Kate Adie introduces stories from Los Angeles, Cambodia, Argentina, Nigeria and Washington DC. The Los Angeles wild fires have left thousands of people homeless, and caused damage costing billions of dollars. Among those Angelenos who narrowly escaped disaster there is an overwhelming sense of relief - and, for some, a sense of guilt. BBC LA correspondent David Willis tells the story of his own close call. Cambodia’s 12th Century temple complex, Angkor Wat, is the world’s biggest religious site ...
Jan 18, 2025•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Israel and the Palestinian territories, South Korea, Canada and Finland. If and when a ceasefire deal is agreed between Israel and Hamas, it is likely to do little to mend the deepening mistrust between many Israeli and Palestinian communities. Jon Donnison has lived and worked in the region for many years, and he reflects on the challenges he faces as a journalist, navigating relationships with friends and contacts who hold starkly different views of the conflict...
Jan 11, 2025•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces stories from Mexico, Lebanon, Liberia and Tanzania. Mexico's first woman president, Claudia Sheinbaum, is preparing for a potentially bumpy year, as Donald Trump returns to the White House with threats of tariffs and mass deportations. Will Grant looks at the challenges ahead in 2025. On Saturday 4th January 1975, Jim Muir pulled up in Beirut, marking the beginning of a decades-long career reporting for the BBC from the Middle East. He recalls what the 'Switzerland of the Mi...
Jan 04, 2025•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Russia, Mayotte, Liechtenstein and France. BBC Russia editor Steve Rosenberg is regarded as a 'propagandist' by some Russians, but a song he wrote about a Russian friend seemed to thaw the ice, and unexpectedly struck a chord with fellow Muscovites. France held a day of national mourning this week in tribute to those who died after Cyclone Chido devasted the Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte earlier this month, bringing winds of up to 160 miles per hour. Mayotte w...
Dec 28, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces stories on Syria, Myanmar, Ivory Coast, the Russian Orthodox church and Tunisia. The threat of being 'disappeared' was central to Bashar al Assad's system of repression and intimidation. Now he is gone, Syrian families want to know what happened to their loved ones. Yogita Limaye met people who've been searching for relatives for years – and who have discovered likely clues at a hospital morgue. BBC Eye has been investigating the role of moles in Myanmar's military - soldier...
Dec 21, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces stories from Syria, Ukraine, France, Ghana and Saudi Arabia. The speed at which President Assad was deposed was a shock to many, including the BBC's Lina Sinjab. She had been forced to leave her home country in 2013, after being detained and threatened by Syrian security forces. This week, she finally returned home, without the looming fear of arrest, to find a changed country. Paul Adams was in Kyiv on the first-day of Russia's full-scale invasion, and reported from the cou...
Dec 14, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Sudan, South Korea, Kazakhstan, South Africa and Ireland. Lyse Doucet recently gained rare access to Sudan, where she met the remarkable Mama Nour. A steely woman, orphaned in childhood, she now provides refuge for other women and children amid Sudan's ongoing civil war, which the UN has called 'the biggest humanitarian crisis in the world'. South Korea's president sent shockwaves across the world when he declared martial law earlier this week. Jake Kwon describes...
Dec 07, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces dispatches on Russia, Germany, Hong Kong, India and Sweden. A Russian soldier who once responsible for guarding Russia's nuclear weapons reveals why he fled the army. In a secret meeting, at an undisclosed location, he tells Will Vernon what he makes of President Vladimir Putin's threats towards the West. Earlier this month German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s argumentative three-way governing coalition collapsed, triggering snap elections in February. Damien McGuinness ponders w...
Nov 30, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Pakistan-administered Gilgit Balistan, Brazil, the United States, the Faroe Islands and Austria The remote mountain villages of Pakistan-administered Gilgit Baltistan are on the frontline of climate change. Some have already been wiped out by landslides caused by melting glaciers. Caroline Davies met locals in the picturesque Hunza Valley preparing for the next disaster. World leaders gathered in Brazil this week for the G20 summit. James Landale observed how worl...
Nov 23, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from China, Ukraine, Australia, Panama and Lithuania. Reports of North Korean troops being deployed to join the Russian offensive in Ukraine has compounded fears in Kyiv about its ability to win the war. And it’s proving a headache for Beijing too, which is an ally to both Russia and North Korea. Laura Bicker travelled to Fangchuan, where the borders of all three countries meet. In Ukraine, the use of drones has become integral to the war strategy for both sides. But s...
