Newshour

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has told other world leaders that 'our freedom is not guaranteed' in an era of big power politics. Opening the annual Munich Security Conference, Merz said that Europeans must be ready to make a 'sacrifice'. He also admitted that 'a deep divide has opened between Europe and the United States'. We'll speak to a senior German politician and a former member of the first Trump administration.Also in the programme: a BBC Investigation uncovers devastating side effects of a set of widely used prescription drugs that can trigger impulsive behaviours; and we speak to the Oscar-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins about his memoir.(Picture: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz speaks during the Munich Security Conference on February 13, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Liesa Johannssen)

Tarique Rahman is set to become the country's next prime minister. He comes from a family dynasty and has been living in self-imposed exile in London for the past 17 years. After a period of violent upheaval, what comes next for Bangladesh?Also on the programme: reaction from Ukraine after skeleton bob racer Vladyslav Heraskevych is disqualified from the Winter Olympics; and award-winning British cinematographer Roger Deakins has written a memoir. We hear from the man behind Fargo, the Big Lebowski, Skyfall and others. (Photo: Tarique Rahman greets supporters during an election campaign rally in Dhaka, Bangladesh, 09 February 2026 / Credit: MONIRUL ALAM/EPA/Shutterstock)

More countries advise against all but essential travel to Cuba, as US squeeze on oil supplies bites. It follows moves by the Trump administration to impose what is in effect an oil blockade on the island by threatening tariffs on any country supplying Havana.Also in the programme: President Trump has repealed a government scientific finding that carbon emissions endanger human health, removing the legal basis for federal climate change regulations; and we ask, is the artificial intelligence revolution going to transform humanity?(Photo: A man fishes near the Cuban-flagged tanker Alicia, docked at the Matanzas terminal, in Matanzas, Cuba, February 10, 2026. Credit Reuters/Norlys Perez)

Vote counting is underway in Bangladesh after its first election since the protests that overthrew the authoritarian Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2024. We hear about the circumstances surrounding these elections.Also on the programme: in China, annual emissions of carbon dioxide fell for the first time last year. Lauri Myllyvirta of the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, which compiled the data, explains the significance behind this, and the Berlin film festival opens tonight with an Afghanistan romcom. We hear from its writer, director and star, Shahrbanoo Sadat.(Photo: Electoral workers count the votes, during the 13th general election in Dhaka, Bangladesh, 12 February, 2026. Credit: Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)

President Trump has told the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that talks with Iran over its nuclear programme will continue. For the first time since demonstrations in January, the BBC is able to report from inside Iran and our Chief International correspondent Lyse Doucet has been speaking to people in the capital, Tehran. Also on the programme: the Winter Olympian balancing winning medals with her homework; and we hear from Brontë country in northern England - where a rather saucy new interpretation of Wuthering Heights has been filmed.(Trump meets Netanyahu in Washington, 11 February 2026. Credit:Getty Images)

This year's anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran hides a deep pain after thousands of protestors were killed by regime forces.The BBC has been speaking to people on the streets of Tehran about the current situation and we'll hear what's going on with the talks between Iran and the United States.Also in this programme: A small town in southern Canada reels from one of the deadliest shootings in the country's history; what reports that Ukraine is to hold elections this spring could mean for the country, four years after Russia full-scale invasion; and how biohacking is becoming big business.(Photo shows Iranians taking part in celebrations to mark the 47th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in Tehran, Iran on 11 February 2026. Credit: Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA)

The BBC's chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet is reporting from Tehran for the first time since the crackdown by security forces on nationwide anti-government protests last month. Iran's leaders are marking 47 years since the Islamic Revolution, with bunting and flags decorating the streets of Tehran. But the pain is still raw after unprecedented force was used to put down the protests.Also in the programme: we speak to US Congressman on viewing the underacted Epstein files; and we look at new research which suggests brain exercises could help delay the onset of dementia. (Photo: People walk next to a mural with a picture of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on a street in Tehran. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA/Reuters)

Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse, campaigners, and politicians are heading to Washington today to press for a change in law around time limits on seeking compensation.This comes after US lawmakers say files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were improperly redacted ahead of their release by the Department of Justice (DOJ).Also in the programme: The UN warns that Tigray in northern Ethiopia may be about to tip back into all-out conflict; we'll hear why the French president is concerned about whether Europe can stand up to American and Chinese muscle; and we'll look at what nature can do for a person's state of mind.(Photo shows a file photo of the House Chamber of the US Capitol in Washington DC, USA on 4 March 2025. Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA)

