Middle East & Africa
A voyage to nowhere
Joe Biden sets off aimlessly to the Middle East
America’s president will have little to offer Israelis and Palestinians, and may not gain much more from the Saudis
A looter, discontinued
José Eduardo dos Santos, long-serving Angolan dictator, has died
The former president plundered his country
The latest railway bazaar
A new web of Arab railways could transform the Middle East
But old enmities block many of the links
Lapid response
Israel’s new leader, Yair Lapid, has four months to prove himself
Or Binyamin Netanyahu could win back power
Where was the goalie?
Two stupendous football scores raise questions in Sierra Leone
It is not every week that teams win 91-1 and 95-0
Paving paradise
Historic houseboats fall victim to Egypt’s addiction to cement
Centuries-old homes are being bulldozed
Either ore
How the world depends on small cobalt miners
The metal is key to the global energy transition. But its artisanal market is broken
Safer at last
The UN will finally defuse a floating bomb in the Red Sea
It still needs more money to avert a famine in Yemen
Digital stevedores
Africa’s mobile money agents face an uncertain future
Their numbers are growing faster than the transactions they handle
One shield to guard them all?
Israel’s unexpected military alliance in the Gulf
Fear of Iran is turning former enemies into allies
Echoes of war
A resurgence of regional rivalries imperils eastern Congo
Meddling neighbours add to the mayhem
Bristling with power
Why Iraqi moustaches are making a comeback
Facial fur is again a matter of style, not safety