The Economist explains
Subjects topical and timeless, profound and peculiar, explained with The Economist's trademark clarity and brevity |
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What are the obligations of Israel and Hamas to protect civilians?
International Humanitarian Law creates obligations—but contains numerous caveats |
Why is so much of the internet’s infrastructure run by volunteers?
Malware smuggled into XZ Utils software highlights a bigger problem |
The growing role of fighting robots on the ground in Ukraine
Drones already fill the skies. Now uncrewed vehicles are heading to the front lines |
Why do cicadas have such a strange life cycle?
Two broods will soon emerge simultaneously for the first time in 221 years |
How a home-improvement subsidy is wrecking Italy’s public finances
Government largesse is costing taxpayers |
What is geoengineering?
Deliberately cooling the climate is an unsettling idea |
Why are embassies supposed to be inviolable?
Ecuador’s raid on a Mexican embassy challenges a central principle of diplomacy |
What are “golden visas”?
And why they are so controversial |
Why the Moon needs its own time
The seconds really do pass more quickly up there |
Why it is so rare to see a total solar eclipse
The Great North American eclipse should be cherished, because total eclipses will not happen for ever |
How to define artificial general intelligence
Academics and tech entrepreneurs disagree. A court may soon decide |
Gaza could face a famine by May. What does that mean?
Some parts of the strip are already experiencing “catastrophic hunger” |
What is the Islamic State Khorasan Province?
The group that claimed responsibility for the Crocus City Hall attack is a growing threat to Russia—and the West |
Will Texas succeed in enforcing its own immigration law?
The state’s latest challenge to the federal government’s powers, SB4, is in limbo |
Might Russia run out of big guns?
Its armed forces may be out-shelling the Ukrainians—but they are wearing out their artillery |
How can democracies respond to rigged elections?
A host of Western countries reject the results of Russia’s sham election |
What is photo retouching and when is it permissible?
The edited photo of Kate Middleton shows what a minefield it can be |
Who is Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier, Haiti’s most prominent gang leader?
The warlord is one of the country’s most powerful men—for now |
Why Germany is reluctant to send Taurus missiles to Ukraine
Olaf Scholz seems determined to defy pressure from Germany’s allies and domestic opposition |
Why American cars are so big
A regulatory loophole that incentivised sales of big vehicles is about to be tightened |
What is Hindutva, the ideology of India’s ruling party?
It seeks to equate Indianness with Hinduism |
Does generative artificial intelligence infringe copyright?
Several lawsuits, one brought by the New York Times, could soon answer the question |
Why do Nvidia’s chips dominate the AI market?
The firm has three big advantages |
Can transgender women breastfeed?
Biological males may have a latent capacity to produce small amounts of milk |
Why is Nikki Haley losing to Donald Trump on home ground?
The former governor of South Carolina is set to lose a primary showdown in her state on Saturday |
What is Russia’s mysterious new space weapon?
Theories include a space-nuke or a nuclear-powered jammer |
How Ukraine sank the Caesar Kunikov—and is beating Russia at sea
It is the fourth landing ship Ukraine has taken out in the Black Sea in seven months |
Who is Prabowo Subianto, Indonesia’s probable next president?
The former general appears to have won the election, after rebranding himself as a cuddly character |
How Donald Trump’s re-election would threaten NATO’s Article 5
And thus play into Russia’s hands |
How to know when the world has passed 1.5°C of global warming
We explain in four charts |
A history of settler violence in the West Bank
The number of attacks by Israelis on Palestinians has risen since October 7th |
Why has The Economist changed its typeface?
Keen-eyed readers will have noticed that our website, app and print edition look different |
What is an atmospheric river?
The storm systems battering California have a global reach |
Why is there so much violence in Balochistan?
Militant groups in the region are a common problem for Iran and Pakistan |
Can anyone do anything about Viktor Orban?
Hungary’s prime minister is blocking EU aid for Ukraine. Other governments are at their wits’ end |
Did an Israeli hospital raid breach the laws of war?
Disguising a soldier as a doctor can be an act of “perfidy” |
What on earth is happening in Poland?
The new government is aggressively undoing years of illiberal rule. The upshot is a constitutional mess |
Why execution by nitrogen gas is so controversial
The new method of killing may amount to torture |
The factions at the heart of a scandal in Japan’s ruling party
Promises to disband them may turn out to be hollow |
What is prompt-engineering for artificial intelligence?
Effectively interacting with large language models is a valuable skill |
Why have the Democrats changed their primary calendar?
New Hampshire is in open revolt |
Will Republicans strike a border deal?
Lawmakers in the House and Senate are divided |
Why a new temple to Ram in Ayodhya matters so much to Indians
For Hindus it fulfils a centuries-old desire. Its opening will burnish Narendra Modi’s image |
How viable is Arctic shipping?
Russia is investing in the region |
What is the point of coming second to Donald Trump?
Whatever happens in New Hampshire, Nikki Haley has boosted her political career |
Why is America’s Congress being briefed on UFOs?
Lawmakers want to know more about the government’s classified files |
How the Iowa caucuses are changing in 2024
Five decades of tradition have been overturned by the Democrats |
Who is Lai Ching-te, the leader in Taiwan’s presidential race?
He may be softly spoken, but his words often anger China |
Can Ukrainian drone attacks hurt Russia?
