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How did 6 million people in China buy homes that don’t exist?

How did 6 million people in China buy homes that don’t exist?

China is in the middle of a housing market crisis. Two of its top property developers, Evergrande and Country Garden, are struggling to pay back debt or fulfil their promises to build properties they have already sold to millions of people.

Fan Wang, a BBC reporter in Singapore, tells us about societal pressures young people face to be home owners in China.

Chen Yen, a journalist at BBC’s Chinese service in Hong Kong, takes us through the details of the housing market.

And as China is the world's second-largest economy, what kind of damage could a collapse of its property market cause? Nick Marsh, our Asia Business Correspondent explains how concerned we should be.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Emily Horler, Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Israel-Gaza violence: The conflict explained

Israel-Gaza violence: The conflict explained

Over the weekend, partygoers at a festival in Israel’s Negev desert were attacked by gunmen, with hundreds killed and taken hostage. At the same time, rockets hit cities across Israel and people barricaded themselves into their homes for safety.

The attacks were carried out by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. They bulldozed the separation barrier between Israel and Gaza and targeted Israel from all angles. In response, Israel has launched a wave of air strikes on Gaza and says the country is at war.

Israelis are comparing the scale of these events to the 9/11 attacks in the United States. Survivors in Israel and Gaza talk about what they saw and how they’ve been affected.

We also break down the region’s complicated politics and geography, with the BBC’s International Editor Jeremy Bowen explaining what this means for Israel and Gaza, and Security Correspondent Frank Gardner asking: how did Israel not see this coming? And what happens next, with so many people taken hostage?

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: William Lee Adams and Maria Clara Montoya Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Why has it taken so long to arrest someone for Tupac’s murder?

Why has it taken so long to arrest someone for Tupac’s murder?

It’s nearly three decades since the drive-by shooting that killed rapper Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas. Now Duane ‘Keefe D’ Davis has been arrested and charged as a suspect. Police say they now have enough evidence after Keefe D wrote a memoir detailing his involvement in the act.

Sam Granville, a BBC producer in the Los Angeles bureau takes us back to September 1996 to explain what happened that night. She tells us who Keefe D is, and describes the links he had to Tupac.

Journalist Nicolas Tyrell-Scott also talks us through 2Pac’s legacy and impact not only in hip-hop but in Hollywood and culture.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Julia Ross-Roy, Benita Barden and Mora Morrison Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Why are young people calling on Ghanaians to #OccupyJulorbiHouse?

Why are young people calling on Ghanaians to #OccupyJulorbiHouse?

Thousands of people have been out on the streets of Ghana and organising protests online, using #OccupyJulorbiHouse. In 2019 - just four years ago - Ghana had the fastest growing economy in Africa. But now it’s in crisis, with high inflation and huge debts. Daniel Dadzie explains what in the world is going on with protests in Ghana? And from Jakarta, the BBC’s Astudestra Ajengrastri tells us about her trip to Rempang island, where the Indonesian government is planning a huge development called Eco City. It’ll involve a Chinese glass factory and the eviction of 7,500 residents. How Eco is it?

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Mora Morrison, Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

The dark but luxurious life of El Chapo’s wife

The dark but luxurious life of El Chapo’s wife

Thousands of people - including politicians, students and journalists - are killed in drug cartel violence in Mexico every year.

One of the biggest cartels is Sinaloa. Joaquín "El Chapo” Guzmán led the cartel until he was jailed in 2019. He’s currently serving a life sentence. His wife, Emma Coronel, has been released from a three year jail term after pleading guilty to drug trafficking charges. But how involved was she and how did she reach ‘narco queen’ status?

Blaire Toedte, a BBC reporter in Miami, tells us about Emma Coronel’s involvement in cartel crime, her ‘buchona’ style, and the impact drug cartel violence has around the world.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart and Alex Rhodes Producers: Emily Horler, Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Why is there so much instability in the Sahel?

Why is there so much instability in the Sahel?

Niger and Gabon are the latest countries in Africa's Sahel to experience military coups. But that’s not the only issue that is facing the area.

Beverly Ochieng from BBC Monitoring in Nairobi explains why several countries in the region are among the worst on the Global Terrorism Index from the Institute for Economics & Peace. And we look at which militant groups operate in the region, why France has faced hostility and backlash in a number of countries, and how the Wagner Group — a group of soldiers-for-hire from Russia — are exploiting existing tensions to gain a foothold in the region.

