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GCSEs are a pointless waste of time

A few facts. Last year almost 70% of 16 year olds achieved at least 5 GCSE passes with grades A*-C. ...

Asylum seekers: When the questions tell us so much more than the answers

For the last four years I've been paying my karmic dues (I would say "contributing to the big societ...

Thanks to The Sun, for enriching each of our lives

Those at the super-soaraway Sun are, yet again, making outlandish claims that they’ve changed the wo...

Donald Macintyre: Exactly how is Tony Blair going to re-engage with British politics?

It was hard yesterday to find anyone quite sure about the meaning of Tony Blair “re-engaging” in UK politics, especially as he has already begun to do so quietly.

Donald Macintyre: Inhabitants of 'Area C' have been neglected

If nothing else the EU report is a sign that the international community has woken up to the problems of Area C – including what it describes bluntly as the "forced transfer" of Palestinians from their land.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was branded 'a liar' by Mr Sarkozy at the G20 summit

Donald Macintyre: Why sincerity of Israeli leader is doubted

Exactly what Nicolas Sarkozy meant by describing Benjamin Netanyahu as a "liar" is not immediately clear, and the French President is unlikely to prolong the episode by explaining it. But it is safe to assume that Mr Sarkozy has become increasingly unconvinced of Mr Netanyahu's sincerity in saying he is willing to negotiate a two-state solution with the Palestinians. By insisting the Palestinians recognise Israel as a "Jewish state" and by resuming a surge in Jewish settlement building, Mr Netanyahu has given no sign that he envisages the minimum deal the Palestinians could accept.

Donald Macintyre: Whatever else happens, this represents a massive shake-up in the conflict

The prisoner swap foreshadowed in the deal approved by Israel's Cabinet last night is a huge shake of the kaleidoscope through which the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has long been viewed. For the majority of Israelis, including the parents of Gilad Shalit, the return of the young soldier after his five-year ordeal will be a cause of unalloyed celebration. So too – assuming the deal is realised as proposed – will it be for hundreds of families of Palestinian prisoners. But in terms of raw politics, its effect will be no less dramatic.

Donald Macintyre: In Gaza, opposition to the UN statehood bid is almost as fierce as in Israel

Our writer tests the mood on the ground in Gaza City

Hatred and division in the land that would be Palestine

Through the middle of the acrid clouds of eye-stinging, throat-burning tear gas we were trying to escape. One canister fired by the armed border police landed behind and another in front of us – it was hard not to reflect that the force the military was applying during this incident was not being directed at those who started it.

Donald Macintyre: A flurry of diplomacy, but outcome remains uncertain

If nothing else, the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's plan to apply for UN membership as a state has ensured an abnormally intense level of intercontinental diplomatic agitation. This week's shuttling between Jerusalem and Ramallah by the US officials David Hale and Dennis Ross, Tony Blair, envoy to the Middle East "Quartet" and EU representative Catherine Ashton, is only the most visible evidence of the hand-wringing in Western capitals over how to handle the Palestinian initiative.

Donald Macintyre: Now is the moment for Israel to talk

International Studies

Donald Macintyre: The Palestinian leader can't retreat now

International Studies

Britain's spies recruited an extremely unlikely ally

Analysis

Donald Macintyre: Freedom in Libya is no longer a wild fantasy

International Studies

Donald Macintyre: This compound was the ultimate symbol of the tyrant's power

Bab al-Aziziyahh was a mixture of barracks, regime headquarters and holiday village

Donald Macintyre: If these strikes work, they'll buck a decades-long trend

Whenever national strikes have been threatened in this century, ears have been pricked to detect the distant echoes of those in the last one – especially now that there is the prospect of industrial struggle against a Conservative government.

Donald Macintyre: New realism pervades Hamas-Fatah negotiations

Israelis are willing to negotiate with a coalition including Hamas if it brings peace

Donald Macintyre: Between sanctions and propaganda lies a reality of shortages and ballooning prices

In the covered fish market inside the old souk in central Tripoli yesterday, Osama Ahmed Omar, a fishmonger as well as a fisherman, brandished a giant prawn. "You see there is not problem," he said proudly. "Before, these used to be 15 dinars a kilo, now they are 10."

Career Services

Day In a Page

'I may be deaf, but you can still talk to me'

'I may be deaf, but you can still talk to me'

Being a teenager is hard enough – for those with hearing loss, it can be even more complicated
A right royal trip down the river

A right royal trip down the river

A new exhibition celebrates the glory days of London's mighty Thames
The 10 Best lawn mowers

The 10 Best lawn mowers

From petrol-fuelled to self-propelled
Every second counts

Why does life appear to speed up as we get older?

Matilda Battersby finds out how the clock plays tricks with our minds
Couture on the Croisette: Fashion hits

Couture on the Croisette

The best outfits from the 2012 Cannes Film Festival
Child of the revolution: the Burmese family that democracy brought back together

Home of the free

The Burmese family that democracy brought back together
Cannes review: Canine accolade and Hitler's return are high spots amid the gloom

Cannes review

Frocks, canine accolade and Hitler's return
Robert Fisk: The going price of getting away with murder... would $33m be enough?

The going price of getting away with murder

Robert Fisk: The long view
Principled Skinner rises above the fray

Principled Skinner rises above the fray

Andy McSmith meets Dennis Skinner
Patrick Cockburn: I fear this terrible massacre will be the beginning of a long civil war in Syria

Patrick Cockburn

I fear this terrible massacre will be the beginning of a long civil war in Syria
Hardeep Singh Kohli: For me, it is all about 'Gregory's Girl', a record of first love

Hardeep Singh Kohli

For me, it is all about 'Gregory's Girl', a record of first love
Christian Louboutin: 'I don't think comfort equals happiness'

Christian Louboutin interview

'I don't think comfort equals happiness'
Happy birthday, Hotel Babylon!

Happy birthday, Hotel Babylon!

Hollywood's home to the A-list celebrates 100 years of discreet luxury
Rupert Cornwell: Low-rise capital could finally reach for the sky

Rupert Cornwell: Out of America

Low-rise capital could finally reach for the sky
The secret life of the red carpet

The secret life of the red carpet

As Cannes reaches its climax with the Palme d'Or and the celebrities gather in London for the Baftas tonight, Kate Youde and Jack Dean investigate the real star of the show