The country is stepping up its strikes on enemy bases, and on Crimea |
How sanctions on Russia will change the diamond trade
New rules add up to the biggest shakeup of the industry in decades |
How art is used against artists, like Young Thug, in court
The lyrics of rap music are regularly used as evidence in criminal trials |
Could the Democrats replace Joe Biden as their presidential candidate?
Worries about his chances of re-election are growing |
Why the price of olive oil is soaring
Climate change, export controls and soaring fertiliser costs leave a bitter taste |
Who are the Houthis, the group attacking ships in the Red Sea?
The Yemeni rebel group is operating on the fringes of the Israel-Hamas war |
What is krav maga?
More people are learning the Israeli self-defence technique |
How Nayib Bukele is breaking presidential term limits in El Salvador
He subverts the system, but remains popular |
How Israel is using drones in Gaza
They help keep troops out of the line of fire—but can pose a risk to civilians |
What is antisemitism—and why do differences in interpretation matter?
Across the world, reports of the age-old prejudice have surged |
What does it take to expel an American congressman?
George Santos has joined a select group |
Why “offshoring” asylum-seekers rarely works
As caseloads rise in rich countries, governments are tempted to ship claimants abroad |
Who are the Palestinians in Israel’s prisons?
Hamas hopes to swap more for Israeli hostages |
Who is Geert Wilders, the surprise winner of the Dutch election?
The anti-Muslim populist has had a long career, but this is his best result yet |
The A to Z of the Arab-Israeli conflict
From “Abraham accords” to “Zionism” |
Was Israel’s attack on al-Shifa hospital justified?
Israel has so far offered little evidence that it was. More may yet turn up |
What is Iran’s axis of resistance?
The country’s Middle Eastern network of allied militias has grown more powerful |
The difference between a “ceasefire” and a “humanitarian pause”
And why it matters |
What is Israel’s Iron Beam?
Deployment of a new laser system for air defence is being accelerated |
How the term “genocide” is misused in the Israel-Hamas war
South Africa accuses Israel of committing the heinous crime |
What is the American State Department’s “dissent channel”?
A 50-year-old system allows diplomats to criticise their bosses |
Why covid-19 did not harm rich economies as badly as first thought
Britain and Italy have revised data for GDP during the pandemic |
Who is Herzi Halevi, the chief of staff of the Israel Defence Forces?
The lieutenant general is leading Israel’s war in Gaza—but may resign after it |
Why Gaza’s refugee camps are so vulnerable
More than half of the enclave’s population are registered refugees |
What’s weird about Ireland’s GDP?
Unlike most countries, the measure provides only limited insight into the size of the economy |
Can Hamas’s casualty figures be trusted?
America doubts the numbers issued by Gazan officials. But there are good reasons to believe them |
What limits do the laws of war impose on combatants?
The rules stretch back centuries, but not all are crystalline |
How has Israel’s commercial airspace remained open?
Many airlines cancelled flights in the wake of the attack launched by Hamas |
What evidence reveals about the Gaza hospital blast’s source
The damage points to a malfunctioning rocket, not an air strike |
What is Palestinian Islamic Jihad?
Israel blames the group for a deadly explosion at a hospital in Gaza |
What is Hizbullah?
The Iran-backed militia has long resented Israel |
How China’s Belt and Road Initiative is changing
The many motivations behind Xi Jinping’s key foreign policy |
A short history of Gaza
To understand this war, consider the territory’s past |
Why the Polish election campaign has been so vicious
A knife’s-edge vote has turned into a sword fight |
How powerful is Hamas?
Long politically dominant in Gaza, it has become better equipped militarily |
How America’s House of Representatives will choose a speaker
Jim Jordan is hoping to land the job—and end the chaos—on October 17th |
Why France has worked itself into a frenzy about bedbugs
The thought of the unpleasant critters is worse than the threat they pose |
Can Russia repeat its winter bombing of Ukraine’s electricity grid?
Estimates of its capacity to make missiles vary |
What happens if America’s government shuts down this weekend?
For starters, millions of people will not get paid |
What is America’s farm bill, and why does it matter?
It has transformed the agriculture industry and given millions of Americans food security |
Why Poland is halting its supply of weapons to Ukraine
A row over duty-free grain has escalated rapidly—but Poland’s government is also posturing |
Could the 14th Amendment bar Donald Trump from becoming president again?
Some conservative legal scholars think so—but the idea is a long shot |
What is Khalistan, the independent homeland some Sikhs yearn for?
The separatist movement is now largely propagated from abroad |
Will India change its name to Bharat?
Rebranding might excite some Hindu nationalists, but would be painful |
Why America’s Republicans want to bomb Mexico
Donald Trump’s aggressive rhetoric has entered the mainstream of his party |
What are Hycean worlds, a proposed new habitat for life?
Astronomers may have found a new type of life-friendly planet |
Why Venice will charge tourists to enter
Some hotspots are seriously overcrowded. But the allure of the tourist dollar is hard to resist |
How to escape from prison
It is getting harder but remains possible, as Daniel Khalife proved |
Why France is banning Muslim clothing in schools (again)
Some politicians believe that the country’s secular tradition is at stake |
A primer on Trump’s criminal trials
They will shape the drama of this year’s presidential election |
What is Australia’s “Voice to Parliament”?
The country will vote on whether to give Aboriginal people a constitutional right to consultation |
Why some British school buildings might be unsafe
And why reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete crumbles |