Vatican City — Pope Francis in his traditional Christmas message on Wednesday urged “all people of all nations” to find courage during this Holy Year “to silence the sounds of arms…

Moscow — A Russian cargo ship called Ursa Major that sank in the Mediterranean Sea was the victim of “an act of terrorism,” state news agency RIA cited the vessel’s owner…

Moscow — A Russian-born U.S. citizen already imprisoned in Russia on a bribery conviction has been handed a second 15-year jail term for espionage, Russian news agencies reported Tuesday. A Moscow…

SARAJEVO — Lawmakers in Bosnia’s Serb Republic regional parliament on Wednesday ordered Serb representatives in state institutions to block decision-making and reform laws needed for the Balkan country’s integration into the…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that Russian forces attacked his country with more than 70 missiles and that targets included Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Zelenskyy said Ukrainian air defenses shot…

Paris — France’s president and prime minister managed to form a new government just in time for the holidays. Now comes the hard part.  Crushing debt, intensifying pressure from the nationalist…

The Hague, Netherlands — An Amsterdam district court on Tuesday sentenced five men to up to six months in prison for violence that erupted around a UEFA Europa League football match…

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis kicked off the 2025 Holy Year on Tuesday, inaugurating a celebration of the Catholic Church that is expected to draw some 32 million pilgrims to Rome…

Prague — The list of sacrifices that Alesya Marokhovskaya has made to keep reporting on Russia from exile runs long: her home, her country, family, friends, culture, safety. This month alone,…

Istanbul — An explosion at an ammunition factory in northwest Turkey left 11 dead and five injured Tuesday morning. The blast occurred in Balikesir province, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency….

MOSCOW — An engine room explosion sank a Russian cargo ship in the Mediterranean Sea between Spain and Algeria and two of its crew are missing, the Russian Foreign Ministry said…

Ukraine’s military said Tuesday it shot down 36 of the 60 drones that Russian forces deployed in overnight attacks. The intercepts took place in the Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Kyiv,…

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Tuesday formally inaugurates the 2025 Holy Year, reviving an ancient church tradition encouraging the faithful to make pilgrimages to Rome, amid new security fears following…

Russia recently expanded punishment against independent journalists and activists that the Kremlin designated as “foreign agents,” with Moscow charging a prominent exiled reporter, Tatyana Felgengauer, on criminal counts in absentia….

WASHINGTON — A journalist jailed in Azerbaijan for nearly seven months has said he believes his arrest is linked to his reporting. Farid Mehralizada, an economist and journalist with VOA’s sister…

Orleans, France — Nabil Attar sprinkles sesame and pomegranate over creamy mutabal, a roasted eggplant dip from his native Syria — one of his mother’s many recipes now featured at his…

PARIS — France unveiled a new government on Monday, composed of former ministers and senior civil servants that Prime Minister Francois Bayrou will hope can oversee the passage of a 2025…

Berlin — Germany searched for answers on Monday on possible security lapses after a man drove his car into a Christmas market, killing at least five people and casting a renewed…

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday there are indications that North Korea is preparing to send more troops and weapons to support Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. The…

BUCHAREST — Romania’s outgoing president Klaus Iohannis is expected Monday to designate leftist Social Democrat Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu to form a new government after three pro-European parties agreed to the…

Russian forces captured two villages in Ukraine, one in Kharkiv region in the northeast and one in eastern Donetsk region, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday. Donetsk region is…

Madrid — For weeks, Spaniards had anticipated the arrival of “El Gordo” or “The Fat One.” But unlike Santa Claus, El Gordo arrived three days before Christmas, before noon on Sunday….

Tirana, Albania — Albania’s prime minister said Sunday the ban on TikTok his government announced a day earlier was “not a rushed reaction to a single incident.” Edi Rama said Saturday…

Moscow — Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks at the Kremlin on Sunday with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, one of the few European leaders he has stayed friendly with since…

Belgrade — Thousands protested Sunday in Serbia’s capital Belgrade to demand that leaders take responsibility for the collapse of a train station roof that killed 15 people last month. For over…