Did a farmer foil a plot to attack a UK military base?

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1. 

   2 Oct 2026 · 27 min

   How white South Africans became the face of Trump’s refugee policy

   In the last year, the US has admitted just 13,000 refugees — a fraction of the number it has accepted in previous years. And almost all of those new arrivals have been white South Africans. The Trump administration says Afrikaners are fleeing persecution in South Africa. But there is little evidence of attacks specifically targeting the country’s white Afrikaner minority. South Africa’s new ambassador to the US has told the BBC that the idea of a mass attack against white Afrikaners simply does not exist. So why have Afrikaners been given preferential access to the US refugee programme? And…

2. 

   1 Oct 2026 · 26 min

   Inside the Flydubai attack that could upend Israeli elections

   How did the passengers of Flydubai's flight FZ1073 prevent a catastrophe after a cockpit attack? And what does this incident mean for Israel at a politically charged moment? On Wednesday, a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Saudi Arabia after one pilot allegedly stabbed the other. The aircraft entered a 17,000ft plunge before passengers and crew forced their way into the cockpit, overpowered the alleged attacker and helped bring the plane back under control. The injured pilot, identified as Indian national Capt Smit Machchhar, was taken to hospital after the flight landed and…

3. 

   30 Sep 2026 · 27 min

   Is Meta dying?

   Fifteen years ago, the film The Social Network told the story of Facebook’s rise to global prominence. As Meta faces growing scrutiny from regulators and pours billions into AI, a new movie examines what the company allegedly knew about the harms linked to Facebook. Jeff Horwitz is the journalist whose reporting inspired the new film, The Social Reckoning, which hits cinemas next week. Horwitz helped expose internal debates at Meta over misinformation, teenage well-being, political polarisation and the tension between keeping users safe and growing the business. After a turbulent year for…

4. 

   28 Sep 2026 · 27 min

   The Super El Nino: what happens when it hits us?

   Climate scientists have put out a dire warning about this year’s El Niño; that it will likely be the worst in recorded history. And if previous ‘super’ El Niños are anything to go by, that means that this cycle will bring extreme weather - flooding, drought, wildfires, and hunger- across the world. But how do scientists know what the effects of an El Niño will be? And how do they communicate that information to governments and the public in a way that causes calm preparedness instead of panic? Tom Di Liberto is a former climate scientist for the US government’s National Oceanic and…

5. 

   25 Sep 2026 · 27 min

   Katseye, America and the dark side of K-pop perfection

   What happens when K-pop’s gruelling formula meets the American music industry? The global girl group Katseye has gone from a reality-show experiment to a global phenomenon. With chart-topping hits, a viral Gap campaign and a sold-out international tour, the group has become one of the biggest success stories in pop. But as Katseye breaks through in America, it is also bringing new attention to the intense training, fierce competition and relentless scrutiny that helped fuel its rise. Has the group’s success shown that the K-pop model can work outside South Korea, or exposed the costs of…

6. 

   24 Sep 2026 · 27 min

   Is a free press at serious risk in Trump’s America?

   Last week, President Donald Trump barred CNN, Politico and MS NOW from the White House, accusing them of spreading "fake news". After their reporters had their press passes revoked and were denied access to the building, the three outlets launched a joint legal challenge, arguing that the move was unconstitutional. How unprecedented is this decision? And how does it compare with the treatment of journalists in other countries around the world? Jason Rezaian, host of the Washington Post podcast Freedom Desk and the paper's former Tehran bureau chief, has a unique perspective on these…

7. 

   9 Oct 2026 · 27 minNew

   What’s really happening with plague in Russia?

   A plague scare in Siberia has become a Rorschach test for public health fears in a post-Covid world. Russian officials are investigating the death of a worker at a plague research laboratory. They say she died of pneumonia. But speculation online has suggested she may have died from pneumonic plague. Russian authorities deny this and say there is no risk of an outbreak. So why has the story sparked so much alarm? And how has the legacy of the Covid pandemic played into people's fears of another global health crisis? The BBC’s health reporter, Jim Reed, joins The Global Story’s Tristan Redman…

8. 

   8 Oct 2026 · 26 min

   Why French teenagers are fighting for their education

   What began as a revolt over public school funding has spilled into a much bigger fight over the future of France. Now, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets, and clashes with police have left teenagers and officers injured. More than 6,000 people have been arrested, most of them minors. But what sparked these demonstrations? How could they shape next year’s election in France? And why have they become a conservative political talking point in the US? The Global Story’s own Tristan Redman — a Paris resident himself — speaks with co-host Asma Khalid about the history of…

9. 

   7 Oct 2026 · 27 min

   The warnings before 7 October

   Israel is marking three years since the 7 October attacks, in which around 1,200 people were killed by Hamas-led attackers and a further 251 hostages were taken back to Gaza. The commemorations come in the final weeks of a pivotal election campaign. Benjamin Netanyahu’s record on national security is coming under immense scrutiny, amid reports that the government failed to act on warnings in the months leading up to the 2023 attacks – allegations that the prime minister has strongly denied. Tristan Redman speaks to BBC correspondent Jon Donnison, who is in East Jerusalem. Producer: Sam…

10. 

    6 Oct 2026 · 27 min

    Smart glasses or ‘pervert glasses’?

    At a recent Meta product launch, Mark Zuckerberg promised that the company’s smart glasses would give wearers “new superpowers”, but what are they? Amid criticisms of its privacy and child protection policies, Meta is betting big on smart glasses as a way to restyle the company’s image, but they too have caused controversy – dubbed by critics ‘pervert glasses’ because they have been used to film women without their knowledge. So why are Meta and other big tech firms investing billions in this tech? Who is it for? Lily Jamali, the BBC’s North America technology correspondent, joins us to…

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