Global News Podcast

The speaker of Iran's parliament has said no negotiations have taken place with the United States, contradicting President Trump's announcement that talks were ongoing. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said ''fake news'' was being used to manipulate the financial and oil markets. Also: a special report on the increase in Israeli settler attacks in the occupied West Bank. At least 60 people have been killed after a Colombian Air Force plane crashed shortly after takeoff. Leonid Radvinsky, the billionaire owner of the online platform OnlyFans has died aged 43. Drone footage has captured sperm whales headbutting each other, something scientists had only speculated about until now. And we delve into the long history of human-animal companionship, and examine what our relationship with our pets reveals about us.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, h

President Trump has said that the United States and Iran are in discussions aimed at ending current hostilities after he called off American strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure. He claimed that Iran had made contact with the US and had agreed to not pursue nuclear weapons, adding that the US would continue its bombing if talks failed. Iran has denied there is any dialogue with the US. Also: two pilots have died in a plane crash at an airport in New York; the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, condemns an attack on the Jewish community in London; the earth's climate is more out of balance than any time in recorded history, according to the United Nations; never before seen turquoise pit vipers, flying snakes and microsnails are found deep in limestone caves in Cambodia; and could artificial intelligence help people with dementia?The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, econo

Israel’s defence minister has announced that his country is expanding its ground campaign in Lebanon. Israel Katz warned of a prolonged operation against the Iran-backed group, Hezbollah, after the Israeli government ordered the destruction of all crossings over the Litani River. The Israeli military also says it expects several more weeks of fighting against Iran. Meanwhile, Tehran has warned it will fully close the Strait of Hormuz if Washington follows through with President Trump's threat to "obliterate" power plants in Iran. Also: in France's local elections, the Socialist candidate, Emmanuel Grégoire, claims victory in Paris, while in a boost for the nationalist right, an ally of Marine Le Pen is set to become mayor of Nice; hundreds of Syrians protest in Damascus against strict new alcohol laws; the new AI robots that can repair themselves and adapt to their environment; and a critic's view of Saturday Night Live UK's debut.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it ha

For nearly forty years, Fergal Keane has reported for the BBC from some of the world’s most brutal conflicts – in Gaza, Iraq, Rwanda, Sudan, Ukraine and beyond – and in that time interviewed scores of children who are the innocent victims of adult wars.As he came to understand the impacts of trauma on young minds, Keane began too to experience his own mental breakdowns – the result of a troubled childhood and a career spent running towards danger – and was eventually diagnosed with PTSD.In today’s episode, he reflects on what he has learned from his own experiences and reporting about how childhood traumas can be treated, and the hope for those living through today’s wars.The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption. For more episodes, just search 'The Global Story' wherever you get your BBC Podcasts.Producer: Hannah MooreExecutive producer: Bridget HarneyMix: Travis EvansSenior news editor: China CollinsPhoto: Displaced children play in Gaza,

President Trump has threatened to attack Iran's power plants, if Tehran doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days. Iran has said it will target energy infrastructure in the region belonging to the US if that happens. Iranian missiles have hit the southern Israeli towns of Arad and Dimona, injuring at least 100 people. Dimona is near a key nuclear facility. Also: Robert Mueller, the man who led the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 US election, has died; how Islamophobia has risen in Australia in the wake of the Bondi attacks last year that killed 15 people; and the popular boy band, BTS, return to the stage after taking a four-year break to do their mandatory national military service. The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, de

We meet the men on a mission to help fellow Dads connect with their daughters, through a movement called 'pints and ponytails'. It's a chance to learn how to do a range of girls' hairstyles, over a couple of beers. But organisers say they leave with more than just salon skills - as the shared experience encourages men to open up about other parenting challenges. Also: an unexpected solution that could help in the fight againt both plastic pollution and Parkinson's disease. Rhinos return to a national park in Uganda for the first time in more than forty years. It's hoped they'll help establish a thriving population -- improving the ecosystem, creating jobs and attracting tourists.Plus - aging well: Researchers found that around a third of people over the age of 65 saw improvements in their physical and mental abilities.And how a holiday souvenir from Morocco turned out to be a previously unknown type of rock.Our weekly collection of inspiring, uplifting and happy news from around the world.Presenter: Holly Gi

President Trump posted on social media that the US was getting very close to meeting its objectives in Iran. Earlier he told reporters he didn't want a ceasefire. The BBC's US partner, CBS, has reported that US military officials are making detailed preparations for the possibility of deploying ground troops in Iran. Also: we hear from the journalist in Israel who's been pressured by online gamblers to change a story; why social media is awash with chat about how thin everyone was at the Oscars - and it's not just about the women; and the new research which calls into question the march south by English troops, ordered by King Harold, to face the Norman invasion in the famous Battle of Hastings in 1066.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twi

