CATEGORIES

Tipping point

A Hamas leader killed in Beirut. Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea. A US airstrike in Baghdad. As the Israel-Gaza war bleeds across borders, is wider violence in the Middle East inevitable?

Big band theory - The rise of jazz orchestras

Before bebop, large outfits dominated the scene. Now a new generation of musicians is bringing back the tradition - and its sense of community

The older masters

There is a particular stereotype of creative genius: that of the youthful prodigy of irrepressible talent.

All hung up

Smartphones and social media apps dominate our attention, sometimes to a damaging and unhealthy extent. But is it really an addiction? By Simar Bajaj

In search of sanctuary

What was it like to grow up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles? Darran Anderson explores his memories of life in a low-level police state, the hostile feeling of being a stranger in his own land and how the birth of his son accentuated his need to find a place of peace

NYT sues OpenAI and Microsoft over use of its content

The New York Times has sued OpenAI and Microsoft over the use of its content to train generative artificial intelligence and large-language systems, a move that could see the company receive billions of dollars in damages.

Third-party group rebuts claims it will boost Trump vote

Third parties could hurt Donald Trump as much as Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential election, the group No Labels has claimed, insisting its contentious effort to build a unity ticket cannot be compared to spoiler candidates of the past.

Handbrake turn Europe's cities take on the car

In Paris, Barcelona and Brussels, authorities are adopting different approaches in a bid to reduce congestion and cut air pollution

New year sees Moscow and Kyiv intensify attacks

Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowed in his new year's address to unleash \"wrath\" against Russian forces in 2024, saying Ukraine had become stronger as the war moves toward its second year.

Israelis look for any sign of victory as death toll mounts

Israeli planes bombed refugee camps in Gaza last weekend as its troops expanded ground operations and tens of thousands of Palestinians fled their homes, setting the stage for a new year as bloody as the last three months of 2023.

Broken ties Putin and Netanyahu content as entente ends

When Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone last month to Benjamin Netanyahu, their first conversation themselves in weeks, they found in an unusual dynamic, engaging not as partners but against the backdrop of historic tensions.

Shipping lanes Could the Red Sea crisis risk sparking a wider conflict?

So far, the war in Gaza prompted by Hamas's attack on 7 October has not precipitated the nightmare scenario - a wider Middle East conflict drawing in the US and Iran. But that risk appears to be becoming more serious.

FRONTLINES OF WAR AND NATURE WHAT ELSE TO WATCH FOR IN 2024

The year 2024 will be a critical one.

RUSSIA PUTIN WILL SEIZE HIS CHANCE TO PROVE THAT THE WAR IS ON TRACK

In news that probably shocked no one, Vladimir Putin announced last month that he will seek a fifth presidential term in the upcoming March elections.

INDIA MODI LOOKS POISED FOR SUCCESS AS DEMOCRACY ACTIVISTS FEAR WORST

India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, cut a confident figure as 2023 drew to a close. As his Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) swept three major state elections in December, Modi did not hold back from predicting that \"this hat-trick has guaranteed the 2024 victory\"

POLLS APART

More than 2 billion people could vote in 2024, the biggest year ever for global democracy. But electoral systems face multiple pressures including AI manipulation, far-right extremism and crackdowns on free speech and dissent. Our correspondents preview some of the most significant elections-and the threats facing them

UNITED KINGDOM A PERILOUS ELECTION: PHOTO ID, STAFF SHORTAGES AND CYBER THREATS

While the general election date itself remains in the hands of Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, one thing is certain: when the campaign does begin it has the potential to be one of the more perilous and chaotic in UK history.

TV

The Guardian Weekly team reveal our small-screen picks of the year, from Top Boy's poignantly nihilistic finale to a second helping of The Bear's kitchen chaos

Film

From gruelling documentary to yearning romance - the 10 best movies of the year | Our critics' selection of the pick of the year's films and albums

Call me what you want - I'll keep telling the truth about livestock farming

Everything that makes campaigning against fossil fuels difficult is 10 times harder when it comes to opposing livestock farming.

The only way to end this war is for Biden to force Netanyahu out

Joe Biden's bond with Israel and the J Jewish people runs so deep he is said to feel it in his kishkes (that's \"guts\", for the non-Yiddish speakers among you).

Parting words Friends pay tribute to famous lives lost this year

2023 THOSE WE LOST

Great unknowns Huge questions remain unanswered about life on Earth. We asked leading scientists and conservationists: what is the one thing you would like to know about the planet that remains a mystery?

\"How many species of animals do we share the planet with? Estimates range from 3 million to as many as 100 million, and there's not much sign that we are converging on an answer.\"

We can be heroes The caring leaders, dancers and dads who proved there is hope for humanity

The forensic pathologist helping Philippines' 'war on drugs' victims

WORLD IN FLUX

For much of the global south, the west's seemingly contradictory stance over Gaza and Ukraine symbolises its hypocrisy. Is a reckoning on the cards?

On the hook Why hacking case meant so much to Prince Harry

As the Duke of Sussex claimed victory in his hacking case against Mirror Group Newspapers, it was clear he felt vindication for his tortuous, longrunning legal battles against sections of the British media. \"I've been told that slaying dragons will get you burned,\" he said in a statement, before adding a defiant: \"The mission continues.\"

Giorgia and Rishi: what's driving the right's latest 'love-burst'?

One cut her political teeth on the streets of Rome as a teenage neo-fascist activist, rising to become Italy's first female premier. The other is a former investment banker who became Britain's wealthiest prime minister, and its first of colour.

US defence secretary urges change of tactics

The US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, held talks with Israeli officials about shifting away from large-scale aerial and ground operations in the Gaza Strip to a new phrase in the war focused on the precise targeting of Hamas leaders.

Hezbollah's cross-border strikes on Israel 'risk a second war'

When the news first broke of the Hamas attack early on 7 October, Itai Reuveni and the other reservists in his paratrooper battalion packed their bags and arrived at their muster point well before their call-up came from the army.

Against the odds

Not long before the crucial final meeting of Cop28 climate summit, a seemingly chance meeting took place in the VIP lounge.