Many world leaders and international human rights groups condemned Friday's U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade and effectively ending all federal protections on abortion in the United States. Others, including the Vatican's Pontifical Academy for Life, praised it.
The big picture: With Friday's decision, the U.S. became a global outlier on abortion rights, joining just three other countries that have rolled back abortion access since 1994, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights. In the last 25 years, nearly 60 countries have liberalized their abortion laws.
The U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade could have wide-reaching consequences for reproductive rights worldwide, human rights groups and global leaders warned Friday.
The big picture: The U.S. has joined only three other countries — El Salvador, Nicaragua and Poland — that have rolled back abortion rights since 1994, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Driving the news: The world is facing an "unprecedented global hunger crisis," Guterres said, adding that the war in Ukraine has exacerbated "problems that have been brewing for years: climate disruption; the COVID-19 pandemic; the deeply unequal recovery."
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol'selection in March by just 0.7% of the vote highlighted the sharp divisions in Korean society between generations, income levels and, perhaps most starkly, between genders.
Breaking it down: Yoon benefited from deep discontent among young men, winning 59% of men in their 20s vs. just 34% of women in that age group — by far the largest gender gap in any age group.
Toshiba may receive takeover bids that value the Japanese conglomerate at around $22 billion, or a 26% premium to Wednesday's closing value and slightly higher than last year's failed approach from CVC Capital Partners, according to Reuters.
Why it matters: This reflects renewed private equity interest in Japan, after a period of retreat, and also Japan's newfound embrace of private equity after decades of hostility.
SEOUL, South Korea — For the first time on record, polls suggest Koreans now feel more unfavorably toward China than they do toward Japan, a fellow U.S. ally and the country's former colonial ruler.
Why it matters: South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office just six weeks ago, has sent early signals that he intends to mend relations with Japan and take a more critical approach to China — just what the Biden administration wants to hear. But for historical reasons in Japan's case and trade considerations in China's, both shifts will be difficult to execute.
Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed by shots fired by Israeli soldiers on May 11, the UN human rights body said Friday after concluding its independent investigation into the incident.
Driving the news: "All information we have gathered … is consistent with the finding that the shots that killed Abu Akleh ... came from Israeli security forces and not from indiscriminate firing by armed Palestinians," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.
Confidence in President Biden appears to be waning among some of America's closest allies.
By the numbers: A new Pew poll of 17 countries, most of them U.S. allies in Europe and Asia, finds that confidence in Biden to "do the right thing regarding world affairs" fell everywhere but South Korea between 2021 and 2022.
SEOUL, South Korea— Officials and experts in Washington and Seoul agree that North Korea is set to conduct its seventh nuclear test and its first since 2017 — likely quite soon.
The big picture: Kim Jong-un's regime continues to develop its nuclear arsenal and rebuff offers from both the U.S. and South Korea for dialogue or COVID aid.
The Biden administration announced Thursday that it will send Ukraine another $450 million in military aid to help the country fend off Russia's illegal and unprovoked invasion.
Why it matters: The Department of Defense said the new aid package includes four long-range rocket launchers as well as 36,000 artillery rounds.
European Union leaders granted EU candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova on Thursday as they assembled in Brussels for a two-day European Council summit.
Why it matters: The move, which required the unanimous consent of all EU members, is the first step in what could be a long process towards full EU membership. But it is a symbolic victory for Ukraine amid the ongoing war with Russia.
Rescue workers and residents in southeastern Afghanistan are combing through rubble searching for trapped survivors of Wednesday's massive earthquake that officials say left more than 1,000 people dead and 1,600 others injured.
The big picture: Reports and images are only now beginning to emerge from some of the most remote villages and towns affected. In some areas, residents have told local and international media that nearly entire villages have been destroyed.
The leader of the world's largest Hispanic evangelical organization tells Axios that he believes U.S. Latinos are moving away from the Democratic Party as more of them embrace evangelical churches and conservative beliefs.
Why it matters: Latino evangelicals are among the fastest-growing segments within an increasingly powerful voting bloc.
Nike announced Thursday that it plans to permanently close all its businesses in Russia in the coming months.
Driving the news: In March, Nike joined a slew of other global businesses in pulling back its business operations in Russia after the country's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Barbara Leaf, the State Department’s most senior diplomat for the Middle East, hinted at a House subcommittee hearing Wednesday that President Biden’s visit to the region next month could lead to more normalization steps by Arab countries towards Israel.
Why it matters: This would be an achievement for President Biden and show he has continued to help foster progress on the warming of relations between Israel and the Arab world after the Trump administration brokered the Abraham Accords, which led to normalization agreements between Israel and four Arab countries.
The big picture: Russian forces have been trying to take the two key eastern Ukrainian cities in the Luhansk region of the Donbas for weeks. Now the battle is "entering a sort of fearsome climax," Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych said, per Reuters.
Tesla's new plants in Texas and Germany are "losing billions of dollars" as the electric car maker struggles with production due to supply chain disruptions and battery shortages, Elon Musk said in an interview released Wednesday.
What he's saying: "Both Berlin and Austin factories are gigantic money furnaces right now," Musk said in the interview with Tesla Owners of Silicon Valley, an official Tesla-recognized club, recorded on May 31. "It's really like a giant roaring sound, which is the sound of money on fire."