Iran: The Latest

The burst of strikes between Iran and the US has died down but the Strait of Hormuz has seized up, with shipping coming to an almost complete standstill on the southern non-Iranian route. On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant discuss how this is exactly what Tehran wants.  Meanwhile, Israel has revealed that Donald Trump is the subject of a “new and specific” assassination plot by Iran, and Ali Khamenei has finally been buried - with his son Mojtaba Khamenei still nowhere to be seen.  Plus, what does this week’s Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey tell us about the future of the alliance and the trans-Atlantic security relationship? Rachel Ellehuus, director-general of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), gives her analysis of Trump’s Greenland comments, how Ukraine was the real winner, and why America's aggressive global force posture review is a "protection racket".  Highlights Iran’s Trump ‘assassination plot’ revealed as Strait of Hormuz closes upRUSI chief Rachel Ellehuus on Trump, the Nato summit and Greenland CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign analyst @rolandoliphant Rachel Ellehuus, RUSI director-general @rach_ellehuus WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: What I saw behind the scenes at Nato’s tumultuous summit https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/07/09/behind-the-scenes-nato-turkey-summit/ Trump ‘forced to use old Air Force One over security fears’ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/07/09/trump-forced-to-use-old-air-force-one-over-security-fears/ Millions block streets for Khamenei burial https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/09/iran-us-war-latest-news-strikes-strait-of-hormuz-nato/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US-Iran war has escalated significantly amid a second consecutive night of heavy American strikes on Iran and a furious response from Tehran. On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey and Sophia Yan look at why for the first time since the ceasefire in April, President Donald Trump ordered cruise missiles to attack a critical railway bridge used to trade with Russia and China. After Tehran responded with kamikaze drones and ballistic missiles targeting US military assets across Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Jordan, they ask what next for the peace talks.  Plus, why the 2026 Nato summit's quiet winner is Turkey. Sophia dives into the country’s exploding defence sector, its simmering rivalry with Israel, and how it has gone from black sheep to core member of Nato. And everything we know about the personalised handgun Erdogan gave world leaders as a farewell gift. Highlights Iran attacks more US bases across the Middle EastComes after Trump struck a key Russia-China railway link in Iran CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: How Turkey is powering Europe’s rearmament https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/09/how-turkey-became-new-pillar-european-defence/ Erdogan gives every Nato leader a gun as farewell gift https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/08/erdogan-nato-summit-fun-keir-starmer-donald-trump/ Monday’s episode: Where is Iran’s new supreme leader? https://linktr.ee/iranthelatest Producer: Peter Shevlin Video Producer: Max Bower Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Andy Watson Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has dramatically declared that the US-Iran ceasefire is officially "over", calling Tehran an "evil cancer" during a fiery outburst alongside Nato chief Mark Rutte in Ankara, Turkey. He also attacked fellow Nato members including Spain and reiterated his demand to take over Greenland from Denmark. Roland Oliphant and Joe Barnes report live from the Nato summit on a second day of drama.  The sudden escalation in the war follows a wave of Iranian attacks on oil tankers taking the Omani route in the Strait of Hormuz, including one from Qatar for the first time since the war began. The US responded with its own strikes on coastal targets and cancelled an oil sanctions waiver, prompting Iran to send drones and missiles at Bahrain and Kuwait.  On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey breaks down the latest military and diplomatic news from the Middle East with Dr. Dania Thafer, director of the Gulf International Forum, and asks whether it’s time for military action to break Tehran’s grip on Hormuz.  Highlights Trump ends US-Iran ceasefire and axes oil licenceUS bombs 80 Iran targets after Tehran’s Strait of Hormuz oil tanker blitz CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Dania Thafer, director Gulf International Forum @Dr_DaniaThafer WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Listen to Ukraine: the Latest: https://linktr.ee/UkraineTheLatest Trump: Ceasefire with Iranian scum is over https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/08/trump-ceasefire-with-iranian-scum-is-over/ We are ready to defend Greenland, Denmark’s PM tells Trump https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/08/we-are-ready-to-defend-greenland-denmark-pm-tells-trump/ David Blair: Iran’s regime is now stronger than before Trump’s war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/07/08/iran-stronger-because-of-trump/ US carries out fresh strikes on Iran in response to Hormuz attacks https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/07/trump-ban-iran-from-selling-oil-hormuz-attacks/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Video Producer: Max Bower Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Andy Watson Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump arrived at the 2026 Nato summit in Turkey and instantly started taking potshots at his Nato allies, blasting them for not helping the US in the Iran war. On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Roland Oliphant reports from Ankara on a day of dramatic meetings, fighter jet pledges and fiery speeches.  Meanwhile, Iran has struck another oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz it accused of taking the banned Omani route. Tehran also threatened to call off peace talks following Trump's blistering warning that he would flatten Iranian energy infrastructure in "a small part of an afternoon".  Plus, recently resigned British Armed Forces Minister Al Carns joins the show to deliver a blunt assessment of Western vulnerabilities and why Nato is fundamentally unprepared for the terrifying reality of mass drone warfare on its eastern flank. They also discuss the threat of Iran, Trump’s anger with his Nato allies over the war, Ukraine and defence spending in the UK.  