21 m. ago The grim task of recovering thousands of bodies from the rubble of Gaza

Relatives and experts tell of the human and societal need to find and identify the dead, while images and data shed light on the scale of the jobIt has been described as one of the most gruelling recovery efforts in modern warfare.As negotiations over the fragile Gaza ceasefire continue, Palestinians have started to dig through 61m tonnes of debris, 20 times more than the combined mass of all debris generated by conflicts since 2008. Underneath, at least 10,000 people are thought to be buried. Continue reading...

Events

26 h. ago Tanzania president claims 98% of vote in election tarnished by deadly crackdown

President’s two main rivals were prevented from running in deeply flawed election

Politics

3 d. ago Prisons minister defends £500 payoff to migrant sex offender with golf analogy

Lord Timpson tells Parliament ‘if someone wants to give you a putt, you take it’ as he faces questions over a ‘slush fund’.

Events

3 d. ago Israel strikes Gaza again after overnight bombardment that killed at least 104

Attacks shatter Palestinians’ short-lived relief since start of ceasefire that now looks increasingly fragileIsrael carried out another strike in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday after bombarding the territory overnight and killing at least 104 Palestinians, including children, in the gravest challenge yet to the increasingly fragile US-brokered ceasefire. The Israeli military said it struck military infrastructure where weapons were being stored in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza. People in Gaza City reported hearing an explosion and seeing a column of smoke coming from the north of the territory. Continue reading...

Events

6 d. ago Fears Gaza ‘temporary’ ceasefire line could become permanent new border

Yellow markers installed by IDF entrench divide that cuts strip in two, as hopes of moving to next phase of truce fadeA supposedly temporary yellow line marking Gaza’s ceasefire is taking an increasingly physical form as the precarious truce shows signs of stalling, with potentially dramatic consequences for Palestine’s future.Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops have started installing yellow concrete markers every 200 metres to delineate the area remaining under Israeli control during the first phase of the ceasefire. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago 'Revealing' wedding dress of daughter of Iranian supreme leader's aide who organised crackdown on hijab protestors sparks backlash in Tehran

Footage circulating on social media shows Ali Shamkhani, a top advisor to Iran's supreme leader, escorting his daughter, Fatemeh, into a wedding hall at Tehran's luxury Espinas Palace Hotel.

Politics

2 w. ago Majorca in major tourism crackdown with ban on party boats among strict rules

The much-loved Spanish resort will ban party boats, youth hostels and more tourist rentals as the crackdown comes following protests against over-tourism earlier this year

Society

2 w. ago ‘For the sake of peace’: why a Palestinian forgives the Israeli soldier who shot him

Exclusive: Munib al-Masri Jr is part of a campaign asking the UK to help create a ‘just future’ in Palestine – starting with an apology for its role in the crisisHe has spent 14 years in pain, adjusting to paralysis below the waist. But Munib al-Masri Jr, 37, says he forgives the Israeli soldier who shot him.Masri is among Palestinians who welcomed the UK’s recognition of Palestinian statehood last month but are pushing the government to go further. The Britain Owes Palestine campaign that Masri is part of wants the UK to formally apologise for what they say is its historical role in creating the Middle East crisis, as ceasefire talks bring an uneasy peace to the region and raise questions about its future. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago The Guardian view on peace in Gaza: the relief is real, but Trump’s promise of a ‘golden age’ rings hollow | Editorial

Hostage and prisoner releases are bringing joy to families. But there is no guarantee that the ceasefire will end Palestinian sufferingThe reprieve brought by the end of fighting in Gaza is immense. In Israel, the release of the living hostages has led to widespread elation. In Gaza and the West Bank there are also celebrations, as up to 2,000 Palestinian detainees start to be released – though there is distress, too, due to uncertainty about who is being freed and where they will be sent. In northern Gaza, people can finally return to dig through rubble for the remains of an estimated 10,000 missing people.As recently as three weeks ago, the likelihood of a ceasefire appeared remote. But it has taken effect, and on Monday Donald Trump travelled from Jerusalem, where he was cheered in the Knesset, to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. There, he joined a high-powered peace summit of more than 20 world leaders, including Sir Keir Starmer. The plan for peace begun there is due to be c...

