Our World

As Darcey Bussell takes her final curtain call, she reflects on nearly 20 years as principal dancer of the Royal Ballet in London. Bussell talks to Louise Minchin and explains why she is retiring at the peak of her powers

The destruction of the twin towers was a site that became the definition of terror. It was an onslaught that killed nearly three thousand people - but a decade later, the attack isn't over. The dust that overwhelmed the streets of Lower Manhattan became a weapon. The clouds contained particles of pulverized concrete, asbestos, lead from fifty thousand computers, mercury from countless light bulbs -- a million tons of poisonous fallout. Now nearly 20,000 people are receiving treatment for a range of illnesses, many of them serious. And more than 60,000 are registered as at risk. The BBC Our World team first broke the story globally in 2006. They return 5 years later to investigate a worsening tragedy and followup with those who shared their stories.

As a wave of protests and self-immolations continues against the rule of China on the Tibetan plateau, Sue Lloyd-Roberts asks the Dalai Lama if the dream of increased independence for Tibet is dead.

In Saudi Arabia's oil-rich Eastern Province, protesters inspired by the Arab Spring have been venting their anger against the government for the last three years. Saudi journalist Safa Alahmad got unprecedented access to the area.

As part of the Big Stories 2014, this is the untold story of the hidden victims of the war in Afghanistan: the women whose husbands were killed in the fight against the Taliban.

The northern French port of Calais is facing an international refugee crisis. Darius Bazargan has been to Calais to meet the migrants, and the locals, caught up in a growing humanitarian crisis.

It's the first planned Palestinian city, a billion dollar project to build homes for 25,000 people. Though the main building work is largely finished the project, like the peace process, has ground to a halt over disagreements between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Eritrea has been described as one of the most secretive states in the world. For the first time in around 10 years, BBC News has been been allowed to to film inside the country.

Gabriel Gatehouse reports from Louisiana. How much of a difference did Barack Obama's presidency make to the lives of African-Americans?

Our World spent the New Year party season in Ramallah, Bethlehem and Haifa documenting the personal views of young Palestinians on the Israeli occupation, and how it impacts their music. The rave scene, with its vibrant electronic music and dance culture has, for some Palestinians, become a focus for political dissent and protest, for others an escape. It's also a source of tension between some conservative parents and a younger generation.

When the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded 33 years ago in Soviet Ukraine, it was the largest ever accidental release of radioactivity into the environment. The cause, and who was to blame, is still being debated. But what's become of the people who refused to leave the exclusion zone, and the wildlife left behind? Just how contaminated is the area now? The BBC's Science correspondent, Victoria Gill, has been given rare permission to go inside the zone - and the plant itself.

Colombia has long been the world's largest producer of cocaine. A historic peace deal in 2016 was meant to reduce the amount of cocaine being produced by offering farmers alternatives to growing coca. But last year the UN estimated that its output was the largest since records began. Our World traveled to the Cauca Valley to find that farmers are now being caught between new criminal gangs with devastating consequences.

In October 2019, a rising star of Syrian democratic politics, 34-year-old Hevrin Khalaf, was brutally murdered in the Kurdish-governed north east of the country.

In 2017 a group of fishermen found a hoard of precious coins on the sea bed off the coast of Gaza. They were decadrachms from the reign of Alexander the Great- and they were worth a fortune. 3 years on, they have disappeared. So what happened to them, and why are rare coins so hard to trace?

Antarctica is one of the most remote and inhospitable places on earth. Reporter Justin Rowlatt travels to Thwaites, the so-called Doomsday Glacier.

Panzuto was a mafia boss, and a hardened killer. For years he played a key role in Naples' Camorra, but now he has turned state witness and is helping put his former associates behind bars. Dominic Casciani gains exclusive access to an Italian anti-mafia prison to meet Panzuto and hear his story of love, murder and betrayal. It's a tale which took him from the back streets of Naples to a caravan park in Blackpool. We hear from those at the sharp end of the ongoing battle against organised crime in Naples, and from those who believe the tide has finally turned. Above all we hear from the man himself: why did he decide to break with the Camorra, and what does the future hold for him?

Our World gained unprecedented access to enter Indonesia’s prison to witness both Garil and Sarah meeting the bombers who killed their parents.

Our World tells the extraordinary story of the holidaymakers who found themselves trapped by an almighty wildfire at Mammoth Pools in California's Sierra National Forest.

New Orleans was getting ready to celebrate Mardi Gras. But among the crowds was a virus that before long would stop the music and kill thousands in the state of Louisiana.

From civil war to the pandemic, 2020 was a deadly year for the Syrian province of Idlib. As doctors, Mohammed al-Sharif and Zeina Hallak were on the frontline of the humanitarian crisis, but as parents, they had to protect a growing family from the dual threat of war and disease. For nine months, BBC Our World followed the couple as coronavirus brought them face-to-face with life and death.

Jane Mugo is Kenya’s most famous – and controversial – private investigator. She says she’s solved hundreds of crimes, but some accuse her of playing by her own rules. Reporter Sharon Machira meets the woman they call Kenya’s Spy Queen.

Human rights activist Azimjan Askarov was imprisoned in Kyrgyzstan in 2010 for a crime he says he did not commit. Ever since then, his wife Hadicha has campaigned tirelessly for his release.

Over the last few years, Moroccan migrants who are trying to reach the EU have become YouTube celebrities by blogging about the journey online. Our World travels to meet them.

Abortion has long been a fault line in American politics. Now those who want to ban it scent a famous victory, with implications for millions.

With access to the new Taliban government, Yalda Hakim travels back to Afghanistan to find out what the country is like under their rule. The economy is close to collapse, millions face starvation and the one-time terrorist group now face a terror threat of its own. Can the Taliban form a government that can put their violent past behind them and help rebuild this broken country?

Bitcoin is now big business and a major talking point around the world. Whilst some countries like China have banned cryptocurrencies, others have embraced them.

For centuries, women have picked tea on the steep slopes of Turkey's Black Sea region. It is gruelling work, and much of what they earn has traditionally been handed to their husbands. But now a new generation are turning their backs on tea picking, and the industry's survival is uncertain. Our World follows the young women who hope change is coming and the older ones who fear for their way of life.

Italy is a bastion of global Catholicism, and yet, unlike many other countries, it has failed to tackle the scourge of clerical sex abuse. Mark Lowen investigates.

Fergal Keane tells the stories of the people on platform 5 of Lviv train station hoping to escape, the staff who bravely keep the station running and those who are left behind.

In June 2020, three friends filmed themselves finding bodies in a suitcase. As their videos went viral, the lives of the victims, Jessica and Austin, were lost to rumour and speculation as people online combed through their story. Over the course of the two year trial, the programme follows the families as they try to get justice for their children, lost in a social media storm.

Since Vladimir Putin launched the invasion of Ukraine a year ago, many British nationals have travelled there to fight. Some have prior military experience, others have none; but all are inspired by the idea that they are making a difference. With exclusive access to months of extraordinary footage filmed on the frontline, Emma Vardy meets the soldiers who are drawn to this conflict and the family members of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Following the work of the MHA Nation's recovery clinic and their own drug enforcement team as they try to turn a rising tide of addiction.

Puppies are a multi-billion Euro industry in Europe. But where are all these puppies coming from? Our World unveils a criminal underworld of puppy traders trafficking dogs across Europe.

In February 2022, a video emerged of a young Afghan woman screaming for help whilst her door was being kicked in by the Taliban. Little is known about what took place after - where was she taken, and for what reason? Yalda Hakim travels to Afghanistan after gaining access to her and her family once they are released from prison, and as they plot their escape from Afghanistan to Europe.

Facial recognition technology is at the cutting edge of fighting crime in the United States. Police forces across the country can upload your image and search databases containing millions of photos scoured from the internet. Whether you’ve uploaded the photo yourself, or someone else has without your knowledge – you can be identified and tracked down. James Clayton investigates the accuracy of this controversial technology and asks whether it is invading your privacy and should be a part of law and order in America.

Powerful earthquakes that struck in February 2023 left south-eastern Turkey facing a devastating aftermath. A year on, hundreds of thousands have left the region, and much of it still lies in ruins. Many local people have been left homeless, schools are destroyed, and crucial agricultural work is at risk. But the women who stayed are determined that their cities are rebuilt. As they confront this challenging task, their fears rise even further when construction plans pose a threat to their livelihoods. Our World follows the stories of women over the course of a year, as their roles as mothers and activists evolve in their fight to protect their home for the generations to come.

When a family gets caught up in Europe's greatest refugee crisis since World War Two the strains are unimaginable. Where should they run to? Who will give safety and shelter?

Journalists in Pakistan say they are under attack, with 140 targeted in just 12 months. They describe physical assaults, detentions, and even killing, often after criticising Pakistan's powerful military. Mobeen Azhar investigates their allegations of a campaign of fear and violence.

Japan is reeling from the biggest child sex abuse scandal in its history after the BBC revealed that Johnny Kitagawa, the godfather of J-pop, spent a lifetime sexually abusing some of the young boys in his talent agency. Almost 1000 men have come forward as survivors of Kitagawa's abuse. But a climate of hostility to survivors means some are facing online abuse that has resulted in tragic consequences. Meanwhile, the story of wider abuse at the agency is going untold. Mobeen Azhar investigates the aftermath of a predator.