Keir Starmer's judgment is being questioned over his past appointment as ambassador to the United States of Peter Mandelson, a British peer with deep personal connections to the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Can he survive as prime minister? We hear the latest from our reporter in parliament. And as Epstein's accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell invokes the Fifth Amendment, declining to answer questions before the US House Oversight Committee, we catch up with the political reaction. Also in the programme: American tech giants Meta and Google go on trial in California - they're accused of harming children by knowingly creating addictive social media platforms. And the French government sends letters to every 29-year-old in the country, exhorting them to have babies while their biological clocks are still ticking.(Photo: Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer leaving 10 Downing Street, London. Credit: James Manning/PA Wire)

Jimmy Lai, a pro-democracy media tycoon in Hong Kong, has been jailed for 20 years for colluding with foreign forces under the city's controversial national security law.Rights groups called it a death sentence for the 78-year-old, whose family has raised concerns about his health, but Hong Kong's leader said it was "deeply gratifying". We'll hear from Mr Lai's son about his father's situation.Also in the programme: We'll be reflecting on a historic election victory for the Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi with a member of the governing Liberal Democratic Party; how the DNA of identical twinas is complicating a murder trial in France; and we'll get the reaction to last night's half-time Superbowl show by the Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny, which has been criticised by President Trump.(Photo shows Jimmy Lai walking to a prison van to head to court in Hong Kong, China on 12 December 2020. Credit: Tyrone Siu/Reuters/File Photo]

Japan's governing coalition led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, is projected to have won two-thirds of the seats in the House of Representatives. Ms Takaichi sought and got a clear public mandate in a general election she called just four months after becoming leader of the Liberal Democratic Party.Also, the Iranian Nobel peace laureate, Narges Mohammadi, has received another prison sentence - for what the court said was "collusion to commit crimes"; And we speak to one of the Epstein survivors who had a relationship with him for two years.(Photo of Japan's prime minister Sanae Takaichi, who appeared at the LDP headquarters on Sunday night for the vote count. Credit: Franck Robichon/Reuters)

Japan's first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, is projected to win in the snap election, while in Thailand a party calling for liberal change is challenging for power again. We report live from Tokyo and Bangkok. Also in the programme: a Russian soldier who fought in Ukraine, fled to Kazakhstan and now faces possible deportation back to Russia, tells us why he deserted; the chief executive of The Washington Post steps down after sacking 300 journalists; and sixty years after the Monkees were formed to rival the Beatles, we hear from the last surviving member, Micky Dolenz.(IMAGE: TV staff gesture in the direction of the cameras as Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), gives an interview at the LDP headquarters on general election day in Tokyo, Japan, February 8, 2026 / CREDIT: Kim Kyung-Hoon/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock (16528062x))

US President Donald Trump has set a deadline for the end of the war in Ukraine - June. President Volodomyr Zelensky has said he will be sending a delegation to Miami for US-brokered talks in Miami. We get a Ukrainian MP's reaction to the latest deadline and hear about life in Kyiv as Russia targets the country's energy infrastructure.Also in the programme: the rush to get key AI components into outer space; and the small change in French rural life that could be fuelling the rise of the far-right.(Photo: A person with a flashlight in a dark street during a power cut in Lviv, Ukraine. Credit: Mykola Tys, EPA/Shutterstock)

The UK’s former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who appointed Peter Mandelson as a cabinet minister, has called for an ethical shakeup in public life in the wake of the Epstein scandal. Mr Brown also defended Prime Minister Keir Starmer as a man of principle who could tackle the problem.Also in the programme: Russia attacks more energy infrastructure in Ukraine; political analysis of President Trump’s racist Truth Social post; and will the Japanese prime minister's decision to call a snap election pay off?(IMAGE: Former prime minister Gordon Brown speaks at a child poverty event, to mark the 60th anniversary of the Child Poverty Action Group (Cpag), at Somerset House, in central London, Thursday November 6, 2025 / CREDIT: James Manning/PA Wire)

Amid the devastation in Gaza, remarkable stories of hope and resilience do emerge. Sixteen-year-old Sama Nijm, a gifted violinist from Gaza, is using music to bring comfort and healing to the youngest victims of the conflict. Some of the children have lost their parents, and in some cases, their limbs or arms. BBC Newsday's Charlene Rodrigues spoke to Sama, and began by asking her what inspired her to become a violin teacher in the midst of war.

Nine people have been killed and many injured in a school shooting in the southern Austrian city of Graz. The shooter also killed himself, and has been identified as a former pupil.Also, Donald Trump sends in the Marines as the president's crackdown on undocumented migrants clashes with California's policy as a Sanctuary State, Syria's jailers under President Assad speak to the BBC anonymously about what they did and those who suffered, plus good news for biodiversity and precious coral reefs in the Zanzibar archipelago, as two new Marine Protected Areas are announced.(IMAGE: General view of the Dreierschutzengasse high school following a shooting in Graz, Austria, 10 June 2025 / CREDIT: Antonio Bat /EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)