First human trial of experimental Ebola vaccine

Oxford University conducts the first human trial of an Ebola vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain, which has already killed more than 1,000 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo. If successful, immunisations could take place within months. Also: tens of thousands of people flee popular tourist areas in France to escape wildfires. A court rules on what has been called the "divorce of the century" in South Korea. The British prime minister tries a novel way to overcome a north/south divide, and we speak to the children who danced with Shakira during the World Cup final.

Photo: Volunteer vaccinated in the world's first Bundibugyo Ebola virus vaccine trial. Credit: BBC News

Anger in Venezuela one month on from earthquakes

A month after two devastating earthquakes struck Venezuela, the search continues for people still missing in the worst-hit region of La Guaira. At least 5,000 people were killed, and families are demanding answers about why public housing blocks collapsed.

Also: Donald Trump imposes new tariffs on foreign goods, accusing US trading partners of failing to enforce bans on forced labour. US lawmakers propose a new bill to shut down dangerous artificial intelligence systems after an AI model went rogue. Remarkable footage shows orcas smashing huge sunfish apart, with researchers saying the predators might be doing it for fun. Wildfires force tens of thousands from their homes across southern Europe. Sri Lanka battles its worst dengue fever outbreak in nearly a decade. And as Route 66 marks its centenary, we explore the enduring appeal of the classic American diners that regularly feature on the silver screen.

Photo: People work together as they search for their loved ones amid debris following the earthquakes in June in Caraballeda, La Guaira, Venezuela. Credit: REUTERS/Gaby Oraa

US signs landmark nuclear pact with Saudi Arabia

President Donald Trump approves a landmark energy deal that will establish a civilian nuclear programme in Saudi Arabia. US lawmakers and Israel warn that if the agreement allows the Gulf state to enrich its own uranium, it could pave the way for it to build its own nuclear weapons - but the US insists the deal upholds the "highest standards of nuclear safety". Saudi Arabia has long wanted US nuclear technology, while the US gets a leg up in the competition with China and Russia to develop civilian nuclear infrastructure in the region.

Also: A Florida teenager who sued Meta claiming that he was addicted to and harmed by his use of social media platforms, has dropped his lawsuit. Our correspondent in Lebanon travels to the so-called pilot zones in the south, where residents are trying to return home while the army vows to disarm Hezbollah. The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo becomes the third largest on record with more than 1,000 people dead. In India, the youth-led 'cockroach' party supporters protesting in Delhi ramp up their demands for education reform. How young Nigerians are using AI tools to learn new languages in pursuit of a life abroad. And Christopher Nolan's Odyssey movie is boosting sales of the book versions.

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: US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud attend the Keynote Address at the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 13 May 2025. Credit: ALI HAIDER/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

OpenAI says new systems went rogue

OpenAI says some of its most advanced AI models went rogue and hacked a start-up after it lost control of them during a test. The AI agents managed to break out of a restricted testing environment to carry out the cyber-attack on Hugging Face. They stole information they needed to pass an internal evaluation. Aso: US Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth, says the US needs nearly $70 billion to fight Iran; the head of the UN nuclear watchdog urges Tehran to let his inspectors back in; Washington is reportedly on the verge of a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia; the wreckage from a 1952 Pan Am plane is found near Puerto Rico; men wearing shorts to work in Japan spark controversy, and a new study discovers chimpanzees and bonobos use touch to reassure each other before stressful events.

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 ChatGPT app icon on a smartphone. Credit: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Zelensky sacks Ukraine's army chief

The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has fired his army commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, in one of the biggest shake-ups of the country's military leadership since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. General Syrskyi had clashed with the popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, whose own removal from office last week triggered rare mass protests in Ukraine.

Also: France becomes the first country in the EU to ban children under the age of 15 from using social media. A special report from the school in Iran where 156 people, mostly children, were killed at the start of the US-Israeli war. As Venezuela's ousted leader Nicolás Maduro is due back in court in New York, Venezuelans tell the BBC they are too focused on trying to rebuild their lives after the earthquakes to give much thought to the criminal proceedings. The maker of Wegovy and Ozempic, Novo Nordisk, has launched legal action against its rival Eli Lilly, accusing it of false advertising in suggesting its weight-loss drugs perform better. Animal welfare experts in Britain are looking after a marmoset monkey that was found abandoned in a laundry bag on a London bus. And we look at the new developments in sleep health technology focusing on disease prediction.

Photo: Ukraine's President Zelensky and now former Commander in Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, visit an exhibition of new Ukrainian made drone-missiles Peklo in Kyiv. Credit: REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

Baby traffickers convicted in Indonesia

In Indonesia, 19 people are convicted of trafficking at least 34 babies. The leader of the group, a 70 year-old woman, was sentenced to seven years in prison. The trafficking ring illegally bought babies in West Java and sold them for adoption in Indonesia and Singapore. Also: a deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah faces its first test on the ground. US military says it struck at Iran's ability to launch attacks into the Strait of Hormuz, on the tenth night in a row of US strikes. A mansion in north London, which provided vital intelligence during the Second World War, opens to the public for the first time. The deadly Ebola outbreak continues to spread in the Democratic Republic of Congo, affecting several provinces across the country. Why no Italian tour guides will be taking visitors up Mont Blanc this week. And we look at the rise of live shopping on TikTok.

