Turkey’s increasingly authoritarian government led by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) has always made use of crises to consolidate its power. The coronavirus has been no exception. The regime has cracked down on opposition and attempted to undermine its effectiveness, while endeavouring to legitimise the rule of the long-servingContinue Reading
What a contrast it was. In early May 2000, Vladimir Putin strode through the Kremlin’s gilded corridors, his progress relayed on live TV across the world’s largest country, and beyond. I was reporting from Moscow for the BBC. Putin looked purposeful, slim and sober as he swore to uphold theContinue Reading
Coronavirus conspiracy theories fuel anti-vaccination protests. Rebekah Zemansky / Shutterstock.com With prospects of a COVID-19 vaccine looking up, attention is also turning to the problem of anti-vax ideas. According to a recent survey, one in six Britons would refuse a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available. Although vaccine hesitancy isContinue Reading
The UK’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) has finally published its long overdue report on Russian interference in UK elections, nearly a year and a half after its completion and eight months after it was due for release. Even the public was incensed with the delay – a parliamentary petitionContinue Reading
The new report from parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) on Russia is damning. The document certainly isn’t a page-turner, and nor does it provide all the answers some had expected. But contrary to most ISC reports, it’s striking and blunt, and the message couldn’t be clearer: Russia’s intelligence agenciesContinue Reading
Jacob Lund/Shutterstock Despite the UK’s coronavirus lockdown beginning to ease in June, the majority of swimming pools, gyms and leisure centres are still waiting to reopen. This slow return – together with a lack of government financial support and the anticipated tentativeness of consumers – means that many public leisureContinue Reading
Fertility rates: hard to predict. noBorders – Brayden Howie/Shutterstock When the BBC reported on the results of a new study on global population in mid July, the tone was alarmist. “Jaw-dropping” declines in births were foretold, while one of the study’s authors revealed worries about his daughter’s future in lightContinue Reading
India is facing a prolonged backlash from its LGBTQ+ community over the continued use of conversion therapies to “cure” homosexuality by changing people’s sexual orientation. In May, the tragic suicide of Anjana Harish, a 21-year-old bisexual woman in Goa, sparked online protests. Harish had posted a video online before herContinue Reading
At the start of lockdown, there were many heartwarming stories of countless restaurants, cafes and bars that turned their attention and resources to feeding the homeless for free. There was also a considerable financial commitment from the government to accomodate more than 5,000 rough sleepers in hotels up and downContinue Reading
Shutterstock Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, we have found ourselves in the middle of a nostalgia frenzy. It seemed to permeate everything: nostalgia playlists on music streaming platforms outperformed new music, and old albums by Madonna, Janet Jackson and Mariah Carey topped the iTunes charts. On TV, we’ve been treated toContinue Reading
