44 h. ago The Medieval Brits with West African ancestry: Bodies buried in 7th

Two people buried in early medieval England had West African ancestry, experts have revealed, in a discovery that rewrites British history.

Events

4 d. ago My years reporting on Gaza broke me down. Why did it take so long for the world to become outraged? | Phoebe Greenwood

Between 2010 and 2013, I was on the ground capturing Israel’s attacks on Palestine. Few wanted to see itWhen I moved to Jerusalem in 2010, the foreign correspondents there offered me some unsettling advice: “The first year here you’ll hate the Israeli government, the second year the Palestinian leadership, by the third you’ll hate yourself.” It’s best to leave before four, I was told, in the interest of sanity. I nodded along thinking how sadly cynical they were. I would do better than that, I told myself. I did not.I lasted a little under four years in Israel and Palestine. In that time, I reported on forced displacement and punitive bureaucracy (Israel’s occupation is expanded through denied permits, home demolitions and revoked ID cards). I wrote about child killings, war crimes and terrorism (perpetrated by both sides). I tried to explain as best I could the annexation of the West Bank and the collective punishment of two million people in Gaza without using forbidden phrases su...

Politics

6 d. ago Too much tolerance risks violence and anarchy. Britain's turning somersaults to accommodate cultures whose values are opposite to our own: ROBERT TOMBS

The great essayist Michel de Montaigne, writing a few decades after Columbus discovered the West Indies, was fascinated by reports of what the indigenous people ate there.

Events

6 d. ago William and Kate's charity work keep royal kids from suffering 'spare syndrome'

A royal expert has revealed how the lifelong philanthropic efforts of Kate and William will aide in their royal children not following the misguided footsteps of Prince Harry

Politics

3 w. ago ‘Queer people were living, loving, suffering, surviving – but invisible’: west Africa’s groundbreaking gay novel 20 years on

Jude Dibia’s Walking With Shadows has a gay character at its heart – a radical act that continues to influence the region’s literary sceneWhen Jude Dibia first tried to sell the manuscript of his groundbreaking novel Walking With Shadows 20 years ago, he was aware of the silence around queerness in West African literature. While there had been books with gay themes, his is widely recognised as the first novel in the region to put a gay character at the heart of the story.“The absence wasn’t just literary; it was societal,” Dibia says. “Queer people were living, loving, suffering, surviving – but largely rendered invisible or spoken of in hushed tones, if at all. That silence felt violent. It felt like erasure. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Weather tracker: Heavy monsoon rain leaves many dead in Pakistan

Low-lying areas of Punjab province hit by significant flooding after rivers overflow their banksThe south-west monsoon continued a deadly streak in Pakistan this week, with torrential rain on Wednesday killing at least 63 people. After beginning life as showers and thunderstorms in north-west India this week, a more organised area of low pressure developed, merging showers into a larger area of heavy rain as they moved into the Pakistani province of Punjab. This rain tracked roughly north across Punjab on Tuesday night and into Wednesday, hitting several major cities including Lahore and the capital, Islamabad. The greatest rainfall was in the city of Chakwal, which recorded 423mm (16.6in), more than double the July average.Rivers overflowed their banks, significantly flooding low-lying areas of Punjab. Though several of the deaths were attributed to drowning, most were the result of building collapses. A number of deaths were reportedly from electrocution. This latest deluge takes ...

Events

4 w. ago Kids charity looking for people from across Lanarkshire to take on Safeguarder role

A Safeguarder is appointed to make sure a child or young person’s best interests and human rights are represented in the court process. They can be asked to be involved in children’s hearings by Sheriffs to put children’s best interests at the heart of decisions.

Politics

4 w. ago Kids charity looking for people from across West Lothian to take on Safeguarder role

A Safeguarder is appointed to make sure a child or young person’s best interests and human rights are represented in the court process.

Politics

4 w. ago Keeping animals of all sizes, from cats to horses, cool during record heat

With record temperatures hitting the U.S., pet owners have to protect their four-legged family members from dangers like heat stroke and dehydration

Politics