Global News Podcast

The US ambassador to China tells the BBC that despite a competitive relationship, the two countries are now talking more regularly to prevent escalation in the disputed South China Sea. Also on the podcast: India's government is accused of failing the education system after cancelling an exam taken by nearly a million people, a look back on the life of Canadian film star, Donald Sutherland, and the Spanish feline that looks to be saved from extinction.

Demonstrators, many of them young, were armed only with their smart phones. Police in Nairobi came on horseback and used water cannon. The Kenyan government plans to raise more than two-and-a-half billion dollars in new taxes. Also: a day after signing a defence agreement with North Korea, Russia's President Putin visits Vietnam, the new treatment that leaves heart attack victims more active than they were, and the British musician Rapman on his Netflix show about superheroes in London.

Many of the most brutal cases took place in Aleppo between 2011 and 2013. Also: hundreds of people are reported to have died during this year's Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia as temperatures in Mecca exceeded fifty degrees, and scientists shed light on why some people do not get Covid-19.

Accord signed on Vladimir Putin's first visit to Pyongyang in more than twenty years. Kim Jong-un said he unconditionally supported Russia's military action in Ukraine. Mr Putin said he appreciated North Korea's unwavering support. Also: Cyril Ramaphosa is sworn in for a second term as President of South Africa, Nvidia becomes the world's most valuable company, and the flower that stinks of rotting meat.

Under the existing rules, foreigners who arrive illegally into the United States and marry US citizens must wait abroad for their applications to be processed. Also: Putin arrives in North Korea ahead of talks with Kim Jong Un, and McDonald's withdraws its malfunctioning AI ordering software.

North Korea is preparing to welcome Vladimir Putin on his first visit there in more than twenty years. Also: Police in Kenya have fired tear gas and used water cannon to try to disperse protestors opposed to a new finance bill. The Senate in Thailand has passed a law allowing same sex marriage - the first country in Southeast Asia to do so. And why has a parkour runner at a UNESCO protected site in Italy sparked fury?

The governor Wes Moore said his executive order marked "the most sweeping state-level pardon in American history". Also: the Kremlin has confirmed that the Russian president Vladimir Putin will travel to North Korea on Tuesday, and the British actor Ian McKellen falls off stage during a performance in London.

Israel's PM dissolves his six-member war cabinet with no plans for a replacement. The BBC hears from witnesses who say the Greek coastguard threw migrants to their deaths. Also: Denmark says it's looking at additional ways of stopping Russian oil exports passing through the Baltic Sea, and news avoidance at record levels.

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, was speaking at the close of a summit for peace in Switzerland. Also: Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has described the introduction of daily "tactical pauses" in military activity in a part of southern Gaza as “unacceptable”, and the original multi-coloured dancefloor used in the 1977 film, Saturday Night Fever, has been sold at auction.

The two-day gathering follows President Putin outlining Russia’s ceasefire terms, which have been widely dismissed. Russia has not been invited to the peace summit and China, a key strategic partner, is not attending. Also: Israel has launched an investigation into the deaths of eight IDF soldiers in Rafah, and Sweden welcomes home two citizens who had been arrested in Iran after a prisoner swap.

This week's edition comes from Finland, the country repeatedly crowned the happiest in the world, and the Helsinki Happiness Hacks event introduced people - selected from thousands of applicants across the globe - to Finns willing to share the secrets of their contentment. These include skateboarding, dancing with friends, messy art, walking barefoot, ice cream for breakfast, and of course, a sauna. And we explore how happiness is measured and why a dose of pessimism doesn’t preclude happiness.

Bump stocks were banned after they were used in America's deadliest mass shooting in 2017. Western leaders dismiss Russian President Putin's call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, as they meet at the G7 summit in southern Italy. Also: A Chinese court sentences a journalist who reported on #MeToo to jail for "subversion", and why grey whales are shrinking.

Three political parties have supported the ANC’s bid for a unity government. The ANC lost its parliamentary majority in last month’s election. Parliament has already been sworn in. Also: G7 leaders focus on tensions with China on the second day of their summit in Italy; And the authorities in Thailand search for three oil tankers which went missing.

In a separate landmark security deal, the US pledges to provide Ukraine with a range of military aid and training over the next decade. Also: The US Supreme Court rejects an attempt to restrict access to a widely-used abortion drug, and endangered wild horses return to the Kazakh plains for the first time in centuries.

Leaders want to use $50bn in interest from frozen Russian assets to extend a loan to Ukraine. Also: Hungary is ordered to pay a fine for violating the European Union's rules on asylum and immigration, and residents in a suburb of Nairobi in Kenya are on high alert after a lioness eats a family dog.

Lawmakers in Congress were debating drastic measures put forward by President Javier Milei to address the country's dire economic situation. Also: US top diplomat Antony Blinken says a deal to end the war in Gaza is still possible, and EU health officials warn that an invasive mosquito is spreading dengue fever in Europe.

The report comes as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits Qatar to push for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. Israel - which refused to co-operate with the investigation - was quick to reject the report, accusing it of “systematic anti-Israeli discrimination". Also: North Darfur's main city is on the brink of falling to Sudan's paramilitary RSF, according to a US envoy, and Denmark recalls Korean ramen for being too spicy.

Hunter Biden was accused of lying about his drug use on a handgun application form. Also: Hamas seeks a "complete halt" to the war in Gaza in response to an American ceasefire proposal, and the Italian robbery that caused a stink.

US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, made his comments as Hamas is yet to respond to an American ceasefire plan which was backed by the UN Security Council on Monday night. Also, a plane carrying Malawi's vice president has crashed, killing everyone on board, and elephants call different members of the herd by name.

The UN proposal sets out conditions for a "complete ceasefire" in Gaza and the release of hostages held by Hamas. Also: Aircraft carrying Malawi vice-president goes missing, and two-in-one flu and Covid jab passes advanced trial.