Run, walk or cheer for the children of Iraq
The Iraqi Children Foundation run three mobile schools called the Hope Buses. These deliver tutoring, healthcare and social support to orphans, street kids and displaced children living in disadvantaged neighbourhoods across Baghdad. In September, Hani Kampoori is running the London ‘Big Half’ marathon to support the Iraqi Children Foundation; an organis…
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Will you join the Liverpool Arab Arts Festival 2025?
Liverpool Arab Arts Festival (LAAF) , the longest running annual festival of Arab arts and culture in the UK, returns for its 23rd year this July as Culture Liverpool reports. Founded in 1998, LAAF exists to support and champion creatives from across the Arab region and its diaspora, in the belief that art and creativity have the power to express a shared …
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Facing the truth about the lasting scars of war
Until the First World War (1914-1918), most battle injuries were caused by small arms fire or sword cuts. Facial injuries were often of little concern to survivors who were deemed lucky enough to have escaped with their lives. Weapons used during the First World War like heavy artillery, machine guns and poison gas, created injuries of a severity and scal…
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How will you mark Victory in Europe Day?
World War Two was the most destructive global conflict in history. It began when Nazi Germany unleashed ferocious attacks across Europe - but it spread to the Soviet Union, China, Japan and the United States. Cities were destroyed by air raids, the atom bomb was dropped on Japan and six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust. Over 50 million soldiers a…
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Lawrence of Arabia. The man behind the myth
Few British soldiers have a greater legend attached to them than Colonel TE Lawrence - better known as Lawrence of Arabia . His military and diplomatic efforts have drawn some distinction. But it is Lawrence’s immense cultural impact in the century since his First World War exploits that has attracted the most attention. Thomas Edward Lawrence was born …
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Run, walk or cheer for the children of Iraq
The Iraqi Children Foundation run three mobile schools called the Hope Buses. These deliver tutoring, healthcare and social support to orphans, street kids and displaced children living in disadvantaged neighbourhoods across Baghdad. In September, Hani Kampoori is running the London ‘Big Half’ marathon to support the Iraqi Children Foundation; an organis…
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Baghdad’s forgotten church is kept open by one Iraqi Christian’s dedication
In a Baghdad neighbourhood famous for a Shia Muslim pilgrimage, there stands a tiny whitewashed Catholic church, lovingly brought back to life from dereliction by a lone Iraqi Christian committed to preserving faith and history, as Tom Westcott reports for the Catholic Herald . Illuminated by fairy lights along its walls, visitors often come in the evening…
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Thinking ahead to PTSD Awareness Month
June is PTSD Awareness Month , and advocates say people don't have to suffer in silence. As Cory Smith explains for The National Desk , treatment works according to veteran advocate Jim Lorraine. He said post-traumatic stress disorder isn’t just a military thing. Anyone who lives through a traumatic event, such as an assault or car crash, can suffer f…
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What are you reading today?
Hussein Al-alak is the editor of Iraq Solidarity News (Al-Thawra). Hussein is also a regular guest on Radio Offbeat, on Manchester's ALLFM. I was delighted to visit the Wood Street Mission, with a special World Book Day contribution for their ‘Books Forever’ appeal . It’s incredible that here in England and according to the National Literacy Trust : “1…
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New documentary chronicles Iraq’s Christian history
Marking 10 years since ISIS swept into Mosul and the towns of the Nineveh Plain, EWTN News has released a documentary delving into the roots of Christianity in Iraq, its history dating back nearly 2,000 years, and how Iraqi Christians have survived despite attempts to erase their presence.
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Manchester book campaign is back!
Wood Street Mission and their Books Forever appeal is back! Through this initiative, WSM distribute books to young people across Manchester and thanks to support from the public, it’s brilliant that each child gets to take home books to keep. Through such acts of kindness, you are helping to overcome barriers that children in low-income families face. Did…
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Mosul's al-Nuri mosque and al-Hadba minaret rise again
The leaning minaret of Mosul in northern Iraq has been restored using its original brickwork, years after it was reduced to rubble under Islamic State group rule. France 24's James André was in Mosul in 2017, just after the Islamic State group had fallen. He tells us more.
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AMAR’s Yazidi Choir. Can you hear the people sing?
In 2019, Rana founded the AMAR Ashti Choir and is being supported by the AMAR Foundation, a British based charity. Several women in the choir were ISIS captives and others have lost family members. “This folk music, it’s also a kind of affiliation of our religion,” says Mamou Othman, who studies music as psychotherapy at the University of Dohuk. “There ar…
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New Iraq inquiry to examine Britain’s responses to Daesh war crimes
The UK’s Joint Committee on Human Rights has announced a new Iraq inquiry into accountability for Daesh crimes, following up on work done in the previous Parliament. Daesh, also known as Islamic State, ISIS or ISIL, grew to prominence in the early 2010s, taking advantage of instability in Syria and Iraq to control large parts of their territory. Daesh co…
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Genocide in Europe: It couldn’t happen again. Or, could it?
Is there an answer to Elon Musk and his question : “Could what happened to the Yazidi people one day happen to Europe?” Let’s remember it was St. Maximilian Kolbe, who died in Auschwitz but had stated: ’ The most deadly poison of our time is indifference .’ To get an insight, when answering such a question like the one asked by Musk, people should look at …
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From Jordan to the Vatican: Celebrating Christianity in the Holy Land
In February 2025, the halls of the Vatican Museums will unveil a unique exhibition, “ Jordan: Dawn of Christianity / Giordania: Alba del Cristianesimo ,” a collection of 90 artefacts carefully curated to bring to life the enduring legacy of Jordan as a cradle of Christianity, bridging millennia of history and faith. As Sophie Constantin writes, the exhibit…
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Vatican to host ‘Jordan: Dawn of Christianity’ exhibition
The exhibition “ Jordan: Dawn of Christianity ” will debut at the Vatican’s Palazzo della Cancelleria on January 31, offering a profound exploration of Christianity's roots in Jordan. As Khitam Al Amir explains, organised by Jordan’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in collaboration with the Jordan Tourism Board, the event was officially introduced …
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In Germany, couple accused of abusing Yazidi girls
The couple allegedly bought two children at an Iraqi market and kept them as slaves. The accused are alleged to have been members of the "Islamic State" group and were detained in Bavaria in April, as explained here by DW. Germany's federal prosecutor on Monday 30th December 2024 charged an Iraqi couple with enslavement, torture and war crime…
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'Believe in Love' - Christmas voices from Bethlehem
Bethlehem artist Lina Sleibi, together with London musicians, have released a Christmas 2024 song of hope from the town where Jesus was born over 2,000 years ago. Like last year, no festive lights and fancy decorations will illuminate the night skies of the Holy Land this Christmas. In response to this, Lina Sleibi with Cherrie Anderson from Ooberfuse, insi…
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King attends Advent service celebrating faith communities
King Charles III attended a special Advent service on Tuesday at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street in Mayfair, London, co-hosted by the 175-year-old Jesuit parish and Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) . The service celebrated the courage and perseverance of Christian communities and reflected on the 10th anniversary of the invasion of Mos…
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