Joaquín Guzmán Loera - the Mexican drug trafficker known as “El Chapo”, has been recaptured by Mexican authorities. Parallel to Guzmán’s capture, Rolling Stone magazine released an interview of the drug lord - while he still eluded authorities - by actor, Sean Penn. We’ll talk about “El Chapo” with Laura Carlsen of the Americas program for the Center for International Policy. Also, China’s stocks traded so low last week that trading on the Shanghai Exchange was suspended. At the same time, a well-known Hong Kong-based publisher, known for his books exposing the secrets of Chinese leaders, and several of his colleagues, have disappeared. We’ll look at the case and examine China’s economic issues with author Wen Huang, author of The Little Red Guard and Death in the Lucky Holiday Hotel. And today marks the 14th anniversary of the opening of the Guantanamo Bay prison. We’ll talk about efforts to reduce the detainee population, as well as the recent release of several prisoners, with Andy Worthington, author of “The Guantánamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America’s Illegal Prison” and co-founder of the ‘Close Guantanamo’ campaign.

The diplomatic crisis between Saudi Arabia and Iran took another downward turn when Iran accused Saudi Arabia of deliberately targeting its Yemen embassy in an airstrike. Recent hostilities began between the countries after Saudi Arabia executed noted Shi’a cleric, Nimr al-Nimr. In response, Iranian protesters charged and damaged the Saudi embassy in Tehran. We’ll get more on the brewing situation with Juan Cole, professor of history at the University of Michigan. His blog is Informed Comment and he’s author most recently of the book, The New Arabs: How the Millennial Generation is Changing the Middle East. PHOTO: A banner showing U.S flag and reading ‘death to America and death to Al Saud’ is carried by protesters during an anti-Saudi protest rally after the Friday prayers in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016. Thousands of worshippers who took part in Friday prayers in Tehran joined the rally, carrying pictures of al-Nimr and chanting ‘Death to Al Saud,’ referencing the kingdom's royal family. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Each week, global citizen, Nari Safavi, helps listeners plan their international weekend. This week he’ll tell us about an opera inspired by the Peruvian hostage crisis of 1996. Joining Safavi is 'Bel Canto' director, Jimmy Lopez. Bel Canto is currently running at Lyric Opera in Chicago. PHOTO: Scene from the Peruvian opera, “Bel Canto’ (Courtesy of the Lyric Opera of Chicago)

Tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran got worse as Iran accused Saudi Arabia of targeting its Yemen embassy in an airstrike. We’ll get more from Juan Cole, professor of history at the University of Michigan. Each week global citizen Nari Safavi helps listeners plan their international weekend. This week he’ll tell us about an opera inspired by the Peruvian hostage crisis of 1996. ‘Bel Canto is currently running at Lyric Opera in Chicago.’ Film contributor Milos Stehlik joins us to tell us about a couple of films showing this weekend: “The Revenant,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and “Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict” PHOTO: In Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, an Iranian worshipper holds up a poster showing Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent opposition Saudi Shiite cleric who was executed by Saudi Arabia. Thousands of worshippers who took part in Friday prayers in Tehran joined the rally, carrying pictures of al-Nimr and chanting ‘Death to Al Saud,’ referencing the kingdom's royal family. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

WBEZ Film contributor, Milos Stehlik, joins us to talk about films showing this weekend, including “The Revenant,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and a new film about Peggy Guggenheim, the art collector known for her modern art collection, called “Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict”. PHOTO: Leonardo DiCaprio in a scene from ‘The Revenant’ (Courtesy of 20th Century Fox)

The Republic of North Korea claimed on Wednesday that it set off a hydrogen bomb. Initial reports varied as to whether it was a hydrogen or atomic bomb, but now, many doubt there was any detonation of that magnitude. The White House was skeptical, stating that according to its analysis, North Korea’s activity "is not consistent" with the claim. We’ll talk about the mystery of DPRK’s hydrogen detonation with Bruce Cumings, professor of history at the University of Chicago. He’s author of numerous books on the Korean Peninsula including, Parallax Visions: Making Sense of American-East Asian Relations at the End of the Century and North Korea: Another Country. PHOTO: In this April 8, 2012 file photo, a North Korean soldier stands in front of the country's Unha-3 rocket at a launching site in Tongchang-ri, North Korea (AP Photo/David Guttenfelder, File)

The documentary film “Drone,” takes an inside look at the CIA’s drone program - exploring in-depth how the U.S. government recruits drone operators. One place they recruit - video game conventions. We’ll talk with the film’s director, Tonje Hessen Schei. PHOTO: Drone monitoring facility as shown by the documentary ‘Drone”, directed by Tonje Kessen Schei (Photographer: Lucian Muntean Copyright @ Flimmer Film 2014)

For our Global Activism series, we first spoke in 2012 with former high school teacher, Elizabeth Powley. She believes that “every child has the right to learn.” She has a special love for the children of Africa’s Great Lakes region (Rwanda and Burundi). Powley founded the NGO, Every Child is My Child, because she envisions a world in which “every girl and boy in Africa has access to secondary school.” She is also executive director of Heartland Alliance International - part of Heartland Alliance, the Chicago-based group that “helps endangered populations — particularly the poor, the isolated, and the displaced.” Powley is back to update us on her goal for “communities [to] see an entire generation of students educated – for the first time – beyond the elementary school level.” PHOTO: Elizabeth Powley, founder of Every Child is My Child, with the group’s first ever high school graduates, Victor and Vincent, in Mageyo, Bujumbura, Burundi. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Powley/Every Child is My Child)

On January 7, 1822 the schooner Elizabeth arrived off Providence Island, Liberia with the first emigrants ready to colonize the country that would be named Liberia, meaning “land of the free.” Historian John Schmidt recalls how it all began. PHOTO: Joseph Jenkins Roberts, First President of Liberia (Wikimedia Commons)

North Korea claims it set off a hydrogen bomb. We’ll talk about the mystery of DPRK’s hydrogen detonation with Bruce Cumings, professor of history at the University of Chicago. And the documentary film “Drone,” explores in-depth how the U.S. government recruits drone operators. We’ll talk with the film’s director, Tonje Hessen Schei. Also, for our ‘Global Activism’ series, we get an update from Elizabeth Powley, founder of Every Child is My Child, helping kids in Rwanda and Burundi. And we'll here from historian John Schmidt about when the first black emigrants arrived to the country what would be named Liberia, PHOTO: People watch a TV news program showing North Korea's announcement, at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016. North Korea said Wednesday it had conducted a hydrogen bomb test. The letters read " Will not use nuclear weapon if autonomy secured." (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)