An Israeli delegation arrived in Saudi Arabia on Sunday to attend a U.N. conference on world heritage sites, in the first public visit by government officials to the kingdom, an Israeli official said.  The delegation is led by the head of Israel’s Antiquities Authority and includes diplomats, the official said. …

The Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival was awarded Saturday to a hilarious and shockingly explicit reworking of Frankenstein, Poor Things, starring Emma Stone as a sex-mad reanimated corpse. An ongoing Hollywood strike may have robbed Venice of its usual bevy of stars, but its strong selection showed the …

Budget for new public buildings includes allotment for original artworks …

Since its founding, the United States has incorporated art into its federal buildings. These days, one-half of one percent of a new building’s budget usually goes to funding original art designed specifically for that structure. As VOA’s Dora Mekouar reports, it’s a tradition that helps preserve American culture for future …

Rescuers from across Europe rushed to a cave in Turkey on Thursday, launching an operation to save an American researcher who became trapped almost 1,000 meters below the cave’s entrance after suffering stomach bleeding. Experienced caver Mark Dickey, 40, suddenly became ill during an expedition with a handful of others, …

It has been nearly five months since civil war erupted in Sudan. The U.N. refugee agency estimates that by year’s end, 1.8 million people will have fled to neighboring countries. VOA’s Nairobi Bureau Chief Mariama Diallo reports on a group of Sudanese artists who came together recently to deal with …

Thousands of Burning Man attendees readied to make their “exodus” on Monday as the counter-culture arts festival in the Nevada desert ends in a sea of drying mud instead of a party around its flaming effigy namesake, Reuters reported. Rain over the weekend turned the once hard-packed ground to pudding. One …

Decommissioned in 1945, the Old City Hall Station remains the ‘jewel in the crown’ for NY transit system …

Spain’s men’s national team Monday denounced the “unacceptable behavior” of the country’s suspended football chief Luis Rubiales over his infamous World Cup kiss. Rubiales, 46, has defied expectations and refused to resign as president of the Spanish football federation (RFEF) after forcibly kissing Jenni Hermoso on the lips following Spain’s …

A guitar expert and two journalists have launched a global hunt for a missing bass guitar owned by Paul McCartney, bidding to solve what they brand “the greatest mystery in rock and roll.” The trio of lifelong Beatles fans are searching for McCartney’s original Höfner bass — last seen in London …

Burning Man, the annual weeklong festival in Nevada closed its entrance Saturday due to flooding from recent storms. Some of the thousands of festivalgoers are being warned to shelter in place. Despite the weather, the event drew artists from around the world, including six Chinese artists who spoke with Genia …

The third installment in the Denzel Washington-led “Equalizer” franchise topped the domestic box office this weekend with $34.5 million according to studio estimates Sunday. By the end of the Monday holiday, Sony expects that total will rise to $42 million. Labor Day signals the end of Hollywood’s summer movie season, …

The first production co-directed by Iranian and Israeli filmmakers had to be shot in secret to prevent possible interference by Tehran, directors Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Guy Nattiv told Reuters Sunday. “Tatami,” a tense thriller centered on a world judo championship, got its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival …

The changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace may draw tourists from far and wide, but Sunday visitors to the landmark were treated to a different sort of spectacle: a parade of corgis dressed up in crowns, tiaras and royal outfits. Around 20 royal fans and their pet corgis gathered …

It seemed wistfully appropriate, somehow, that news of Jimmy Buffett’s death emerged at the beginning of the Labor Day weekend, the demarcation point of every American summer’s symbolic end. Because for so many, the 76-year-old Buffett embodied something they held onto ever so tightly as the world grew ever more …

The entrance to the Burning Man counterculture festival in the Nevada desert was closed and attendees were urged to shelter in place Saturday as flooding from storms swept through the area. The entrance will be closed for the remainder of the event, which began Aug. 27 and was scheduled to …

Singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, who popularized beach bum soft rock with the escapist Caribbean-flavored song Margaritaville and turned that celebration of loafing into an empire of restaurants, resorts and frozen concoctions, has died. He was 76. “Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, …

An art exhibition in Rockville, Maryland, pays tribute to women in Iran who have been killed for speaking out against injustice. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more. …

An original animated series from Africa has made its debut on the Netflix streaming platform. The series, dubbed “Supa Team 4,” was written by a young Zambian and takes place in a futuristic version of Zambia’s capital, Lusaka. Kathy Short reports from Lusaka. VOA footage by Richard Kille. …

Hōkūle’a, a traditional Polynesian deep-sea canoe, is on a four-year-long voyage around the Pacific Ocean to raise awareness about climate change. During its stop in the U.S. state of Washington, local Native American tribes welcomed members of the crew. Natasha Mozgovaya has the story from Seattle. (Camera: Natasha Mozgovaya; Produced …

Leading officials within the Spanish Football Federation asked suspended president Luis Rubiales to resign Monday because of his behavior at the Women’s World Cup, including kissing a player on the lips after Spain won the championship match. The heads of the regional bodies that make up the federation (RFEF) made …

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian to win a gold medal at the World Athletics Championships when he nipped Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem in the men’s javelin on Sunday with an 88.17-meter effort in the final. Chopra won Olympic gold in Tokyo but managed only a silver at the …

The Venice Film Festival celebrates its 80th edition next week, but a Hollywood strike means many stars may be missing, leaving the spotlight to controversial directors like Roman Polanski and Woody Allen.     The festival, which kicks off on Wednesday, has become a key launchpad for Oscar campaigns, helped by glamorous …

Yaroslava Mahuchikh, the best high jumper in the war-torn country of Ukraine, won a gold medal Sunday night to bring an emotional close to the track and field world championships.  The very last person competing in the final event of the nine-day meet, Mahuchikh cleared 2.01 meters (6 feet, 7 …

  Sony Pictures reported that “Gran Turismo” opened with $17.3 million over the weekend, while Warner Bros. estimated that “Barbie,” in its sixth week of release, took in $17.1 million. Those totals could change when final ticket sales are counted Monday. Due to a few wrinkles, it’s all but certain …