RAMZY BAROUD explains why the world can no longer ignore Palestine
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Decapitating the monarchy - January 30 1649
We do not celebrate the day when the English people separated Charles I's head from his body – an epoch-shattering occasion – but we should, argues KEITH FLETT
Starmer’s decision to suspend Diane Abbott yet again demonstrates a determination to maintain and propagate a hierarchy of racism, writes CLAUDIA WEBBE
Deep disillusionment with the Westminster cross-party consensus means rupture with the status quo is on the cards – bringing not only opportunities but also dangers, says NICK WRIGHT
Olive oil remains a vital foundation of food, agriculture and society, storing power in the bonds of solidarity. Though Palestinians are under attack, they continue to press forward write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
VIJAY PRASHAD looks at the web of militias and drug-trafficking gangs that emerged in the Sweida region through the Syrian civil war, and how they relate to recent clashes and Israel’s intervention
JOE ATTARD explains why trade unionists are rallying in solidarity against the recent arrest of political activists in Gilgit-Baltistan, the northernmost region of Kashmir, administered by Pakistan
JANUARY 30 marks the 370th anniversary of the beginning of modern parliamentary democracy in Britain. On that day King Charles I lost his head in Whitehall and a government under Oliver Cromwell and then his son Richard ran things until 1660 when the monarchy was restored. It is of course still with us.
One might think that the birth of what was in effect the first parliamentary system anywhere in the world would warrant some degree of commemoration and indeed celebration. It will not of course. The 350th anniversary in 1999 did see some events and exhibitions which in the main focused on what a terrible thing it was that the forces of the New Model Army and the new Commonwealth had had the temerity to actually execute a monarch.
So January 30 is not, as it should be, a national holiday. The current Prince Charles, who may yet become King Charles III, will maintain an official silence, since 370 years on the royal family have still not come to terms with what happened on that January day in 1649.
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