Tequila with the bat man

In recent days, there have been warnings of a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza amid continual bombardment. In Israel, the discovery of bodies continues in the communities near the border, following the attack by Hamas on 7 October. Many of those caught up in this conflict are young people. Host James Reynolds hears from teenagers, on both sides. In Gaza, roughly half the population is under 18, and although communications are very difficult, young people have been sending us voice messages when they have enough internet. Sanabel (16) is sheltering with her family. In her messages, she said: “No one cares about us.” In Israel, Neta (18) is preparing to be a solider for Israel.

21 Okt 202324min

A guide to the history and context of the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Katya Adler and guests explain the key players and set out the background to help you get to grips with what’s going on today. They explain the history of the creation of the state of Israel and look at the experience of Palestinians. They take a closer look at Hamas, the group responsible for orchestrating the recent attacks on Israel. They are regarded as a terrorist organisation by Israel, the US and the UK, but how are they seen by Palestinians? Of course outsiders have also played a crucial role. We take a tour of this Middle Eastern neighbourhood to set out the relationships with Lebanon, Hezbollah, Jordan and Egypt and explain the role global powers like the USA and Iran have had at times of war and peace.

20 Okt 20231h 5min

Following a dramatic train accident, David Ditchfield was dragged under a speeding train in Cambridgeshire and nearly lost his life. As he lay in hospital, just before being taken into surgery, he had an extraordinary spiritual experience characterised by overwhelming love, white light and spiritual beings The experience awakened a previously hidden talent for painting and music. Despite his vision of angelic beings and a white tunnel of light, he doesn’t view his life-changing spiritual awakening as a religious experience. He tells his remarkable story and meets the founder of Near Death Experience UK who too had a profound spiritual awakening while in a critical condition.

20 Okt 202327min

A village in northern Portugal is fighting to prevent what could be the first large scale battery grade lithium mine in Europe from going into operation on its doorstep. For Assignment, Caroline Bayley travels to Covas do Barroso - the remote farming community with World Agricultural Heritage status and a tiny population - where villagers have formed a protest group which has gained international support. Portugal has one of the largest deposits of lithium in Europe and the Government is in favour of exploiting these resources as part of the green transition as lithium is used in electric vehicle batteries. The mining company needs to lease common land jointly owned by the villagers to access the lithium but the residents are holding out against this, in spite of the compensation on offer. They fear that the four open pit mines would destroy their agricultural way of life. The Barroso mine has been given the green light by Portugal’s environment agency subject to certain strict criteria being met. Owned by Savannah Resources, a London listed company, the mine aims to produce enough lithium for 500,000 electric car batteries a year. Produced and presented by Caroline Bayley Producer in Portugal Alison Roberts Editor: Penny Murphy Sound Engineer: Neil Churchill Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman(Image: Aida Fernandes, farmer in Covas do Barroso. Credit: BBC/Caroline Bayley)

19 Okt 202328min

Apartheid may now be long buried politically but in and around South Africa’s main cities it has left a visible legacy. Those entrenched historical problems could be about to get worse as cities like Johannesburg and Cape Town continue to grow rapidly, as a result of both migration and the natural population growth. Persistent power cuts and creaking infrastructure are major challenges to the ever-quickening pace of urbanisation. Can an ambitious new plan for Stellenbosch, the place where apartheid was reportedly conceived, help to break down the post-apartheid legacy of urban planning?

17 Okt 202338min

Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf takes us behind the scenes of the making of Kandahar, his film about life in Afghanistan that captured the world's attention when President Bush asked to see it after the attacks on 9/11. He reveals how he managed to film on a smugglers' route between Iran and Afghanistan, and how he avoided the attentions of the Taliban.

16 Okt 202327min

“I’m in love with the mountains.” A special episode from Kalki Presents: My Indian Life. Savita Kanswal was an inspirational climber, who had scaled Mount Everest. At the age of 26, she was tragically killed in an avalanche in the Himalayas. Kalki Presents: My Indian Life explores stories of being young and Indian in the 21st Century. Presented by Bollywood actor Kalki Koechlin. www.bbcworldservice.com/myindianlife #MyIndianLife

15 Okt 202330min

This is an historical conflict with decades of bloodshed but the unprecedented violence of the past week has thrown the crisis into unknown territory. It was triggered by the Islamist militant group Hamas – which is designated a terror organisation by many Western governments – breaking through the barrier between Israel and Gaza and launching a range of surprise attacks. Israel immediately announced it was at war and made threats to destroy Hamas; firing rocket attacks into Gaza. We speak to Israelis and Palestinians living in Gaza.

14 Okt 202324min