Long Reads News - Page 2

In Syrian camp, children left with no school, no play as only education coming their way is IS propaganda

It has been more than two years that some 27,000 children have been left to languish in al-Hol camp. Most of them not yet teenagers, they are spending their childhood in a limbo of miserable conditions with no schools, no place to play or develop and seemingly no international interest in resolving their situation.

In photos: How Guatemalan lives are being upturned by failed immigration bids

The COVID-19 pandemic initially blunted migration to the U.S. last year, but numbers were soon on the rise again.

After mainland China, Communist Party's focus now shifts to quashing Tiananmen Square tributes in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the recent arrests and convictions of prominent activists have had a chilling effect on those who participated in the vigil in the past.

Amid COVID-19 pandemic, restorers in Florence's Medici Chapel unleash grime-eating bacteria to clean Michelangelo's sculptures

Last fall, with the chapel operating on reduced hours because of COVID-19, scientists and restorers completed a secret experiment: They unleashed grime-eating bacteria on the artist’s masterpiece marbles.

Her hope and mine: The story of an acid attack survivor, in her caretaker's words

Asma, who is from a coastal town in Andhra Pradesh, tells the story of her sister Hajida, who survived an acid attack. Through hospital bills and ostracism, the sisters have kept hope alive

On the India-Bhutan border, an indigenous group faces extinction due to mining pollution

The entire population of one of the world’s smallest indigenous groups, the Toto, live in a village on the India-Bhutan border. They are threatened by mining, water scarcity and a blood disorder.

World Press Photo 2021 contest winners include Mads Nissen's First Embrace, Antonio Faccilongo's Habibi

This year, the competition received 74,470 entries from 4315 photographers across the globe. The winners' list comprises 45 photographers from 28 countries, of which 35 are first-time winners.

Amid ceasefire after 11-day war, displaced in Gaza face familiar plight

The United Nations estimates that about 1,000 homes were destroyed in the 11-day war that ended last Friday. Lynn Hastings, the UN humanitarian coordinator for the region, said hundreds of additional housing units were damaged so badly they are likely uninhabitable.

An AD-mi-RAY-ble vision: Revisiting Satyajit Ray's foray into the advertising industry

Charting the growth of Satyajit Ray, the ad-man, Pinaki De selects five advertisements created by the filmmaking genius and analyses how Ray balanced commercial demands with his fine aesthetic sensibilities.

Mexico City marks 500 years of Spanish siege of Tenochtitlán, the capital of Aztec Empire

It was one of the few times an organised Indigenous army under local command fought European colonisers to a standstill for months, and the final defeat helped set the template for much of the conquest and colonisation that came afterward.

After being hit by COVID-19 crisis, fishing season offers hope to Senegal's women

In the small community of Bargny, women support their families by drying, smoking, salting and fermenting the catch brought home by male villagers.

Livelihoods of Worli's Koli community, impacted by coastal infra projects, further battered by COVID-19 crisis

For years, artisanal Kolis at Worli have been coping with environmental and community endangerment from coastal development projects. The COVID-19 lockdown has added to the woes of the fishing community.

Along Nepal's Kamala river, cultivation has brought both opportunities and problems for farmers

Hundreds of families are adapting to sandbank cultivation on both sides of the Kamala. The practice has appeared along a 35-kilometre stretch of the river.

In Bosnia, Muslim miners mark Ramadan underground; pray and break fast underground

During Ramadan, observant Muslims abstain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn until sunset and Zenica coal miners are no exception. For the entire duration of the Muslim holy month, they go about their normal work routine, insisting they feel no exceptional hunger, thirst or exhaustion.

'Eccentrics washed up here': Shabnam Minwalla’s book highlights diversity that characterises Mumbai's Colaba

Colaba’s diversity is evident in its population, ranging from its original inhabitants, the Kolis and the fishing community, to enthusiasts frequenting art galleries and libraries, and from shoppers at Colaba Causeway to the Indian Navy at Navy Nagar, and more.

