COMMENT

Benjamin Zephaniah: How the poet’s linguistic anarchy and abolitionist politics impacted education – and me

— For many school children, Benjamin Zephaniah’s work will have been the first time they encountered published literature that talked about the things that mattered to them.

COMMENT

Is Javier Milei Argentina’s Liz Truss?

— Javier Milei, Argentina’s president-elect, resembles Britain’s short-serving PM Liz Truss in their shared goals of low taxes and a reduced state. Both faced economic challenges, raising concerns about the potential consequences of their radical policies.

COMMENT

The upshot of ‘He said, Xi said’: More pandas to the US

— Joe Biden and Xi Jinping participated in a crucial summit during the APEC forum in San Francisco. Acknowledging competition, the leaders underscored the importance of averting conflict and committed to resuming military contact.

COMMENT

Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar… whatever happened to the ‘never again’ pledge?

— Global tensions are escalating, marked by ongoing regional disputes in Ukraine-Russia, Israel-Gaza, Sudan, Myanmar, and Ethiopia. The international community’s intermittent focus on these crises raises concerns about the efficacy of global peacemaking efforts.

COMMENT

The ethics of Biden’s ‘America First’ argument for Ukraine funding

— Some Republicans express disapproval of the Biden administration’s approach to aiding Ukraine against Russia, which frames aid as a means to boost American employment in the weapons manufacturing industry.

COMMENT

Britain’s cosplay with warships and suchlike in the eastern Mediterranean

— What is the purpose of Rishi Sunak’s Government deploying a notably smaller naval task group in the Middle East compared to the United States, if not to project a larger presence on the international stage?

COMMENT

An Israeli novelist on being a good mother and empathetic in hard times

— Aylet Gundar-Goshen has previously said the trait she finds most irritating in others is, “indifference to others’ suffering.”

COMMENT

Multicultural man, Rishi Sunak

— 50 years after Peter Adler’s “Multicultural man”, Rishi Sunak’s diverse identity challenges stereotypes and raises questions on multiculturalism.

COMMENT

What a section of the UK’s Sikh community says is happening to it

— The Sikh Council UK seems to be trying to stir suspicions against India. Were they to succeed, it would be profoundly damaging in all sorts of ways.

EU Citizens

EU Citizens: Cruel and unjust refusals in the EU Settlement Scheme

— The Home Office’s stringent policies are resulting in unnecessary hardship for EU citizens. Recent immigration rule adjustments have resulted in unfair rejections and a convoluted administrative process.

Anti-Net Zero Populism

Sunak should be wary of backtracking on net zero – What history tells us about flip-flopping on the environment

— Rishi Sunak has delayed some of the UK’s key net zero targets – a look back at history may explain why.

COMMENT

Libya’s warring governments and the West

— Eight years on from the grand bargain, Libya’s situation is even more woeful.

COMMENT

‘9/11 is becoming an exercise in forgetting’

— Strangely, 22 years on, 9/11 is the one reassuring sign in America’s otherwise sickening body and body politic.

COMMENT

Is the G20 in trouble?

— Xi no-show and several other headaches for host India.

COMMENT

Al-Fayed simply lived in the wrong era of British politics

— Mohamed Al-Fayed was deemed ‘not a fit and proper person to be given (British) citizenship’. Today, the Egyptian businessman would probably be in the House of Lords.

Slavery Reparations

Tory MP’s historic family links to slavery raise questions about Britain’s position on reparations

— A report estimates the UK owes £18.5 trillion in reparations for its role in the transatlantic slave trade. While some UK families whose wealth largely derives from it have agreed to pay reparations, others face growing pressure to engage in reparations talks.