The Global Story

Ariana Grande’s appearance in a new music video has sparked speculation, commentary and intense debate over the question of when — if ever — the public should weigh in on a woman's body.
The pop star and Wicked actor is not the first woman in the public eye to come under intense scrutiny, so how has the way we talk about celebrities’ bodies changed over time?
We ask Monica Hesse,  screens critic for The Washington Post, and Sarah Ditum, journalist and author of Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Tabloid 2000s, whether it’s ever OK to talk about a woman’s appearance.
(Photo: Ariana Grande at the 83rd Annual Golden Globes in January 2026. Credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
Producer: Mhairi MacKenzie and Sam Chantarasak
Executive producer: Martine Powers
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins

It has been a week since President Trump announced that the Board of Peace had reached an, "historic agreement” in Gaza for the, “complete disarmament” of Hamas.
But in the days since, the situation has become more uncertain. Hamas has said that it will only disarm when Israel withdraws its forces from Gaza, but Israeli officials insist they will not withdraw until the weapons are handed over. On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had not agreed to the plan.
To explain what comes next, we turn to the BBC’s international editor, Jeremy Bowen, and the BBC's Gaza correspondent, Rushdi Abualouf.
Producers: Hannah Moore and Xandra Ellin
Executive producer: James Shield
Mix: Travis Evans
Digital producer: Matt Pintus
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: A Palestinian fighter from the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, gestures inside an underground tunnel in Gaza. Credit: Reuters/Mohammed Salem/File Photo

A group of prominent, controversial influencers made a visit to Russia this summer. They included Andrew Tate, Candace Owens and British far-right anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson. They argue that Russia is upholding the traditional conservative values they fear are in decline at home.
It is certainly an image Vladimir Putin is keen to project. Two years ago Russia set up a special “shared values” visa, which makes it easier for Westerners to move to the country if they align with its supposed ‘traditional spiritual and moral beliefs’. Russia claims thousands of Westerners have applied.
We speak to the BBC’s Dan Hardoon, whose documentary ‘The Russian Dream’ follows Westerners who have moved to Russia, and to Russia expert Mark Galeotti, host of the podcast In Moscow's Shadows.
Listen to Dan Hardoon’s BBC documentary, The Russian Dream:
bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0ns9jp8
Producer: Lucy Pawle
Executive producer: Bridget Harney and James Shield
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin winks during his annual televised year-end press conference. Credit: Gavriil Grigorov/Reuters

Why did tens of thousands of migrants from Morocco suddenly attempt to cross into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta by sea last week? In the days since the sudden border crisis left at least 72 people dead, a variety of theories have circulated.
The Trump administration blamed the incident on “radical left-wing globalist policies”, and many European leaders condemned what they say is Spain’s lax immigration policy. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez denied those claims and blamed trafficking gangs. Others have blamed Morocco, and accused it of ‘weaponising’ migrants for political purposes.
We speak to the BBC’s Southern and Eastern Europe correspondent, Sarah Rainsford, to find out how and why the Ceuta crisis happened.
(Photo: Hundreds of migrants swim across to Ceuta, Spain from Morocco. Credit: Reduan Dris/EPA/Shutterstock)
Producer: Aron Keller and Cat Farnsworth
Executive producer: James Shield
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins

On February 28th, in the opening hours of the first day of the US-Israel war against Iran, an attack on a school in the southern city of Minab killed 156 people, including 120 children. To date, it is the deadliest single incident for civilians during the Iran war.
Experts say the school was hit by a precision guided Tomahawk missile - a weapon that neither Israel nor Iran are known to possess. Yet five months on, the US government has not formally accepted responsibility.
We speak to the BBC’s senior international investigations correspondent, Nawal Al-Maghafi, who recently returned from Iran where she visited Minab and met with survivors of the strike and the families of those who were killed. We also hear from the BBC’s State Department correspondent, Tom Bateman, about his attempts to get answers from US officials.
Producers: Xandra Ellin, Cat Farnsworth, Lucy Pawle and Aron Keller.

Executive Producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior News Editor: China Collins
Photo: The Minab school damaged by a strike on February 28, 2026. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters.