More than three years into Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country, life in Ukraine is still marked by strikes and fear. But Ukrainians are also seeking getaways to catch a break and find relief.
Category: FOCUS
The United States faces a lack of practical alternatives to sustaining Ukraine’s defense. With missile production lagging and diplomacy stalled, Washington is struggling to deliver the air defenses Kyiv needs to slow Russia’s advance.
👋 Ha’u!* Welcome to Tuesday, where the WHO condemns Israel’s ground offensive in central Gaza, Bangladesh mourns the victims of a crash of an air force training jet on a school and our daily quiz question is about a deliciously disappearing artwork. Meanwhile, An Flores for independent Latin American online Volcánicas looks at how discussions […]
Benjamin Netanyahu proposing the U.S. president for the Nobel Peace prize may seem a sinister joke, but it seems the Gaza genocide these laureates-in-waiting are boasting about is reaping them benefits. It is giving them wings, like those of vultures.
Cyber slavery rings are growing across the region, trapping young jobseekers in brutal scam compounds — and fueling a global criminal enterprise.
👋 Alò!* Welcome to Friday, where the EU imposes new sanctions on Russia, Donald Trump struggles to tamp down the Jeffrey Epstein uproar, and a famed Austrian daredevil dies in a paragliding accident. We also feature an article on the rise of the “Instagram Sheikhs” — a diverse group of digital-savvy Muslims who fuse Islamic […]
The so-called “Hebron Emirate” is not a realistic project — but rather a propaganda tool within a campaign to hinder any progress toward a two-state solution. Netanyahu again succeeds in marketing the illusion of alternative solutions to delay a real settlement.
This small but strategically located Russian exclave is the most militarized area in Europe. Much of the continent remains within range of Kaliningrad’s Iskander missiles which allows Russia to keep NATO in check. What is the real potential of the Russian military forces stationed just beyond our northern border?
Vladimir Putin is convinced his country is strong enough to secure total victory in Ukraine. But the Russian leader is forgetting two crucial things about the current geographic dynamic.
As official data vanishes from Russian state reports, independent experts warn that losses from Putin’s war in Ukraine are becoming too large to hide.
In Putin’s Russia, dissent is silenced. Yet pro-war “Z” bloggers and influencers insult and lambast military failures constantly, and go unpunished. The state tolerates them because without these defiant voices knitting the war machine’s lifelines, Russia’s offensive would stall.
Russia has carried out its largest missile and drone bombardment since launching its invasion of Ukraine. And it is preparing its summer offensive, while Donald Trump remains ambivalent about the continuation of his military aid, when the contracts signed by Joe Biden expire over the summer.
As Netanyahu visits Washington, Israel’s intelligence gears up for a covert campaign against Iran, aiming not just at military targets but at the very core of the regime’s power.
👋 Håfa adai!* Welcome to Thursday, where airstrikes and shootings kill at least 94 Palestinians in Gaza overnight, South Korea revises governing martial law rules, and today’s quiz question asks what’s on the menu aboard the International Space Station. Meanwhile, Tarek Ismail for Daraj draws a dictatorial parallel between Donald Trump and late Libyan strongman […]
Chancellor Merz and Foreign Minister Wadephul warn of direct threats from Moscow on the lives of people in Germany, and yet hesitate to back their words with the kind of support Ukraine urgently needs to avoid that Putin goes further.
👋 Goeie!* Welcome to Tuesday, where dozens of NGOs and charities call for the controversial Israeli and U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to be shut down, Thailand’s prime minister is suspended over a leaked phone call and our daily quiz question involves an emotional rollercoaster for Norwegians. Meanwhile, Rabea Weihser for German weekly Die Zeit explores […]
👋 ನಮಸ್ಕಾರ* Welcome to Thursday, where Iran’s nuclear sites are reported to be “severely damaged,” Gaza mediators are intensifying ceasefire efforts, and our daily quiz question is related to a very old discovery from a Polish cave. Meanwhile, Inma Mora Sánchez for Ethic outlines the issues surrounding women’s self-esteem, from the housewives’ awakening of the […]
The’ “hell” continues in Gaza, with no explicit explanation of Israel’s goals. U.S. President Trump’s success in swiftly ending the missile exchanges between Israel and Iran could now be extended by pressuring the Israelis to find a solution to the Palestinian question, which is vital to progress in the Arab world. What will Trump do?
Some 49,000 soldiers have deserted from the Russian army. But to avoid the harshest charges or being sent forcibly back to the front, some are surrendering promptly in the hopes of being sent simply to prison.
