Why these Iraqi elections are so important
Iraq’s election has been closely watched from way beyond its borders, as the young democracy finds itself in a power struggle between the US, Israel and Iran.
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Mexico’s first female president was publicly groped
The public groping of its first female president has placed Mexico’s epidemic of violence against women into sharp focus.
Eel-egal trade: the world’s most lucrative wildlife crime?
Eels have been a staple of European diets for millennia, from London’s jellied eels to Spanish angulas. But the world’s appetite is bringing them to the brink of extinction.
Nuclear fusion: the race for the ‘holy grail’ of physics is hotting up
About 60 years ago, Russian physicist Lev Artsimovich said nuclear fusion “will be ready when society needs it”. For decades, scientists have tried to recreate the fusion reaction that powers the sun, hoping to produce potentially unlimited clean energy.
What is Donald Trump planning in Latin America?
Since Donald Trump began his second term, he has put increasing pressure on multiple Latin American nations – including US allies. And the seemingly haphazard nature of his attacks is raising questions about his motives.
How does the Nobel Peace Prize work?
Venezuelan pro-democracy campaigner María Corina Machado has won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. Despite an unprecedented – and public – campaign for the accolade by Donald Trump, the Norway-based prize committee chose Machado, in recognition of her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela”.
Icarus programme – the ‘internet of animals’
“We’re about to have an internet of animals, and that’s super exciting.” So said Martin Wikelski, from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior in Germany, on BBC Science Focus.
'Axis of upheaval': will China summit cement new world order?
The leaders of China, Russia, Iran and North Korea – a quartet described by Western policy analysts as the "axis of upheaval" – have met in public for the first time today at a huge military parade in Beijing.
The trial of Jair Bolsonaro, the 'Trump of the tropics'
The closing phase of the trial of Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro – dubbed the "Trump of the tropics" – begins today: the first case of its kind in the country's turbulent history.
The mission to demine Ukraine
Ukraine is thought to be one of the most heavily mined countries in the world – and the problem extends way beyond its own borders.
Illicit mercury is poisoning the Amazon
One of the deadliest chemicals on Earth is being smuggled across Latin America – and is poisoning the environment along the way.
Why is the world so divided over plastics?
In 2022, with annual plastic production reaching nearly half a million tonnes, many countries came to an agreement that only a global effort could tackle the problem.
How did life on Earth begin? The answers could be stuck on Mars
The mystery of how life on Earth originated, and whether it exists elsewhere in the universe, are "the raison d’être of space exploration", said Louis Friedman, co-founder of the Planetary Society.
El Boom is back
One of the world’s foremost literary movements, “el boom” was borne of the political turmoil that engulfed Latin America during the 20th century – bloody civil wars, military coups and dictatorships, all under the shadow of the nuclear missile crisis.
"They gave me electric shocks and called me a b*tch": Life for Afghan women under Taliban rule
Before Afghanistan fell, Wajiha Amiri, now 29, was working for a radio station in Kunduz, in the north of the country, on a show that promoted women’s right to education and employment. While such topics might sound ordinary here in the UK, in Afghanistan, a country with a complex history when it comes to women’s education, Wajiha’s work was risky. But she wasn’t scared.