Highlights Trump blasts Nato over Iran war as Tehran strikes ship in HormuzResigned UK armed forces minister Al Carns on Trump, Nato and Iran CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Dom Nicholls, associate defence editor and Ukraine: the Latest @DomNicholls WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk Producer: Max Bower Video Producer: Peter Shevlin Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Andy Watson Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dead, disfigured by the war or hidden for safety - why isn’t Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei at his own father’s funeral? It’s the million-dollar question as Tehran hosts the third day of a massive public event ahead of Ali Khamenei’s burial. On today’s Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey speaks to Iranian-American historian and writer Arash Azizi about the possible theories, why the funeral was heavy on revenge and martyrdom, and what the event tells us about the post-war Iranian regime’s attitude towards the US.  Plus, as Nato leaders prepare for the alliance’s most significant summit, President Donald Trump looms large over proceedings. Roland Oliphant looks at what’s at stake in this week’s meetings, while Sophia Yan explains how Turkey is using the event to crack down on dissent. Highlights ‘Kill Trump’: Iran holds revenge funeralWhere is Iran’s new supreme leader? CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Arash Azizi, author and historian Yale University @arash_tehran  WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Iranians call for revenge as mourners gather for Khamenei’s funeral https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/04/iranians-revenge-mourners-for-khamenei-funeral/ Khamenei’s funeral masks a battle for Iran’s soul https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/04/khameneis-funeral-masks-a-battle-for-iran-soul/ Mojtaba Khamenei misses father’s funeral https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/05/mojtaba-khamenei-misses-fathers-funeral/ Ahmadinejad back from the dead at Khamenei’s funeral https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/06/ahmadinejad-back-from-the-dead-khameneis-funeral/ Erdogan crushes dissent before rolling out Nato red carpet https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/07/recep-erdogan-turkey-ankara-dissent-nato-summit-ankara/ Producer: Max Bower Video Producer: Peter Shevlin Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Andy Watson Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US celebrates its 250th anniversary of Independence Day on July 4th. As the nation hits this major milestone, what is the actual state of the superpower under President Donald Trump? In this special episode, co-host and senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan takes a bird's-eye view of her home country and explores how it is viewed abroad. Drawing on nearly two decades of reporting from the frontlines of US foreign policy - from the rise of authoritarian China to the fires of the Middle East - she joins Roland Oliphant to examine its superpower status and whether the American Dream is still a reality or just a mirage. Plus, reports that the US stepped in to block an Israeli plot to assassinate Iran’s top peace negotiators and IRGC chief Ahmad Vahidi makes a rare public appearance as the funeral of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei begins today. Highlights Sophia Yan on America at 250: The collapse of a superpower?US stops Israel ‘plot’ to kill Iran's top negotiators CONTRIBUTORS: Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Inside the crumbling court of King Donald https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/07/03/inside-the-crumbling-court-of-king-donald/ Producer: Max Bower Video Producer: James England Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US-Iran war has paused, but it has lit a fire under an ideological civil war inside the American right. As Donald Trump prepares to mark America’s 250th birthday on July 4th, today’s episode of Iran: The Latest hosts a high-stakes foreign policy grudge match.  First, John Bolton, former National Security Advisor, delivers a scathing critique of Trump's premature exit from the conflict. Bolton argues that Washington "stopped too soon” and that Israel is a key ally that the US must continue to protect militarily from Tehran.  Then, Curt Mills, Executive Director of The American Conservative, fires back from the MAGA right. Mills claims Trump’s base feels a deep sense of betrayal over a war that directly violated core campaign promises and argues the conflict was fought entirely at the behest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Plus, Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen since the start of the war. Will he finally show his face this weekend at the funeral of his father, the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei?  Highlights John Bolton: ‘The war stopped too soon’Curt Mills: ‘This war was at the behest of Israel’ CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant John Bolton, former National Security Adviser @AmbJohnBolton Curt Mills, executive director The American Conservative magazine @CurtMills WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk Producer: Elliot Lampitt Video Producer: Max Bower Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Ed Gould Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As US-Iran peace talks flounder in Qatar, stranded ship captains are taking matters into their own hands to escape the Strait of Hormuz warzone.  On today’s episode, Roland Oliphant talks to former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe about how "free for all" is unfolding in the Gulf, with commercial vessels losing patience and risking Iranian fire to get out. They look at the credibility of Iranian claims of a grounded cargo ship, how the US Navy is bearing up, and why Iran may not have laid any mines so far - but could do soon.  