Search results for

President Obama announced Tuesday his decision to aggressively increase the presence of U.S. troops on the ground in Afghanistan to 30,000. He also outlined an equally tight timeline for their withdrawal by July 2011. Some say the plan is the most consequential decision of his presidency to-date. Ashraf Haidari, a political counselor from the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington, D.C., and Afghan journalist Najib Sharifi are joined by former U.S. Army Captain Benjamin Tupper to discuss the heavy implications of the recent announcement and whether they agree with President Obama's assessment of the situation.

Hurricane Gustav pummeled Cuba last week before the storm made landfall in the U.S. Now, Hurricane Ike is sweeping across the island, days after Cuba rejected storm aid from the U.S. Michael Voss, a Cuba-based journalist for the BBC, and NPR's Tom Gjelten, offer an update on Cuba and the political implications of the storm.

Plenty of Americans consider themselves to be unaffiliated from any religious institution. Yet for some, including Perry Bacon, the pull to a community like a church remains strong.

The year comes to an explosive end in the Middle East. Israel is now in its fifth day of air attacks on Gaza, rejecting a recent ceasefire proposal. The conflict is among the deadliest in recent history. Radio hosts Ray Hanania and Thom Hartmann describe how the fighting has their listeners speaking out.

When NPR was offered the chance to interview Martin Sheen and Melissa Fitzgerald about The West Wing, I dashed through the newsroom with an energy to rival the show's iconic walk and talks.

A Denmark newspaper's publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad has continued to spark protests, despite the government's efforts to contain Muslim anger. Several thousand people rallied in Pakistan Tuesday, burning effigies of Denmark's prime minister.

The voter turnout for Democratic caucuses in Washington is record-breaking. The race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama is extremely tight, and Washington offers the candidates the biggest delegate prize of the contests: 78 pledged delegates are at stake.

After losing Brazil's election, President Bolsonaro has ended his silence. Still, he has not spoken about his election loss.

The coup in Turkey failed but the country is far from stable. The president accuses a religious leader in the U.S. of involvement. Al Jazeera's Abderrahim Foukara talks about the next steps in Turkey.

A funeral service is scheduled Saturday for Walter Scott, the black man killed by a white police officer in North Charleston, S.C.. NPR's Tamara Keith speaks with correspondent Martin Kaste.