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
Methane at a near-record high in 2023, despite pledges
Research reveals that companies are still getting away with driving climate change through methane emissions — but new tracking technology may finally make enforcement of regulations a reality, writes CRISTEN HEMINGWAY JAYNES
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
ACCORDING to key findings from the International Energy Agency (IEA)’s latest Annual Methane Tracker, in 2023, global methane emissions from fossil fuels stayed close to a record high despite new global reduction pledges.
Human activities like agriculture, oil and gas production, and the accumulation of food waste in landfills produce methane — a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Methane emissions from the energy sector are responsible for roughly a third of global temperature increases since pre-industrial times, reported Reuters.
“Emissions of methane from fossil fuel operations remain unacceptably high … There is no reason for emissions to remain as high as they are,” said Tim Gould, IEA chief energy economist, as AFP reported.
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Thanks to impressive progress in Britain with wind and solar generation, clean electricity now costs a fraction of the price of gas — yet the current system keeps bills artificially high to protect fossil fuels, writes TOM HARDY