BlueWorld.org is a world geography web site for people who want to know more about the regions and countries that make up our world. It was designed to help researchers, students, and laypersons find information and news from the many nations of our world, quickly, easily, and in one place. Use the menus above to get started.
The site is still a work in progress, so expect new countries to be added over time.
World News Headlines
- Israel carries out large wave of air strikes across Lebanon
on April 8, 2026Attacks hit the southern suburbs of Beirut, southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley hours after a US-Iran ceasefire was announced.
- Iran Strait of Hormuz warning adds to shipping uncertainty
on April 8, 2026Only a few vessels have crossed the strait since the US-Iran ceasefire deal, according to BBC Verify analysis.
- Watch: Fire damages roof of Rio's Olympic velodrome
on April 8, 2026Around 80 firefighters and 20 fire trucks tackled the blaze, the state's military fire department said, adding that no one was hurt.
- Oil prices plunge and shares jump on US-Iran ceasefire plan
on April 8, 2026Crude prices tumbled by more than 15% on the conditional pause but remain far higher than before the war.
- Germany suspends military approval for long stays abroad for men under 45
on April 8, 2026The requirement to obtain permission had gone largely unnoticed until a German newspaper reported on it.
- BTS turned millions on to K-pop. But now it's caught between Korea and the world
on April 8, 2026It boils down to a single, loaded question: Is BTS straying from K-pop in trying to woo the world?
- Nigeria begins mass trial of 500 terrorism suspects
on April 8, 2026Very few people are ever prosecuted following terror attacks with suspects often held without trial.
- What we know about the two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran
on April 8, 2026The provisional truce comes more than a month after the US and Israel launched coordinated attacks on Iran.
- Cameroon 'military contractors' killed in Russia-Ukraine war - BBC confirms leaked message
on April 8, 2026The government usually refrains from commenting on the participation of its citizens in the conflict.
- Greece to ban social media for under-15s from next year
on April 8, 2026It follows similar moves in other European countries, including France and Spain.
- Man fined after breaking into viral hippo Moo Deng's enclosure
on April 8, 2026The director of the Thai zoo where Moo Deng lives said security would be upped after the incident.
- Watch: When will fuel prices go down?
on April 8, 2026The BBC's Nick Marsh takes a look at whether fuel costs will get cheaper now the US and Iran have agreed a ceasefire.
- Madagascar declares state of emergency over severe fuel shortages linked to Iran war
on April 8, 2026The presidency says it is taking action as it fears fuel shortages could lead to public disorder.
- Co-founder of Jalisco New Generation drug cartel pleads guilty
on April 8, 2026Érick Valencia Salazar was among a group of 29 alleged drug lords extradited to the US from Mexico.
- How Pakistan helped secure a fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran
on April 8, 2026Pakistan has a historic relationship with Iran, but an agreement was far from certain, writes the BBC’s Caroline Davies
- Iran ceasefire deal gives Trump a way out of war - but at a high cost
on April 8, 2026The path to the two-week ceasefire with Iran may have fundamentally altered the way the rest of the world views the US.
- Trump-backed Republican Clay Fuller wins election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene
on April 8, 2026He will serve out the rest of Marjorie Taylor Greene's term, which ends in January 2027.
- Top Australian soldier charged with war crimes to remain in jail on remand
on April 8, 2026Ben Roberts-Smith faces five charges of the war crime of murder, which has a penalty of life in prison.
- US journalist Shelly Kittleson released after kidnap in Iraq, officials say
on April 8, 2026US officials say they are now "working to support her safe departure from Iraq".
- Plan to scrap presidential elections puts Zimbabweans at loggerheads
on April 7, 2026The ruling party has unveiled a draft law that strips voters of the chance to elect the president.
- The US refinery now processing Venezuelan oil
on April 7, 2026Chevron is now importing 250,000 barrels of crude per day from Venezuela.
- Newlywed wife of US soldier freed by ICE after detention at military base
on April 7, 2026Annie Ramos, an undocumented immigrant who came to the US as a toddler, had gone to the base to complete paperwork so the couple could move in together.
- Indian migrant workers hit by cooking gas shortages are leaving cities
on April 7, 2026Migrant workers say they are struggling to access cooking gas cylinders as the Iran war squeezes supplies.
- Wireless Festival cancelled after Kanye West blocked from coming to UK
on April 7, 2026West was due to headline the festival in July but drew criticism over past antisemitic comments.
- Iranians form human chains at bridges and power plants
on April 7, 2026Tehran had urged people to gather outside potential US and Israeli targets after Donald Trump threatened to attack civilian infrastructure.
- French couple leave Iran after more than three years in jail
on April 7, 2026Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris are on their way home after being allowed to leave the country, the French president says.
- JD Vance backs Orbán's re-election bid in Budapest visit and hits out at EU
on April 7, 2026US Vice-President JD Vance intervenes in the campaign to give Orbán a ringing endorsement in Budapest.
- Has Artemis II shown we can land on the Moon again?
on April 7, 2026The Artemis II mission has been near flawless to date, but has the test flight shown Nasa is ready to send humans to the lunar surface?
- One gunman killed and two injured in shooting at Israeli consulate in Istanbul
on April 7, 2026No Israeli diplomats are currently in Turkey and the Istanbul consulate has been empty for the past two-and-a-half years.
- Mum of twins who says home was bombed in Lebanon speaks to BBC
on April 7, 2026More than one million people in Lebanon have been displaced since the start of the war as Israel expands its ground operation there.