Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright dies at 84

Madeleine Albright was the first woman to hold the top government position. [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [View in your browser]( [Top of The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- What The World is following Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright dies at 84 [Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright speaks at a reception celebrating the completion of the US Diplomacy Center Pavilion at the State Department in Washington, Jan. 10, 2017.] Credit: Sait Serkan Gurbuz/AP/File photo United States The first female US secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, died from cancer at the age of 84 on Wednesday. She was a defender of former US President Bill Clinton’s policies, who chose her in 1996 for the post. Prior to that, she had been the US ambassador to the United Nations. Albright [supported the expansion of NATO](, pushed for intervention during the war in the Balkans, and tried to reduce the spread of nuclear weapons. She was born in the former Czechoslovakia, and was [a child refugee]( from Nazi- and then Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe. President Joe Biden has ordered flags at the White House and other federal buildings to be flown at half-staff until March 27. Somalia Prominent Somali female lawmaker [Amina Mohamed Abdi]( is among around 50 people who have been killed in a suicide bombing at a polling station in the town of Beledweyne. More than 100 others were also injured. Abdi was an opposition lawmaker and outspoken government critic who was campaigning to retain her seat in the National Assembly. A [witness reported]( that the bomber ran toward and embraced the MP before detonating a bomb, while she was campaigning ahead of this week’s parliamentary elections. Al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for the attack. Bulgaria Bulgaria says it’s recalling its ambassador to Russia for consultations over what it says were ["undiplomatic, sharp, and rude" comments]( from the Russian ambassador to Sofia. Russian Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova had said that the Bulgarian people did not back their government's position toward Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Last week, Bulgaria expelled 10 Russian diplomats — accusing them of conducting [activities incompatible with their diplomatic status]( — which was followed by a similar move by Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Meanwhile, amid the war in Ukraine and the threat of a wider conflict across Europe, NATO has extended its term for Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg until Sept. 30, 2023. --------------------------------------------------------------- From The World [India’s Warrior Moms tackle indoor air pollution — ‘the silent killer’]( [Anuja Bali asks a family in Pashan, Pune about their consumption of liquid petroleum gas.]( Credit: Chhavi Sachdev/The World Many households in India use a clay stove fueled by firewood, coal, cow dung or even dry leaves, paper or plastic — which all emit [excessive, harmful smoke](. Poor women and children bear the brunt of this insidious indoor pollution. [In southern Romania, villagers are uneasy about a NATO missile defense system in its backyard]( [Pervu Marin watches as a flock of sheep roots for spring grasses along the roadside near the village of Deveselu, Romania. From where he stands, he can see his home as well as the long, unmarked road leading to a NATO missile defense system off in the distance.]( Credit: Raul Stef/The World In efforts to justify his war in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin will often raise the specter of NATO missile defense systems in eastern Europe. The Pentagon claims that the facilities can only fire [missile interceptors](. Landing at the center of this debate is the Romanian town of Deveselu, home to one of just two missile defense systems in Europe. --------------------------------------------------------------- Bright spot A lion named Simba 🦁 and a wolf named Akyla 🐺 have been evacuated from a zoo in war-torn Ukraine. After a four-day mission that an animal rights group involved in the operation called “full of dangers,” they’ve been brought to safety in Romania. The adult male lion and the gray wolf were fully awake during the dangerous journey due to a lack of tranquilizers in Ukraine. [An adult male lion named Simba sits inside a cell at a zoo in Radauti, about 18 miles south of Romania's northern Siret border, March 23, 2022.] Credit: Eldar Emric/AP --------------------------------------------------------------- [In case you missed it from The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Don't forget to subscribe to The World's Latest Edition podcast using your favorite podcast player: [RadioPublic](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Stitcher](, [Soundcloud](, [RSS]( [The World logo]( [The World on Facebook]( [The World's Twitter account]( [Donate]( | [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [Edit your subscription]( | [Unsubscribe]( | [View in your browser]( Top of the World is written weekday mornings by the team at [The World](. [The World]( is produced by [PRX]( and [GBH](.