About 5,000 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Iceland since the start of the war, and continue to do so at a rate of about 200 arrivals per month. The government gives them nearly instant resident status, on humanitarian grounds. It has also created a website in Ukrainian to help them navigate the bureaucracy and culture.
The Muslim population of Iceland, made up of immigrants, foreign students and a few homegrown converts, is small but growing. And the community may soon be getting its first custom-built mosque with land donated by the city of Reykjavik, but not without objections from a vocal minority.
Public pool rules in France say your swimsuit can't be something you could be found wearing outside the pool. That means no trunks, Bermuda shorts, T-shirts or anything that is not strictly meant for swimming. But bust out all the Speedos you want.
When Tamar Charney went to Iceland, she thought she had the perfect playlist for her trip. But when her rental car didn't have a jack for her MP3 photo, she had a problem. Fortunately, a local band came to the rescue.
The man Lady Gaga called the "mayor of Iceland" is obsessed with language: the language of professional politicians, the language of satire and the restrictive rules in Iceland that prevent him from officially changing his name.
Asgeir Trausti is a popular singer-songwriter in his home country, Iceland. And now, he hopes to do the same with his first English-only album and tour of the US. One of the biggest crowds he'll be playing for will be at Bonneroo.
In 1984, Russian historian Suzanne Massie got a call she'll never forget. President Ronald Reagan invited her to the White House to brief him on Russian history and culture. Little did she know that this would be the beginning of many years of advising the president.
Dennis Rodman's controversial relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un turned another page this week. The former NBA star was in North Korea this week to select and train a North Korean basketball team that will take part in an exhibition game in honor of Kim's birthday. Plus Egyptian activists are thrown in jail and elves — yes, elves — halt a highway project in Iceland, in today's Global Scan.
Iceland made history this week, but not in a good way. For the first time since the nation became an independent republic, armed police shot and killed a man, startling a population accustomed to peace.
Geir Haarde is thought to be the first world leader to be put on trial for his role in his country's 2008 economic crisis. The trial of the former Iceland prime minister started on Monday.
Iceland's former prime minister, Geir Haarde, went on trial Monday. He's accused of failing to protect his country's economy from the global economic meltdown of 2008. The World's Gerry Hadden has the latest on the story.