Editor's note

Every year on May 18 the International Council of Museums drums up support for museums around the world. It says museums are important because they enable cultural exchange, enrich cultures and help develop mutual understanding, cooperation and peace. Do they, in fact, do all these things? Not always, argues Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes. The fact is that many Western museums continue to display artefacts taken from Africa. It’s time they seriously considered returning them.

Elsewhere Fiona Greenland, James Marrone, Oya Topçuoğlu and Tasha Vorderstrasse examine how Syria’s archaeological heritage has been ransacked by the Islamic State.

Julius Maina

Regional Editor East Africa

Top Stories

A mummy of the Ancient Egyptian Priestess “Tamut” (900 BC) on display at British Museum in London, in 2014. EPA/Facundo Arrizabalaga

Repatriation: why Western museums should return African artefacts

Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes, Curtin University

The power to select, name and decide the meaning of these items makes Europeans the authors of African history.

A Syrian archeologist holds an artifact that was transported to Damascus for safe-keeping during the Syrian Civil War. AP Photo/Hassan Ammar

We’re just beginning to grasp the toll of the Islamic State’s archaeological looting in Syria

Fiona Greenland, University of Virginia; James Marrone, Johns Hopkins University; Oya Topçuoğlu, Northwestern University; Tasha Vorderstrasse, University of Chicago

According to a new study, a small portion of a site can yield thousands of objects, adding up to millions of dollars.

Business + Economy

Getting the right institutions in place to run Africa’s cities efficiently

Astrid R.N. Haas, International Growth Centre

Africa is home to the world's fastest growing cities. However, poor governance has robbed the continent of the benefits of people and firms clustering together.

The conspicuous absence of women in India’s labour force

Smriti Sharma, Newcastle University

As India grapples with boosting the number of jobs available to people, it must ensure it does not leave women behind.

Science + Technology

WhatsApp hacked and bugs in Intel chips: what you need to know to protect yourself

Robert Merkel, Monash University

Two security scares in the past 24 hours should prompt you to make sure your software is up-to-date. But what are the risks?

Facebook’s ‘transparency’ efforts hide key reasons for showing ads

Oana Goga, Université Grenoble Alpes

Rather than revealing an advertiser targeted you by your phone number or email address, Facebook may tell you it showed you a particular ad because you like Facebook. That's not much help.

En Francais

Quatre raisons pour lesquelles les écrans nous font grossir

Didier Courbet, Aix-Marseille Université (AMU); Marie-Pierre Fourquet-Courbet, Aix-Marseille Université (AMU)

À la veille des Journées européennes de l’obésité, zoom sur un facteur de risque du surpoids relativement méconnu et qui, pourtant, nous concerne tous : le temps passé devant les écrans.

Fachos 2.0 ou comment les idées d’extrême droite se répandent jusque chez vous

Stéphane François, École pratique des hautes études (EPHE)

En 2018, les idéologues de l’extrême droite utilisent avec succès Internet en entretenant une confusion des genres et des idées, favorisée par la méfiance à l’égard des médias « traditionnels ».

Arts + Culture