1843 magazine

War

Escape from the meat grinder: the making of a Russian deserter

Thousands are refusing to go into battle for Putin. These are two of their stories

Wargaming

Can creative writing help America win wars?

The military strategists who believe the parable is mightier than the PowerPoint

Environment

The storm chasers trying to save the world from drought

Everyone agrees the planet needs more water. So why is cloud-seeding so controversial?

Salem

American Satanists are leading the fight to keep abortion legal

What began as a troll has become a religion

Service industry

“Downton Abbey” but with NDAs: how to be a butler to the super-rich

Inside the elite college that’s reinventing Jeeves for the 21st century

Heritage

The destructive quest for the buried treasure of the Armenians

Thousands of Turks are destroying their country’s heritage in the hunt for gold

Horn of Africa

Inside Somaliland, the state eager to become the world’s next country

As it chases recognition, an uprising in the east has challenged its authority

Paralympics

“I use anti-tank mines for weightlifting”: meet Ukraine’s Paralympians

The war-wounded join forces with soldiers on leave in the pursuit of sporting success

American election

Kamala Harris is running on vibes

Delegates at the DNC can’t agree whether she is moderate or progressive. They’re just relieved she’s not Biden

Football

The strange case of the disappearing football team

Nine young men left Ivory Coast to play professional football in Europe. They ended up in the surreal world of Transnistria

Afghanistan

How I became the Taliban’s portrait artist

Afghanistan’s new rulers threatened to execute a British journalist. Then they found out he could draw

Belgrade

“In Moscow I live like a king”: why Russian exiles return

Two friends fled Putin’s mobilisation. What made one go back?