17 h. ago The Guardian view on the Manchester synagogue attack: a tragic wake

An assault of this kind was widely feared. Now that it has happened, Britain faces a choice between deeper division and greater toleranceThe attack on the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in Manchester was outrageous. It took two innocent lives, and several others were injured. Yet it could have happened almost anywhere. It is an event with wider national meaning and lessons. On Thursday morning, Britain looked over the edge into one of the dark places to which modern public life has been heading. Having looked and seen, Britain now needs to learn and step back.The violence began around 9.30am, just as morning prayers were being held on Yom Kippur, Judaism’s most solemn and sacred day. The synagogue was inevitably well attended. Yet within a short period of time, two Jewish victims lay dead from stabbing, with four others injured, outside what ought to be a place of prayer and community. The attacker was then himself shot and killed, possibly as he attempted to get inside t...

Events

17 h. ago The Guardian view on climate policy: Britain needs clean power, not culture wars | Editorial

Kemi Badenoch’s plan to scrap the Climate Change Act is reckless. Ed Miliband offers a bolder, fairer vision. The future must be built on renewablesLet’s scrap Britain’s successful climate law so we can burn more gas, lose investment and have higher bills. Crazy as it might seem, that is the message of Kemi Badenoch’s new energy strategy. The Conservative leader proposes to repeal the 2008 Climate Change Act in favour of a plan to “maximise oil and gas extraction”, and remove all legally binding carbon targets. It’s pitched as pragmatism. But it’s a lurch into ideological self-harm.Britain’s energy problem isn’t its climate legislation, which is admired globally, backed by industry and supported by the public. It’s that this country remains too dependent on volatile fossil fuels. Emissions targets are not the reason for high bills. It is gas prices, which skyrocketed after Russia invaded Ukraine. They set UK electricity prices. In Europe, they don’t – that’s why bills are lower...

Events

3 d. ago The Guardian view on catastrophe in Darfur: The world has looked away, but Sudan’s civilians can’t wait any longer | Editorial

A brutal war has been fuelled by outside powers. Diplomatic efforts must be intensifiedWhen the history of the 21st century is written, the name of El Fasher will surely appear on its bleakest pages. The besiegement of the city by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has lasted more than 500 days. Families are surviving on animal feed. An estimated 260,000 civilians face a terrifying choice: to stay and die of starvation or in an airstrike – or attempt to flee and face rape, robbery and death.El Fasher is the last major city in Darfur still defended by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) – and allied fighters – in the bloody and unrelenting struggle with the RSF, which has lasted almost two and a half years. Yet a conflict that has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis has remained largely ignored as the wars in Ukraine and Gaza have consumed international attention. In the runup to the UN general assembly in New York last week, the US finally appeared to be ma...

Politics

3 d. ago Putin makes major decree as WW3 fears increase after 135,000 more soldiers conscripted

Over 135,000 soldiers have been called up by the Kremlin to fight in Ukraine, as Russia continues to pummel targets in Kyiv while crossing into NATO airspace in a huge escalation

Politics

3 d. ago Airspace violations force NATO to tread a tightrope, deterring Russia without hiking tensions

NATO is ramping up aerial surveillance in the Baltic Sea

Events

4 d. ago Russia’s provocations are menacing Nato. The cold war shows how it needs to respond | Sergey Radchenko

Despite the cost of shooting down fighter jets and drones, small skirmishes remind both sides of the dangers of escalationEarlier this month, a swarm of Russian drones violated Poland’s borders. Some were shot down. A few days later, another Russian drone overflew Romania en route to Ukraine. The Romanian air defence let it get away. Then, on 19 September, three Russian MiG-31 fighters intruded into Estonia’s airspace. Italian F-35s – in the area on a Nato mission – intercepted the Russians and saw them off.Although this is hardly the first time Russia has violated Nato’s airspace, the extent and the brazen nature of these latest provocations make them stand out. Incursions will end only when the intruders are shot down. Fortunately, shooting down an occasional Russian fighter jet, never mind drones, is very unlikely to lead to a broader escalation. It may even help cool down tensions by reinforcing the red lines.Sergey Radchenko is Wilson E Schmidt distinguished professor at the He...

Events

4 d. ago The Guardian view on AI and jobs: the tech revolution should be for the many not the few | Editorial

Britain risks devolving its digital destiny to Silicon Valley. As a TUC manifesto argues, those affected must have a greater say in shaping the workplace of the futureIn The Making of the English Working Class, the leftwing historian EP Thompson made a point of challenging the condescension of history towards luddism, the original anti-tech movement. The early 19th-century croppers and weavers who rebelled against new technologies should not be written off as “blindly resisting machinery”, wrote Thompson in his classic history. They were opposing a laissez-faire logic that dismissed its disastrous impact on their lives.A distinction worth bearing in mind as Britain rolls out the red carpet for US big tech, thereby outsourcing a modern industrial revolution still in its infancy. Photographers, coders and writers, for example, would sympathise with the powerlessness felt by working people who saw customary protections swept away in a search for enhanced productivity and profit. Unlice...

Politics

4 d. ago The Guardian view on the 2025 Booker prize: bringing posh bingo to the BookTok generation | Editorial

With this year’s shortlist announced live to the public, Britain’s most prestigious literary award is finding ways to engage new audiencesWith its reputation for stuffiness and elitism, the Booker prize may seem unsuited to the age of social media. Back in the 1980s, when writers’ spats and affairs made headlines, the winning ceremony was televised by the BBC. It was the book world’s Oscars. Today, the idea of tuning in to watch the dinner-suited literati tuck into supper in London’s oak-panelled Guildhall seems preposterous. But the UK’s most prestigious literary prize still needs to reach as wide an audience as possible. How do you sell “posh bingo”, as Julian Barnes memorably dubbed it, to the BookTok generation?It is no longer enough to tell people what they should be reading. Readers expect to be part of the conversation – to be in the bingo hall. This year’s shortlist was announced live by the chair and former Booker prizewinner Roddy Doyle at an event at London’s So...