Plus, a deep dive into the furious political fallout over the UK's new Defence Investment Plan. Commander Sharpe delivers a scathing assessment of the decisions shaping a "hybrid navy," explaining why it is absolute madness to mothball the Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers in favor of uncrewed drones. CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Tom Sharpe, former Royal Navy commander and columnist @TomSharpe134 WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: One thing we cannot do is return to business as usual in the Strait of Hormuz https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/06/25/strait-hormuz-gulf-oil-fertiliser-ships-royal-navy-us/ A navy without destroyers can work, but not like this https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/07/01/a-navy-without-destroyers-can-work-but-not-with-this-budget/ Producer: Rachel Porter Video Producer: Max Bower Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Andy Watson Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Highlights ‘Free for all’ in Strait of Hormuz warzone as captains run the gauntletUS-Iran peace talks grind to a halt in Qatar Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the US and Iran meet in Qatar, the UK has unveiled £15 billion in defence spending - but is it all a giant “fudge” to avoid humiliation by Donald Trump at next week’s Nato summit?  Announcing the Defence Investment Plan, Prime Minister Keir Starmer boasted it meant the UK is spending 4.2% of GDP on wider security. On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey talks to Ukraine: the Latest host and defence associate editor Dom Nicholls about why the numbers don’t add up.  Plus, they unpack the UK’s high-stakes gamble on exquisite uncrewed autonomous aircraft and vessels and why the UK is ignoring the vital lesson from wars in Ukraine and Iran: expensive tech cannot replace raw mass. CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Dom Nicholls, Ukraine: the Latest host and defence associate editor @DomNicholls  WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Gulf plans to cut the US out of Iran deal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/30/gulf-states-plan-to-cut-the-us-out-of-iran-deal/ Iran says frozen $6bn will soon be returned as part of peace deal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/29/iran-frozen-assets-us-sanctions-peace-deal/ Producer: Max Bower and Rachel Porter Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Highlights Starmer ‘fudges’ defence spending to avoid Trump clash at Nato. Will it work?The plan that proves the UK hasn’t learned the mass drone lesson from Iran and Ukraine Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tit-for-tat violence between Iran and the US erupted over the weekend as missiles and drones flew in both directions across the Strait of Hormuz. On today’s episode of Iran: The Latest, we break down a dangerous weekend of military escalation that has left the fragile 60-day interim peace agreement hanging by a thread. Host Venetia Rainey is joined by Bahraini political analyst Ahmed Khuzaie to dissect Iran’s widening campaign of violence and give the Gulf view on who should be allowed to control the vital Hormuz waterway. He explains why there is no trust in Tehran sticking to its side of any deal and how some Gulf states would like to see Donald Trump return to war - but a more decisive and better planned one.  Plus, Israel and Lebanon have signed a peace deal too. But as fighting continues with Iranian proxy Hezbollah, is it even worth the paper it’s written on? Highlights US hammers Iran after Strait of Hormuz shipping attacksWhy some Gulf states would like to see Donald Trump return to war CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Ahmed Khuzaie, Bahraini analyst @AhmedAlkhuzaie WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump’s flimsy Iran deal comes back to haunt him https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/29/trumps-flimsy-iran-deal-comes-back-haunt-him/ Iran and US agree to halt attacks https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/28/iran-missile-strikes-new-hormuz-demand-bahrain-kuwait-trump/ Israel agrees to partial Lebanon withdrawal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/26/israel-agrees-to-partial-lebanon-withdrawal/ Producer: Max Bower  Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran’s direct strike on a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz has shattered US hopes of bypassing the IRGC with a covert new route. On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey exposes how this tactical escalation threatens to derail the fragile 60-day peace roadmap. Plus, is Trump’s Iran deal better or worse than Obama’s? Former US lead negotiator Robert Malley joins the podcast to deliver his blunt assessment, including why it’s not as financially generous as some claim, how close Iran now is to going nuclear, and what to do with all that enriched uranium.  Highlights Iran strikes ship in Strait of HormuzTrump vs. Obama: Who got the better Iran deal? CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Robert Malley, former JCPOA US negotiator and program director International Crisis Group @Rob_Malley WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Iran attacks cargo ship in Strait of Hormuz https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/25/iran-attacks-cargo-ship-strait-of-hormuz/ Israel suspected of cyber attack on Iranian banks https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/23/israel-behind-cyber-attack-on-iranian-banks/ The US-Iran war may have ended, but 6,000 miles away the death toll is rising https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/madagascar-fuel-food-shortages-iran-war-death-toll/ Producer: Max Bower and Lucy Dichmont Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

President Donald Trump needs more than $65bn in urgent funding for the Pentagon as a result of the Iran war, a stark reminder of the cost to America’s military. Amid a munitions crunch, the defense industrial base is being told to go faster - and the US’ adversaries are taking note. In today’s episode of Iran: The Latest, Venetia Rainey sits down with Dana Stroul, former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East and now director of research at the Washington Institute.  She delivers a blunt assessment of the conflict's fallout, why lopsided sanctions relief has handed Tehran an economic windfall, and how the war has severely strained America’s Gulf alliances. Plus, they discuss new reports that an advanced Iranian "jellyfish" drone formation successfully brought down a US F-15 fighter jet back in April. CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Dana Stroul, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Middle East and research director Washington Institute @dstroul WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED: Iran was using ‘jellyfish’ swarm of drones, reports downed F-15 pilot https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/06/23/f-15-pilot-shot-down-over-iran-saw-jellyfish-swarm-of-drone/ Dana Stroul: How the Iran War Will Transform America’s Military Role https://www.foreignaffairs.com/iran/middle-east-power-paradox-dana-stroul Producer: Max Bower and Rachel Porter Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Highlights US facing weapons shortage - can Trump fix it?Did Iran down a US fighter jet with a secret new drone weapon? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The war in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah remains a major sticking point in US-Iran peace talks - but Donald Trump has a controversial solution.  At the G7 summit, he said he wants Syria to militarily intervene in their neighbour and disarm the Iranian proxy by force. Sophia Yan is joined by Ahmad Sharawi, senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies to discuss why Damascus has flatly rejected the plan. From the dark history of Syria’s occupation of Lebanon to the potential for a proxy war between Turkey and Israel, he outlines how such a move could seriously backfire. Plus, the latest news from the region including the row over Iran letting in nuclear inspectors from the IAEA and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's high-stakes warnings on the Strait of Hormuz. CONTRIBUTORS: Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan  Ahmad Sharawi, senior research analyst FDD @AhmadA_Sharawi Producer: Max Bower and Rachel Porter Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Highlights ‘Creative but wrong’: Trump’s plan for Syria to attack HezbollahPlus, a row over Iran letting in nuclear inspectors from the IAEA Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran has unveiled a plan to impose stealth fees on the Strait of Hormuz, using an insurance loophole to keep exacting tolls out of the key waterway post-war.   Telegraph senior foreign correspondent Adrian Blomfield joins Roland Oliphant to break down how the conflict has permanently disrupted the global balance of power, from disrupting the US pivot to Asia to breaking US-Israeli ties.  Plus, they take a moment to consider how the past four months will reverberate in the years to come and ask: what would Herodotus, the first historian of a Persian war, make of it all?  Highlights Iran’s secret plan to keep control of the Strait of HormuzHow Trump’s greatest foreign policy failure reshaped the world WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Adrian Blomfield, senior foreign correspondent @adrianblomfield  CONTENT REFERENCED: How Trump’s greatest foreign policy failure has reshaped the world https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/22/trumps-greatest-foreign-policy-failure-reshaped-world/  Has the US-Israel relationship changed forever? https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/20/has-the-us-israel-relationship-changed-forever/  Producers: Max Bower and Elliot Lampitt Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi lock down a 60-day roadmap to end the war, Tehran has walked away with immediate waivers on its oil and petrochemical exports. Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant go behind the scenes at the high-stakes negotiations in Switzerland, including nuclear negotiations and the rumors of an Iranian walkout. Meanwhile, the fallout from Washington’s fury with his closest European allies over their Iran war “betrayal” has ramped up after Donald Trump publicly rebuked Italy’s Giorgia Meloni over her refusal to help him. They also analyse the resignation of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and how his indecision over allowing the US to use UK bases to strike Iran was indicative of his premiership’s failings. Plus, how the Iranian football team’s gritty 0-0 World Cup draw against Belgium turned into a propaganda stunt for the regime to invoke the ghosts of the schoolchildren killed in Minab at the start of the war. Highlights US and Iran set up Hormuz crisis hotline as oil sanctions liftedHow Trump lost his final European allies, from Meloni to Starmer WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant CONTENT REFERENCED: Iranian leader criticises his negotiators in secret letters https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/22/iran-us-war-mojtaba-khamenei-mahmoud-nabavian-middle-east/ Inside the Hezbollah tunnels where peace will be made or broken https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/21/inside-hezbollah-tunnels-where-peace-will-be-made/ Trump tears into Meloni over G7 picture row https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/20/donald-trump-berates-giorgia-meloni-g7-picture-row/ Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is Donald Trump’s US-Iran peace deal already falling apart? Less than a day after the historic MoU was signed to end the war, fighting has been ongoing in Lebanon, with Hezbollah killing four Israeli soldiers and Benjamin Netanyahu unleashing a punishing wave of air strikes across southern Lebanon. A new ceasefire has today been agreed - but can it hold? Sophia Yan and Venetia Rainey discuss the latest news and the significance of US Vice President JD Vance’s stark warning to Israel to “wake up and smell reality”.  Plus, New York Times journalist Yeganeh Torbati, co-author of Stolen Revolution, joins to discuss why Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is distancing himself from Trump's deal, and how the IRGC is using this diplomatic breathing room to prepare for a potential resumption of the war down the line.  Highlights US forces Israel into Hezbollah ceasefire after stark warningIs Donald Trump’s US-Iran peace deal already falling apart? CONTRIBUTORS: Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent, @sophia_yan  Yeganeh Torbati, NYT journalist and co-author Stolen Revolution @yjtorbati  Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Louisa Wells & Venetia Rainey WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk CONTENT REFERENCED:  Vance tells Israel: You can’t kill your way out of problems https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/06/18/jd-vance-israel-friends/ Stolen Revolution: Betrayal & Hope in Modern Iran https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/457807/stolen-revolution-by-torbati-bozorgmehr-sharafedin-and-yeganeh/9780241744017 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has signed a peace deal with Iran, but his critics are saying it’s a humiliation. Roland Oliphant and David Blair go through the US-Iran deal line by line and give each side a score, from $300bn in payments to Iran to the reopening Strait of Hormuz to a ban on nuclear weapons. Among those critical of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is former vice president Mike Pence, who has called Trump an appeaser and accused him of handing a “lifeline” to the Iranian regime - is he right? Highlights 4-2 to Tehran - the US-Iran peace deal guttedHow the MoU proves the US lost the war CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt CONTENT REFERENCED: How Trump’s ‘Operation Epic Disaster’ turned the world against America https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/06/18/iran-war-trump-us-credibility/ David Blair: Trump’s extraordinary deal is a survival plan for Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/06/17/iran-deal-survival-plan-for-islamic-republic/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As details of the US-Iran 14-point peace deal leaks, Trump and other world leaders at the G7 summit today are singing its praises - but is it any good? Venetia Rainey breaks down the proposed timeline in the Memorandum of Understanding that will see the war officially end, the Strait of Hormuz open up, sanctions on Iran lifted and something unspecified happen to Tehran’s enriched uranium.  One country is particularly unhappy: Israel. So how will Benjamin Netanyahu respond? Global health security editor Paul Nuki joins from Tel Aviv to deliver a blunt realpolitik assessment on why Trump is trying to make Israel the lightning rod for the fallout from his unpopular war.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-Host and Executive Producer @venetiarainey Paul Nuki, Global Health Security Editor @PaulNuki CONTENT REFERENCED: The 14-point Iran deal in full – and how it favours Tehran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/17/the-14-point-iran-deal-in-full-how-it-favours-tehran/ War of broken promises leaves Israel weakened and despondent https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/16/broken-promises-israel-weakened-iran-trump/ IDF soldier ‘just wanted to kill’ my son https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/14/idf-soldier-just-wanted-to-kill-my-son/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ HIGHLIGHTS Why Trump is throwing Israel under the bus over Iran war‘Iran had its foot on the world’s throat. This deal is a way out’ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s become the crux of the US-Iran peace deal: is the Strait of Hormuz open or closed, free or with tolls?  Roland Oliphant speaks to Richard Meade, editor in chief of Lloyd’s List, explains the lingering uncertainties left from Donald Trump’s Middle East war keeping shipping executives up at night and placing ordinary sailors in danger.  Plus: as JD Vance insists the deal is “good for the American people”, Roland looks at the latest news, including the UK and France saying they are ready to help protect freedom of navigation in Hormuz and the politicisation of shipping from Iran to Russia.  Highlights Why Trump's peace deal hinges on the Strait of HormuzMini exodus' of ships as Vance insists peace deal is ‘good for US’ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has declared the Iran war over, telling oil tankers to "start their engines" as Tehran reopens the Strait of Hormuz and the US lifts its naval blockade. So why are so many people unhappy with the ‘peace deal’? Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey dive into the latest news of what we know today about the Memorandum of Understanding - and what we don’t. They discuss the problems raised by the outline of the deal so far - from an agreement on nuclear weapons to the war in Lebanon - and why Israeli military leaders are calling it a "strategic failure”. Highlights:  Trump’s peace deal: is the US paying Iran to reopen Hormuz?Plus: why both Israelis and Iranians are furious CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant CONTENT REFERENCED: WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk The winners and losers of the Iran war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/14/winners-losers-iran-war-usa-trump-middle-east/ After 106 days of war, how Donald Trump and Iran finally agreed a deal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/06/15/how-trump-iran-agreed-war-nuclear-strait-hormuz-deal/ Thirteen thousand air strikes - for what? https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/15/us-launched-13000-air-strikes-on-iran-for-what/ WATCH THE FULL EPISODE ON YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/-3VEIOK3-SU Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After more than 100 days of the US-Iran war launched by Donald Trump, who is winning and who is losing? An American and an Iranian debate the big successes, what could have gone better, and what the long-term implications will be. Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant are joined by Ben Hodges, former US general and commander of the US Army in Europe, and Holly Dagres, Washington Institute analyst and author of The Iranist substack. They discuss the most significant moments from the war, from Ali Khamenei's death to an attack on a US base in Kuwait, why China is benefitting, and what surprised them most. Highlights 100 days of war: the winners and losers so farAn American general and an Iranian analyst debate CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Ben Hodges, former commanding general US Army Europe @general_ben Holly Dagres, Washington Institute analyst and The Iranist author @hdagres WATCH THE FULL EPISODE ON YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/-3VEIOK3-SU Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump says the Iran war could be ended with a peace deal this weekend. For the Gulf, everything is at stake. Battered by Iranian missiles and drones throughout the war and economically strangled by the Strait of Hormuz crisis, the Gulf states are desperate for the war to end - so much so that some are even having their own talks with Tehran.  Sophia Yan chats to UAE-based Aniseh Bassiri Tabrizi, associate fellow for Chatham House’s MENA programme, about why despite Iran’s aggression, countries there just want things to go back to how they were before the war. Highlights:  Trump says Iran war could end with peace deal this weekendWhy the Gulf wishes the Iran war never happened CONTRIBUTORS: Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Aniseh Bassiri Tabrizi, Associate Fellow MENA Programme Chatham House @AnisehBassiri Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is this the start of a new phase in the US-Iran war? Following another night of US strikes on Iran and Tehran responding by hitting its Gulf neighbours, Donald Trump has today vowed to ramp things up even further tonight. Roland Oliphant discusses the latest news with chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair, and asks whether Trump can bomb his way out of the deadlock.   