Politics

2 w. ago The Latest: Palestinians journey back home as aid convoys start to enter Gaza

A ceasefire in the war in Gaza is holding for the third day as aid agencies work to rush in more desperately needed aid into the besieged territory under the truce deal

Politics

3 w. ago Some Palestinians pack up and move north toward their homes in Gaza after ceasefire goes into effect

Tens of thousands of Palestinians displaced by the war in Gaza have started moving north toward their homes, or what remains of them, after a ceasefire agreement came into effect

Events

3 w. ago Happy, stressed, overwhelmed: Palestinians evacuated from Gaza start their studies in UK

Abdallah, 27, and Soha, 31, describe adjusting to their new lives after leaving their war-torn homeThe young man emerging from a backstreet accommodation block in a bustling corner of east London looks much like any other student, getting to grips with his studies at the start of a new term. But 27-year-old Abdallah carries more of a burden than most. A qualified doctor, he has recently been evacuated from Gaza to begin his studies at Queen Mary University of London on a fully funded, government-backed Chevening scholarship.As well as his work in hospitals, he has been striving for months on behalf of the dozens of Palestinian scholars like himself who have been stranded in war-torn Gaza awaiting evacuation by the British government to take up places in UK universities. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Voices: ‘Undemocratic and unlawful’: Readers react to police crackdown on repeat protests

Most readers condemned the government’s move to bolster restrictions on protests, arguing it is conflating Palestine Action demonstrations with antisemitism

Events

3 w. ago It starts with Palestine protests. But where will the crackdown on Britain’s democratic freedoms end? | Owen Jones

In making dissent a privilege, not a right, Labour is crafting a repressive toolkit. Imagine it in the hands of a Farage governmentIn Britain, protest is no longer a right. Instead, it is a privilege that is granted – or withheld – at the whim of those in power. This is the implication of new rules that the Labour government is proposing, which would dictate the time and place that protests are permitted to occur, and carry the risk of prison time for those who defy orders. Successive governments had already chipped away at this right: the last Conservative administration granted the police sweeping new powers, which the United Nations’ human rights chief condemned as “serious and undue restrictions” on democratic freedoms. Taken together, these incremental assaults on freedom have effectively abolished the hard-won right to freedom of protest.The latest assault is justified by last week’s heinous antisemitic attack on a mosque in Manchester. There should be universal agreement that...

Politics

3 w. ago Police get powers to limit protests: Crackdown on repeat rallies as Labour admits British Jews feel let down

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said chief constables would be allowed to consider the impact of repeated demonstrations when deciding whether they should be permitted.

Events

3 w. ago Protesters backing Palestine Action vow ‘major escalation’ in campaign amid crackdown

Defend Our Juries brand home secretary’s plan to give police greater powers to restrict protests an ‘extraordinary new affront to democracy’

Events

4 w. ago Georgia’s prime minister announces crackdown on dissent after Tbilisi protests

Irakli Kobakhidze accused EU ambassador of supporting ‘attempt to overthrow constitutional order’ Georgia’s prime minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, has announced a sweeping crackdown on dissent, accusing demonstrators who tried to storm the presidential palace of aiming to topple his government and blaming the European Union for interference in his country.Kobakhidze levelled his allegations a day after protesters attempted to breach the presidential palace as local elections were being held. They were stopped by riot police using pepper spray and water cannon. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago Police to get new powers in crackdown on repeat protests after hundreds arrested at Palestine Action rally

Announcement comes hours after nearly 500 people were arrested in London

Events

4 w. ago Takeaways from AP's interview with the only protester still locked up after Trump’s campus crackdown

A Palestinian activist arrested by the Trump administration in March says she feels helpless as she remains jailed while her family in Gaza suffers amid ongoing conflict

Politics

4 w. ago The only protester still locked up after Trump’s campus crackdown breaks silence: 'I feel helpless'

A Palestinian activist arrested by the Trump administration in March says she feels helpless as she remains jailed while her family in Gaza suffers amid ongoing conflict

Politics