Belarus: Masking the virus

One way to reach the European Union is via the 'Eastern Mediterranean route' from Turkey into either Bulgaria or Greece. Back in 2015 millions of people reached Europe this way to flee conflicts in the Middle East. Since then, international deals have been struck and border security toughened across Europe to stem the flow of migrants. Yet, whilst other routes to Europe have seen a fall, the numbers travelling via this 'Eastern Mediterranean route' into the EU have increased since 2021. Presenter Nick Robinson hears from refugees in Turkey looking to leave and from those who have successfully made it across the land border into Bulgaria. He explores the success and limits of the Bulgarian border force’s efforts to police its border.

6 Joulu 202426min

Since the Taliban came to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, eight out of 10 women journalists have stopped working. The few female journalists still working are subject to all kinds of restrictions, including no access to official sources, no travelling without a chaperone, as well as abuses such as harassment and low pay.Previously, approximately 17 percent of accredited journalists working in Afghanistan were women - so where have they all gone, and what are they doing now? The BBC’s Sana Safi investigates.

5 Joulu 202423min

A shock offensive on Aleppo turned Syria’s forgotten conflict into hot war. The group spearheading it, Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS), has been at pains to present itself as a credible governing body, having renounced its jihadist past. With a bounty on his head, its leader, Abu Mohammed al Jawlani, has been spinning his propaganda machine in the northern province of Idlib, wearing western suits and taking selfies with the locals. We track his journey of transformation in this episode, first published in 2023. Producer: Kriszta Satori, Anne Dixey Presenter: Krassi Twigg

4 Joulu 202426min

Low harvests, economic and climate change and changing tastes have impacted French wine. The French wine harvest has dropped 18% in one year. For some famous French wine-making regions the reduction has been much more. A combination of factors, including climate, finances and changing drinking habits has brought some wine-makers to the brink. Thousands of hectares of vineyards are being pulled up. Others are struggling to survive. John Murphy travels to Bordeaux and Languedoc - the world’s biggest wine-making region - to find out what is going on with wine, France’s most symbolic of products.

3 Joulu 202431min

A year-long BBC Eye investigation has uncovered that Chinese tomato paste produced using forced labour in Xinjiang is likely to be being sold in major UK and German supermarkets. Runako Celina has teamed up with Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Alison Killing to find out the nature and scale of forced labour in the tomato fields of Xinjiang, and follow a trail that shows the resulting puree might be ending up on European shelves. Using satellite imagery and shipping data, they track the route the tomato paste takes from Xinjiang to Europe, where they uncover evidence showing there’s a strong likelihood it is being sold on to some supermarkets. The supermarkets all said they took the allegations very seriously. But they disputed the BBC’s findings.

2 Joulu 202437min

The cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris is one of France’s most famous landmarks. It has stood on the Île de la Cité in the heart of France’s capital since the 12th Century. On 15 April 2019, it was engulfed by flames, but thanks to the bravery of hundreds of firefighters, Notre Dame remained standing. The devastation was, however, immense. The spire collapsed into the nave and the lead roof melted and evaporated. The lattice framework underneath it, made of a thousand oak beams known affectionately as The Forest, turned to charcoal and dust. Agnès Poirier travels around France to talk to the army of craftspeople from across the world, who have been painstakingly reconstructing and restoring Notre Dame. She travels to the Loire to see the work of two American carpenters Jackson du Bois and Michael Burrey, representatives of the US Handshouse Studio: Notre Dame project, who are helping to rebuild the spire. Agnès then visits Normandy where the famous bells are being restored to speak to Paul Bergamo and also where the iconic ornate cross is being repaired by Vincent Combes and his team. Finally she comes face to face with a gargoyle and finds out how to redesign the perfect beast.

1 Joulu 202451min

There has been a record number of cases this year of Russian soldiers deserting their units. Amaliya Zatari from BBC Russian has spoken to one young man who managed to get to France along with five others. Nina Nazarova, also from BBC Russian, offers a unique insight into the price many ordinary Russian families are paying when they try to hide or protect their relatives. Produced by Hannah Dean and Alice Gioia. (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)

30 Marras 202420min

It is a grim milestone, more than 1000 days have passed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In the past week, attacks on the country have once again intensified. As winter approaches and temperatures drop, Russia is targeting Ukraine’s energy system to leave millions of people without power. In our conversations, Ukrainians discuss their daily lives and resilience after almost three years of war and we hear from people in Dnipro and Odesa recovering from the latest attacks. “We’re being attacked not only with the rockets but also psychologically,” Lidia in Dnipro tells us. We also bring together three Ukrainian politicians to discuss how they keep democracy alive while maintaining a united front to the World and ask whether Donald Trump could really end the war in a day.

30 Marras 202423min