BBC

Record June temperatures have been recorded in several countries, with highs of 44C. As the continent swelters, workers struggle in the heat.

Power failure in Russian occupied Crimea after more overnight drone raids by Ukraine.

And prices for Grand Theft Auto 6 have been revealed.

Ukraine has been intensifying attacks across Crimea as it attempts to cut off the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014. The authorities have been forced to suspend fuel sales to the public.

Also on the programme: hundreds of schools in the UK are closed as temperatures in Western Europe hit new highs; and why sperm whales use different dialects depending on where they swim in the Mediterranean Sea.

(Photo: A satellite image shows burning oil storage tanks and smoke rising from the Crimea Bridge amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict Credit: Vantor/Reuters)

Nolan talks to political commentator Mick Fealty and Loyalist activist Jamie Bryson

The Lebanese president says he will not accept any peace deal that does not include the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon. The two sides met in Washington on Tuesday for a fifth round of talks. Hezbollah has accused Israel of violating the recently-agreed ceasefire claiming IDF soldiers opened fire on a group of civilians in Lebanon killing two people.

Also in this podcast: A United Nations-backed commission accuses Israel of deliberately targeting and killing Palestinian children in what it calls a "genocide". Kim Jong Un announces that he's equipping North Korea's navy with nuclear weapons. People across western Europe brace for what's forecast to be the hottest day of the year. Researchers in Australia discover why some memories are more vivid than others. And we hear from the men being paid $50,000 to watch the World Cup.

The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.

Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.

Get in touch: [email protected]

Photo: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun attends a press conference in February 2026

Credit: Reuters/Mohamed Azakir

It is 10 years since the UK voted to leave the European Union in the Brexit referendum. In this two-part series, Alex Forsyth, a BBC correspondent who’s covered Brexit from both Brussels and Westminster, looks at what impact the decision to leave the EU has had on various aspects of public and political life, both within Britain and beyond.

In this second episode, Alex and guests discuss how leaving the EU impacted UK regulation, science and academia, and fishing and farming, and consider how Brexit has impacted the EU and British internal politics ten years on. Did Brexit allow the UK to free itself from the ‘burdensome bureaucracy’ of the EU and innovate independently, or leave it out of the loop? Did UK fishers and farmers get a better deal post Brexit? Were there fears the UK’s departure would trigger a domino effect amongst other European nations? And has Brexit ultimately made UK politics more European?

What happened to mothers and their babies - over more than 10 years - at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust? On Wednesday an independent review into maternity care at the trust will be published. We'll hear from one family about their experience and why they're still calling for a public inquiry.

Andy Burnham and Sir Keir Starmer are in a standoff over who should decide future defence spending.

And 50 years on from record-breaking 1976 heatwave, how is the current one different? And what could the UK's weather feel like in another 50 years?

Farmers across Europe are trying to protect their crops as an intense heatwave grips the continent. Several countries have issued red weather alerts as temperatures soar.

Meanwhile, an operation is under way to evacuate thousands of seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz.

Why have fuel sales to the public been suspended in Russian occupied Crimea?

We also look at how trade between the UK and the EU has evolved a decade after Brexit

And what's going on with Space-X shares now?

Presenter: Leanna Byrne

Producers: Rob Cave and Niamh Mc Dermott

A searing heatwave in western Europe is continuing to break records, with France registering its hottest-ever average daily temperature. Forty people have drowned in heatwave-related deaths there since Thursday, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has said.

Also on the programme: Afghanistan’s Taliban government says a delegation has met European Union officials in Brussels, to discuss migration; and the Reflecting Pool in Washington DC is set to be drained as US President Donald Trump again blamed vandals for bright green algae and peeling paint that has appeared just weeks after a multi-million-dollar renovation.

(Photo: France's sports minister Marina Ferrari warned that too many people were heading for reservoirs and rivers without taking the risks into account. Credit: Getty)

Lilian attempts to inspire the next generation, and George wonders where he’s gone wrong.

As a record-breaking heatwave continues in western Europe, the United Nations has warned that fossil fuels are driving a climate crisis. France has endured its hottest night in more than eighty years and temperatures are expected to climb above 41C. Spain, Italy, Germany and the UK are also sweltering. Also: the European Union issues single-day visas to a Taliban delegation to attend a migration meeting in Brussels, despite not recognising the government in Afghanistan; the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio heads to the Gulf for high-stakes talks with Arab allies; a major ransomware attack in Romania forces a hundred hospitals offline; Sri Lanka battles its worst dengue outbreak in years; a new study suggests people may be biologically ageing faster than previous generations, raising questions about a rise in early-onset cancers; and we look at the economic impact of Cape Verde’s remarkable run at the mens football World Cup, as the tiny Atlantic island nation enjoys global attention.

The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.

Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.

Get in touch: [email protected]

Photo: People cool off in the Trocadero Fountain next to the Eiffel Tower as temperatures rise during a heatwave affecting a large part of the country, in Paris, France, June 22, 2026.

Credit: REUTERS/Abdul Saboor