BBC

Donald Trump says he's no longer planning to charge ships for using the Strait of Hormuz, as the US battles to break Iran's hold on the waterway. Trump said the toll would be replaced by "massive" trade and investment deals with Gulf states. Also: US banks are making huge profits despite rising inflation. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have been told to halt most vehicle stops nationwide immediately, following a pair of fatal shootings in Texas and Maine involving ICE agents. Another record-breaking heatwave has hit parts of Canada and the US, bringing extreme temperatures and poor air quality. At the FIFA World Cup, Spain have beaten France to secure a place in the final. A 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus Rex has become the most expensive dinosaur fossil ever.

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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Photo: A ship using the Strait of Hormuz

Credit: Reuters

“Perfidious Albion” - how Britain replaced the US as Russia’s top nemesis and the villain at the heart of its war narrative. Since the re-election of Donald Trump, Russian propagandists have softened their tone on the US, while intensifying their rhetoric against the UK. They have unleashed a wave of elaborate insults, accusations and threats against Britain, amounting at times to a full-blown character assassination. The insults may sound theatrical, and London denies the accusations, but beneath them lies a more troubling signal - one UK military chiefs take seriously. We ask, what does this shift reveal about Russia’s strategic intentions in a time of conflict.

President Trump has repeated his intention to re-impose a naval blockade on Iran, as the battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz continues.  Also on the programme, Spain’s Supreme Court has ruled that those with a particularly close connection to the person wanting to die may have the right to contest that death wish; and one of the world's most important political cartoonists, Pat Oliphant, has died.

(Photo: US President Donald Trump meets with Iraqi PM Ali al-Zaidi at the White House, Washington, USA - 14 Jul 2026. GRAEME SLOAN/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock)

Tempers flare for Kirsty, and Susan makes a friend.

Locals in Maine have gathered to protest against the Trump administration's immigration crackdown after a 26-year-old Colombian man was shot dead during an ICE operation in the state. It was the second fatal shooting by US immigration officers in less than a week. State lawmakers say Joan Sebastian Guerrero, identified by a neighbour, was not the intended target of a warrant.

Also: nearly a month after the US and Iran signed their interim peace deal, the two sides appear back where they started - with rival blockages on the Strait of Hormuz. Solar becomes EU's largest energy source for the first time. The eight week kidnap ordeal of schoolchildren and teachers now rescued in Nigeria. The pianist who passed her Grade 8 piano exam with one hand. And we speak to Andy Serkis about his new, modern version of Animal Farm - which has a happy ending.

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: A woman places flowers at a makeshift street side memorial in Biddeford, Maine, U.S.

Credit: Reuters

A Sudanese court has sentenced the leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo - known as Hemedti - to death for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide over atrocities committed in the West Darfur region. Hemedti, along with 15 other senior RSF leaders were sentenced in absentia. We look at what this means for the RSF and its three-year civil war with the Sudan Armed Forces.

And in Kenya, whistleblowers are tipping off police, helping authorities intervene before girls undergo female genital mutilation.

Presenter: Nkechi Ogbonna

Producers: Keikantse Shumba, Chiamaka Dike and Blessing Aderogba

Senior Producer: Charles Gitonga

Technical Producer: David Nzau

Editors: Rhoda Odhiambo and Maryam Abdalla

Iranian state media is reporting new US attacks, as the battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz continues. Donald Trump says the US naval blockade of Iranian ports will be reinstated later, and the US will start charging a levy for shipping.

Also in the programme: President Macron of France says Europe has had a 'strategic awakening' as French military power is paraded on Bastille Day; and 'Gus' the T-Rex fossil goes up for auction.

(Photo: A vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, July 14, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Stringer)

This phrase comes from a longer idiom, ‘like ships that pass at night’. It’s used when two people have busy schedules, and struggle to find time to meet for more than just a brief encounter. Learn how to use it here, with Georgie and Feifei.

Find a free transcript here:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/the-english-we-speak_2026/ep-260713

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John Campbell is presenting. Also, fears for MPs' security after Ann Widdecombe murder

Washington and Tehran continue to exchange strikes, President Trump restores the US blockade of Iranian ports and unveils a new levy on cargo shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. Also: the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, is again hit by Russian ballistic missiles after Ukraine launches a european defence system in Paris; Hungary's new government pushes through an amended constitution; US states sue to block the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger; British counter-terrorism police take control of the investigation into the killing of the former government minister, Ann Widdecombe; the legal and ethical rows over euthanasia in Spain; the travails of the diamond industry; and Dua Lipa teams up with a Portuguese bookstore to promote banned literature.

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: United States President Donald J Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 13 July 2026.

Credit: EPA/Shutterstock