Tehran has fired missiles and drones at its Gulf neighbours causing blazes at a Kuwait refinery and a Bahrain warehouse. Israel has launched more air attacks against Iran. Powerful explosions were reported in the capital. Iranian media said sixteen of its cargo ships anchored in the Gulf had been burnt out after being targeted there. There's been a warning that the world faces its greatest ever energy threat from the Iran war. Also, weight loss drugs are set to become much cheaper as patents expire in India and elewhere. A cyclone has hit Australia's northeastern coast bringing fierce winds, heavy rain and floods. An international aid convoy arrives in Cuba. Actor and martial artist Chuck Norris dies at 86. And Mission to the Moon, NASA’s huge rocket - now repaired - heads back to the launchpad at Cape Canaveral in Florida in preparation for the first crewed flight in more than half a century.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headline

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said Israel will hold off future attacks on Iranian gas fields after being asked to do so by President Trump. An Israeli attack on Iran's South Pars gas field on Wednesday, followed by Iranian attacks on Qatari gas installations caused steep rises in the price of gas and oil. Also, we get the view from Iran from our BBC Persian correspondent. We hear how life has changed in Jerusalem's Old City now that its most sacred Christian, Muslim and Jewish sites are closed to the public. And we talk to the scientist behind a new documentary about microplastics - and fertility.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to

Energy prices have surged after strikes on key gas facilities in Qatar and Iran, as the Middle East war continues to escalate. Iran has targeted Qatar's Ras Laffan complex in response to the bombing of Iranian facilities on South Pars gas field by Israel. The US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth says the war is on track as the White House asks Congress for an extra $200 billion dollars. There are indications the US and Israel are diverging on their war aims. Meanwhile Iran continues to carry out the executions of Iranians who demonstrated against the regime in January. In South Africa, criminal gangs have infiltrated the water industry charging people for water that should be free. Also, the Nigerian President makes a state visit to the UK for the first time in 37 years, and are doodle dogs a problem?The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, he

Qatar's state-owned petroleum company says an Iranian ballistic missile attack on its main gas complex at Ras Laffan has caused widespread destruction. Several Gulf states were attacked by Iran after its largest gas field South Pars was hit in an Israeli strike. President Trump has warned Iran not to launch further attacks on Qatar, or face a "massive" response from the US. He said Iran's gas field had been attacked by Israel - not the United States. But he said the US would "blow" it up if Tehran continued to retaliate.Also: America's top spies tell a Senate committee that after almost three weeks of war, the Iranian leadership remains largely intact - contradicting President Trump's framing of the war as a success. Five members of Iran's women's football team return home after their silent protest in Australia. How Artificial Intelligence is changing the recruitment process for jobs. And the maths behind why some clothes keep coming back into fashion.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you

Iran's Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib has been killed in an overnight Israeli strike. It comes just a day after Israel assasinated Ali Larijani and another senior Iranian commander, and as thousands of mourners gathered in Tehran for their funerals. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian described the latest killing as ''cowardly". Also: an Iranian petrochemical complex on the world's largest natural gas field is hit by Israeli airstrikes - a significant escalation against Iran's energy infastructure. Retaliatory strikes by Iran and its allied militia groups continue across the region. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky tells the BBC he has a "very bad feeling" about the impact of the Middle East conflict on the situation in Ukraine. Elsewhere, the death toll in Monday's deadly Pakistani strike on Kabul is confirmed at more than 140. Also: Disney has a new chief executive - we find out what might be in his inbox. Our correspondent in Havana reports on how Cubans are continuing to struggle amid a three-

Israel has launched a series of deadly strikes in central Beirut and ordered mass evacuations in southern Lebanon, as it ramps up its air and ground offensive against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah. About a million people are estimated to have been forced from their homes in Lebanon since war resumed two weeks ago. The BBC speaks to citizens in a Lebanese border town who have refused to evacuate, as the offensive fuels fears of a prolonged occupation.Also: Iran vows to avenge the death of its security chief, Ali Larijani, who was killed in an Israeli strike. We hear from people in Iran, living in fear of both US-Israeli strikes and the Islamic regime. Senegal's AFCON victory is handed to Morocco after a review of the football team's behaviour in January's final. A US judge has ordered the Trump administration reinstate the jobs of more than a thousand employees of Voice of America and allow the government-funded outlet to resume global broadcasting. We look back at the life of Shigeaki Mori, a prominent surv