We also hear more about a new and cheaper malaria vaccine that can be produced on a massive scale. BBC Health & Science correspondent James Gallagher explains why people are hopeful this might save hundreds of thousands of lives.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: William Lee Adams and Mora Morrison Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Why are thousands of people fleeing Nagorno-Karabakh?

Why are thousands of people fleeing Nagorno-Karabakh?

A decades-long territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, over the Nagorno-Karabakh region has flared up. Now nearly the entire ethnic Armenian population living there has fled.

The United Nations has sent its first mission to the territory in about 30 years to assess the humanitarian situation. Azerbaijan has been accused of ethnic cleansing - which it denies.

Alex Rhodes, from the What in the World team, takes us through the history of the region and runs through what’s been happening in recent weeks.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart and Alex Rhodes Producers: Emily Horler and Benita Barden Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

How do we get plastic out of our oceans?

How do we get plastic out of our oceans?

A truckload of rubbish enters the ocean every minute. Boyan Slat is on a mission to remove it. He’s the founder of The Ocean Cleanup, one of the organisations ridding the oceans of plastic.

But how does so much rubbish end up in the ocean to begin with? Boyan explains.

One solution is to stop the flow from polluted rivers. You may have spotted clean-up videos on TikTok, especially in Bali. We speak to local Giri Winckler who is picking up plastic piece by piece.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenters: Alex Rhodes with Mora Morrison Producer: William Lee Adams Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

What's really inside your phone?

What's really inside your phone?

Our phones are powered by teeny tiny semi conductors. Taiwan produces over 60% of them. Huawei recently unveiled a phone with a chip made in mainland China. Chris Miller is an expert on this subject. He tells us why the United States is wary of this move.

We know our phones have a chip in them, but what’s it made of? And what else is in our phones? They’re built with metals and materials from some of the poorest countries in the world. They’re also designed to be difficult to recycle, leading to lots of technology waste. The BBC’s Science Correspondent, Victoria Gill, explains why our phones are made this way and what their life cycle is.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes Producers: Emily Horler, Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Deal! Hollywood writers end their strike

Deal! Hollywood writers end their strike

After nearly five months, Hollywood writers have ended their strike, which brought the American film and TV industry to a halt.

The Writers Guild of America said in a statement that union leaders ‘voted unanimously’ in favour of a deal - which some writers have called ‘exceptional’. It’ll now be voted on by union members.

Some of the main sticking points included payments for reruns (known as residuals), and AI. The BBC’s Vivienne Nunis talks us through the detail. But the actors’ strike continues. The BBC’s Regan Morris is at the picket line in Los Angeles where she’s been speaking to actors, including stunt performer Max Calder and Frances Fisher from the film Titanic.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes Producers: William Lee Adams and Mora Morrison Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Are your 20s the loneliest decade?

Are your 20s the loneliest decade?

There are loads of videos on TikTok of people calling their 20s the loneliest decade. But are they?

We speak to Foyin Ogunrombi (@FoyinOG), a content creator from South Africa, who’s been discussing this topic on her podcast.

Dr Meg Jay, a clinical psychologist and author of ‘The Defining Decade’, explains what’s happens in our brains, and why we may feel a little haywire.

Plus, Dr Laurie Santos from Yale University, and The Happiness Lab Podcast, gives us tips on how to feel more socially connected.

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes Producers: Mora Morrison and Emily Horler Editors: Simon Peeks

Net zero: How do we get there?

Net zero: How do we get there?

Talks about net zero have been getting heated in the UK. It’s after the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was still confident the country would hit net zero by 2050 — despite announcing changes to scale back some of the government’s key green policies.

If you're confused about net zero and how to get on track to meet targets, Alex and Jordan Dunbar can help. Jordan is a presenter on The Climate Question podcast. He spells out the basics and helps assess the progress of the world’s biggest polluters — China, the United States and India.

Also, NASA scientist Dr Jason Dworkin talks about the Bennu asteroid. The Osiris-Rex space mission left Earth in 2016; it scraped dust and rock from the asteroid three years ago and yesterday the sample landed in a Utah desert. He explains how it might answer some of the questions about life on this planet. .

Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes with Jordan Dunbar Producers: William Lee Adams and Benita Barden Editors: Simon Peeks

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