Not even a pandemic, wars or autocrats could prevent our correspondents from seeking out secrets and surprises to share with readers. They sent dispatches from 40 countries on six continents.
Health officials say that community spread of the new variant is inevitable, although scientists caution that much remains unknown, including about its severity and how current vaccines perform against it.
The gift was the largest yet for the Obama Foundation and was one in a series of splashy donations by Mr. Bezos, one of the world’s richest men, in recent months.
Protesters in Barcelona are pushing back against foreign investment firms that have bought up thousands of homes over the past decade and are forcing out residents who can’t pay the rent.