Newscast

Today, President Trump has extended his initial 48-hour ultimatum to Iran to unblock the Strait of Hormuz to five days. The President said Iran has 'one more chance at peace', following what he called “good and productive conversations”. But, while Sir Keir Starmer said he was aware the talks had taken place, Iran has denied speaking to the US and has called Trump’s claims of talks ‘fake news’. To...

Today, Laura, Paddy and Henry discuss whether Iranian missiles could feasibly strike the UK, as Israel has claimed. The Israeli Defence Force said Iranian missiles ‘can reach London, Paris or Berlin.’ The claim was prompted by an attempted but unsuccessful missile strike on the UK-US Diego Garcia base. Sir Richard Shirreff, a former senior Nato commander has told Paddy we should take the the claim...

Today, Laura and Paddy discuss Iranian missiles fired at Diego Garcia, the joint UK-US base in the Indian Ocean. Two ballisitic missiles were fired at the island of Diego Garcia, the Wall Street Journal and CNN reported overnight, citing unnamed US officials, but neither weapon reached its target. One missile reportedly failed in flight, while the other was intercepted by a US warship. It is uncle...

Today, Adam, Chris and Faisal are joined by Panorama Jane Corbin to discuss the latest strikes in the war in Iran. They look at a straining relationship between Israel and the US and how the UK is reacting to the shock to the global economy. You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart speakers. You can...

Today, President Trump has threatened that the US “will massively blow up” the world’s largest gas field if Iran attacks Qatar again. This comes after Iran bombed Qatar's Ras Laffan energy complex, in retaliation against Israel attacking its South Pars Gas Field - all of which has sent gas prices skyrocketing. Adam is joined by chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet and deputy economics edi...

Today, Angela Rayner has reignited Labour leader speculation with a speech in Westminster. The former deputy prime minister told a room at a Westminster pub that Labour is “running out of time”. Adam and Chris discuss this, and mixed messages coming out of the White House about the effectiveness of Operation Epic Fury with Chief North America Correspondent Gary O’Donoghue. You can now listen to Ne...

Today, President Zelensky has been in London to agree a new defence partnership with the UK, with Downing Street hoping to unite “Ukrainian expertise and the UK's industrial base" to manufacture drones. But while Starmer and Zelensky were meeting one side of the Atlantic, President Trump was changing his mind on whether he needs Nato support in the Strait of Hormuz again. During a meeting with the...

Today, President Trump has reiterated his requests for support from Nato allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz - days after saying we don’t need” UK aircraft carriers in the Middle East. For now, the PM and other European allies are holding off - with Sir Keir Starmer saying the UK doesn’t want to get drawn into the wider US-Israeli war with Iran. James and Chris are joined by Panorama film make...

Today, President Trump has called on the UK and other allies to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, the world's busiest oil shipping channel. Laura, Paddy and Henry unpick what Ed Miliband said in response to pressure from the President and analyse what the current closure of the strait means for the cost of living. Meanwhile, the US president says he wants to make a deal to the end war in Iran, but...

Today, Laura catches up with Steve Rosenberg in Moscow and Frank Gardner in Saudi Arabia to get their take on the global impact the war in Iran is having beyond the Middle East. President Trump says the US military has bombed a small island off the coast of Iran which is home to one of the country’s most important oil terminals. Frank Gardner, the BBC’s security correspondent, explains how both th...

Today, James, Alex and Chris are joined by Jeremy Bowen to discuss the latest in the war in Iran. They reflect on what lessons could be learnt from the two Gulf Wars, the pressure building on the world economy and if President Trump is “close” to a victory? You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart s...

The government releases documents about appointing Peter Mandelson as US Ambassador.

Today, President Trump has told reporters Iran war will be over “very soon”, but not this week. Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth says this will be the “most intense” day of US strikes on Iran so far. So how close is the war to ending? Alex and James are joined by Caitríona Perry, Chief Anchor of BBC News in Washington, to try to decode what Trump might mean. Meanwhile, Trump has also t...

Today, the Iran war has pushed oil prices above $100 a barrel for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. James and Alex are joined by Dharshini David, deputy economics editor, and Katya Adler, Europe editor and Brexitcast veteran, to discuss what the war means for the global economy and how the surging oil price might lead to higher inflation. Katya’s new series ‘Europe on the...

Today, we look at the extent to which the lessons learned from the Iraq war has shaped the UK's response to the war in Iran. Keir Starmer has taken a position somewhere between full support of Donald Trump’s actions, and direct criticism of them. In a post on Truth Social, the US president criticised the UK for being less than 100% supportive, saying ‘we will remember’ and "We don't need people th...

Iran’s president has apologised to Gulf states for attacking them. He has also warned that Iran will not attack its neighbours "unless attacked first". Laura asks Iran’s ambassador to the UK, Seyed Ali Mousavi, about the events of the past week, and what the apology really means. Paddy’s been talking to an Iranian woman who has fled the country about her views on the regime and their actions over...

We answer your questions about the US-Israel war with Iran. Adam and Chris are joined in the studio by Panorama film maker Jane Corbin and Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet to answer Newscasters questions. Have the US underestimated Iran? Will Keir Starmer’s approach work? What role could the Iranian army play? You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, j...

Today, Keir Starmer has defended his response to the Iran war and announced he will send four additional fighter jets to Qatar. Adam is joined by Jane Corbin, Panorama film maker; Lucy Fisher, Whitehall editor for the Financial Times, and Mikey Kay, military analyst for the Security Brief, to discuss Starmer’s press conference, and to take a deeper look at the weaponry being used by both sides in...

Today, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the US will strike deeper into Iran, but how has Iran responded to US-Israeli strikes so far? Adam is joined by Jane Corbin, Panorama Film Maker, and Siavash Ardalan, Senior Reporter for BBC World and BBC Persian, to discuss the Pentagon releasing a video of the sinking of an Iranian warship plus the challenges in reporting what’s going on inside Iran....

Today, President Trump has publicly criticised Keir Starmer saying “This is not Winston Churchill we’re dealing with”. The comments came during a press conference at the White House alongside the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. President Trump said he was “not happy with the UK” because of the initial refusal from London to let Washington use the British base at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean...

Today, President Trump outlined the objectives of Operation Epic Fury saying he took the “last best chance” to hit Iran. The president said the objectives of the operation in Iran are "clear", including "destroying Iran's missile capabilities", "annihilating their Navy" and preventing them from ever having a nuclear weapon. Adam is joined by Jane Corbin, Panorama Film Maker, Lyse Doucet, Chief Int...

Today, we look at the death of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed by US-Israeli attacks on Saturday. US President Donald Trump released a statement late in the evening saying he was targeted via intelligence and tracking systems. International editor Jeremy Bowen joins Laura and Paddy to discuss how it happened, what it means for the future of Iran and the region, and how...

Today, we look at US and Israeli attacks on Iran. US president Donald Trump has described ongoing "major combat operations" and called for Iranian government forces to lay down their arms. Iranian forces say they have struck a US naval base in Bahrain and across the region in response. Earlier, Israel's defence minister said Israel had launched a "pre-emptive attack" against Iran, with explosions...

Today, the Green party have won the Gorton and Denton by-election with nearly 41% of the votes, beating Reform into second place and Labour third. In Newscast by-election tradition, this episode was livestreamed on Friday morning. Adam and Chris are joined by BBC political correspondent Joe Pike and pollster Luke Tryl to discuss the results and what it means for the UK as a whole. You can now list...

Today, we discuss the indirect US-Iran talks happening in Geneva. The talks are happening against a backdrop of increased tensions between the two countries, with the US sending what Trump calls an ‘armada’ to the region. President Trump has threatened to strike Iran if a nuclear deal isn’t agreed during the talks. We also discuss President Trump’s State of the Union speech, happening a time where...