Blog one column

The Duchess of Edinburgh has described distressing scenes of sexual exploitation, after meeting refugees from Sudan’s civil war who had fled to neighbouring Chad. “People are having to exchange food and water for sex, for rape. That is violence that is being enacted through conflict. It is being used as a bargaining tool,” said Sophie, […]

Ruth Chepngetich’s performance at the Chicago Marathon on Sunday shredded record books and reset expectations on what might be possible over 26.2 miles. The Kenyan clocked two hours nine minutes 57 seconds, taking nearly two minutes off Ethiopian Tigst Assefa’s world record. But the detail below the headline time was just as jaw-dropping. Chepngetich came […]

Nigeria will boycott their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Libya on Tuesday after their players were left stranded at an airport overnight. The Super Eagles squad were due to land in Benghazi on Sunday but their plane was instead diverted to Al Abraq, which is about 230km (143 miles) away from their intended […]

“This is the most dangerous of all front lines,” says Oleksandr, the head of a medical unit for the Ukrainian army’s 25th Brigade. We are in the treatment room of a cramped makeshift field unit – the first point of treatment for injured soldiers. “The Russian Federation is pushing very hard. We have not been […]

The small South Caucasus nation of Georgia has become a multi-billion dollar hub for the international used car market. The vehicles are mostly sourced from the US, and many appear to be ending up in Russia. On the dusty outskirts of Rustavi, an industrial town 20km (12 miles) southeast of Georgia’s capital Tbilisi, is a […]

Senegalese farmer Mouhamed Oualy has never been to sea, but he is about to embark on a perilous sea journey – one that has turned the Atlantic Ocean into a mass grave. “The boat guys have called me – they said I should get ready. I am asking you to pray for me – the […]

In China, people are following the US election with keen interest and some anxiety. They fear what could happen next at home and abroad, whoever wins the White House. “None of us wants to see a war,” says Mr Xiang, as the music in the park reaches a crescendo and a nearby dancer elegantly spins […]

“I feel sick if I don’t search for diamonds. It’s like a drug.” Prakash Sharma, 67, speaks about diamonds with a passion that has defined his life for the past five decades. A diamond hunter in India’s central state of Madhya Pradesh, he spends most of his day in the mines of Panna district. Panna […]

In a few hours, a spacecraft should blast-off from Florida on the hunt for signs of alien life. Its destination is Europa, a deeply-mysterious moon orbiting the distant planet Jupiter. Trapped under its icy surface could be a vast ocean with double the amount of water on Earth. The Europa Clipper spacecraft will chase a […]

“It’s not at all how I imagined winning would be,” a minister reflects as the government hits its 100 days in office. There have been slips and accusations of sleaze. Scores of announcements. Enormous international events. The PM himself admits it’s been “choppy”. Even in the last 24 hours the government has blundered into a […]