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Indian officials say at least twelve people have now died in Monday's car explosion in Delhi. Reports in the Indian media say that investigators suspect a Delhi-based Kashmiri doctor was in the driver's seat. There's also been an explosion near a crowded courthouse in neighbouring Pakistan today.

Also in the programme: voting is underway in Iraq to choose a new parliament as both Iran and the US vie for influence; the new research that suggests that speaking more than one language could delay the ageing process; and we speak to this year's Booker Prize winner.

(Picture: Security personnel and members of the forensic team work at the site of an explosion near the historic Red Fort in India. Credit: REUTERS/Adnan Abid)

Can Mali's military junta maintain its hold on power despite a jihadist blockade?

 

What role are mercenaries playing in Africa's  current conflicts.

 

And the genesis of a new type of Algerian rai protest music known as "Way Way"

 

 

Presenter: Audrey Brown

Producers: Yvette Twagiramariya, Patricia Whitehorne, Bella Hassan and Mark Wilberforce in London with, Madina Maishanu in Abuja.

Technical Producer: Jack Graysmark

Senior Producer: Paul Bakibinga

Editor: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi

Legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg and former BBC editorial director Roger Mosey react.

If there are no ways about something, you want to emphasise that it's true. Learn how to use this expression with Feifei and Phil.

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The US says Syria is joining the international coalition to combat the Islamic State group, and Damascus is resuming diplomatic relations with Washington. The announcement came hours after Donald Trump met the Syrian president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, at the White House, describing him as a strong leader. President Trump said he wanted Syria to be a "big part" of his plan for a wider Middle East peace. Also: The Indian capital, Delhi, is on high alert after a deadly explosion. The woman known as the "Chinese Cryptoqueen" is due to be sentenced for stealing billions of dollars from investors. And the novel "Flesh", by David Szalay wins the Booker Prize, Britain's most prestigious award for literary fiction.

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.

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From jungle guerrilla warfare to frozen trenches: why did they leave and will they ever return? The story of the Colombian soldiers choosing to fight in the war in Ukraine. 'We heard the Ukranian President’s SOS call" says Castaño, a soldier in his early 30s who paid for his own flight from Colombia to fight in the war in Ukraine. He's not the only one, Colombians are said to outnumber any other nationality of those foreigners who have volunteered to fight. They've even promoted a Colombian to the rank of Sergeant so he can help process the huge numbers of Latino recruits who don't speak any Ukrainian. Some soldiers we meet have already made a huge sacrifice for a country that’s not their own and are learning to walk with new prosthetic limbs. But they're not just drawn to Ukraine to help, a range of factors in Colombia have pushed many soldiers to leave, not least low pay and a feeling that a job in the Colombian Army is no longer worth it.

Marco Pereira travels around Ukraine talking to Colombian soldiers to find out why they have chosen to fight in a punishing war so far from home.

This episode of The Documentary comes to you from Assignment, investigations and journeys into the heart of global events.

We hear from a worker who hasn't been paid in weeks and examine the wider impact on America's economy.

And, what's happening on the opening day of the COP30 climate conference in Brazil.

US President Donald Trump has threatened the BBC with a $1bn lawsuit over edits the Panorama programme made to a speech he gave before the January 6 Capitol riots. We assess the significance of the lawsuit and the resignations of the Director General and the CEO of BBC News.

Also on the programme: why Democrats aren’t happy about a deal aimed at ending the longest government shutdown in US history; and on a rare trip back home, a UK-based Russian writer finds out how people are dealing with the war in Ukraine.

Ahmed al-Sharaa - once designated a high-value terrorist target by the US - has, as the new president of Syria, met Donald Trump at the White House. But concerns run deep inside Syria over the level of sectarian violence.

Also in the programme: President Trump threatens to sue the BBC for $1bn, but does he have a case? And at least nine people are killed in an explosion in the Indian capital, Delhi, outside the seventeenth century Red Fort.

(IMAGE: President Donald Trump shakes hands with Syria's President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 10, 2025 / CREDIT: Syrian Presidency press office via AP)

There can't be many people in the world who've saved lives in hospital emergency rooms and also helped care for the wellbeing of astronauts in space – but Kevin Fong’s career has followed a singular path: from astrophysics and trauma medicine, to working with NASA, to becoming an Air Ambulance doctor.

Kevin is a consultant anaesthetist and professor of public engagement and innovation at University College London. He’s worked on the front line in hospitals, dealing with major incidents and helping shape policy; but he's also stayed true to his childhood passion for space, working on multiple projects with NASA and even going through the astronaut application process himself. As if that wasn’t enough, he’s also become a well-known figure in science broadcasting through his various radio and TV shows.

Speaking to Professor Jim Al-Khalili, Kevin admits it hasn't always been an easy path – but his passion for both space and medicine have got him through. And today, he's channelling his energies into ensuring we protect the NHS's most precious commodity: its staff.

Presented by Jim Al-Khalili

Produced by Lucy Taylor

Revised for World Service by Minnie Harrop