Culture
Latest stories
Israel Appoints Its First Female Sharia Judge

Israel appointed its first female judge in its Muslim sharia court system on Tuesday, officials said, a move hailed as historic.

W140 Full Story
Ivanka Forced to Defend Trump at Women's Summit

Ivanka Trump, making her overseas debut as the U.S. "First Daughter" at a women's summit in Berlin on Tuesday, was forced to defend her father's attitude towards women.

W140 Full Story
Volunteers Search Rubble to Save Mosul University

Leaning on his crutch, Nizar picks through the rubble where the main building of Mosul University used to be, looking for whatever administrative documents can still be salvaged.

He is part of a unit of four volunteers working relentlessly to bring the university back to life three months after the damage it suffered during an Iraqi offensive against the Islamic State group.

W140 Full Story
From Aspiring Stylist to Jihadist Widow: One Woman's Syria Story

Islam Maytat thought marrying an Afghan-British businessman was her ticket to a new life as a fashionista in London. Instead she became a widow living under jihadist rule in Syria.

W140 Full Story
War-Torn Afghanistan Sets Up Tourism Ministry

The president of war-torn Afghanistan is creating a tourism ministry in a bid to attract visitors to the country endowed with stunning landscapes and archaeological sites, but wracked by nearly four decades of conflict.

W140 Full Story
French Conductor Leads Tehran Orchestra in Sign of Growing Ties

Growing cultural ties between Iran and Europe were on display on Wednesday night as a French-Iranian conductor became one of the first Westerners to lead the Tehran Symphony Orchestra since the revolution.

W140 Full Story
Facing Death for Being Gay, Men Flee Russia's Chechnya

Ilya looks tired and drawn. After being beaten and tortured by men in military uniform in Russia's Chechnya region, he fled to Moscow but still fears for his life -- because he is gay.

W140 Full Story
Migrant Rescuers, Island Mayor Win UNESCO Peace Prize

UNESCO awarded its prestigious peace prize on Wednesday to migrant rescue association SOS Mediterranee and the mayor of Lampedusa, the tiny Italian island on the frontline of the refugee crisis. 

W140 Full Story
Most Teens 'Relatively' Happy, OECD Finds

Despite the danger of excessive internet use and the threat of bullying, most teenagers around the world are "relatively" happy with their lot, a major OECD survey showed Wednesday.

W140 Full Story
Indian Politicians to Face Trial over Mosque Demolition

Three senior members of India's ruling Hindu nationalist party including a cabinet minister should face trial over the demolition of a mosque a quarter of a century ago, the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday.

W140 Full Story