Women in Iran have been at the forefront of protests that have swept the country for weeks.

More than 200 people have lost their lives, and hundreds of others have been detained after demonstrations following the death of 22 year old Mahsa Amini. She died after being arrested by the regime's morality police for not wearing her hijab correctly.

Women have been fighting for their basic freedoms and demanding an end to the mandatory headscarf. Many have posted videos on social media, cutting their hair or burning their hijabs in protest.

But will their anger lead to reforms in the Islamic Republic?

This week on the Inquiry, we ask: will the protests in Iran bring change?

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier Producer: Ben Henderson and Christopher Blake Researcher: Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Broadcast Coordinator: Jacqui Johnson

Image: Women burn headscarves during a protest over the death of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in Iran, in the Kurdish-controlled city of Qamishli, Syria, 26 September 2022 (Credit: Orhan Qereman/Reuters)

The Kerch bridge, a vital supply route for Russian forces in Crimea, has been partially destroyed in a huge blast. It was a symbol of Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, and the explosion was equally symbolic, coming just one day after President Putin’s 70th birthday. The Russian president described it as “an act of terrorism”, and he punished Ukraine’s cities with a day of missile strikes, targeting civilian areas. All this comes as Putin’s Special Military Operation is struggling. Ukraine has now seized back more territory than Russia took in the early stages of the war. Hundreds of thousands of Russian army reservists have fled rather than being sent to the front, war deaths and the financial costs of the war are mounting, and winter is approaching. But for President Putin, there is no easy exit from Ukraine. He may have no political choice but to double down, and has even dropped dark hints about using nuclear weapons. So this week on the Inquiry we ask: Is Putin’s war in Ukraine at a turning point?

Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Ravi Naik Researcher: Christopher Blake Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producer: Mitch Goodall Broadcast Coordinator: Jacqui Johnson

(Image: Huge fire erupts on strategic bridge linking Crimea to Russia: Credit: Anadolu Agency/Getty)

In his first speech as King, Charles III said he would endeavour to serve his subjects, wherever they live “in the UK, the realms and territories across the world”.

But following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, several realms – countries other than the UK that have the British Monarch as head of state – say they may become republics. Barbados became a republic in 2021. Antigua, Belize, Jamaica and Grenada may follow.

King Charles III has also just become the elected head of the Commonwealth of Nations. But will any new republics leave because of its roots in Empire, or embrace an organisation that represents nearly a third of the people on Earth?

This week on the Inquiry, we ask: what’s the future of the Commonwealth under King Charles III?

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier Producer: Ravi Naik Researcher: Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Broadcast Coordinator: Jacqui Johnson

(Image: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales speaks during the formal opening of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting at Buckingham Palace in London on April 19, 2018. (Photo by DOMINIC LIPINSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Brazil is voting to elect a new president. On the ballot is the incumbent Jair Bolsonaro and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known almost universally as Lula, a fiery leftist who was Brazil’s president from 2002 to 2010.

Bolsonaro is a former army officer with solid conservative views. Lula is very left leaning and in favour of protecting the environment.

Their contrasting policies on issues such as the economy, law and order, family values, and the environment, have polarised the country.

Whoever wins will lead a country with deep divisions.

So this week on The Inquiry we are asking: How can Brazil’s next president unite the country?

Presented by David Baker Produced by Annabel Deas and Louise Clarke-Rowbotham Researched by Chris Blake Mixed by Nicky Edwards The editor is Tara McDermott and the production co-ordinator is Jacqui Johnson

(Image: Towels with images of presidential candidates Lula da Silva and Jair Bolsonaro are displayed in a street stand to be sold in downtown Sao Paulo: Alexandre Schneider/Getty Images)

August 2022. Political tensions in Iraq boil over, and peaceful demonstrations outside the country’s parliament turn violent. The sounds of gun and rocket fire return to Baghdad, and 30 people are killed.

The violence ends when populist leader Muqtada al-Sadr tells his followers to lay down their arms and go home. His Sadrist party won the most seats in the previous election, but his inability to form a majority government has led to the political deadlock.

Politics in a country as diverse as Iraq is complicated, with Shia, Sunni and Kurdish groups, and well-armed militias. Add oil revenues and political interference by Iraq’s neighbour Iran into the mix, and you have a potentially volatile situation.

So this week on the Inquiry we’re asking, How close did Iraq come to civil war?

Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producers: Ravi Naik and Christopher Blake Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producers: Richard Hannaford and Mitch Goodall Broadcast Coordinator: Jacqui Johnson

(Image: Supporters storm Republican Palace after Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr announced retirement from politics, Baghdad, Iraq - 29 Aug 2022: by MURTAJA LATEEF/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Relations between France and Mali have hit a low point, with both countries trading hostile comments in public about what the other is doing.

