International Politics Syria’s sectarian rage Ahmed al-Sharaa wants to unite the country. But deep divisions threaten a renewed cycle of death and chaos. By Shiraz Maher
Putin’s endgame With a fractured West and a pliable US president, he sees no reason to abandon his war on Ukraine. By Katie Stallard
1. Nigel Farage’s mutinous army Reform’s local election rally in Birmingham was soured by pessimism – and rumblings of internal dissent. By Harry Clarke-Ezzidio
5. As the literary novel fades from relevance, James Graham is the writer for our era By Jason Cowley
International Politics Peacekeepers in a world without peace What is the point of Keir Starmer’s “coalition of the willing”? By Andrew Marr
Will Mark Carney win Canada’s snap election? Until very recently, his political rival Pierre Poilievre seemed poised for a victory of generation-defining proportions. By Luke Savage
Picasso’s mistreated muses It was women who drove his art to its heights – and women who bore the brunt of his callousness… By Sue Prideaux
Economic Growth “We must work together to mobilise the talent and potential of British society” David Blunkett