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
Why we are marching for clean water
The government’s new water Bill, while welcome, does not address the root cause Britain’s filthy waterways – what’s needed is proper enforcement of existing law, argues CHARLES WATSON
CLEAN UP YOUR ACT: An anti-sewage protest at Newquay beach, Cornwall
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
IT’S BEEN a huge week for clean river campaigners, with the government announcing a water Bill that it loudly trumpeted will rid Britain’s rivers, seas and lakes of pollution.
But will it? And are the polluters quaking in their boots? As usual it is important to read the small print rather than get intoxicated by grandiose statements. Sadly, we don’t think that what is proposed goes far enough to fix the underlying issues of water pollution in Britain. We fear it will merely tinker at the edges of a problem that is crying out for root-and-branch change.
First, though, let’s start by acknowledging the change in tone from the newly elected Labour government.
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