Israel's foreign minister said Iranians were "safer" without Ali Larijani and Basij paramilitary force commander Gholamreza Soleimani, after the Israeli military said it had killed both of them in strikes. Hours after the Israeli announcement, there has still been no response from Tehran to the claims. The defence minister, Israel Katz, said he had instructed the military to “continue hunting down” Iran’s leadership. Also: In the US, a top counter-terrorism official has resigned over the war against Iran, saying President Trump had been pushed into the conflict by Israeli pressure. And: Medical sources in Afghanistan say more than 100 bodies have been recovered after a Pakistani airstrike on a drug rehabilitation centre. We hear from our correspondent in Kabul, who went to the scene shortly after the strike. We find out why a US artificial intelligence firm wants to hire a chemical weapons expert; plus we look back at the life of best-selling spy thriller author Len Deighton, who's died. And we hear what is b

The US President has repeated his call for other nations, particularly Nato allies, to help secure the Strait of Hormuz. Donald Trump says he has been surprised more world leaders were not "eager" to be involved in securing the key oil shipping route. Meanwhile, India has secured the safe passage of tankers carrying liquified petroleum gas, or LPG. Street vendors and biryani restaurant owners in Kolkata tell us how the current fuel shortages are threatening their livelihoods. And the Israeli military has now confirmed it has begun what it calls "limited ground operations" in Lebanon, as 800 000 people have been forced to flee their homes.Also: amidst a near total fuel blockade by the US, Cuba has experienced an electricity grid collapse. New figures from Interpol show that AI-enhanced scams are now almost five times more profitable than traditional methods. Researchers in Scotland have developed a way to turn discarded plastic bottles into a key medicine used to treat Parkinson's disease. Chelsea Football Clu

Germany and Britain say the war against Iran has nothing to do with Nato and the alliance won't be taking part in any effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. But the UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said London was working with individual allies on a plan to secure the vital waterway, which has been largely closed by Iran. President Trump has said it will be very bad for Nato if it doesn't get involved, though the alliance is only a defensive partnership. He also called on China to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz - saying it gets "90% of its oil" from there and hinting he might delay his summit with the Chinese president Xi Jinping if he doesn't get what he wants. Also: Russia launched a rare daytime attack in Kyiv on Monday morning - using drones that Ukrainian officials say appear "upgraded"; Whistleblowers have told the BBC that social media giants allowed more harmful content on people's feeds, after research showed how outrage fuelled engagement. TikTok and Meta have denied the claims; BBC Talking Movies

After President Trump said Iran seemed ready to make a deal to end the war but the terms weren't good enough, Tehran has been carrying out further missile and drone strikes on US allies across the Middle East. The Iranian foreign minister has denied that Iran has targeted civilian or residential areas in the Middle East - only US military targets. And he said the war would end when Iran was "certain" it could not be repeated. We hear from our Persian service correspondent about what she makes of these claims, and what people inside Iran are worrying about. Also: Iran warns the United Arab Emirates to begin evacuating the port zones in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Fujairah. So are people heeding these warnings? We hear from our correspondent in Dubai. Tehran continues to fire missiles towards Israel, most of which were intercepted by air defences. But at least one got through, as we hear from our correspondent in Tel Aviv. And how the war is impacting the oil industry and pushing up prices - we hear how increased use

President Trump calls on other nations to send warships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz which Iran has largely blocked, driving up global energy prices. Mr Trump has told a US television channel that while Tehran appears ready to make a deal to end the war, its "terms aren’t good enough yet". The head of the United Nations calls for an end to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah as Israeli strikes continue in the Lebanese capital. Also: in Cuba, peaceful anti-government protesters turned violent as a Communist Party Office in the centre of the country was attacked; and we hear about the Razzies, the awards actors and film makers would much rather they hadn't won. The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and dai

Stephen Spencer has set his daughter's stories to music. What started as something he posted for his few followers has turned into a social media sensation, with fans around the world left smiling, laughing or even crying by the catchy tunes and often bizarre lyrics. Also: how a chance conversation between two women on a train led to one donating her eggs so the other could have a baby. When Anita revealed her fertility issues, Ginny instantly offered to help.A surgeon who successfully operated on a patient hundreds of kilometres away says it opens up new possibilities for people around the world. He was able to remotely control a surgical robot in real time, thanks to advances in technology.In Singapore, medical students are learning to be more compassionate doctors by studying poetry. Those behind the course say it helps the students to understand nuance in how patients are feeling.Plus are dogs that howl along to music actually singing, and how a sly fox accidentally made a transatlantic voyage.Our weekly

On Friday President Trump said the US had obliterated military targets on the Iranian oil hub island of Kharg and threatened to target the oil infrastructure there if Iran stopped ships going through the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran accused Washington of a failed mission and warned that any attacks on its energy facilities would lead to strikes on US-linked oil interests in the region. Also: People in the Gulf State of Qatar have been told to evacuate several areas that could be targeted by Iranian missiles; the Iranian-backed Palestinian militant group, Hamas, has urged Iran to stop attacking its Gulf neighbours; and the environmental cost of war on Iran as oil fires and toxic air spread.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekda