BBC

The former president of the Democratic Republic of Congo is sentenced to death in absentia for crimes against humanity, treason and backing the Rwandan-supported M23 rebels in eastern Congo. The court has ordered his arrest, but his whereabouts remain unknown We look at the man and his life.

Also in the programme: Officials in Namibia have deployed hundreds of soldiers to battle a fire that has ravaged a third of the key nature reserve, Etosha National Park.

And we speak to a woman who suffered a heart attack, and we find how such attacks can be prevented.

Presenter Nyasha Michelle

Producers: Yvette Twagiramariya, Mark Filberforce and Ayub Ilia

Senior Producer: Sunita Nahar

Technical Producer: Philip Bull

Editors: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi

The International Red Cross has been forced to cease operations in Gaza City because of the intensity of the Israeli offensive. It’s continuing while Arab and Turkish mediators put pressure on Hamas to accept President Trump's peace plan.

Also on the programme: we'll hear from the city at the epicentre of the earthquake in the Philippines where there's only one hospital to deal with the casualties; and the AI-generated actress causing a stir in Hollywood.

(Photo: Displaced Palestinians fleeing northern Gaza due to an Israeli military operation, after Israeli forces ordered residents of Gaza City to evacuate to the south, 1 October, 2025. Credit: Reuters)

What verbs can we use 'task'? Learn some here.

TRANSCRIPT

Find a free transcript for this episode and more programmes to help you with your English at:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/s5english_in_a_minute

FIND BBC LEARNING ENGLISH HERE:

Visit our website

✔️https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish

Follow us

✔️https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/followus

LIKE PODCASTS?

Try some of our other popular podcasts including:

✔️ Learning English Conversations

✔️ Learning English from the News

✔️ Learning Easy English

They're all available by searching in your podcast app.

Nolan talks to DUP's Sarah Bunting and former Sinn Fein election candidate Chris Donnelly

Being a tenant can be pricey — and it’s only getting pricier.

Private rents rose by almost six per cent in the year to July, and while the pace may be slowing, the average UK rent still stands at over £1,300 a month. So what does that mean for the millions of people living in private rented homes?

This week on Money Box Live, we're looking at the cost of renting — and what it’s doing to your finances.

We’ll hear from a family forced to live apart because they can’t afford to rent together, and from a woman struggling to rent because of debt problems. We’ll ask what the upcoming Renters Rights Bill means for tenants — and what tax breaks are available to people who choose to rent out a spare room.

With rising prices, limited supply, and big reforms on the horizon, join us as we unpack the pressures facing renters — and what support is out there.

Felicity Hannah is joined by Matt Hutchinson from Spare Room, Vicky Spratt, Housing Correspondent for The i, and Matt Sheeran from Money Wellness

Presenter: Felicity Hannah

Producer: Helen Ledwick

Editors: Jess Quayle and Craig Henderson

(This episode was first broadcast at 3pm on Radio 4 on the 3rd of September 2025).

A partial government shutdown has come into effect in the US. Democrats and Repulicans failed to agree on a spending bill, meaning hundreds of thousands of federal workers face not being paid. Also, the UN is appealing to the ruling Taliban to restore nationwide communications after the internet was cut across Afghanistan. The UN has announced a new security force to try and tackle gangs in Haiti. Leaders of the European Union will discuss how to protect their countries from drone attacks during meetings in Denmark. Scientists in the US are developing a technique that could use almost any cell in the body as the starting point of life. Official figures show Switzerland's glaciers have lost a quarter of their total volume over the past decade. Plus, an AI actor has been unveiled at the Zurich Film Festival.

A growing industry of content creators is teaching people how to make money from AI models, promising quick profits. Their strategy: steal content, alter faces with AI, and funnel users from Instagram to adult platforms. And one trend has caught the internet’s attention - Down’s Syndrome deepfakes. Rowan Ings and Nathalie Jimenez dive into the growing world of AI deepfakes, how it works, and hear from victims about the human cost of turning AI into a business of exploitation.

This episode of The Documentary, comes to you from BBC Trending in-depth reporting on the world of social media.

Funding for the US government will be cut off at the end of Tuesday unless President Donald Trump's Republican Party can agree with opposition Democrats on a way forward with a spending bill. Gideon Long hears from Democrats and Republicans, as well as US workers.

And, in Africa, a trade deal that's been the cornerstone of US-African economic relations for 25 years is set to expire. It's called the African Growth and Opportunity Act – AGOA for short.

Plus, Afghanistan businesspeople are appealing to the Taliban after a total internet shutdown in the country.

(File photo: A member of staff sits on steps close to the US Capitol, Washington, DC, USA, 30 September 2025. Photo by WILL OLIVER/EPA/Shutterstock)

In his closing speech at the Labour Party Conference, Keir Starmer attacked Reform and Nigel Farage for pushing what he called the ‘politics of grievance’. The Prime Minister also said that Reform’s plans to end Indefinite Leave to Remain were racist. We ask Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper if this approach could alienate Reform supporters.

Also on the programme: the Taliban cuts off the internet, isolating millions of Afghan women; and as The Rocky Horror Picture Show celebrates its 50th anniversary we speak to the son of its creator on its enduring appeal.

The United Nations has appealed to the Taliban to immediately restore telecommunications across Afghanistan. UN officials said the ban had far-reaching consequences, including on the banking and financial systems. Access to emergency services and medical care has also been hit. Mobile phone services are still not working and many flights have been cancelled. We'll hear from an Afghan activist about the impact this will have on daily life, and our chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet.

Also in the programme: the US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth declares a war on woke in the military; and scientists have made early stage human embryos from DNA taken from skin cells, raising the prospect of new fertility treatments.

(Picture: Telecom antennas stand on a mountain amid service shutdown across the country in Kabul, Afghanistan, September 30, 2025. Credit: Sayed Hassib/REUTERS)