Newshour

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has met President Donald Trump in Florida to discuss Gaza's future, including the issue of Hamas' disarmament. The two leaders also spoke about Iran's nuclear programme and the fragile Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire in Lebanon.Also on the programme: British boxer Anthony Joshua has been injured in a car crash in Nigeria; shopkeepers in Tehran have been demonstrating over the depreciating rial; and a special report on songbird poaching in China.(Photo: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival for meetings at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., December 29, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

Taiwan has put its forces on high alert after China began a live-fire rehearsal of a blockade of the island. Is Beijing responding to a recent US-Taiwan arms deal? Also in the programme: a special report from Myanmar, where some people have been voting in elections for the first time since a military coup five years ago; and how the discovery of a silver coin has excited historians in Scotland. (Photo: Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000 fighter jets prepare for takeoff at an airbase in Hsinchu, Taiwan, 29 December 2025. Reaction in Taiwan after China announces live fire drill around Taiwan - 29 Dec 2025. Credit: Photo by Ritchie B Tongo/EPA/Shutterstock)

Zelensky and Trump hold peace plan talks in Florida. We hear reaction from Kyiv and from our correspondent in Washington. Also on the programme: dark energy may change the fate of the Universe, ending in what astronomers call a "Big Crunch". And Brigitte Bardot, French screen legend, dies aged 91, we look at her legacy as a feminine icon.(Photo: President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy upon his arrival for meetings at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., December 28, 2025. Credit: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

Voting has ended in the initial phase of Myanmar's first election since the military seized power almost five years ago. Most opposition parties were banned, including that of the deposed democratic leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.Also in the programme: The titan of French cinema, Brigitte Bardott has died aged 91; President Trump will meet Ukraine's leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, in Florida later on Sunday as efforts continue to reach a peace deal with Russia; and Sabalenka vs Kyrgios: in tennis - a true battle of the sexes or an opportunity for critics to belittle women's sport?(Photo: Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cast his ballot in the capital Nay Pyi Taw. Credit: Win Kyaw Thu/BBC)

In the coming hours, the people of Myanmar will get their first opportunity to vote in an election since the military seized power in a coup in 2021. The poll has been delayed several times by the ruling junta and many consider that a change is unlikely. We hear about the circumstances surrounding these elections in Myanmar and from a member of the Burmese resitance in exile. Also in the programme: President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine is in Canada ahead of his meeting with Donald Trump on Sunday; China's first documented case of a tiger having quintuplets in the wild; and a tribute to Perry Bamonte, guitarist and keyboardist of The Cure who has died aged 65.(PHOTO: People walk past an election banner ahead of a general election in Thingangyun Township, Yangon, Myanmar, December 27, 2025. CREDIT: REUTERS/Stringer)

A ceasefire has come into force along the border between Thailand and Cambodia, where weeks of clashes have forced a million people from their homes. The seventy- two- hour truce was agreed by the two countries' defence ministers following extensive diplomacy by Chinese officials.Also in the programme: Saudi Arabia's defence minister has warned the main separatist movement in southern Yemen to withdraw from territory it's recently captured in two provinces, amid rising tensions in the area; Ukraine says overnight Russian air strikes in the capital Kyiv have injured at least eight people and caused power cuts; and ahead of the winter games in Italy - we meet Slovenia's world champion ski-jumpers targeting Olympic gold.(Photo:Cambodia's Defence Minister Tea Seiha and Thailand's Defence Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit after the ceasefire was agreed during a special meeting at a border checkpoint in Chanthaburi province, Thailand. Credit: Reuters)

With Christmas Day missile strikes on sites linked to the Islamic State group, we hear from a Catholic priest in Nigeria.Also in the programme: a BBC Persian TV documentary, in which one of Iran’s leading female actors renounces the compulsory hijab, has broken viewing records; and we look ahead to some of the more unusual sports in next year's Winter Olympics.(Photo: A man standing amid a destroyed building following US strikes in Nigeria's Kwara State. Credit: REUTERS/Abdullahi Dare Akogun)

Nigeria's foreign minister has said US strikes against the Islamic State group were nothing to do with a particular religion, despite Donald Trump's assertions. He said that the attacks targeted militants killing Nigerians- irrespective of their faith. Also in the programme: We head to the Netherlands to explore the Silicon Valley of farming; Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak has received a 15-year jail sentence over his involvement in one of the world's biggest corruption scandals; and could there be hope of a cure for dementia? (Photo: The US defence department posted a short video that appears to show a missile being launched from a military vessel. Credit: US Department of Defense)

