Dried grass in Greenwich Park, London, Aug. 11 during the UK's hottest summer on record. Two-thirds of England fell into drought, with water restrictions affecting 27 million people. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe hide caption
October 21, 2026 • As climate change fuels hotter summers, some Britons are moving north in search of cooler weather. Could a similar shift be on the horizon in the United States?
Rescuers with a search dog look for victims among the rubble of a house after a Russian air attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. Andrii Marienko/AP hide caption
October 21, 2026 • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the change happened after talks with his American counterparts, including a phone call with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
A woman walks past burned-out cars after a quiet night Monday under curfew, the first since weekend protests over the cost of living turned into rioting and looting across France, in Paris, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. Christophe Ena/AP hide caption
October 21, 2026 • Fresh curfews were being imposed across the city centers of Paris and Lyon on Tuesday after the first quiet night since France's most destructive rioting in years.
A car burns at Place de La Republique during a protest against rising living costs in Paris on Saturday. Emma Da Silva/AP hide caption
October 17, 2026 • Police arrested at least 1,800 people across France after violent groups clashed with officers and looted shops during nationwide demonstrations that drew hundreds of thousands of people.
Pope Leo XIV, followed by surgeon Stefano Margaritora, leaves Rome's Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic on Saturday. Andrew Medichini/AP hide caption
October 17, 2026 • The Pope left Rome's Gemelli Hospital Saturday, days after surgery for lung cancer removed the lower lobe of his right lung. He is currently scheduled to travel to Latin America in November.
A policeman helps an elderly woman to walk out from a residential building damaged by a Russian airstrike in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, on Saturday. Kateryna Klochko/AP hide caption
October 17, 2026 • Zelenskyy described the move as unfortunate, adding it would encourage Russia to continue its assault. Trump told Congress that the pause was in the national interest but gave no further details.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks with NPR in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday. Svet Jacqueline for NPR hide caption
October 16, 2026 • Ukraine finds itself in a difficult situation. It has endured increased airstrikes from Russia, especially in the capital Kyiv.
Sally Rooney's books are displayed for sale at a bookshop in London, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. Kin Cheung/AP hide caption
October 16, 2026 • The Irish author said her books can no longer be sold in the UK after she pledged the royalties to a banned pro-Palestinian group.
Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham says goodbye to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after their meeting at 10 Downing Street in London, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. Alberto Pezzali/AP hide caption
October 15, 2026 • Ukrainian drones attacked a refinery in Russia's Ryazan region early Thursday, hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a brief truce spurned by Moscow was over.
August Hanning, former president of the German Federal Intelligence Service, arrives at the parliament building to testify in front of a committee investigating a U.S. spying scandal in Berlin, Oct. 2, 2015. German authorities arrested Hanning last week, accused of treasonous espionage. Michael Kappeler/picture alliance via Getty Images hide caption
October 14, 2026 • The arrest last week of Germany’s former intelligence head, August Hanning, has left the country in shock. He’s suspected of sharing state secrets with other governments. That’s also worrying Western agencies like the CIA, which share intel with Germany.
October 13, 2026 • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sat down for an interview with NPR at a time of renewed tensions with the White House.
Recovered paintings "Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano", right, and "Young Woman at the Well," stolen from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer are on display at the Interdisciplinary Centre for the Conservation and Restoration of Heritage in Marseille, France, Monday Oct. 12, 2026. Philippe Magoni/AP hide caption
October 13, 2026 • DNA left on a protective painting cover helped investigators recover two stolen Renoirs and uncover what they suspected were preparations for another art heist, a French prosecutor said Monday.
The skull and bones of a female shaman buried in Bad Dürrenberg 9000 years ago lie on a table in the Saxony-Anhalt State Office for Archaeology. The find was recovered in the 1930s and has already been scientifically processed once. Now scientists have re-examined the site. Sebastian Willnow/picture alliance via Getty Images hide caption
October 12, 2026 • In this encore episode, we learn about our evolving understanding of an ancient find. When a 9,000 year-old grave of a shaman was discovered in 1930s Germany, the discovery was quickly politicized to support Nazi propaganda. But new analysis shows those assumptions were all wrong.