Plus, for the first time ever, the World Cup 2026 will see a nation host a team it's currently at war with. As the competition kicks off, sports news reporter Tom Morgan joins Roland Oliphant from Mexico to discuss the strength of each side's teams, the politics behind the visa and ticketing rows, and how Iran and USA could even face one another on the pitch.  Highlights Trump hits Iran with dozens of Tomahawks and vows to keep goingThe World Cup Iran war row: Everything you need to know CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Tom Morgan, sports news correspondent @Tom_Morgs CONTENT REFERENCED: Iran arrive at World Cup with swipe at US over attack on school https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2026/06/08/iran-team-arrive-mexico-world-cup-swipe-us-attack-school/ As cartels slink into shadows for the World Cup, horror remains https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2026/06/10/world-cup-mexico-search-victims-cartels-disappeared/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trump has vowed Iran will “pay the price” after it launched multiple strikes on US bases throughout the Middle East.  The latest escalation came up after the US bombed Iran in response to a Shahed drone downing an American Apache helicopter in the Gulf of Oman. The crew were rescued by an unmanned boat - a US first. Venetia Rainey speaks to former US Deputy Secretary of Defence Kathleen Hicks about what this week’s events tell us about the growing role of autonomous systems in the military.  Plus, what is the Pentagon’s plan to combat the drone threat posed by enemies from Iran to China - and is it moving fast enough? Hicks and Aaron Sherman from the Atlantic Council talk about the Replicator project they launched in 2023 in the Department of Defence and why it’s more vital than ever.  Highlights Trump vows Iran will ‘pay the price’ for firing at US bases From Iran to China: inside the Pentagon's drone revolution CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Kathleen Hicks, former US Deputy Secretary of Defence  Aaron Sherman, non-resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council CONTENT REFERENCED: How a cutting-edge AI drone boat saved defenceless US Apache pilots https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/06/09/apache-pilots-rescued-ai-drone-boat Move Fast and Scale: A Brief Insiders' History of the Replicator Initiative https://www.belfercenter.org/research-analysis/move-fast-and-scale-brief-insiders-history-replicator-initiative Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran have highlighted the tensions between Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu after more than 100 days of war. The US president wants the war to stop - now. The Israeli leader wants to keep going. Why? What else does he want to achieve? And why is Trump stopping him? Venetia Rainey chats to Danny Citrinowicz, senior researcher at Israeli think tank the Institute for National Security Studies, about why most Israelis think that the war has been a ‘colossal failure’ and how he fears Iran’s regime has been the real winner in all of this.  Highlights: Why Israelis think the war has been a ‘colossal failure’ Why Israel wants the Iran war to continue - and why Trump says no CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Danny Citrinowicz, senior researcher INSS @citrinowicz CONTENT REFERENCED: WATCH: 100 days of US-Iran war: the winners and losers so far https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3VEIOK3-SU Israelis grow tired of Bibi and bomb shelters https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/08/israelis-grow-tired-of-bibi-and-bombshelters/ Netanyahu: Our war with ‘weak’ Iran isn’t finished https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/07/iran-launches-missile-attack-on-israel/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran and Israel have bombed each other for the first time since they agreed a ceasefire with the US in early April. Why? And can Donald Trump stop all-out war from re-erupting? Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant bring you all the latest updates from the past 24 hours, plus chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair and foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii discuss how we got here, the domestic factors at play in each country and what might happen next.   Plus, an American and Iranian on what we learned from 100 days of war. What are the big successes, what could have gone better, and what will the long-term implications be? Venetia and Roland speak to Ben Hodges, former US general and commander of the US Army in Europe, and Holly Dagres, Washington Institute analyst and author of The Iranist substack. They discuss the most significant moments from the war, the biggest winners and losers, and what surprised them.  WATCH THE FULL 100 DAYS OF WAR ROUNDTABLE NOW: https://youtu.be/-3VEIOK3-SU Highlights Iran and Israel bomb each other - what just happened?100 days of war: an American and an Iranian debate CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Ben Hodges, former commanding general US Army Europe @general_ben  Holly Dagres, Washington Institute analyst and The Iranist author @hdagres Producer: Peter Shevlin and Phil Atkins Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did heavily sanctioned Iran create a drone so cheap, deadly and effective that everyone from Russia to the US has copied it? From the Gulf being inundated with attacks by Iranian Shaheds to Ukraine finding innovative new ways to counter the Russian version, Tehran has mass-produced a strategic weapon that has challenged traditional Western air-defence thinking.  To look at how Iran did it, what makes the Shahed so brutal and how to counter it, guest host from the Ukraine: the Latest team Sophie O’Sullivan speaks to Mykola Bielieskov, research fellow at the Kyiv-based National Institute for Strategic Studies, and Peter Lee, co-Director of the Centre for Defence, Risk and Resilience at Britain’s University of Portsmouth. Plus, Sophie covers the latest major updates from the region, including Hezbollah’s rejection of the Israel-Lebanon deal as “Satan’s dream” and news of a secret deployment of elite Israeli military units to Azerbaijan.  Highlights Iran’s cheap but deadly drones have reshaped warfare. Can the US catch up?Why everyone from Russia to the US are copying the Shahed CONTRIBUTORS: Sophie O’Sullivan, guest host and producer Ukraine: the Latest Mykola Bielieskov, research fellow at National Institute for Strategic Studies @MBielieskov Peter Lee, professor at the University of Portsmouth Producer: Phil Atkins Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US military is secretly helping ships circumvent Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz along a new route hugging the Omani coast.  Bryan Clark, a former US Navy officer and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, looks at whether this is a solution to the Hormuz crisis that has plagued Donald Trump and the rest of the world since the war began. Plus, Hezbollah accuses Lebanon of “surrendering” after agreeing a deal with Israel. Venetia Rainey and Sophia Yan discuss the latest news, including the significance of the US House passing a war powers resolution to curb further American military activity and the death of British MI6 boss Sir Alex Younger.    Highlights The secret US operation evading Iran’s Strait of Hormuz blockade Israel and Lebanon to use “pilot zones” to push out Hezbollah  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan CONTENT REFERENCED: Sir Alex Younger, long-serving head of MI6 who shaped the service for a ‘fourth generation of espionage’ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2026/06/03/sir-alex-younger-mi6-secret-intelligence-service-edward-sno/ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-03/us-looks-to-unblock-hormuz-with-quiet-version-of-project-freedom The Economist: A former spy chief’s take on intelligence and the Iran war https://www.economist.com/insider/inside-defence/a-former-spy-chiefs-take-on-intelligence-and-the-iran-war Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is Donald Trump waiting until after the World Cup to restart the war with Iran despite the largest attack on the Gulf since the ceasefire began? Violence erupted overnight in the Middle East after the US attacked a ship heading to Iran and Tehran fired missiles and drones at Kuwait and Bahrain. Roland Oliphant looks at the latest news of clashes in the Persian Gulf and speaks to Maziar Bahari, founder of Iran Wire, about why the war is unlikely to erupt until after the World Cup.   One of Iran’s most experienced journalists until he was forced into exile, Bahari’s English and Persian website has become an invaluable source of reliable information for anyone interested following the war. He explains why the Iranian regime is weaker than most think and shares his experiences of being interrogated by IRGC officials who rely on pornography to understand the Western world.   Plus, global health security editor Paul Nuki explains why Israelis can’t ignore Donald Trump’s explosive reported warning to leader Benjamin Netanyahu that the world is starting to hate his country due its military activity. Highlights Iran strikes Kuwait airport after US bombs Qeshm IslandWhy IRGC officers believe the West is just like in porn films CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, chief foreign analyst, @rolandoliphant Maziar Bahari, founder of Iran Wire, @maziarbahari  Paul Nuki, global health security editor, @PaulNuki CONTENT REFERENCED: Paul Nuki: Trump outburst reflects Israel’s sinking popularity in American eyes https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/02/trump-netanyahu-outburst-reflects-israel-unpopularity/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah ruin the US’s attempts to strike a deal with Iran? News today about a fiery, expletive-laden phone call suggests Donald Trump is very upset with Benjamin Netanyahu and has forced him to halt a planned attack on Beirut. Michael Young from the Carnegie Middle East Center think tank joins from the Lebanese capital to take Venetia Rainey and Sophia Yan through the latest news from this active frontline, how Hezbollah has been rearmed by Iran and what it means for the broader war.  Plus, Roland Oliphant gets a rare look inside Iran with Jan Egeland, secretary general of the aid organisation Norwegian Refugee Council, who describes the bombed-out police stations, factories, military posts and homes he has seen first-hand across the country.  Highlights What Trump's angry call with Netanyahu means for the Iran warInside Iran: ‘Bombed-out police stations, factories and military posts’ CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Jan Egeland, NRC secretary-general @NRC_Egeland Michael Young, Carnegie Middle East Center senior editor @BeirutCalling  Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran has pulled out of peace talks to end the war with the US, accusing Israel of breaking the ceasefire by ordering strikes on Beirut.  Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey discuss the latest news, which comes after a series of military escalations over the weekend, including more tit-for-tat bombing between the US and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile in Lebanon, the Israeli army scored a symbolic and strategic victory by capturing Beaufort Castle as part of its expanding offensive in the country’s south, amid fierce fighting with Hezbollah.  Plus, how did Iran become a corrupt mafia state? Iranian journalists Yeganeh Torbati (New York Times) and Bozorgmehr Sharafedin (Iran International) have written a new book on the subject, Stolen Revolution, and join the show to explain why the war is likely to make things even worse.  Highlights Iran quits US talks after Israel orders Beirut strikesPlus: how Iran became a corrupt mafia state CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Yeganeh Torbati, journalist and author of Stolen Revolution @yjtorbati Bozorgmehr Sharafedin, journalist and author of Stolen Revolution @bozorgmehr CONTENT REFERENCED: Kasra Aarabi and Saeid Golkar: The West is ignoring the dangerous new partnership reshaping Iran from within https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/29/shadowy-new-hardline-alliance-reshaping-irans-regime/ Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump says the US is lifting its blockade of Iranian ports and boats in the Strait of Hormuz - does this mean a peace deal is imminent? Plus, Iran famously has two militaries: a regular army, and the IRGC. But Tehran also has a third force: its network of foreign militias in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. They played a key role in the recent war - and no outsider knows them better than Elizabeth Tsurkov. In 2023, while on a research trip to Iraq, the Russian-Israeli PhD student was kidnapped for nearly three years by Kataib Hezbollah, the most powerful of Iran’s Iraqi proxy militias.  