4 d. ago The Black Death was spread by Mongol troops in the Middle East a century before it wiped out half of Britons in the 1300s, new study suggests

New research has found that the plague may actually have caused milder outbreaks in the Middle East a century before it devastated Europe between 1348 and 1350.

Events

4 d. ago ‘History was attempted to be buried’: the true story behind Oscar

Director RaMell Ross details horrors behind Florida School for Boys that backdropped the moving film adaptationIt was one of the darkest, most shameful episodes in Florida’s grotesque history of state-sanctioned racism: dozens of children, most of them Black, beaten or shot to death, or sexually abused in a decades-long reign of terror at a secretive and remote reform school.Early next month at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles, the horrors that befell the students of the notorious Arthur G Dozier School for Boys will be laid bare before the world, courtesy of a best picture nomination for the “transcendentally moving and frightening film” Nickel Boys, and a best adapted screenplay nod for director RaMell Ross and his co-writer, Joslyn Barnes. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Middle East crisis live: Hamas says it will return bodies of four Israelis on Thursday and release six living hostages on Saturday

Militant group will release hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners as Israel confirms it will begin negotiations on second phase of ceasefire dealGeneva Abdul is a reporter for the GuardianMore than 200 organisations worldwide have called on nations involved in producing F-35 fighter jets to “immediately halt all arms transfers to Israel” amid fears they have failed to prevent the planes from being used to violate international law. Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago Middle East crisis live: Israel to begin negotiations on second phase of Gaza ceasefire deal, says minister

Mediators hope second phase of deal will agree release of remaining hostages as well as full withdrawal of Israeli troops from GazaGeneva Abdul is a reporter for the GuardianMore than 200 organisations worldwide have called on nations involved in producing F-35 fighter jets to “immediately halt all arms transfers to Israel” amid fears they have failed to prevent the planes from being used to violate international law. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Middle East crisis live: Lebanon says it will consider any remaining Israeli presence on its lands an occupation

Israeli forces remain in five points in Lebanon for what the IDF says is security purposes but Lebanese presidency says truce deal demands a full withdrawalBack to news coming out of Lebanon. The country’s new government will negotiate with the International Monetary Fund for a new programme and will work to deal with the country’s financial default and public debt, according a policy statement – seen by Reuters – that has been approved by the cabinet. It also said the government would work towards an economic recovery achieved primarily through the reform of the banking sector.Lebanon is still grappling with a crippling economic crisis, now in its sixth year, which destroyed its state electricity sector and left many in poverty unable to access their savings. The local currency lost much of its value and commercial banks severely restricted foreign currency withdrawals. Continue reading...

Events

6 d. ago Middle East crisis live: Lebanon concerned Israel will not withdraw troops by deadline as IDF says Hamas leader killed in south

Israeli military said it killed a Hamas commander in an airstrike in southern Lebanon’s Sidon areaReuters has seen a document that sets out the EU’s plan to tell Israel next week in talks in Brussels that Palestinian people displaced from Gaza should be “ensured a safe and dignified return to their homes in the territory.The bloc is to outline its position to Israeli officials in talks on 24 February as part of the EU-Israel Association Council, the first such session since 2022. Continue reading...

Events