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What's being described as the largest national strike in a generation has begun in Britain. Some two million public sector workers are expected to take part. It's the latest in a wave of protests over austerity measures that have been sweeping through Europe for many months.

Across Europe on Wednesday, all eyes are on the EU summit in Brussels, where European leaders are expected to reveal plans to deal with the Eurozone debt crisis. But each country has different fears and expectations: In France the worry is the state of the banks and the country's credit rating; in Italy it's further pressure from the EU on Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to get his financial house in order; in Germany and other northern European countries, it's the cost of the bailouts, and who is going to pay for them.

For a few hours Friday, the world will be transported by a royal wedding in Britain. Crowds will wave flags and cheer. Kings and clerics, lords and ladies, politicians and celebrities will all parade in their finery. But do these images really represent the British? Among the country's Asian community, reaction is mixed.

For nearly 700 years, Billingsgate fish market has stood on the banks of the Thames, and many of its traditions remain. One of those traditions is enshrined in the work of the porters who deliver the fish. City officials wants to scrap a Victorian-era law, under which the porters are licensed, opening their jobs to all-comers. The porters, who are all union members, are furious, and have launched a campaign to save their jobs.

The mansion belonged to aristocrat Ambrose Congreve, who died last year at the age of 104. He spent a lifetime amassing a fabulous collection of art and antiques. Thanks to the eurozone crisis, the Irish are in trouble. So a lot of them flocked to the auction to see if there were any antiques worth investing in.

The housing bubble burst in Ireland some time ago, but empty homes and half-finished developments still litter the country. NPR's Philip Reeves profiles some Irish who've been left high and dry by the financial meltdown.

A quiet and reclusive elderly lady died in the British coastal town of Torquay the other day. She had no known relatives and no friends, so local authorities entered her home. They found papers and medals that revealed that she was far from the typical pensioner. Eileen Nearne -- aka Agent Rose, one of only a few dozen female spies dispatched by Britain into occupied France in World War II to work with the French Resistance.

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continued to hold on Thursday and detailed negotiations between the two sides were due to start in Cairo. The biggest issue is how much the Israelis are willing to relax their blockade of Gaza. Leila Fadel and Philip Reeves talk to Audie Cornish about the prospects for turning the ceasefire into a lasting agreement.

Scientists are predicting that average sea levels could rise as much as 3 feet by the end of the century. However, the country's deep religious beliefs have residents of the tiny island nation in the Pacific Ocean torn between God and science.

A referendum next month in Sudan will decide whether the country will be divided between the Arab, mostly Muslim north and the ethnic African south. Whether things turn bloody may hinge on what happens in Abyei, a disputed region along the border of north and south.