Photo: Indonesia sentences members of a baby trafficking syndicate up to 7 years in prison, Bandung - 21 Jul 2026 Credit: EPA/Shutterstock

New threat to global oil supplies

Houthis in Yemen are seeking to broaden the impact of the US-Iran war with a blockade of Red Sea ports. The Tehran-backed group warned it would impose an "embargo" on the top oil exporter Saudi Arabia, after the two sides traded fire for the first time in years. Disruption to maritime traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb could further compound the turmoil caused by the confrontation between the US and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz.

Also: Donald Trump announces 50% tariffs on Canadian goods. Italy's struggle with childhood obesity. How 3D-printed batteries could change the ability to store renewable energy from solar and wind. What will the UK's new Prime Minister Andy Burnham's foreign policy look like? The social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate appear in court in the US in connection with new British rape and sex-trafficking-related charges. And how fitness trackers can alert women that they are pregnant before they know it themselves.

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: Aramco tanks and oil pipe at Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura oil refinery and oil terminal in Saudi Arabia Credit: REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah/File Photo

Burnham becomes UK's seventh PM in a decade

In his inaugural speech in Downing Street, the new prime minister Andy Burnham says Britain needs to show the world it can regain stability. He promises a new political and economic model including measures to help people with the cost of living. He indicates his first calls to foreign leaders will include President Trump and President Zelensky. Also: US carries out strikes on Iran for ninth consecutive night, after at least three US soldiers are killed in exchange of fire over the weekend. Iran says it attacked two oil tankers trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Thousands of demonstrators march towards parliament in Delhi, demanding reforms to India's education system. And, a day after their victory over Argentina in the FIFA World Cup final, the Spanish team return home to be greeted by enthusiastic crowds. England finished third, but one Englishman keeps on winning in the US: David Beckham. We look at his enduring appeal to advertisers in the US.

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: Andy Burnham with his wife, Marie-France van Heel, outside 10 Downing Street, after he met King Charles III and accepted his invitation to become Britain's prime minister and form a new government. Credit: Jeff Overs/BBC

Spain shatter Argentina's World Cup dream

Spain's 1-0 victory over Argentina stops them winning successive World Cup finals and their captain Lionel Messi from becoming the first to lift the trophy twice. Speculation is rife that, at 39, it may be his last World Cup tournament. Also: We have a special report on how the soaring value of gold has prompted a surge in illegal mining in west Africa. After a ferry sank off the coast of Guyana, 60 passengers are still unaccounted for. The MV Barima was en route from the capital, Georgetown, to Port Kaituma when the disaster happened. British authorities are waiting for US courts to sanction the extradition of the social media influencers, Andrew and Tristan Tate, who were arrested in Miami on new charges in the UK, including rape. They've always denied any wrongdoing. Why going bare is the latest in thing in nail salons, but does this new trend betray class and racial prejudices? And Rikke Dam speaks to the BBC after winning the women's marathon ... at the North Pole.

Photo: Spain's Lamine Yamal lifts the World Cup trophy alongside teammates as they celebrate winning the World Cup. Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/James Lang

Jeffrey Epstein, Howard Lutnick, and the disgraced former prince

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.

For more episodes, just search 'The Global Story' wherever you get your BBC Podcasts.

Iranian drone attack kills two US soldiers

Two American soldiers have been killed and a third is missing following an attack on a military base in Jordan on Friday. US Central Command said the troops died while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone strikes. Also: Ukraine strikes warehouses of "Russian Amazon" in revenge attack. Cuban dissident artist Otero Alcantara exiled after five years in prison arrives in the US. We hear about the new Netflix immmersive psychological horror game Unhinged. President Trump threatens new Canada tariffs over wildfires sending "filthy" air into US cities. And Kylian Mbappe becomes World Cup record scorer as England beat France to finish third in the competition.

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: US flag pole on the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC Credit: Photo by Aaron Schwartz/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock (16978296b)

The Happy Pod: Portugal’s last circus elephant rehomed

For 40 years, an elephant named Julie performed as part of the Victor Hugo Cardinali circus in Portugal.

But after a law change banning wild animals for entertainment, Julie has now been given a new life in a dedicated sanctuary.

She is the first elephant to begin her retirement at the 400-hectare site in Alentejo in southern Portugal, run by the UK-based charity Pangea Trust.

Staff say Julie has adjusted very well to her new home, and is enjoying splashing around in the mud.

Also: A mysterious monkey with orange lips discovered deep in the forests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is confirmed as a new species.

A look back at the heartwarming moments of the FIFA World Cup that resonated with both fans and those not so keen on football.

We meet Kenya's ''Eco Mammas'', a group of women leading vital marine conservation efforts.

Plus the teenage pianist Freya Terris who made history by passing a highly technical piano exam using only her left hand.

Presenter: Chantal Hartle Music: Iona Hampson

(Photo:Julie the African elephant arrives at Pangea elephant sanctuary in Portugal. Credit: Pangea Elephant Sanctuary)