Mali’s military rulers accuse France of supplying arms to anti-government militants. Paris denies this and is unhappy about Mali’s working relationship with Russian mercenaries.

Things are so bad that President Emmanuel Macron announces the withdrawal of French troops. They were sent in 9 years ago to help fight Islamist militants, who still pose a threat across the region.

On this week’s inquiry, we look at why the French have departed, and what this means for Mali.

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier Producer: Louise Clarke-Rowbotham Researcher: Christopher Blake Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Broadcast co-ordinator: Jacqui Johnson

(Photo: Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Images)

The former Pakistani prime minister, Imran Khan, is facing terrorism charges in Islamabad.

He was charged under Pakistan's stringent anti-terrorism laws for condemning Islamabad’s chief of police and a female judge, after claims his close political aide was arrested and tortured.

Since he lost power in April, he’s been addressing huge political rallies, where he’s told the crowds that he was brought down by a conspiracy organised by the current government, state powers, and the USA.

Most political analysts believe his rhetoric is a cynical ploy, but tens of thousands of his supporters believe it.

It’s the latest twist in his journey from superstar cricketer and socialite, to Islamist, populist statesman. But how did he climb to power, how did he lose it, and what could happen next?

Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Ravi Naik Researcher: Christopher Blake Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producer: Nicky Edwards Broadcast Coordinator: Jacqui Johnson

(Photo by SHAHZAIB AKBER/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Monkeypox is a virus that was first identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria in the 1970s. Since then it has appeared around the world. More concerning is that the virus appears to be evolving and there are some unusual symptoms.

The world has known about monkeypox for decades. Why is it spreading again now? How serious is the current outbreak?

This week on The Inquiry we ask, are nations doing enough to combat monkeypox?

Contributors: Prof Dimie Ogoina, Infectious Disease Physician at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria, Professor of Medicine and Infectious Diseases at the Niger Delta University and Chief Medical Director of the NDUTH and the President of the Nigerian Infectious Diseases Society

Jason Cianciotto, Vice President of Communications and Policy at Gay Men’s Health crisis in New York

Dr Boghuma Titanji, Assistant Professor of medicine at Emory University in Atlanta

(Image: multiple monkeypox viruses, Uma Shankar sharma, Getty Images)

It’s nearly a century since it was discovered that the sun and other stars are powered by nuclear fusion. It’s when hydrogen atoms merge to form helium, and release huge amounts of energy.

Since then, scientists have dreamed of reproducing the process here on Earth, with one Nobel Laureate calling it “the sun in a box”.

It holds the promise of virtually limitless energy, with few emissions and waste. But recreating the conditions where fusion can take place are a vast engineering challenge. So how close are we to having a working reactor powered by fusion? And will the process solve all our energy problems?

Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Louise Clarke-Rowbotham

This summer, countries across the world have experienced extreme weather events.

Flash floods have killed people in South Korea, Uganda, Australia and the US state of Kentucky, and heatwaves have broken records across Western Europe, North America and Japan.

However, countries across the world are developing ways to try to tame the weather. China, the UAE and the USA are at the forefront of research into methods of producing rain in drought-stricken areas.

And some scientists are thinking even bigger; investigating technologies which could cool the entire planet. This week, the Inquiry asks: Can we control the weather?

Contributors: Dr Rob Thompson, University of Reading Professor Katja Friedrich, University of Colorado, Boulder Professor David Keith, Harvard University Professor Elizabeth Chalecki, University of Nebraska Omaha

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier Producer: Ravi Naik Researchers: Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty and Christopher Blake Technical producer: Nicky Edwards Broadcast coordinator: Brenda Brown

Image: Hands cradling a lightning storm (Credit: Getty Images)

A recent visit to Taiwan by Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, has heightened tensions between the US and China. Their relationship is the worst it’s been in decades. America has accused China of dangerous military provocations in the region. China has warned the US not to play with fire.

Add to all that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and concerns that China could be contemplating something similar in Taiwan, and it’s time to ask the question: Will the US and China go to war over Taiwan?

Contributors: James Lin from the University of Washington and expert on Taiwanese history

Dr Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow on China, Chatham House

(Photo: China and Taiwan boxing gloves - credit: Getty Images)

Images of queues, huge piles of luggage and even pilots loading their planes with cargo have plagued the media throughout the world. Airports have been in chaos for months as they have attempted to re-emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, with Europe, the UK and the USA all having suffered the worst of the effects so far. Flight cancelations have played havoc with business travellers and holiday makers alike, and the problem only appears to be getting worse as a whole raft of flights have recently been cancelled in the UK.

All this begs the question, Why are things so bad right now and how do we fix the situation? So this week on the inquiry we ask, Will air travel ever return to normal?

Producer: Ravi Naik and Christopher Blake Editor: Tara McDermott (Photo: Flight boards at the height of the summer rush July 2022 Frankfurt Airport, Germany/credit: BBC images)