What in the World

The US and Israel first launched strikes on Iran two weeks ago. In response, Iran has launched more than 2,000 drones at targets across the Middle East, towards Israel and Gulf countries with US military bases. We’ve seen attacks on oil tankers, airports, and even luxury hotels and banks.
The drones are causing considerable damage across the region considering they have a simple design and are relatively cheap to produce. The Shahed 136 long-range drone, which is manufactured in Iran, is estimated to cost between $20,000 to $50,000. Iran is thought to have mass-produced tens of thousands of the Shahed drones before the war, but we don’t know how much of that stockpile remains intact after days of US and Israeli strikes.
The BBC’s Bernd Debusmann Jr explains why Iran is using these drones and why they are expensive to counter. We look to Ukraine, which has developed its own cheap drones to down Russian ones. And we discuss how Iran’s stockpiles of these drones could play a big factor in how long the war lasts.
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Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: Julia Ross-Roy and Benita Barden
Editor: Verity Wilde

Timothée Chalamet has come for ballet and opera. In an interview with Matthew McConaughey ahead of the Oscars he said…
“I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive even though it’s like, no one cares about this anymore.’”
And, well, it turns out he was wrong, because lots and lots of people have been defending the industries with tons of passion.
And it did get us thinking - how do ballet and opera sales compare to how they have done in the past? Do many people watch them? What are people in the industry, like Misty Copeland, doing to get more people into theatres?
We get into it with Chelsea from the What in the World team (she’s also a ballet dancer, but sadly has never made it to a professional stage). And we hear from people who love ballet and opera, including two professional ballet dancers for The Australian Ballet and The National Ballet of Canada.
Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld
Email: [email protected]
WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6
Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: Emily Horler, Chelsea Coates and Ash Mohamed
Video producer: Baldeep Chahal
Editor: Verity Wilde

Last week, during their opening match of the AFC Asia Cup football tournament, Iran’s women’s football team refused to sing the national anthem. The move was seen as an act of defiance, as it came shortly after American and Israeli strikes had killed Iran’s supreme leader. The players were subsequently called “wartime traitors” on Iranian state television.
After being knocked out of the tournament on Sunday, several players decided to stay in Australia. Despite heavy surveillance from Iranian authorities, they escaped their hotel and were issued humanitarian visas by the Australian government.
BBC Persian reporter Ghoncheh Habibiazad explains why the players took this action and the consequences the decision may have for them and their families. We also find out more about the significance of football to Iran’s leaders.
Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld
Email: [email protected]
WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6
Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: William Lee Adams and Benita Barden
Editor: Verity Wilde

Military-style weight loss camps in China are getting popular. You sign up voluntarily for a month and follow a strict daily routine, with intense exercises, mandatory trips to the scales and rules on snacking. Some people have called them “fat prisons”. So what’s it like to go to one? TL Huang from Australia tells us about her experience. We hear about the downsides of these kinds of “fat camps” from British nutritionist and personal trainer Luke Hanna. And Wanqing Zhang from the BBC’s Global China Unit explains why more people in China are signing up to them.
Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld
Email: [email protected]
WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6
Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: Mora Morrison, Chelsea Coates and Julia Ross-Roy
Video producer: Baldeep Chahal
Editor: Verity Wilde

Iran’s state media has announced that Mojtaba Khamenei will be the country’s new supreme leader. He’ll replace his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a joint American and Israeli strike last week.
The 56-year-old has largely kept a low profile. He has never held government office and only a limited number of photos and videos of him have ever been published.
In this episode, you’ll hear what we know about Iran’s new supreme leader, and what this change in leadership could mean for the future of the war between Iran, Israel and the US.
Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld
Email: [email protected]
WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6
Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: William Lee Adams and Benita Barden
Editor: Verity Wilde