Israeli foreign ministry denounce ‘shameful act’ after footage shows man pushing woman to the ground and kicking her

A video of an attack on a French Catholic nun and archeological researcher in Jerusalem has caused widespread revulsion and has been denounced as a “shameful act” by Israel’s foreign ministry.

In the video, a man runs up behind the nun as she walks down a street and pushes her over with force, so that the victim comes close to hitting her head on a block of stone. After walking away a few paces, the attacker, who appears to be Jewish, returns to kick the nun as she lay on the ground and only stops when a passerby intervenes.

NAHT leader says schools watchdog for England does not raise standards, amid opposition to ‘Nando’s-style’ scoring

School leaders are being pressurised “to the point of destruction”, the head of a teaching union has said, as he put the education establishment “on notice”.

During a speech to the union’s annual conference in Belfast, Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), outlined his criticisms of Ofsted, the schools watchdog for England. .

Readers respond to Zoe Williams’ article about the rise of US nationals renouncing their citizenship to distance themselves from Donald Trump’s America

I read Zoe Williams’ piece on Americans renouncing their citizenship with particular and personal interest ( ‘I don’t want to be part of a dictatorship’: the Americans queueing up to renounce their citizenship, 28 April ) . The rot started well before Donald Trump was elected in 2016, though he and his hostile team and policies have exacerbated that.

Look back to George W Bush’s fight against terrorism following 9/11, one aspect of which involved tracking down terrorism funding by setting onerous reporting regulations on US citizens abroad, and on international financial institutions in which US citizens had an interest. Eventually some of those financial institutions outside the US decided they simply would not permit US citizens to invest in, bank with, or take out their products.

Francis Bown responds to Jonathan Freedland’s comparison of Pope Leo and Donald Trump

Jonathan Freedland is right: in a contest between a former property developer turned politician and the Vicar of Christ, there is only ever going to be one winner ( It’s no surprise Trump has met his match in Pope Leo – the US president represents the polar opposite of Christianity, 24 April ). The present pope is an intelligent and sophisticated Augustinian, well versed in dealing with subtle and complex disputes within the Catholic church. Crude attacks from Donald Trump and JD Vance hold no terrors. The president’s greetings-card picture of himself as a Christ-like healer was childish and self-defeating, while the vice-president’s pointed gift of volumes of Saint Augustine’s writings, as if the pontiff were unfamiliar with their contents, was simply crass.

Nevertheless, not all papal pronouncements are infallible. Pope Leo did open himself to legitimate criticism when he declared in his Palm Sunday address: “He [Jesus] does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.” In the context of the Iran conflict, we know what he meant, but the bald statement invites misunderstanding. It appears at odds with the concept of a just war – the conditions for which are laid out in the catechism of the Catholic church (paragraph 2309). The pope’s remark would hardly apply to the petitions of those who waged war against the Nazis and who liberated the death camps.
Francis Bown
London

Phil Coughlin recalls the Irish border than ran through a village pub in Spike Milligan’s novel Puckoon, while Ken Rutter reflects on the ethics of building tougher borders

In his article ( Do stronger borders ever work?, 26 April ) Richard Collett refers to the Irish border cleaving communities and even farmhouses in two. Spike Milligan picked up on this in Puckoon, where the border went through the public house of the eponymous village, such that two feet of the bar was in Northern Ireland and the remainder was in the Irish Free State.

The locals quickly realised that beer would be cheaper in the Northern Ireland portion, due to more lenient taxation, with the result that they all attempted to crowd into the two feet of bar “in the North”, much to the disgust of the publican. A rare instance of a border bringing people closer together.
Phil Coughlin
Houghton-le-Spring, Tyne and Wear

Nick Price points out the features on Apple and Android phones that can help parents keep their children safe

A crucial facility seems to be missing from the coverage of smartphones in schools – and outside ( I was wrong about the danger of smartphones in schools. It’s far, far worse than I thought, 22 April ). Parental controls, which both Apple and Android have, enable downtimes to be set to ensure phones don’t work in school. They can also set downtimes for outside school and block inappropriate apps.

We use these for our 14-year-old daughter to keep her safe and manage the addictive effects of phone use. Her phone automatically switches off in school time and closes down for the day at 6.30pm.

Renée Slegers’ team take their first-leg lead to France knowing a repeat of last season’s display will see them into a second European final in a row

Arsenal will attempt to become the first British women’s club to reach back-to-back European finals on Saturday as they take a 2-1 first-leg lead to France in their semi-final against OL Lyonnes.

The holders arrived in the city known as the gastronomic capital of France on Friday to pleasant May sunshine glistening off the roof of the imposing Groupama Stadium, knowing that last season’s triumph will have whet their supporters’ appetite and that they have the chance to write more history. Arsenal, 2007 European champions , won the title for the second time last May with victory over Barcelona in the final .

Wildlife cameraman for landmark BBC documentaries including The Blue Planet and Planet Earth, who was admired for his bravery and resilience in extreme environments

Filming polar bears in their Arctic home requires bravery and patience. Of all the wildlife film-makers who bring images of the natural world to our TV screens, few were as courageous or boundlessly patient as Doug Allan, who would spend weeks, even months on end in this harsh environment in order to capture unique and astounding footage.

His long list of credits features many of the classic television series that have captivated audiences over the past few decades, including Life in the Freezer (1993), The Blue Planet (2001), Planet Earth (2006) and Frozen Planet (2011).

Apology comes after head of Met police said Green party leader risked undermining public confidence in his officers

Zack Polanski has apologised for sharing a social media post critical of police following the Golders Green stabbings after the head of the Metropolitan police said the Green leader risked undermining public confidence in his officers.

Polanski, who leads the Greens in England and Wales, said he was sorry for having shared someone else’s post “in haste”.