Nov 16, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from the US, Lebanon, Spain, Morocco and Greenland Donald Trump won a resounding victory in the US election, heralding an imminent return to the White House. This was achieved through a new coalition of support - especially among African-American and Hispanic voters. Anthony Zurcher has followed the campaign from the outset, and reflects on how, despite a well-funded Harris campaign, Donald Trump pulled off a decisive win. Israel's invasion of Lebanon has continued, sp...
Nov 09, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Georgia, the US, Benin and Egypt. In Georgia, tens of thousands of people took to the streets this week amid claims of election violations, highlighting the rift between voters hoping for closer ties to Europe and those wishing to retain relations with Russia. Rayhan Demytrie reports from the capital Tbilisi. Immigration is one of the leading issues for voters in the US Presidential election. James Menendez travelled to both Mexico and the Southern US to meet peop...
Nov 02, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Moldova, Russia, the US, Cuba and Indonesia. In Moldova, a knife-edge victory for the Yes vote in the country's referendum on EU membership came as a shock to many. Chisinau and the EU have accused Russia and its proxies of ‘unprecedented’ interference. Alongside the referendum, the country’s pro-Europe president was also running for re-election. Sarah Rainsford was on the border with Transnistria. Moscow’s push into the Donbas in eastern Ukraine is intensifying, ...
Oct 26, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Katie Adie presents stories from Israel and Gaza, the USA, Ivory Coast and Bolivia. At a UN school in Gaza, a teenage girl passed a handwritten note to BBC journalists listing her hopes for a more peaceful future. More than a decade on, Jeremy Bowen remembers that brief encounter - and whether her wishes will ever become reality. Speaking to young Israelis and Palestinians today, he discovers that mistrust between communities is as deep as it's ever been. The US swing state of Georgia is undergo...
Oct 19, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces stories from Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Singapore, Oman and Vietnam. The Amazon rain forest in Brazil has suffered its worst fires in two decades, with most started illegally by humans looking to exploit the land for its resources. The world relies on the Amazon to absorb a lot of its carbon, but these fires mean it is now emitting record amounts itself. Ione Wells has been in Brazil’s west. The Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the world’s most biodivers...
Oct 12, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Israel, Sudan, the US, Bali and Canada It’s nearly a year since the Hamas launched its attacks in southern Israel, to which Israel responded with a major aerial bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza. This fifth Gaza war is the longest ever, and shortly after it began, Lyse Doucet had a prescient encounter that presaged Israel's response over the past 12 months. Sudan’s civil war has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises – with nine million peopl...
Oct 05, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Ukraine, Cuba and Somalia. Israel says it has killed the Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, as it continued its air offensive against Lebanon. It says this week’s airstrikes are in response to rocket attacks across the northern border into Israel by Hezbollah. According to the UN, more than 90,000 Lebanese have been displaced over the past week. Hugo Bachega spoke to residents who were forced to flee their homes. Sri Lanka has elected left-win...
Sep 28, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces dispatches from Lebanon, Poland, The Gambia, Panama and Cyprus. Lebanon is reeling from this week’s wave of exploding pager attacks, which killed more than 35 people, and injured hundreds more. Edmund Bower was in capital as the first news of the explosions began to spread, and reveals how the attacks has compounded the unease that already permeates Beiruti society. Flooding has devastated parts of Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Austria this week leaving more than 2...
Sep 21, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents dispatches from the US, the DRC, Italy, Romania and Egypt Kamala Harris and Donald Trump faced off against each other in a debate on Tuesday night at a pivotal moment in the race. In the lead up to the debate, both candidates had been neck and neck in the polls. Tom Bateman gauged what the locals made of their performance. An outbreak of the viral disease, mpox across central and west Africa has infected more than 21,000 people and killed more than 600 – and the Democratic Rep...
Sep 14, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Ukraine, Germany, China, Tonga and India Ukraine suffered several devastating missile attacks this week on the cities of Poltava and Lviv. Despite the more buoyant mood in the country in recent weeks, following Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk, it served as a reminder that the threat is ever-present. Nick Beake has been in Poltava Last weekend, the far right AFD party - won the most votes in a state election in the east German state of Thuringia and came a close sec...
