Once the bustling heart of Christian pilgrimage, Bethlehem now faces shuttered hotels, empty streets and a shrinking Christian community, while Israel’s assault on Gaza and the tightening grip of occupation destroy hopes of peace at the birthplace of Christ, writes Father GEOFF BOTTOMS
The case for peace
In the face of alarming escalation of the war in Ukraine and against the backdrop of rising nuclear threats, diplomatic discussion is not just possible but imperative, writes JEREMY CORBYN MP
irefighters work after a drone attack on buildings in Kyiv, Ukraine, on October 17, 2022
After years hidden away, Oldham’s memorial to six local volunteers who died fighting fascism in the Spanish civil war has been restored to public view, marking both a victory for campaigners and a renewed tribute to the town’s proud International Brigade heritage, says ROB HARGREAVES
The June 2025 attacks on Iran have heightened the risk of a wider war, exposed the fiction of a rules-based international order and left ordinary Iranians trapped between external aggression and internal repression, says the Committee for Defence of Iranian People’s Rights
While pretending to seek peace, Europe is heading toward a collision course with Russia – using security guarantees, troop deployments, expropriation and censorship as tools, writes SEVIM DAGDELEN
A WWI hero, renowned ornithologist, medical doctor, trade union organiser and founder member of the Communist Party of Great Britain all rolled in one. MAT COWARD tells the story of a life so improbable it was once dismissed as fiction
The long-term effects of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange mean that the impact of war lasts well beyond a ceasefire
AS RUSSIA’S war of aggression in Ukraine takes more lives, destroys more homes and wreaks more misery, it is imperative that we urge all governments, leaders and international organisations to prioritise peace.
This Monday, we mourned the loss of more civilians when Russian kamikaze drones hit Kyiv and Mykolaiv. The attack had given Ukrainians just a week of “respite” — 19 people in Kyiv were killed by a Russian missile the Monday before. A children’s playground was among the rubble.
As yet more civilians, soldiers and conscripts are condemned to death, the United Nations is sitting on its hands.
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Real security comes from having a secure base at home — Keir Starmer’s reckless and renegade decision to get Britain deeper into the proxy war against Russia is as dangerous as it is wasteful, writes SALLY SPIERS
If we want to take on war in 2025, we must take on our own governments in the West, and most of all, take on Nato, writes the convener of the British Peace Assembly, LIZ PAYNE
From Storm Shadow missiles hitting Russia to support for the endless Gaza slaughter, the new Labour government has continued the years of Tory warmongering. The peace movement faces a crucial year ahead, writes LINDSEY GERMAN