Beyond the Headlines

The Arabian Gulf Cup is returning to Iraq for the first time since 1979. Coming less than a month after the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the tournament in the once war-torn city of Basra represents another electrifying moment for football fans in the region.  This week on Beyond the Headlines, host Robert Tollast takes a closer look at an historic moment in sport for Iraq - and what it means for the c...

2022 was a year of uncertainty on the global stage. Amid the lingering impact of Covid-19, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused a fresh shock to the system and its reverberations were felt across the planet.  The unnerving combination of a European land war and the inflation it helped to export worldwide wasn’t what anyone expected as life was just beginning to move forward from the pandemic. This...

2022 was a year in the global spotlight for the Middle East.  Mass protests in Iran after the death of a young woman in police custody brought about real hope of change, while in Israel, the re-election of Benjamin Netanyahu kick-started a journey towards what has been described as a fully right-wing government. The Middle East held its first World Cup and the region also returned to the forefront...

On December 17, 2010, Tunisian fruit seller Mohamed Bouazizi's self-immolation became the catalyst for the Tunisian Revolution and the Arab Uprisings. Coinciding with the 12th anniversary of his death, Tunisians head to the polls on Saturday for the second time this year. Over those years, Tunisia has seen new constitutions, changing governments, different presidents and deadlocked parliaments. Al...

A group of men in green uniforms and women in loose black chador head scarfs roaming the streets in a van is a familiar sight in Iran. This is a patrol by Iran’s so-called morality police   Officially called the Guidance Patrol, officers have the power to arrest anyone deemed to be flouting the country’s strict rules on how men and women should dress and act in public.   While officially they poli...

The UAE is launching the Arab world's first mission to the Moon - a new milestone for a country that hasn’t looked back after sending the first Emirati astronaut into space in 2019. The Rashid rover is flying on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida. This week on Beyond the Headlines, host Suhail Akram looks at the build-up to the launch of the rover and the legacy it will leave...

The world came together in Qatar when the FIFA World Cup kicked off for the first time in the Middle East and Arab world. But even before a ball had been kicked, there are many reasons why the Qatar tournament is unlike any other. It is the costliest World Cup to date and Qatar is also the smallest country to host the competition by land size and population. This week on Beyond the Headlines, host...

For millions of Americans, it is an unwelcome blast from the past. For millions of others, it is a hope for a second chance to "drain the swamp" of American politics. Whatever your view on Donald Trump and his mission to make America great again, there is no doubt that the former president's recent announcement that he intends to make another run for the White House in 2024 is deeply divisive. Tru...

“Conflict, climate and the economic consequences of Covid-19 are feeding off each other in a vicious circle, with 54 conflicts, 100 million displaced people and 345 million people going to bed hungry every night.” This was the stark picture painted by President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, David Miliband in this week’s episode of Beyond the Headlines. The National's editor in chi...

There is a debate raging internationally about climate change. As we’re greeted by dire headlines and alarm, the UN had a stark warning - the battle against carbon emissions isn’t going well. As the world gathers in Egypt for the Cop27 global climate forum, it can be hard to understand exactly where we stand, what’s being done and whether it's even still possible to stop climate change. This week...

Britain has seen two monarchs and three prime ministers in the space of just two months. If a TV writers’ room pitched anything like the events of the last few months, they probably would have been told to dial back the drama and make the storyline more believable. So how did this all happen, and who is the man now in charge of the United Kingdom? This week on Beyond the Headlines, host Gully Burr...

Ten years ago, one family’s future was changed forever when a single bullet fired by a militant extremist shattered a 15 year old girl’s face in a small village in Pakistan. That was when the world learned who Malala Yousafzai is. On this episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Nada AlTaher looks at how Malala’s story, advocacy and activism have inspired generations in her hometown of Swat in Pakist...

Drawing a line on a map is never straightforward – there are many places around the world with no set boundaries. But now there is one less unmarked border as Lebanon and Israel have, after years of indirect talks, agreed on where the line lays. This is a remarkable feat for two countries still technically at war. It might appear just an administrative achievement, an event to be noted as a quirk...

Microchips are integral to almost everything we do - they keep planes in the sky and cars on the roads, they are the brains of almost every modern device we use. It is microchips that mean we can walk around with smart watches more powerful than computers that took up whole rooms just a few decades ago. But what would happen if we suddenly couldn't get hold of new chips? This is a question that ha...

In a video shared many times on social media, an Iranian woman climbs on top of a car in the conservative city of Mashhad. She takes off her headscarf and starts chanting “death to the dictator”. Young protesters nearby join in before the crowd build a fire and women start burning their headscarves and slicing off their hair. Such a direct challenge to the powerful religious authorities that run I...

After a two-year disruption due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the United Nations General Assembly has returned to normal … more or less. While the UN has implemented a number of covid restrictions including limiting the size of the delegations attending, enforcing a mask mandate inside the building and requiring proof of vaccination, world leaders are back in New York, shaking hands, holding high-stak...

Gaza has only one honey-producing season, which begins with the onset of the warmer weather in March and lasts until the first week of May. This usually sets up Gaza'a honey production for the year, with 200 tonnes produced. But this year the weather stayed cold with unexpected downpours until the second week of April, and then became unusually hot.   The prolonged cold affected the blossoming of...

On Monday August 29th, Iraq came closer to civil war than it has for year. The fears of many Iraqis that political tensions would spill out into violence were coming true. After 11 months of parliamentary elections, government formation is still help up by complete political gridlock. As violent clashes between the followers of Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and members of militias affiliated with t...

As much of the world’s focus remained firmly fixed on ending the coronavirus pandemic, another illness was quietly spreading in the background and has now emerged as a global health concern. A few months ago, monkeypox, an infectious viral disease, began cropping up in countries across Europe for the first time in years. The virus is spread from person to person through close contact. Historically...

On August 15, 1947, British Viceroy Lord Louis Mountbatten formally announced India's independence from British colonial rule. The Indian subcontinent was partitioned into two countries – India and Pakistan.   The borders were drawn hastily along religious lines. Muslim-majority provinces became part of Pakistan, Hindu and Sikh majority areas remained in India. The borders cut through villages, ri...

It’s amazing how the UAE’s home-grown produce has become so diversified. Over the years, farms have been modernised and new crops introduced. The supermarket aisles we browse in the UAE vividly illustrate the country’s progress.   The UAE aims to be the most food-secure nation by 2051, according to the National Food Security Strategy. But will this ambition be realised and can local farms keep up...

This summer is breaking temperature records like never before. The rising mercury is a reminder of the impact of climate change. Unless drastic action is taken, the temperatures seen in recent weeks will become increasingly common. Failing to find sustainable ways to heat and cool our offices and homes when temperatures soar – or plummet in winter – could lead to more Co2 being produced as more pe...

For nearly three years, Lebanon has been steadily collapsing under the weight of a financial crisis that is one of the worst in the modern world. But what is life like for those who have to live through the situation on the ground?   To be Lebanese is to navigate a slew of daily challenges caused by the economic rupture. So people have developed coping mechanisms. And they’re not always healthy. E...

For more than a decade, Tunisia was seen as the poster child for democratic transition after the Arab Uprisings of 2011. By 2014 the country had had two free and fair elections and ratified a new constitution. But the consensus-building that went into drafting that new constitution soon dissolved, leaving behind partisan bickering and political deadlock. Successive governments and parliaments fail...

Joe Biden has made his first visit to the Middle East as US president. He might be no stranger to the region, having visited dozens of times as vice president and senator for Delaware, but this is the first time since he was elected to America’s top office. And it comes at a time of uncertainty. Oil and food prices have surged since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and global inflationary pressures...