Friday, February 6, 2026
The UN reiterated concerns on Friday over reports that Israeli forces sprayed a highly toxic herbicide over areas north of the Blue Line separating Lebanon from Israel on 1 February.
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By Cara Ocobock, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, University of Notre Dame
Gabriel R. Burks, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Notre Dame
The Winter Olympics and Paralympics are upon us once again. This year the games come to Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, where weather forecasts are predicting temperatures in the upper 30s to mid-40s Fahrenheit (1 to 10 degrees Celsius).
These temperatures are a good deal warmer than one might expect for winter, particularly in a mountainous area. They’re warm enough that athletes will need to adjust how they…
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By Amnesty International
Responding to the European Commission’s preliminary findings that TikTok’s design is addictive and in breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA), a landmark EU law meant to create a safer digital space, Lisa Dittmer, Amnesty International Researcher on Children and Young People’s Digital Rights said: “For years now, TikTok has been the forefront of Big Tech’s race to capture children’s time and attention at all costs. This announcement is an overdue but welcome acknowledgement of TikTok’s addictive design. “The European Commission […] The post EU: European Commission must urgently enforce…
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image A US Border Patrol Tactical Unit agent sprays pepper spray into the face of a protestor near the scene where a woman was shot and killed by a federal agent, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 7, 2026. © 2026 Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune via Getty Images Congress approved five of six federal funding bills this week, delaying funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) over concerns regarding recent immigration crackdowns, including killings and other abuses. Congress is now negotiating possible reforms for DHS and two of its agencies, Immigration…
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By Thomas Caygill, Senior Lecturer in Politics, Nottingham Trent University
Keir Starmer is in the middle of his worst crisis yet following further damaging revelations about Peter Mandelson’s friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Emails released by the US government revealed the depth of Mandelson’s friendship with Epstein and confirmed that it continued after Epstein’s conviction in 2008.
Starmer insists that Mandelson lied to him and to the team responsible for vetting him as a candidate to be the UK ambassador to the United States. According…
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By Matthew Barnfield, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University of London
Conservative voters have become more positive about Reform since the defections – but some Reform voters have been turned off.
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By Chee Meng Tan, Assistant Professor of Business Economics, University of Nottingham
Japan said goodbye to its last two giant pandas on January 27, as twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei were returned from their host country to China. Their departure has left Japan without any pandas for the first time since 1972, when Tokyo and Beijing normalised diplomatic ties.
The Chinese government has long pursued a strategy of giving or loaning giant pandas, which are found exclusively in China, to other countries to strengthen international…
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By Bobby Smith, Associate Professor of Theatre and Performance, University of Warwick
Young people are often overlooked in discussions about climate crisis. And yet they stand to be most profoundly affected by it.
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By Joanna Syrda, Assistant Professor in Business Economics, University of Bath
The idea of a “trophy” wife or husband may not sound like a very romantic basis for marriage. It implies one half of a couple brings physical attractiveness to a relationship, while the other half brings status and money.
But the lack of romance in this idea does not mean that attractiveness and wealth don’t both play a part in many real relationships. Sociologists call it “beauty-status exchange”, and it has traditionally reflected the…
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By Jeff Da Costa, PhD Researcher in Hydrometeorology, University of Reading
Scientists can warn of a risk of floods days in advance. But forecasts often aren’t definitive enough to trigger action.
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