A rescue worker puts out a fire at residential houses destroyed in a Russian strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. Andrii Marienko/AP hide caption
October 12, 2026 • Trump said he had brokered a cease-fire to protect energy infrastructure in Russia and Ukraine. But Ukrainian officials say bombs kept falling overnight on gas facilities, wounding 33 people.
FILE - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, on Sept. 23, 2026. Seth Wenig/AP hide caption
October 8, 2026 • The South Korean announcement on Thursday came days after its President Lee Jae Myung threatened unspecified punitive steps if Ukraine refuses to apologize over the revelation.
Locals and rescuers clear the rubble of a residential building destroyed in a Russian missile strike on Pryluky, Ukraine, Wednesday. Evgeniy Maloletka/AP hide caption
October 8, 2026 • Russia and Ukraine are locked in a long-range aerial war while their armies remain largely deadlocked on the front line, more than 4 1/2 years since Moscow's full-scale invasion.
Protesters gather after the reported death of María del Carmen Abascal, the 87-year-old woman whose eviction sparked nationwide protests, in Puerta del Sol square in Madrid, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. Bernat Armangue/AP hide caption
October 8, 2026 • María del Carmen Abascal, the 87-year-old woman whose eviction from her Madrid home sparked nationwide protests across Spain and unleashed a political crisis, died on Wednesday while hospitalized.
Riot police use a water cannon as they face students during a protest against under-resourced schools, in Rennes, western France, Tuesday. Jeremias Gonzalez/AP hide caption
October 6, 2026 • More than a quarter of a million people rallied nationwide to support school students demanding more education funding, according to government figures, with thousands of arrests.
August Hanning, the former president of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND), appears as a witness before the NSA investigative committee at the German parliament Bundestag in Berlin on Oct. 1, 2015. Michael Kappeler/DPA via AP hide caption
October 6, 2026 • A former head of Germany 's foreign intelligence service was arrested on suspicion that he had passed state secrets to a foreign intelligence service, the federal prosecutor's office said.
Police officers look at the damage following a Russian drone strike on the Northern Bridge in Kyiv on October 4, 2026 Mykola Tymchenko/AFP via Getty hide caption
October 5, 2026 • Russia's jet-powered drones are targeting bridges in the Ukrainian capital, an escalation after more than a month of day-and-night strikes that have left Kyiv feeling almost like a frontline city.
FILE - Britain's Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP hide caption
October 5, 2026 • A judicial spokesperson confirmed that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor had filed a claim with the High Court in London and a hearing would take place Thursday.
People seen through a window inside a bar in La Cabrera, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, watch a televised speech by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez from La Moncloa Palace announcing national elections, Monday, Oct. 5, 2026. Bernat Armangue/AP hide caption
October 5, 2026 • Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced early elections Monday after his government suffered a bruising legislative defeat last week on emergency measures related to the country's housing crisis.
German Chancellor and leader of Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union Friedrich Merz leaves after a press conference one day after state elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, at the CDU's headquarters in Berlin on Sept. 21. JENS SCHLUETER/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
October 2, 2026 • Centrist politicians are soul-searching after electoral gains by the far right and the far left. Today's weak coalitions, political fragmentation and dire economy echo a past that led to the rise of fascism.
George Major, known as the Pearly King of Peckham, wears his blinged-out suit in 2024. He died in August at age 88. Tony Kershaw/Getty Images hide caption
October 1, 2026 • In mother-of-pearl suits, the Pearly Kings used to canvass East London for charity. The tradition of the Pearly Kings stretches back to the 1800s, when this area of the city was gritty and poor, and dressing up gave working-class people dignity. The most famous of the Pearly Kings, George Major, died in August at age 88. Major’s portrait still greets arrivals at Heathrow Airport, and he’s said to be the inspiration for an iconic character in a British sit-com.