Sep 07, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces stories from Sudan, Calabria in southern Italy, Japan, the Californian city of Oakland and Tbilisi in Georgia. The war in Sudan between its army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has torn the country apart for more than 500 days. Civilians are bearing the brunt of the suffering as aid agencies have had their access blocked in many areas. Leila Molana Allen has seen how Sudanese volunteers are bringing food and medicine to communities now full of hungry, displaced and...
Aug 31, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Thailand, Australia, Senegal, Germany and the US Thailand has seen its fair share of political drama over the years. In recent weeks, the dissolution of the opposition party and the dismissal of the PM showed the firm grip on the country by unelected institutions. Jonathan Head has been watching the events rapidly unfold. In Australia, there’s a deepening housing crisis with 120,000 people facing homelessness in the country every night. Soaring property prices and...
Aug 24, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Russia, Nigeria, the US, Ecuador and Italy. Ukraine’s surprise attack on Russia’s western border region of Kursk caused authorities to declare a state of emergency there. The incursion is now in its second week and is the deepest into Russian territory since Vladimir Putin launched his invasion. Steve Rosenberg has been watching the reaction in Moscow and reflects on another major news event soon after he first arrived in Russia. Nigeria has been in the throes of ...
Aug 17, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, has resigned following weeks of deadly protests, and a heavy government crackdown. Samira Hussain is in Dhaka and spoke to people about their experience of her autocratic rule. It was the biggest prisoner swap since the Cold War: sixteen Russian dissidents, Germans and Americans were released in exchange for a convicted assassin and seven other Russians held in the West. Sarah Rainsford has reported on the activities of the Russian dissidents for ...
Aug 10, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Venezuela, Israel, Zimbabwe, Turkey and France. Thousands of Venezuelans are protesting against the results of the presidential election last weekend in which the incumbent Nicolas Maduro claimed victory. The US said there is overwhelming evidence the opposition leader, Edmundo Gonzalez won the election. Since the election, several hundred people have been detained. Ione Wells has been in Caracas. Hopes for a ceasefire deal between Israel and the militant group Ha...
Aug 03, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Lebanon, Ukraine, Democratic Republic of Congo, Bali and Spain In Lebanon, the risk of a wider war between Israel and the armed group Hezbollah remains an ever-present danger. Hezbollah has been trading fire with Israel since the Hamas attacks last October, devastating communities on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border. Orla Guerin reports from southern Lebanon. Drone warfare has transformed the frontline in Ukraine’s east, making it more dangerous for those f...
Jul 27, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from the US, the West Bank, India and Italy Donald Trump was confirmed as the Republican party's presidential candidate this week at their National Convention in Wisconsin. He also announced his running mate, JD Vance. Anthony Zurcher was at the convention and reflects on the impact of this last week, and the attempted assassination, on the Presidential campaign. The Israel-Gaza war has exacerbated tensions in the occupied West Bank where around three quarters of a mil...
Jul 20, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Ukraine, Australia, France, Nigeria and Costa Rica. There was international outrage after the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv was hit by a missile this week, during a barrage of Russian attacks on cities across Ukraine. James Waterhouse was returning to his base in the capital when news of the strike broke and saw how Ukrainians reacted during the aftermath. The modern Australian state was built by immigration but it's always had strict rules on who was allo...
Jul 13, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie presents stories from Russia, The Netherlands, Taiwan, Vanuatu and Germany. The trial of US journalist, Evan Gershkovich in the city of Yekaterinburg will be conducted behind closed doors. He is just one of many journalists who went to Russia to report on the country, as Vladimir Putin’s clampdown on media freedoms intensified. Steve Rosenberg was in Yekaterinburg and reflects on Russia's handling of the case. Last year, just over 9000 deaths - around 5% of the total number - occurred ...
Jul 06, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kate Adie introduces stories from France, Israel-Gaza, Bolivia, Uzbekistan and the USA. French voters head to the polls in a snap election that President Macron says will shake people from their 'political fever' - but could also see the far right make further gains. Andrew Harding reflects on this pivotal election. It's estimated around 500 Palestinian medical workers have been killed in Gaza, since Israel's war against Hamas began. When news broke of the death of one British-trained surgeon, Y...
Jun 29, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
