Paul Jackson, University of Birmingham
A three-day ceasefire to mark the Islamic festival of Eid-al-Fitr in Khartoum appears to be dead in the water as fighting continues in the Sudanese capital. According to the World Health Organization, more than 330 people have been killed over the past week. Now, with reports emerging that arms are being sent from Egypt and Libya, there are growing fears the situation could develop into a civil war that could draw in regional powers.
Longy School of Music of Bard College student, pianist, and composer Arson Fahim has curated a concert in celebration of Afghanistan’s rich musical legacy. Presented by Longy, “Concert in Solidarity with Afghan Musicians” will take place in person at Cambridge First Church on March 20, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. ET—the eve of Nowruz, the Persian New Year—and will be free and open to the public. Continue reading
Kate Kirk, University of Leicester
As nurses prepare to strike for the first time, an A&E nurse and lecturer in Organisational Behaviour in Healthcare writes about the stress, fear, grief and guilt they feel every day working on the frontline of an NHS in crises.
Matthew Sussex, Australian National University
Among the many questions asked about Russia’s disastrous war against Ukraine, one of them is posed only very rarely: can Russia survive what seems increasingly likely to be a humiliating defeat at the hands of its smaller neighbour?
David Bach, International Institute for Management Development (IMD)
Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s recent speech to the Communist Party Congress could be one of the most consequential of the decade. He told the audience – and the world – that his economic growth-crushing zero-COVID policy is here to stay, and that Beijing is more determined than ever to reunify with Taiwan, peacefully if possible and by force if necessary.
In the early 1990s, Senator Patrick Moynihan campaigned for the abolition of the CIA. The brilliant campaigner thought the US Department of State should take over its intelligence functions. For him, the age of secrecy was over.
In a New York Times opinion piece, Moynihan wrote:
Eleni Braat, Utrecht University and Ben de Jong, Leiden University
I was naked, tied to a hard chair with handcuffs. Three or four burly fellows in uniform are standing around me, one of them behind me with a truncheon… ‘Sie sind ein Verräter! [You are a traitor!],’ they snap.