Around 50 protesters have been arrested in Russian cities on the final day of a vote set to confirm Vladimir Putin in office. Long queues formed outside polling stations, heeding a call to gather in protest. The call came from the wife of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died suddenly last month at a penal colony above the Arctic Circle. We hear from a member of President Putin's United Russia party. Also on the programme: One resident's story of living in Iceland's volcano zone; and how the tiny island nation of Palau sees its place among the big powers in the Pacific. (Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin. Credit: Sputnik/Kremlin)

Protesters arrested on final day of Russian vote

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Doctors treating Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico now say they will not be able to move him to the country's capital in the coming days. But they say he is in a serious but stable condition. Mr Fico is being treated in a small town hospital close to where he was shot on Wednesday. The man charged with attempting to murder Mr Fico has been in court on Saturday, with prosecutors arguing he must remain in custody pending his trial. Also in the programme: there's been a fifth night of unrest in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia sparked by changes to voting rights; and how Cuba's sugar industry is emblematic of the country's economic woes. (Picture: A convoy of police cars carrying a man accused of the attempted murder of the Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, arrives at court on 18 May, 2024. Credit: JAKUB GAVLAK/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Slovakia PM remains in serious but stable condition

Russian forces continue to press ahead with their offensive in the Kharkiv region of north-east Ukraine as President Zelensky signs two new laws to boost army recruitment as Ukraine struggles to mobilise fighters. How much is Kyiv now on the back foot in the war? Also in the programme: Ecologists in Costa Rica have just completed one of the largest ever "eco-acoustic" surveys recording sounds of forests regenerating across the entire country; and the Vatican has said Catholics need to be more cautious about accepting phenomena as supernatural. (Photo: Local residents react after a rocket attack on a residential area in Kharkiv, north-eastern Ukraine, 7 April 2024, amid the Russian invasion. Credit: EPA/Sergey Kozlov)

Can Ukraine 'hold the line'?

A temporary pier built by American troops has been used for the first time to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. The first consignments were brought ashore a few hours ago. The development follows a call by the US State Department on Thursday for Israel to do more to get aid into Gaza where conditions are deteriorating. The UN has said there will soon be no food left in the territory and warned that although the newly completed pier will help, re-opening land crossings is still the most effective way to get supplies into Gaza.  Also, the UN humanitarian aid chief has defended the organisation's use of casualty figures during the war in Gaza after criticism by Israel. We have an interview with Martin Griffiths. We will hear from the frontline of the war in Ukraine. And did the Egyptians use waterways to construct the Pyramids? Also, we will speak to the Nigerian Minister for Women's Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, who's trying to ban mass weddings to protect young girls. (Photo: The aid will be collected from a floating base before being transported to Gaza. Credit: Reuters)

US confirms first aid trucks via Gaza pier

A man has been charged with the attempted murder of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico after the politician was seriously hurt in a shooting attack. Mr Fico is in a serious but stable condition. Also on the programme: the president of Georgia tells the BBC why a controversial law just passed by the government is a move in the wrong direction; and the musician Elton John on his love of photography.
 
(Credit: Reuters)

Suspect charged with attempted murder of Slovak PM

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping praised their friendship and deep ties in a joint appearance in Beijing.  Also on the programme: World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director, Cindy McCain, speaks about the agony of Gazans and the frustration of humanitarian aid agencies; and the Estonian foreign minister responds to the claims of the Georgian government that he’s acting like an old-school Soviet.  (Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) attends a welcome ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China. Credit: SERGEY BOBYLEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Protesters arrested on final day of Russian vote

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