Nothing is Foreign

Over the past few weeks, protests in Iran against the compulsory hijab law and the morality police have spread across the country and worldwide, sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody.

But it's not the first time protests against the Islamic Republic's repression of women's rights have erupted. We look at what's different this time and how the current uprising is uniting Iranians from all walks of life.

Featuring:

Negar Mortazavi, Iranian-American journalist and political analyst, host of the Iran Podcast.

The high seas are beyond the reach of international law – and beyond the beat of most reporters. But Pulitzer-Prize-winner and former New York Times journalist, Ian Urbina, has sailed into uncharted territories. Urbina sets out on a years-long quest to investigate murder at sea, modern slave labour, environmental crimes and quixotic adventurers. Part travelog, part true-crime thriller, this 7-part series takes listeners to places where the laws of the land no longer exist. The Outlaw Ocean is brought to you by CBC Podcasts and the LA Times and produced by The Outlaw Ocean Project. More episodes are available at http://hyperurl.co/theoutlawocean

A recent string of bank hold-ups in Lebanon have gone viral on social media. Desperate depositors storm into banks, sometimes with guns, and demand tellers hand over their own money. There have been limits on withdrawals since 2019 and frustration is mounting as the economic crisis there deepens.

Sally Hafez, a woman who held up a bank with a toy gun in order to withdraw money for her sister's cancer treatment, has been in hiding since videos of her heist quickly spread last week.

She tells us how she pulled it off — and then we speak with a member of the Depositors Outcry Association, a group that supports her and others like her, about how the financial meltdown is leaving people in dire situations with few options.

Featuring:

Sally Hafez, depositor and subject of the viral video.

Ibrahim Abdallah, member of the Depositors Outcry Association.

The rains in Pakistan started early this year and at one point, a third of the country's territory was inundated with water. Hundreds of thousands of people are displaced and a food crisis is looming.

But how did things get this bad and who is ultimately responsible when a country with low emissions faces the brunt of a global climate crisis?

Plus, we take a quick look at how Queen Elizabeth's death has fuelled an ongoing reckoning with the British monarchy.

Featuring:

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Jr., artist and climate advocate, grandson of former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

Access to abortion has taken on urgency as the laws protecting it come under attack in the U.S. Working with American journalist Amanda Robb, host David Ridgen examines the murder of her uncle, an abortion provider in the U.S. and the resulting conviction of a fanatical sniper. Both discover that this murder may be the endgame of a series of doctor shootings that actually began in Canada.

More episodes are available at hyperurl.co/sks

It’s been a tumultuous couple of weeks for Taiwan.

After U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit to the self-governed island last week, China followed up with several military drills over the Taiwan strait.

While those drills have now stopped, tensions remain high between the U.S. and China, which claims the island as its own territory, and the people of Taiwan find themselves caught in the middle.

What does life look like there now and what does it mean to be Taiwanese?

Featuring:

William Yang, East Asia Correspondent for Deutsche Welles based in Taipei

Mexico City has become a hot remote working destination since the start of the pandemic. But the influx of wealthy foreigners is having an impact on everything from housing affordability to pandemic safety and it's sparking a major conversation in the city about gentrification.

Featuring:

Zachary Berkman, English teacher living in Mexico City.

Tamara Velasquez, PhD student in Global Urban Studies at Rutgers University.

Cara Araneta, creative consultant living in Mexico City.

When human rights activist Karima Baloch is found drowned off the shores of Toronto, an investigation into her mysterious death leads all the way back to Pakistan, the country she had recently fled.

In this six-part series, host Mary Lynk explores the rampant abductions and killings of dissidents in Pakistan, the dangers that follow those who flee to the West, and a terrifying intelligence agency with tentacles around the globe. How did Karima die? And would Pakistan really carry out an assassination far beyond its borders? This is a story that a powerful state doesn’t want you to know.

More episodes are available at smarturl.it/thekilllist

Europe's latest record-breaking heat wave is sparking some real climate anxiety.

Wildfires have spread rapidly across the continent, while soaring temperatures have warped roads and caused train tracks to buckle. More than 1,000 people have died due to the heat in Spain and Portugal alone.

With extreme weather events on the rise, some wonder if what is happening in Europe will finally jolt leaders into action on climate change.

Featuring:

Zia Weise, climate reporter, Politico Europe

Sri Lanka’s president just resigned after months of protest and a deepening economic crisis.

Despite Rajapaksa’s departure and the celebratory scenes of demonstrators partying at the president’s home, the people of Sri Lanka have a massive debt hole to climb out of and people have been struggling. What comes next?

Plus, a look at why a maintenance shutdown of Russia’s Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline to Germany is raising alarms across Europe.

Featuring:

Aritha Wickramasinghe, Banking lawyer

Christoph Rauwald, Bloomberg Bureau Chief, Frankfurt