Taal, a volcano on the Philippine island of Luzon, erupted on Jan. 13 and continued to erupt over multiple days, sending ash thousands of feet into the air. The eruption, which occurred only 45 miles south of the capital, Manila, forced more than 70,000 people to evacuate the surrounding area and caused flight cancellations at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila. No major injuries were reported.

Though small, Taal is the second-most-active volcano in the Philippines. Because...

The US Department of State posts up-to-date travel advisories on every country and many territories, ranking each 1 (Exercise Normal Precautions), 2 (Exercise Increased Caution), 3 (Reconsider Travel) or 4 (Do Not Travel). Note: A country’s regions are also ranked and may have different rankings than the country as a whole. Visit travel.state.gov and click on “Travel Advisories” at the top of the page.

The US Embassy to Iraq, located in Baghdad’s secure “Green Zone,” was stormed on Dec. 31 by people protesting the US’ presence in Iraq. During the attack, the first perimeter wall was breached and a guard post set on fire before the protesters were pushed back by Iraqi special forces. At the time of the attack, senior embassy staff were not on the premises. No deaths were reported.

The attacking protesters were angry about a US airstrike on Dec. 29 that...