A senior leader of Bangladesh's biggest political group, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Tarique Rahman, has returned to the country after seventeen years in exile. He promised to unite people of all faiths and ensure their safety. Also in the programme: Pope Leo has used two Christmas Day addresses to call for peace and denounce war, plus the annual NewsHour Christmas quiz. (Photo: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman waves from a vehicle after his arrival from London, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, December 25, 2025. CREDIT: REUTERS/Anik Rahman)

A senior leader of Bangladesh's biggest political group, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Tarique Rahman, has returned to the country after 17 years in exile. Mr Rahman is seen as the leading contender to become prime minister in this February's elections. Greeted by hundreds of thousands of people, Mr Rahman addressed a huge crowd and called on citizens from all ethnic and religious groups to join in creating a secular and inclusive nation. Also in the programme: Pope Leo highlights the plight of the people of Gaza in a Christmas address; and a Christmas meeting between a bone marrow donor and a cancer survivor.(Picture: Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman addresses his supporters. Credit: REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain)

President Zelensky says he's prepared to withdraw Ukrainian troops from the eastern part of the country, if a demilitarised zone is created in its place. He gave details of an updated plan as "the main framework for ending the war", he said it proposed security guarantees from the US, Nato and Europeans for a co-ordinated military response if Russia invaded Ukraine again.Also on the programme: European leaders have condemned a US visa ban on the official who drew up the bloc's tech regulations; and people in Bethlehem are celebrating Christmas Eve for the first time since the war began in Gaza.(Photo: NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni take part in a family picture at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. Credit: Clemens Bilan/Pool/EPA/Shutterstock)

President Zelensky has revealed a draft deal to end the war in Ukraine that has been negotiated with the US and is currently being reviewed by Moscow. The 20-point plan includes security guarantees for Kyiv from the US, NATO and Europe, but Mr Zelensky says the question of territory remains unresolved. Also in the programme: the US denies visas to five Europeans accused of leading efforts to stifle Americans online; and Egypt begins restoring a 4,500-year-old boat that once belonged to King Khufu. (Picture: Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky. Credit: SERGEY DOLZHENKO/EPA/Shutterstock)

The US Department of Justice has published thousands more files relating to the late sex- offender, Jeffrey Epstein -- its largest such release to date. Among the documents is an email from an investigator that says Donald Trump travelled many more times on Epstein's private jet than was previously reported. Mr Trump has denied any wrongdoing in relation to the Epstein scandal.Also on the programme: Amid ongoing violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, we report on the trauma of modern-day birth in Bethlehem; and we hear from Mulatu Astatke, known as the father of Ethio-jazz. (Photo: A newly-released unsealed indictment of disgraced late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is seen in this handout image released by the U.S. Justice Department and printed and arranged for a photograph by Reuters in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 19, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

Ukraine suffers widespread power cuts after a night of Russian air attacks described by President Zelensky as “massive”. We hear from a resident of the city of Odesa on the Black Sea coast. Also in the programme: a Venezuelan former diplomat tells us what he makes of the current US pressure campaign, and a retired US admiral tells us what he makes of the president's plan for big new "Trump-class" warships; and we hear the story of Mary Ann Macham, an enslaved woman who escaped across the Atlantic from America in the 1830s and was welcomed in by a local community of Quakers in North East England.(IMAGE: Firefighters extinguish a burning cargo vessel damaged during Russian overnight drone and missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, at a port in Odesa region, Ukraine, in this handout picture released December 23, 2025 / CREDIT: Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Odesa region/Handout via REUTERS).

An Israeli-Russian woman held for two and half years by militants in Iraq has told the BBC how she was trussed and hung from the ceiling, whipped, sexually abused and electrocuted. Elizabeth Tsurkov, who was freed in September, suffered extreme abuse for over 100 days, leaving her physically and mentally scarred. Elizabeth believes she was held by members of Kataib Hezbollah, one of the most powerful Iran-back militias in Iraq, designated a terrorist organisation by the US and others. In this special edition of the Newshour podcast she speaks to Tim Franks about her ordeal and how she is determined to continue her work on the region. This interview contains some graphic testimony that listeners could find distressing

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)