Afghan activist: Either we let them kill us or keep working

Scientists are using Iceland as a testbed for deploying drone technology that they hope may one day feature on missions exploring Mars. The project equips drones with a range of devices from laser scanning Lidar which can help inform the thickness and volume of lava, to thermal imaging cameras and drills capable of taking core…

The spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19 in parts of the US is encouraging more people to get vaccinated, Dr Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer, at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, has said. He told BBC World News the past week had seen a slight increase in vaccinations. “We would like…

Hamas is co-operating with international mediators to achieve a ceasefire and calm, a spokesperson for the Islamist militant group which runs Gaza has said. Bassem Naeem told BBC World News: “The key is very simple, to withdraw the security forces from the al-Aqsa compound and to stop ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people from Sheikh Jarrah.”…

There is a bigger context to the current hostilities between Israel and Gaza, the political analyst and former spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority, Nour Odeh, has said. She told BBC World News: “We have to look at the wider picture. We cannot just say that Hamas needs to stop firing rockets. We have to ask…

Germany’s decision to approve the AstraZeneca vaccine for use in over 65 year olds has been welcomed, by the German Society for Immunology. Dr Carsten Watzl told BBC World News: “Given the data that came out of Scotland and England it’s been proven that it is effective and there is no question about the safety…

US President Joe Biden’s sweeping investment plan for jobs, education and social care has left some commentators comparing him to the Franklin D Roosevelt, said Dr Thomas Gift. Roosevelt’s New Deal economic plan helped pull the US out of recession in the 1930s, but Dr Gift, an associate professor, at the UCL Centre on US…