Politics

5 d. ago Britain will create 'drone wall' to protect Nato and Ukraine from Russia amid rising tensions over suspected Kremlin incursions

The British made drones have been developed in collaboration with Ukraine as the countries scramble to protect the alliance's eastern flank amid threats from Vladimir Putin's jets and drones.

Events

5 d. ago Vladimir Putin's attack dog threatens 'decisive response' to any action against unauthorised Russian raids into Nato airspace

Foreign minister Sergey Lavrov spoke as unauthorised flights into Nato's airspace - intrusions blamed on Russia - have raised alarm around Europe in recent weeks.

Events

5 d. ago Putin preparing to attack another European country, Zelenskyy says

Ukraine’s president says Kremlin checking Europe’s capacity to protect its skies following new drone sightingsVladimir Putin will expand his war in Ukraine by attacking another European country, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has predicted, and accused Russia of recent drone incursions that he said were an attempt to test Nato’s defences.Speaking in Kyiv after his meeting with Donald Trump at the UN in New York, the Ukrainian president said Russia was preparing for a bigger conflict. “Putin will not wait to finish his war in Ukraine. He will open up some other direction. Nobody knows where. He wants that,” he said. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago WW3 fears skyrocket as key Putin ally issues stark nuclear warning to Europe

As tensions between Russia and NATO continue to rise due to Russian incursions into European airspace, a key ally to Putin has given a chilling warning that could kick off WW3

Events

6 d. ago Nato ‘united and prepared to defend its airspace decisively’, says No 10

It came after unidentified drones were spotted near Danish airports this week.

Politics

6 d. ago Putin tests West as FIVE Russian fighters come perilously close to Nato airspace – after warning shooting them means WW3

FIVE Russian fighter jets were caught flying perilously close to Nato airspace after Moscow warned shooting them would lead to all-out war. The Nato Allied Air Command said it intercepted three MiG-31s, one Su-30 and one Su-35 fighter jets flying in a formation off the coast of Latvia. Two Hungarian Gripen fighter jets were scrambled...

Events

6 d. ago Russia has bad intentions towards the whole world, Polish PM says, as EU countries and Ukraine discuss ‘drone wall’ – Europe live

Numerous European countries to discuss plans to counter growing threat of incursions later todayPolish prime minister Donald Tusk warned that “Russia has ill intentions towards the whole world” as he spoke about the need for European allies to remain united and vigilant in the face of Moscow’s increasingly aggressive stance.“European allies have never been so united... we need to be vigilant. Russia has ill intentions towards the whole world, and those who border with it are the first to feel it,” Tusk told reporters when asked about recent drone incidents, Reuters reported. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago European countries to hold talks on ‘drone wall’ later today to counter growing threat – Europe live

Numerous EU countries and Ukraine to discuss plans to counter growing threat of incursions from Russia and other actors Numerous European countries are holding talks this afternoon on the bloc’s plans for “a drone wall” to counter growing threat of incursions from Russia or other actors.The issue is seen as increasingly urgent after recent Russian drone incursions into Lithuania, Poland and Romania, and recent run of so far unattributed drone sightings over Denmark. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago Russian forays into NATO airspace are causing alarm. Here's why they might be happening

Intrusions into NATO’s airspace blamed on Russia have reached an unprecedented scale, raising questions about whether the Kremlin is trying to test the alliance’s willingness to respond to a direct attack or divert its attention and resources from the war in Ukraine

Events

7 d. ago Russia launches 'Orthodox WhatsApp' after Kremlin crackdown on Meta's messenger

As fears of World War 3 continue to grow due to Russian incursions into NATO territory, Russia's Orthodox church appeared to release its own app to appeal to the more religious subjects, but not all is as it seems

Politics

7 d. ago The Guardian view on Nato airspace incursions: Russia is testing European and US will. It won’t stop here | Editorial

The escalation in recent days is raising alarm. It forms part of Moscow’s broader pattern of probing and provocationThe sheer volume of headlines tells its own tale. Russian drones over Poland and Romania. Russian fighter jets in Estonian airspace. Russian aircraft buzzing a German naval frigate in the Baltic Sea. Unidentified drones over Copenhagen and Oslo airports. Most recently, in the early hours of Thursday, further drones appearing at other Danish airports.In just over a fortnight, European states have reported a striking spate of incursions into their airspace. Russia has repeatedly denied responsibility and questions remain over individual events: so far, Denmark has said only that a “professional actor” was at work in the airport incidents and that it can’t rule out Russia. But overall, there is a pattern which fits clearly into Moscow’s longer record of provocations and often implausible deniability – and which amounts to a notable escalation. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago The Guardian view on Ireland’s presidential election: a contest with consequences | Editorial

Since 1990, the heads of state of Britain’s closest neighbour have played important soft power roles. This needs to continueThe idea that the next head of state might be an elected one is as remote from British experience as a visit to the far side of the moon. But it is hardly an unthinkable proposition, and you do not have to travel as far as the moon to see such a process taking place in a smooth and dignified manner. In fact, you only have to travel to Ireland.Next month, Ireland will elect a successor to President Michael D Higgins, who has served two seven-year terms as the occupant of Áras an Uachtaráin (in bygone days the Viceregal Lodge) in Dublin’s Phoenix Park. Mr Higgins has done the largely ceremonial job with charm, toughness and imagination. He has been good for Ireland, and good for British-Irish relations at a difficult time. In 2014, he made the first state visit to Britain by an Irish president. He is not a large man, but he leaves big shoes to fill. Con...

Politics