The decision closes a chapter on a controversial and secret program that began after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and was disclosed by the former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. National Security Agency ended a long-standing program that collects information about American phone calls and texts with bipartisan backing in Congress.

Controversial NSA Surveillance Program Ends Food and Drug Administration approved a vaccine for Ebola this year, culminating decades of research on a virus that has historically had a mortality rate of about 80 percent.ģ. But in the wake of these epidemics, the global health community accelerated research and funding to tackle the virus. The deadly virus first raised alarm bells on an international scale after an outbreak in 2014 in West Africa that killed over 11,000 people. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is still reeling from the second-largest epidemic of Ebola in recorded history, with over 3,300 recorded cases and 2,200 deaths. Ebola Epidemic Continues-But There Are Glimmers of Good News defense officials warned in February that China is building up infrastructure in Latin America, including a complex satellite facility in Argentina, that could monitor and potentially target U.S. It was a major scientific feat but also fueled concerns in Washington about what China’s race to space means for national security. China Barrels Into the Space RaceĪt the beginning of the year, China became the first country to gain access to the far side of the moon, landing a lunar probe there for the first time ever and reflecting Beijing’s aim to be a major space power alongside the United States and Russia in the coming decades. Here are 10 stories you may have missed in 2019. That made it easy for other, equally important news stories to get drowned out in the noise-but not to worry, Foreign Policy has you covered. In today’s relentless news cycle, it’s difficult to keep up on even the biggest news stories of the year, from chaos in Washington to summits on North Korea to protests sweeping across the Middle East.

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