing on lèse-majesté charges.

Your Tuesday Briefing

President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. delivers a speech at the Queen theater in Wilmington, Del., on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021.

U.S. to Impose Sanctions on Ship Involved in Russian Gas Pipeline

The Russian pipe-laying vessel Fortuna.

Bolsonaro Talked Vaccines Down. Now Brazil has Too Few Doses.

Nurses, doctors and other health workers receiving Sinovac’s vaccine in São Paulo on Monday.

China Expands Grad Schools as the Young Seek Jobs

A graduation ceremony at Wuhan University in China last June. With the encouragement of the government, many students will go on to graduate school.

Covid Response Was a Global Series of Failures, W.H.O.-Established Panel Says

Outside a hospital in January 2020 in Wuhan, China, the city where the coronavirus outbreak began.

Mexico's López Obrador, Fond of Trump, Eyes Biden Administration Warily

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico was among the very last global leaders to congratulate Joseph R. Biden Jr. on his election victory.

Your Tuesday Briefing

A health worker receiving the vaccine at a government Hospital in Hyderabad, India, on Monday.

Incest Scandal Sets Off a New #MeToo Movement in France

Olivier Duhamel in 2016. A social media campaign from victims of incest in France has taken off after accusations that Mr. Duhamel abused his stepson.

A Theater Serves as a Courthouse, Provoking Drama Offstage

Before the dispute, the Birmingham Repertory Theater had long been praised for its efforts to engage people of color.

Europe Welcomes Biden, but Won’t Wait for Him

European leaders are optimistic about President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., analysts said, but expect him to be largely tied up with issues at home.

Effort to Climb Skyscraper in Wheelchair Captivates Hong Kong

Lai Chi-wai climbing a Hong Kong skyscraper on Saturday. When gusts grew stronger, Mr. Lai, a former champion rock climber, began to fear for his life and called off the ascent.

Underselling the Vaccine

Preparing the Pfizer vaccine to be administered in Phoenix.

Russian Court Orders Aleksei Navalny Held for 30 Days

After recovering in Germany from a near-fatal poisoning, the Russian opposition leader Aleksei A. Navalny returned to Moscow on Sunday. He was detained at the airport.

Twins with Covid-19 help scientists untangle the disease’s genetic roots.

Kimberly, left, and Kelly Standard, twin sisters, were both hospitalized with coronavirus in late March. But while Kelly was released within a week, Kimberly needed intensive care.