8 h. ago On VE Day, remember the war – but can we resolve to honour all who fought in it? | Gary Younge

The heroism of soldiers from India, Africa and the Caribbean is too often airbrushed, as is the struggle of those who resisted colonial powersOn 8 May 1945, as the allies rejoiced at Germany’s unconditional surrender, some local people in the market town of Sétif in Algeria gathered not to celebrate their freedom but to demand it, carrying Algerian flags and placards calling for independence from France. The French police opened fire, unleashing a spiral of violence resulting in a notorious massacre. Algerian independence militants retaliated by killing about 100 settlers and wounding hundreds more over the next five days. Similar disturbances erupted in the nearby village of Guelma. The colonisers responded with brutal disproportionality – bombing small villages, shelling the area from the coast and running amok, inflicting collective punishment. Official estimates for the number of Algerians killed vary widely, ranging from about 8,000 from some French historians to 45,000 from th...

Events

46 h. ago VE Day 80: Remembering Linlithgow's Munitionettes – The unsung heroes of victory

As we mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, our thoughts naturally turn to the immense sacrifices made across the nation and the world to secure peace. We remember the soldiers on the front lines, the leaders who navigated treacherous times, and the collective relief that swept across the continent. But VE Day is also a moment to reflect on the often-unsung heroes whose contributions, far from the battlefields, were just as vital to that hard-won victory. In my constituency, we have a powerful story of such heroism – the story of the Linlithgow Munitionettes.

Politics

3 d. ago Holocaust survivor attends interfaith VE Day celebration at UK’s oldest mosque

John Hajdu, 88, said it was ‘absolutely vital’ that future generations remember the Holocaust as he attended the interfaith VE Day gathering.

Events

4 d. ago Second World War sacrifices remembered ahead of VE Day 80th anniversary

Sir Winston Churchill’s victory speech, a military procession, a flypast and street parties are part of the build-up to May 8.

Events

5 d. ago Red Arrows VE Day flypast route and timings in full as Brits urged to 'remember'

Next week's national events on VE Day will honour the dead of those who gave their lives in World War Two as the Red Arrows will fly across part the UK to celebrate

Politics

6 d. ago The day London went 'barmy.' An East End boy remembers the end of World War II in Europe

As Europe marks Victory Day over Nazi Germany, Londoner John Goldsmith still remembers the rationing, the blackouts and the bombs that devastated his neighborhood in east London

Events

7 d. ago RAF veteran, 99, will remember friends ‘who didn’t make it’ on VE Day

Dennis Bishop visited RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on Wednesday as it prepares for the VE Day flypast.

Politics

8 d. ago ‘I don’t date at all now’: one woman’s journey into the darkest corners of the manosphere

When Jess Davies was 15, a boy leaked pictures she’d shared with him. At 18, she was a glamour model. A few years later, another man violated her trust. Then she fought backJess Davies was a 15-year-old schoolgirl, sitting in an art lesson, absorbed in her fairytale project about a princess and a postman, when her Nokia phone began to vibrate with messages. “Nice pictures,” read one. “I didn’t think you were that type of girl,” said another.To this day, she remembers the racing thoughts, the instant nausea, the hairs prickling up on her legs, the sweaty palms. She had shared a photograph of herself in her underwear with a boy she trusted and, very soon, it had been sent around the school and across her small home town, Aberystwyth, Wales. She became a local celebrity for all the wrong reasons. Younger kids would approach her laughing and ask for a hug. Members of the men’s football team saw it – and one showed someone who knew Davies’s nan, so that’s how her family found out. Contin...

Politics

9 d. ago EastEnders to mark V.E Day 80th anniversary with special episode featuring Nigel Bates

EastEnders will air a special episode next week marking 80 years since V.E. Day as the residents of Walford come together to honour and remember those who gave their lives during the war

Politics

1 week ago Zoe Ball lands huge TV hosting gig after stepping down from breakfast radio show

Zoe Ball, 54, will host VE Day 80: A Celebration to Remember, a live concert marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, on May 8, the BBC has announced

Culture

1 week ago ‘We have lost our humanity’: Holocaust survivors call for end to war in Gaza

Israelis are gathering on Holocaust Memorial Day to speak out against Palestinian starvation and sufferingFew days speak so profoundly to the soul of Israel than Holocaust Memorial Day. As the country sat in silence on Thursday to remember six million Jews exterminated by the Nazis, the same refrain was, as always, repeated by many: never again.But for some across Israel, as the war in Gaza continues to ravage the Palestinian people and wipe out entire families, never again had come to hold another meaning. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Israelis protest against Gaza war with rare decry over Palestinian casualties

Holocaust survivors gathering on Holocaust Memorial Day speak out against Palestinian starvation and sufferingFew days speak so profoundly to the soul of Israel than Holocaust Memorial Day. As the country sat in silence on Thursday to remember 6 million Jews exterminated by the Nazis, the same refrain was, as always, repeated by many: never again.But for some across Israel, as the war in Gaza continues to ravage the Palestinian people and wipe out entire families, never again had come to hold another meaning. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Israelis protest against Gaza war with rare outcry over Palestinian casualties

Holocaust survivors gathering on Holocaust Memorial Day speak out against Palestinian starvation and sufferingFew days speak so profoundly to the soul of Israel than Holocaust Memorial Day. As the country sat in silence on Thursday to remember 6 million Jews exterminated by the Nazis, the same refrain was, as always, repeated by many: never again.But for some across Israel, as the war in Gaza continues to ravage the Palestinian people and wipe out entire families, never again had come to hold another meaning. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Polish and Israeli presidents lead March of the Living at Auschwitz

The Polish and Israeli presidents have joined thousands of Israeli youth and others in an annual march at the former Auschwitz death camp on Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day

Politics

2 w. ago China tells US to ‘cancel all unilateral tariffs’ if it wants talks

Beijing says claims it is nearing a deal with Washington to resolve the trade war are ‘fake news’

Politics

2 w. ago Holocaust Remembrance Day and mourners at the Vatican: photos of the day – Thursday

The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world Continue reading...

Culture

2 w. ago Holocaust Remembrance Day and Wicked tulips: photos of the day – Thursday

The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world Continue reading...

Culture

4 w. ago ‘We will have to raise prices’: gloom and resolve in Yiwu, on China’s trade war frontline

At the world’s largest wholesale market, vendors have reduced their exposure to the US but fear the repercussions of a global economic shockIf you have ever bought a Christmas decoration, a button, an electric shaver or any other cheap manufactured product, there is a good chance it came from Yiwu, a city in east China’s Zhejiang province that is home to the world’s largest wholesale market.Covering more than 4m square metres, tens of thousands of suppliers have booths in Yiwu International Trade City. As the US and China exchange increasingly hysterical rhetoric and threaten ever-higher tariffs, it is vendors at places like Yiwu who are at the frontline of the new trade war. Continue reading...

Events