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Could Iran be the next ‘forever war’? Mar 05, 2026

Show notes

Following President Donald Trump’s announcement over the weekend that the United States was launching an offensive in Iran alongside the Israeli military, comparisons to past US interventions in the region began to proliferate. Many Americans asked whether this latest military operation would become another ‘forever war’, as the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan came to be called.

We talk to Gordon Correra, security analyst for the BBC, about America’s complicated history of intervention in the Middle East and surrounding region, and ask what these past conflicts might tell us about possible outcomes for the war in Iran.

Producer: Viv Jones, Aron Keller and Xandra Ellin

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A US soldier watches as a statue of Iraq's President Saddam Hussein falls in central Baghdad in 2003. Credit: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic

Iran under attack: The view from inside Mar 04, 2026

Show notes

Five days since the first US–Israeli strikes on Iran, and the death of supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei, the country is once again in a communications blackout. With limited access to reliable information, it is difficult to know how ordinary Iranians are coping.

Parham Ghobadi, senior reporter and presenter at BBC Persian, has been speaking to people inside Iran to guage their fears, their expectations, and how they are navigating a moment that could reshape their country’s future.

Producer: Viv Jones, Valerio Esposito and Chris Benderev

Executive producer: Bridget Harney

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: A woman reacts on the street following an Israeli and US strike on a police station, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)

Iran war: Chaos engulfs the Gulf Mar 03, 2026

Show notes

The Gulf states are some of the wealthiest places on earth, and have until recently been mostly insulated from Middle East conflicts. But the US-Israel war with Iran is now engulfing the Gulf.

The BBC’s security correspondent Frank Gardner joins us to discuss whether this is a moment that could change the entire region and affect all of us.

Producers: Cat Farnsworth and Xandra Ellin Mix: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Smoke billows from Jebel Ali port in Dubai after an Iranian attack. Credit: Raghed Waked/Reuters.

What next for Iran? Mar 02, 2026

Show notes

This weekend, Iranian state media confirmed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who ruled Iran with an iron fist for more than 30 years, had been killed in joint US-Israeli strikes. In Iran, his death was met with an outpouring of grief by his supporters, while many across the country and in the diaspora met the news with jubilation and a tentative sense of hope. But what happens now?

President Trump has urged Iranians to “seize control of your destiny, and to unleash the prosperous and glorious future that is close within your reach,” but how realistic are the prospects of them forming a new – and significantly different - government? And how will the weakened regime retaliate against the US and Israel’s strikes?

Caroline Hawley, Diplomatic Correspondent for the BBC, joins us to discuss.

Producers: Hannah Moore, Aron Keller and Chris Benderev

Executive producer: Bridget Harney

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A woman holds an image of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, Iran. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters.

Mexico’s most wanted cartel boss is dead. Is it enough for Trump? Feb 27, 2026

Show notes

Mexico’s most wanted man – Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, better known as “El Mencho” – was killed during a security operation to arrest the cartel leader on Sunday.

In the days that followed, the operation was celebrated by President Trump in his State of the Union address. But it came at a cost, as cartel members carried out retaliatory rampages across Mexico and turned many towns and cities into war zones.

El Mencho’s death came after months of pressure from the Trump administration on Mexico to do more to fight the drug cartels. According to one NBC News report, the US even considered sending troops into Mexico.

Our correspondent, Will Grant, examines the dilemma Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum now faces – and we ask if she is now caught between Trump and the cartels.

Producers: Chris Benderev and Aron Keller

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior News Editor: China Collins

Image Credits: FILE PHOTO: Members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), led by Nemesio Oseguera, known as “El Mencho,” poses for a photo at an undisclosed location in Michoacan state, Mexico, October 15, 2022. REUTERS/Stringer

Is a peace deal with Putin possible? Feb 26, 2026

Show notes

As the war in Ukraine enters its fifth year, the prospect of peace feels as distant as ever. President Trump hasn’t yet succeeded in striking a deal, and negotiations between the US, Russia and Ukraine have yet to produce a breakthrough.

Fiona Hill is one of the foremost authorities on Vladimir Putin and a former White House advisor on Russia during Trump’s first term. Over the course of her career, she has sat across the table from the Russian president and helped shape US policy at the highest level.

She tells us what it is really like to be in the room Putin and Trump, and whether a durable peace in Ukraine is still within reach.

Producers: Chris Benderev and Valerio Esposito

Executive producer: James Shield

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin together. Credit: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Ukraine’s defiance, four years on Feb 25, 2026

Show notes

This week marks four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the largest and deadliest conflict in Europe since WW2.

Ukraine has put its official losses at 55,000 soldiers, and the BBC has verified the deaths of more than 180,000 on the Russian side, although the true toll is likely to be much higher. Tens of thousands of civilians have been killed or wounded, and millions have been displaced.

In today’s episode, the BBC’s international editor Jeremy Bowen, travels through Ukraine, speaking to people living on the front line, to soldiers, and to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, about what they would concede – if anything - for a peace deal with Russia.

Producer: Hannah Moore

Executive producer: Bridget Harney

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A Ukrainian woman attends a memorial ceremony for fallen servicemen at the Military Cemetery in Kharkiv. Credit: Sergey Kozlov/EPA/Shutterstock.

Inside Iran after the crackdown Feb 24, 2026

Show notes

Tensions between the US and Iran are once again escalating, as President Trump has threatened military strikes if Iran refuses to accede to its demands. Iran has responded with warnings that any US strikes will lead to all-out war in the region. The Iran nuclear talks come as the Iranian government faces the biggest challenge to its survival since 1979. Last month, a protest about the rising costs of living exploded into a nationwide uprising. The response was a brutal crackdown which killed thousands of people. Having returned from a reporting trip to the capital Tehran, the BBC’s Chief International Correspondent, Lyse Doucet, gives us a rare insight into how Iranians are dealing with the aftermath of last month’s protests, continuing economic hardship, and the prospect of a US attack. Producers: Aron Keller, Viv Jones and Sam Chantarasak Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Iranians walking in Tehran. Credit: Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA/Shutterstock

The new race to the Moon Feb 23, 2026

Show notes

More than 50 years since the last Apollo mission, Nasa is preparing to send astronauts back to the Moon.

Artemis II will take its crew farther from Earth than any human has travelled in decades - a crucial step towards landing on the lunar surface once again. At the same time, China has been quietly advancing its own plans for a crewed Moon landing.

Some experts say this signals the start of a new space race – not just for prestige, but to build a long-term presence on the Moon, tap its resources and use it as a stepping stone to Mars. We speak to the BBC’s Science Editor, Rebecca Morelle.

Producers: Valerio Esposito and Cat Farnsworth

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Official Artemis crew portrait. Josh Valcarcel/NASA Handout/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

What the former prince Andrew’s arrest means for the Royal Family Feb 20, 2026

Show notes

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince and brother to King Charles, was arrested by British police on Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The arrest came after police said they were assessing a complaint that Andrew allegedly shared confidential material with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

We’re joined by BBC Royal Correspondent Sean Coughlan to discuss what Andrew’s arrest means for the future of the British monarchy.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Xandra Ellin.

Executive producer: James Shield.

Senior news editor: China Collins.

Photo: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, leaves Aylsham Police Station. Credit: Phil Noble/Reuters.

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