CATEGORIES

‘The police don't care' Arab lives destroyed by gun violence

There has been a break in the rain, and the sun is shining on the orange groves of Bir al-Maksur, a quiet Bedouin village near Nazareth in Israel's north.

Ukraine is democracy's frontline and a moment of truth for the world

The frightful noise of gunfire, bombing and children's screams in the cities of Ukraine reverberates across Europe.

Russia's president has appalled the world, but the west enabled him

The History Channel is broadcasting live. The US commentator who made that quip meant that events currently unfolding in Ukraine will be remembered for many decades to come, that future generations of schoolchildren will be called to memorise the date of 24 February 2022.

‘I feel free' The running club giving flight to girls from Erbil

The mountains of Iraqi Kurdis'tan are edged with a tangerine glow. We are on our way from Erbil to Shaqlawa, a historic city about 50 minutes away, to hike up Safeen mountain. Inside the minibus, a group of teenage girls play their favourite songs.

Mafia scrum A women's rugby team tackles the Cosa Nostra By Lorenzo Tondo

Gloria Mertoli's shift is over when the first light of dawn shines on the goalposts of a rugby pitch in the Librino district of Catania, a stronghold of the Cosa Nostra, the feared Sicilian mafia.

Hustle and hype

More and more young people are enticed by the glittering promises of a career in the influencer industry – but it’s usually someone else who’s getting rich

Hell on Earth

Vladimir Putin’s cataclysmic act of war has upended order in Europe – and perhaps the world – for ever. How has it come to this?

Between the lines

Warsan Shire is poetry’s new superstar, and Beyoncé’s writer of choice; Bernardine Evaristo is a Booker-winning champion of rising talent. They swap notes on class, impostor syndrome and working in front of the TV

A Balancing Act What Is In The Data Leak And Why Are We Publishing It?

In popular culture, there is nowhere safer to stash your cash than the vault of a Swiss bank.

Wake Up! The Right Is Relying On Culture Wars To Win At The Ballot Box

There are two lines of attack in the culture wars. The first is slow, steady and discreet, marching by stealth through Britain’s institutions.

Hong Kong Kept Covid At Bay For Two Years. What Went Wrong?

The beds pile up outside Hong Kong’s Caritas hospital. In the cold night, elderly patients lie on gurneys covered with blankets and thermal foil sheets.

Is Electric Car Boom Driving Up Pollution?

Allegations of air and water contamination by one of the largest mines for nickel, a key material for greener motoring

Switzerland At Risk Of EU Blacklist After Credit Suisse Leaks

The fallout from a huge leak of Credit Suisse banking data threatened to damage Swit-zerland’s financial sector on Monday after the European parliament’s main political grouping raised the prospect of adding the country to a money-laundering blacklist.

Darkness falls

The decision by an isolated and angry Vladimir Putin to send Russian troops over the Ukrainian border will change the security architecture in Europe and may well lead to a horrific war

Rare groove The DJ who wants to give away all her records

On a hillside an hour from Madrid lies a sprawling, tropical-hued complex crammed with 1950s Mexican film posters and prowled by the odd decorative monkey and jaguar.

Unsettled Why clients of Epstein should not rest easy

After news of Prince Andrew’s settlement with his accuser Virginia Giuffre, the question of who or what the Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell sex -trafficking conspiracy will envelop next remains.

‘I am not leaving this house to go to live in some tent'

As conscription papers arrive in Donetsk, people along the border have been told to leave – but not everyone wants to go

‘Whatever horrors they do, they do in secret'

Mazar-i-Sh arif was the most secular and liberal of Afghan cities. But 20 years of corruption and misrule left it ripe for retaking by the Taliban. Will anything be diff erent this time?

This Short-Sighted, Libertarian Dash For The Covid Exit Is Reckless

It was an extraordinary way to end nearly two years of restrictions and lockdowns.

Can Bitcoin Go Green?

A giant Norwegian crypto-mining operation is recycling its waste heat, pushing back against criticism of the famously energy-intensive industry

War games

Amid bleak western intelligence briefi ngs, fading diplomatic hopes and an exodus of foreign nationals from Kyiv, one key question has remained unanswered up to now: exactly how far is Vladimir Putin ready to go to achieve his goals?

‘Open door' Could Sarah Palin make a return to politics?

Removing a white facemask as she took to the witness stand behind a protective screen, Sarah Palin likened herself to the biblical David taking on the mighty Goliath of American media, the New York Times.

Super fly

Cochabamba’s female skateboard collective ImillaSkate has adopted traditional Bolivian clothing as a symbol of resistance. The distinctive look is one way of celebrating their indigenous heritage

Nudge Theory

How gambling-firms keep punters coming back for more

Pécresse makes anti-immigrant play to fend off far right

The rightwing French presi-dential candidate Valérie Pécresse vowed to crack down on immigration as she held her first big rally last Sunday amid competition from the growing far right and defections from her party to the centrist leader Emmanuel Macron.

Fragile states Why do military coups keep happening?

Weak institutions and jihadism are factors behind the frequent overthrow of governments in the region

How a new generation of educated girls defied the Taliban

When the Taliban reached Parveen Tokhi’s home province of Zabul in mid-August and asked to use her school as a temporary barracks, the headteacher was frightened but clear about what she had to do.

Forced out The demise of the Met's ‘tin-eared' trailblazer

Five years ago, the announce-ment that Cressida Dick would be the first female head of Britain’s biggest force seemed a landmark moment for policing and the nation.

Eat me!

Micro-organisms have evolved processes that let them digest plastics. Could they remedy one of Earth’s most pressing problems?

‘Tanks, tanks' On the border with Ukraine, citizens sense onset of war

The military train lurched into the rail depot at Kursk, carrying more snow-dusted main battle tanks, self-propelled artillery and other heavy weapons to within a few hours’ drive by car of the Ukrainian border.