The Global Story

Venezuelans are still searching through the rubble a month after two devastating earthquakes, which left thousands dead and tens of thousands more still missing.

The disaster came at a moment of acute political and economic uncertainty, following the toppling of president Nicolas Maduro. The new government is led by Delcy Rodriguez, with US oversight, and the Trump administration has taken control of Venezuela’s lucrative oil industry – to the tune of billions of dollars. But where is that money now?

The BBC’s Will Grant reports from Venezuela, and has spoken to survivors, grieving families, and government officials leading the response.

Producers: Cat Farnsworth and Aron Keller

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Workers use a jackhammer on debris from a collapsed building, in Caraballeda, La Guaira, Venezuela. Credit: Reuters/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria.

President Trump has announced a new round of tariffs against a range of Canadian goods, including hockey sticks and cement. Trump says the tariffs are in retaliation for what he called Canada’s “unequal treatment” of US cars, dairy and alcohol. But earlier in the week he also threatened retaliatory tariffs over Canada’s wildfire smoke which has been drifting into US cities.

We speak to Jayme Poisson - host of the CBC podcast Frontburner - about what Trump actually wants from Canada, and whether Canadians are bracing for a world in which the US is no longer their closest ally.

Listen to Frontburner: link.mgln.ai/FBxGlobalStory

Producers: Aron Keller, Xandra Ellin and Hannah Moore

Executive producer: Bridget Harney

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: U.S. President Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum and FIFA dignitaries at the FIFA World Cup 2026 Final between Spain and Argentina at New York New Jersey Stadium. Credit: Reuters/ Evan Vucci.

The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is a mainstay of the US political calendar, a barometer of the Republican party mood, and has become, in recent years, a pro-Trump event, with a big budget and crowds in the thousands.

Its first outing to the United Kingdom last week brought less of the bombast, but much the same flavour of politics, as figures from across the hard right assembled for debates on topics including migration, race, British identity and cryptocurrency, under the slogan ‘Save Britain. Save The West’.

One of our producers, Hannah Moore, attended the conference to find a conservative movement reckoning with its identity, and divided on whether importing MAGA-style politics can unite the right.

Producers: Aron Keller and Hannah Moore

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks at the CPAC GB conference in London, Britain, 17 July 2026. Credit: EPA/Shutterstock

The US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth faced senators on Tuesday as the White House asked for tens of billions of dollars more to help fund the Iran war.

It comes after over a week of consecutive US strikes, the deaths of several US service members, and the Iran-backed Houthis announcing a ‘maritime blockade’ in the region.

We speak to BBC world news correspondent Joe Inwood about the trouble brewing on three fronts for the US.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Valerio Esposito

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A projectile is fired during what the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said was a round of strikes against Iran, in this screen grab taken from a handout video released on July 11, 2026. Credit: U.S. Central Command/Handout/Reuters.

Marco Rubio’s State Department has unveiled plans to dismantle the International Criminal Court, a tribunal that prosecutes individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. In a video, Rubio calls the ICC, "a global tribunal staffed by unelected globalist bureaucrats who claim their power is almost unlimited.”

The United States is not, nor has it ever been, a party to the ICC, which was established during the presidency of Democrat Bill Clinton. But could the ICC investigate and indict Americans anyway? Today, we hear the view from within the world of international criminal law, with human rights lawyer, writer, and international law professor Philippe Sands.

Producer: Xandra Ellin

Photo: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

This episode was updated on Monday 20 July to reflect new comments from the mayor of New York City.

Spain or Argentina? These two teams will face each other in the 2026 World Cup final. Only one team can emerge eternal. For the rest, it’s over.

But this tournament’s not just been about victory.

For this special episode, we’ve been speaking with people across the US to hear about their tournament experiences, and asking what trace the World Cup will leave behind.

We hear from: Roger Bennett, founder of the Men in Blazers media company; from the BBC’s sports editor Dan Roan; from the co-host of Morning Joe on MS NOW Jonathan Lemire; from Ruth DeWitt, director of community relations at Lawrence’s tourism bureau in Kansas; and from life long US soccer fan Marcus Cranston.

Executive producer: Bridget Harney

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: USA fans cheer ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 group stage match Turkey against USA, in Los Angeles, 25 June 2026. Credit: Christopher Torres/EPA/Shutterstock

On Thursday in Washington DC, Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State, will host an international summit on the threat posed by "the resurgence of transnational far-left terrorism.” There will be a particular focus on the loosely composed group the Trump administration calls Antifa.

(Photo: Anti-fascist demonstrators wave an Antifa flag, which is green and has an orange, green and white circular logo in the middle, in the UK, 2016. Credit: Gareth Fuller/Press Association)

Producers: Cat Farnsworth, Aron Keller and Hannah Moore

Executive producer: James Shield

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

In an exclusive investigation, a whistleblower has told the BBC how he unearthed evidence suggesting that US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick failed to disclose a business relationship with the paedophile financier, Jeffrey Epstein.

Simon Andriesz was a trader at one of Lutnick’s Wall Street firms, but it wasn’t until the Epstein files were released earlier this year that he says he confirmed a longstanding suspicion that his boss was misrepresenting his relationship with Epstein.

BBC financial investigations correspondent Andy Verity joins us to unpack the new investigation.

Listen to Andy’s full report on File on 4 Investigates: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002yx47

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Xandra Ellin

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Digital producer: Tom Bage

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick sits to testify before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies hearing to examine a review of broadband deployment funding at the Department of Commerce, February 10, 2026. Credit: Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters.

According to a recent financial disclosure, President Trump made more than $1.4 billion last year from business dealings in cryptocurrency. Though the White House has denied Trump was profiting from the presidency, he has been championing crypto in recent days — describing himself in one news conference as a, "big crypto guy".

Audio for this episode was updated on 14 July to correct a factual error. The original audio said that the Trump family receives 75% of net profit every time the USD1 coin is sold. In fact, they receive 75% of net profit from a different crypto coin called $WLFI.

Producers: Xandra Ellin and Aron Keller

A series of record-breaking heatwaves in Europe this summer has led to a surge in demand for air conditioning units. As Europeans search for a way to stay cool, attitudes and policies towards air conditioning have led to a heated political debate in France, which has baffled some Americans

Tristan explains to Sumi Somaskanda how air conditioning became part of the culture wars, and we ask Graihagh Jackson, the host of the BBC podcast The Climate Question, how bad AC actually is for the environment.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Valerio Esposito

Executive producer: China Collins and Bridget Harney

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: People cool off in the Trocadero Fountains by the Eiffel Tower during high temperatures amid a heatwave in Paris. (REUTERS/Tom Nicholson)