The World's Greatest Blog

Watch a film? Run a marathon? Just what exactly did the Israeli army get up to while they were on their 3 hours off this afternoon? In the most controversial Diet Coke break ever, Israeli warplanes stopped bombing Palestine just long enough to get some positive headlines and complete a game of monopoly.  Meanwhile, agencies [...]

While the Western world was finishing off the turkey and stuffing, Israel thought it might be a good time to invade the Gaza Strip. After four days of aerial strikes, 383 Palestinians are dead and 800 are wounded. 62 of the dead have been confirmed as being civilian. There have been 4 Israeli deaths. It’s [...]

Yom Kippur begins at sundown today. It is the Jewish day of repentance and atonement. Jews will have two festive meals today and then spend tomorrow in penitance and fasting. There are five traditional prohibitions during this time: Eating and drinking Wearing leather shoes Bathing/washing Anointing oneself with perfumes or lotions Sexual relations Most secular [...]

In order to get to Mecca for the Hajj, you will almost certainly have to fly from a major airport to Jeddah airport in Saudi Arabia. It is possible to make the journey by sea, but flights are much quicker, cheaper and are serviced by some of the world’s major carriers. This year’s Hajj will [...]

Looking for the cheapest places to live? Assuming that you still earn a normal UK wage, you will want to compare Cost of Living Surveys and Quality of Living Surveys. Mercer, the Economist and some large governmental organisations compile these. We have picked out some titbits of relevant information and put all of the useful [...]

Is it just me or is it not slightly distressing to see a photo of two young men about to be hanged? In a piece about Mehdi Kazemi, a gay Iranian student who has mercifully won his asylum case, the BBC juxtaposed a photograph of two men due to be hanged. Whilst I am grateful [...]

I check the news every day on the websites of various major UK newspapers. I often see that all the headlines are the same and I get a sense that I don’t really know much more about the world as a result of reading their sites. So here are a few headlines and tit-bits from [...]

Patron Saint of England St George’s cross is a red cross on a white background, is the flag of England, and part of the British flag. St George’s emblem was adopted by Richard The Lion Heart and brought to England in the 12th century. The king’s soldiers wore it on their tunics to avoid confusion [...]

At this festive time, the authors at 24hourtrading would like to extend our best wishes to our Muslim friends and colleagues. Happy Eid-ul-Adha! Celebrating Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his only son, this year’s Eid-ul-Adha takes place on 19th December 2007. We expect that our friends will have a great four days and a happy feast.

Without commenting on the Sudanese legal system, I noticed a rather hypocritical approach on the part of the British media and public with regard to the school teacher who allowed a teddy bear to be named Mohammed. The tabloid press and grumblers in the pub, all complain about immigrants who fail to learn our language, [...]