India operates the world’s largest school meal programme, providing food support to around 118 million children, according to global data compiled from the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and national education authorities.

Air travel across the Middle East faced an unprecedented wave of disruptions between February 28 and March 5, with several major airports recording cancellation rates above 90%, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.

Iran fired hundreds of ballistic missiles and more than a thousand drones during the first eight days of the conflict with the United States and its allies, according to military data compiled from Israeli sources.

From South America to Europe and the Caribbean, countries are competing to make citizenship more accessible. This trend reflects rising demand for greater travel freedom, economic opportunity and global security amid shifting geopolitical landscapes.

New demographic data highlights just how concentrated religious identity is in some parts of the world. According to figures compiled by World Population Review and the Pew Research Centre, a small number of countries have populations that are overwhelmingly Christian or Muslim, often exceeding 97–99% adherence to a single faith.

Global population growth is entering a new phase as the United Nations World Population Prospects projects that the world’s population will reach about 10.1 billion people by 2100, with almost all net growth coming from Africa, while Europe and parts of Asia decline.

Policing levels vary widely across the world, and the differences say a lot about how governments approach security, control, and public order.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, is now giving birth to more babies each year than all of Europe plus Russia combined, a milestone that reflects profound global demographic change.

From casual hellos between friends to formal exchanges at family gatherings, cheek kissing remains one of the most recognisable and misunderstood forms of greeting worldwide.

Security used to feel distant for many Europeans because it could only be realised through alliances, treaties, and far-off capitals. That sense of distance is fading as a majority of Europeans now support the idea of a unified armed force.

The Trump administration has announced a sweeping suspension of immigrant visas affecting citizens from 75 countries, marking one of the broadest immigration crackdowns of its tenure.

The world’s oil wealth is highly concentrated as a relatively small group of countries controls the majority of known crude resources, shaping energy markets, geopolitics and long-term economic planning far beyond their borders.

Global demand for vitamins continues to rise, driven by ageing populations, expanding healthcare systems and a growing focus on nutrition and preventative health. New trade data from World’s Top Exports shows which countries are importing the most vitamins by value, and the results highlight clear economic and industrial patterns.

Global trade in vitamins and dietary supplements is increasingly concentrated among a small group of advanced manufacturing economies, with Germany and the United States emerging as the world’s largest exporters by value, according to data from World’s Top Exports.

When Venezuela’s National Electoral Council declared Nicolás Maduro the winner of the July 2024 presidential election, the result did not resolve a long-running crisis of legitimacy.

Travelling in Asia remains far more affordable than in most other regions, with new figures showing that several countries still offer full travel experiences at remarkably low daily costs.

A new ranking of the top 10 supermarket chains in Southeast Asia, based on store count and country presence, highlights how retail dominance in the region is built less on megastores and more on sheer density, convenience and localisation.

Since the 11 September 2001 attacks, US air power has been used repeatedly across multiple regions under both Republican and Democratic administrations. The map summarises where airstrikes, drone strikes or missile attacks were carried out, but the underlying record shows continuity rather than exception.

At the beginning of 2026, Yemen’s war entered a more complicated phase as friction grew between the internationally recognised government and the Southern Transitional Council, which widened its reach across several southern areas.

In some regions, unresolved conflicts are solidifying into prolonged humanitarian emergencies, while in others, long-standing tensions are at risk of flaring up again under political pressure or regional strain.