Aparna Sen and Madhabi Mukherjee on Satyajit Ray, the man, and his enduring legacy

On Satyajit Ray's 100th birth anniversary, his leading ladies Aparna Sen and Madhabi Mukherjee weigh in on the political significance of the man and his legacy, even 29 years since he breathed his last.

Jose Gregorio Hernández, Venezuela's beloved 'doctor of the poor', to be beatified following 72-year campaign

Known as the "doctor of the poor, Hernandez is set to be beatified by the Catholic church, a step towards sainthood, on 30 April.

#36daysoftype: 10 Indian designers discuss their process, inspirations for 2021 edition of challenge

Some artists find creating art every single day a challenge, while others find that it pushes their creative boundaries.

Mass funeral pyres present a chilling portrait of India's surge in COVID-19 cases

India’s surge in coronavirus infections, growing at the fastest pace in the world, has left patients pleading for oxygen outside hospitals, relatives weeping in the street as their loved ones die while waiting for treatment.

'Look after my babies': In Ethiopia, a Tigray family's quest amid gunshots, ethnic violence

Five months after it began, the armed conflict in Ethiopia has turned into what witnesses describe as a campaign to destroy the Tigrayan minority. Thousands of families have been shattered, fleeing their homes, starved, murdered or still searching for each other across a region of some 6 million people.

In photos, how India is coping with world's worst COVID-19 surge amid shortage of hospital beds, meds, oxygen

A Delhi gurdwara has started offering free breathing sessions with shared tanks to COVID-19 patients waiting for a hospital bed.

On World Earth Day, Indian artists reflect on their relationship with trees and use of art to bring attention to natural world

By drawing attention to trees and individualising them, environmental art works to combat plant blindness and offers an outlet for eco-anxiety.

In The Break of Dawn, illustrated tales of Awadh's struggles during India's First War of Independence

Originally published in Urdu under the title Aghaaz-e-Sahar, The Break of Dawn is a reminder of a time when Indians of all classes and faiths came together to fight for the honour and freedom of their homeland.

As COVID deaths cross 3 million globally, a look at the pandemic's most defining images

To mark the milestone of 3 million COVID-19 deaths worldwide, The Associated Press asked 15 photographers in 13 countries to pick the single image they shot that affected them the most, and explain why.

Esplanade Mansion: As 155-year-old Mumbai landmark faces its end, a look at its past, present and future

When Watson's Hotel (Esplanade Mansion's original name) opened in 1867; its 130 plush rooms and 20 suites were meant to cater exclusively to elite English guests — not Indians. In fact, the story goes that Jamshetji Tata came up with the idea for Mumbai’s Taj Mahal Hotel after he was denied entry in Watson’s.

As Joe Biden announces withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, a look at 20 years of conflict and its remnants

There were 2,500 to 3,000 US troops in Afghanistan when Biden took office, the smallest number since early in the war. The number peaked at 1,00,000 during President Barack Obama’s first term.

In Mexico, hunger and unemployment force many former sex workers back into trade amid COVID-19 pandemic

Conditions that have always been tough for the women who ply the trade in Mexico City — violence by clients and gangs who prey on prostitutes and shakedowns by corrupt police — got even worse during the pandemic.

Revisiting Lathmar Holi, the colourful recreation of Radha-Krishna's relationship in villages of Nandgaon, Barsana

Lathmar Holi is essentially the story of the two love-locked villages of Nandgaon and Barsana in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, believed to be the birthplaces of Lord Krishna and his consort Radha, respectively.

At Magnetic Fields Nomads, some answers for music festivals grappling with challenges of COVID-19 era

While the past year has stripped audiences of the opportunities to enjoy live events, festivals such as Magnetic Fields are trying new approaches that might serve as blueprints for others.

In Peru, govt-approved clandestine burials of COVID-19 victims rouse ire

Local authorities approved the burials but never told the families, who believed their loved ones were in a local cemetery — and only months later discovered the truth.