Devika Bhat

Jared Kushner is undertaking a diplomatic mission in the Middle East to meet Hamas officials and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, seeking to preserve a Gaza ceasefire. The effort follows Netanyahu’s public rejection of the Trump administration’s US-backed 15-point peace plan, creating a rare breach between the Israeli government and Washington.

Jimmy Carter is remembered as a former president whose most significant achievements came after leaving office, particularly through campaigning for human rights, democracy and global public health. The Carter Foundation’s Guinea worm eradication effort reduced reported cases from millions in the 1980s to 14 in the year before publication. An interview with Carter highlights his humility, modest lifestyle in Plains, Georgia, devotion to Rosalynn Carter and continued commitment to women’s rights. Although he remained concerned about US policy and felt Barack Obama had not sought his advice, Carter’s integrity, compassion and willingness to prioritize principle over political gain defined his public legacy.

Recent mass shootings in Uvalde and Highland Park have renewed calls for gun control, but the author argues that broad polling support for regulation obscures more complicated public attitudes. While most Americans favor background checks, support weakens for bans on particular firearms and accessories, and widespread gun ownership reflects a deeply rooted conception of individual freedom and self-defense. The article links this worldview to American exceptionalism and legislative gridlock, noting that modest reforms passed after Uvalde still fell short of President Joe Biden’s goals. It concludes that repeated shootings and political crises have eroded confidence in the US system of government and prompted some people to consider leaving the country.

A mother recounts losing her daughter nearly six months into pregnancy, the trauma of giving birth to a stillborn baby, arranging the cremation and navigating grief afterward. She describes the emotional burden of disclosing the loss, the lack of established language and support for parents whose babies die before birth, and the importance of counselling, family, friends and unexpected sources of comfort. Nearly two years later, the grief remains, but she has learned to accommodate it.