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
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Grenfell five years on – forever in our hearts
There is an acute sense of abandonment in North Kensington, where the worst post-war fire in Britain has left a legacy of distrust between residents and an uncaring local authority. ANN CZERNIK reports
The Grenfell Memorial Wall in the grounds of Kensington Aldridge Academy, London.
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
ON JUNE 14 2017, in the early hours of the morning, an ordinary kitchen fire was the catalyst for a social catastrophe of an unprecedented scale.
The effects of this extraordinary occurence upon the communities living in close proximity to the Grenfell fire disaster will not be fully understood for decades to come.
This event took place in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea where some of the world’s wealthiest and Britain’s poorest coexist in an atmostphere of mistrust, mutual contempt and suspicion.
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As we approach the half-anniversary of the Grenfell tragedy, the community gathers to remember loved ones while grappling with mixed emotions surrounding the ongoing deconstruction of the tower and the hopeful plans for a memorial, writes EMMA DENT COAD