👋 Сайн уу* Welcome to Tuesday, where Israel orders new strikes on Iran as it says Tehran violated a ceasefire announced by Trump, NATO leaders meet Tuesday in The Hague, and today’s quiz question comes from under the sea. Meanwhile, Gazeta Wyborcza’s Anna S. Dębowska tells the story of the Polish influencer suing Netflix for […]
June 20 – July 3, 2025
👋 Salü bisàmme!* Welcome to Tuesday, where Israel and Iran trade more strikes as Trump says he is “looking at better than a ceasefire,” Russian airstrikes kill at least 14 in Kyiv, and tourists in Ibiza are scared to answer today’s quiz question. Meanwhile, Pauline Castellani in French daily Le Figaro takes a deep whiff […]
As he launches the unprecedented attacks against Iran, much seems to be going Netanyahu’s way, from the decimation of both Hamas and Hezbollah leaders to the toppling of the Assad regime and softening of Gulf states. But a closer look shows a much more ambiguous picture across the region.
Six centuries after the Arab world’s greatest philologist traced a cultural fault line between Bedouins and urban Arabs, that same divide echoes in today’s Middle East conflicts — from ISIS and al-Nusra to Gaza’s shifting alliances.
Public support for a negotiated end to the war in Ukraine is growing in Russia, with new polling showing record levels of backing for diplomacy. But the majority still insists on conditions that Ukraine — and its Western allies — are unlikely to accept. As the Kremlin plays the long game, a clear path to peace remains elusive.
Five countries have imposed sanctions against the two most important far-right ministers in Israel’s Netanyahu government — Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Internal Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir — a first that marks the deterioration in relations between Israel and its allies. But with the Trump administration standing behind Netanyahu, little can be actually be done.
Some Russians who have gone to war are making big money: for signing a contract, monthly pay, injury insurance, and benefits in case of death. Unsurprisingly, many are eager to illegally get their hands on that money — from frontline commanders to women marrying the most vulnerable.
The days of talking about ceasefires feel like a distant memory. Each side is now intent on making the other pay for not giving in. Donald Trump didn’t back up his promise with any pressure on Moscow.
Beyond the immeasurable horror for the people of Gaza, the war is also seeing a rise in hatred against Israelis, and Jews. Netanyahu says he wants to defend Israel, but is instead exposing his nation and all Jews to contempt and isolation.
Neither Israel nor Hamas has any interest in declaring victory or defeat. Yet, as a moral obligation, Hamas must preempt the Israeli mission and agree to withdraw from Gaza.
June 6 – June 12, 2025
With Russian troops slowly but steadily advancing, and Western support wavering, we should be well aware that a Ukrainian defeat would trigger mass displacement, destabilize Europe, and hand Putin a historic opportunity. We risk sleepwalking into a historic disaster.
👋 Saluton!* Welcome to Wednesday, where Trump doubles steel and aluminium tariffs, South Korea’s new president is sworn in and our quiz question takes you to one of Amsterdam’s iconic museums. Meanwhile, for Daraj, Iman Adel tells us the story of Laila Soueif, the mother of a jailed British-Egyptian activist who has been on a […]
👋 Yumalundi!* Welcome to Tuesday, where Israeli forces kill at least 27 Palestinians in another deadly confrontation near a food distribution site in Gaza, Mount Etna erupts, and we’ve got one sour quiz question for you. Meanwhile, for La Stampa, Stefano Stefanini looks at Ukraine’s recent long-range drone strike deep inside Russia — and what […]
Deported by the U.S. and rejected by Bhutan, dozens of former refugees are now stranded in Nepal without citizenship or legal status. Their statelessness raises urgent legal and human rights questions about the consequences of deportation.
As famine grips Gaza under Israel’s blockade, drones drop cartons of cigarettes and hookah tobacco into the Strip. Lebanon-based journalism platform Daraj investigates the perverse profiteering that thrives in war zones, exposing how tobacco continues to flow even as food and medicine are denied.
A new horror during food distribution in Gaza comes, with the warring parties digging in their heels at the expense of the population. Only the White House has the weight to impose a truce. Why is it waiting?
Far fewer Latin American migrants are trying to reach the United States under the Trump administration, but is this a “problem solved”? For now?
As Berlin and Tel Aviv mark a diplomatic milestone, the relationship born out of pragmatism, guilt and survival faces its toughest questions yet — especially amid war, protest and growing calls for criticism.
Egypt has tried again to reaffirm its historic regional role by condemning Israel’s war in Gaza. But Cairo’s economic weakness, and reliance on Israel and the Gulf countries, ultimately leave its hands tied.