BBC

As 4th July approaches, we think you’ll like this episode of The Global Story. All week, The Global Story podcast is exploring the surprising and often hidden ways the US has shaped the modern world.

Roman Mars – the host of 99% Invisible and the new BBC series A History of the United States in 100 Objects – joins as a guest to set out his theory of how the US used design to shape the world in its image.

If you like this episode, find the special collection ‘US and the World at 250’ in The Global Story. If you’re in the UK, listen on BBC Sounds. If you’re outside the UK, listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

Foreign dignitaries arrive in Iran for a week of events ahead of the burial of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, more than four months after he was killed in strikes launched by the US and Israel. He will be laid to rest in his hometown of Mashhad on Thursday after lying in state. Iranian authorities say millions are expected to attend. It comes as Iran and the United States observe a fragile ceasefire after signing a preliminary deal to halt their conflict in June. As control over shipping through the Hormuz Strait has proven to be Iran’s key bargaining chip to end US and Israeli strikes in Iran, we have an exclusive report from the Strait itself, from the southern Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. Also: The UN accuses the paramilitary Rapid Support Force of executions, torture and sexual violence in Sudan; an elected mayor in Japan is the first to take maternity leave; a police hunt is underway for the suspect behind a parcel bomb attack in Monaco -- now believed to be a woman disguising herself as a man; and a volunteer has stumbled across a rare copy of the US Declaration of Independence in the UK.

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: The coffin of Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei displayed during a farewell ceremony for him at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla in Tehran, Iran.

Credit: REUTERS. Foreign media in Iran operate under guidelines set by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, which regulates press activity and permissions.

A big birthday, a big wedding and big temperatures...it's a big weekend in the United States for citizens and business owners.

Also, Russia takes more steps to tackle its growing fuel shortages.

And why a Japanese mayor is facing criticism for taking maternity leave.

Presenter: Bisi Adebayo

Producer: Victoriya Holland

Editor: Justin Bones

Have you heard of solo-maxxing, or "by yourself maxxing"? It's a social media trend in which young people are embracing single life by opting out of dating and choosing to spend more time on their own. Instead, they're prioritising personal wealth, career growth and emotional independence. So, what's driving this trend? Is it a new kind of freedom, or are young people giving up on dating altogether? BBC Focus on Africa podcast host Nkechi Ogbonna spoke to Kenyan content creator Chantelle Petit and British Somali podcaster Ahmendur Hirad about their solo-maxxing journeys, the motivations behind their choices, and the challenges they've faced along the way.

Presenter: Nkechi Ogbonna

Producers: Keikantse Shuma, Fana Negash and Carolyne Kiambo

Senior Producers: Bella Twine and Priya Sippy

Technical Producers: David Kinyanjui

Editors: Charles Gitonga and Maryam Abdalla

Iran has begun several days of public mourning and funeral processions for its former Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, more than four months after he was killed in strikes launched by the US and Israel.

Tehran is using the occasion as an opportunity to project to the world an image of power.

Also in the programme: There's a grim warning from the UN that another humanitarian catastrophe is imminent in Sudan; why taking maternity leave as a town mayor is highly controversial in Japan; and we'll hear about the dolphins that are the gauge of marine destruction in the Adriatic Sea.

(Photo shows mourners gathered by the coffin of Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla in Tehran, Iran, on 3 July 2026. Credit: Mohammed Salem/Reuters)

Chief Constable says a loyalist paramilitary group was involved in the violence

Hernán Gil, a 43-year-old security guard, was found alive under the rubble of a collapsed building more than a week after Venezuela's devastating twin earthquakes. The country's interim President, Delcy Rodriguez, said nearly 2600 people are now known to have been killed. She stressed that rescue efforts are still ongoing. Also: The World Health Organisation says it has begun trials to find a treatment for the current strain of Ebola that is spreading through the Democratic Republic of Congo; a BBC investigation discovers that the tech giant Meta is running paid advertisements on Instagram in India promoting child sexual abuse material; and a dramatic finish sees Portugal beat Croatia to progress to the last 16 of the football 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: Rescue workers attend to Hernán Alberto Gil Flores after he was pulled from the rubble eight days after he was trapped by twin earthquakes that struck Catia La Mar, Venezuela.

Credit: Fernando Vergara/AP Photo

Once a respected voice in the pulpit, a Nigerian priest was cast out when his sexuality became known, mirroring a broader pattern in which clergy have been dismissed or barred from ministry in Nigeria over allegations of homosexuality. Listening to his intimate testimony and stark reality, Emily Buchanan explores the cost of authenticity in a society where belief, culture, and law intersect - and where being true to oneself can mean losing everything.

With just 57,000 posts created in June, half the number expected, the US jobs market is showing signs of cooling. We talk to a restaurant owner about why it's getting harder to hire.

And the latest on the computer gremlins causing chaos at European airports. We hear from the family of a businessman delayed by 12 hours and a travel expert: Are glitches in the new EU-wide border control system going to spell a summer of misery for non-European travellers?

Also, if you were to hold your wedding in Madison Square Garden, how much would it set you back? We investigate.

Russia’s strikes on Kyiv come after Ukraine’s attacks on Russian energy infrastructure. We hear assessments of the war – and who’s winning – from Moscow and the United States.

Also on the programme: the National Crime Agency says at least eight people have been arrested in the UK after investigations into online networks that encourage men to drug and rape women. And we hear from a pub landlord on the news that venues in England and Wales will be allowed to stay open until 5am for next week’s England World Cup match.