Still recovering from the ordeal, she takes Sophia Yan and Roland Oliphant inside the group - and why she was surprised to learn that many of her kidnappers were “idiots”. Plus, she explains how they sustain Iran’s shadow economy, dominate politics in their host counties, and double up as fronts for massive embezzlement schemes.   Highlights Donald Trump lifts US naval blockade on IranElizabeth Tsurkov on being kidnapped by “idiot” Iranian militias in Iraq CONTRIBUTORS: Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent, @sophia_yan  Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Elizabeth Tsurkov, fellow at the New Lines Institute @LizHurra CONTENT REFERENCED: Elizabeth Tsurkov: I Was Kidnapped by Idiots https://www.theatlantic.com/international/2026/01/kidnapped-baghdad/685470/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The United States has for the first time accused Iran of breaching the ceasefire, after Tehran fired a ballistic missile at Kuwait in response to the Americans hitting southern Iran. Washington brushed off previous exchanges of fire as ceasefire compliant, so does the change in rhetoric herald a return to all-out war? The Telegraph’s Lottie Tiplady-Bishop explains why domestic developments in America means Donald Trump is more confident and feeling less pressure to secure a peace deal.  Plus, Alp Toker, the founder of Netblocks, explains what we learned from Iran’s record-setting Internet blackout and what it means for other authoritarian regimes around the world.  Highlights ‘Ceasefire violated’: US fury after Iran targets Kuwait base‘The most intense game of chicken ever’ CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Lottie Tiplady-Bishop, associate US News Editor @lottietipbishop Alp Toker, Netblocks founder @atoker  CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump: We’re not satisfied with Iran deal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/27/iran-war-us-peace-deal-trump-strait-hormuz-latest-lebanon/ US military hits Iranian control centre in fresh strikes https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/28/us-military-strikes-southern-iran-peace-deal/ Terror and trauma under the world’s longest internet blackout https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/27/iran-relief-internet-restoration-weeks-war/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran appears increasingly confident that it will secure a favourable end to the war with the US. From demanding $24bn in frozen assets to publishing what they say is a draft peace deal to restoring the Internet after nearly 90 days, Tehran seems to feel victory both at home and abroad is within its grasp. Foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii joins Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey to discuss the latest news from inside Iran, as well as the significance of one of the country’s biggest exports: pistachios.  Plus, as Israel launches a deadly new phase in its campaign against Hezbollah, UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel joins from Beirut to share her insights on what it’s like working as a peacekeeper in southern Lebanon caught between the two longtime enemies.  Highlights Iran demands $24bn to sign US peace deal - will Trump accept? 'They think the war is over': Why Iran is restoring internet access CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent @akhtar_makoii Kandice Ardiel, UNIFIL spokesperson @hikandice CONTENT REFERENCED: Iran will sign peace deal only if US releases $24bn of frozen assets https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/26/iran-peace-deal-us-release-24bn-frozen-assets/ The $24bn cost of Trump’s capitulation on Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/05/26/trump-us-iran-capitulation/ Akhtar Makoii: Iran’s hardliners are sabotaging their own government’s peace talks https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/26/iran-hardliners-sabotaging-peace-talks/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US says it has bombed Iranian mine-laying ships in the Strait of Hormuz and a missile launch site in southern Iran. Tehran says it has downed American drones. Is the war about to restart? Former Royal Navy officer Tom Sharpe explains what we know about the latest tit-for-tat military activity today and why the timing is unusual. He also gives an inside look at the threat posed by Iran’s newly deployed “ship-smashing” Ghadir mini-submarines, known as the “dolphins of the Persian Gulf”. Plus, Venetia Rainey and Sophia Yan discuss why the signs suggest peace talks are set to continue for now. While Chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair analyses what Donald Trump could get out of a deal - and why he’s making more and more concessions to the Iranian regime each passing week, including over its nuclear programme.  Highlights Clashes in Hormuz as US ‘blows up’ Iranian mine-laying ships Why Donald Trump is chasing a ‘quick and incomplete deal’ CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Tom Sharpe, ex-Royal Navy officer @TomSharpe134 CONTENT REFERENCED: US strikes on Iran threaten fragile ceasefire https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/26/us-strikes-on-iran-threaten-fragile-ceasefire-war/ David Blair: Trump’s latest gambit on Iran is a smokescreen https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/26/trump-latest-gambit-iran-smokescreen/ Tom Sharpe: Iran’s ship-smasher mini subs are loose in Hormuz. I’ve been up against them before https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/18/iran-irin-irgcn-mini-submarines-torpedoes-strait-hormuz/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special bank holiday episode, we’re taking a break from looking at the US-Iran war and focusing instead on tanks.  Since it first appeared on the Somme battlefield, the tank has dominated and defined modern warfare. It has been such a successful concept that its distinctive silhouette - two tracks, a turret and a gun - has barely changed in a hundred years. But can it survive in the century of the drone? Or will the venerable tank go the way of the armoured knight before it?  Hamish de Bretton Gordon, a former commander of the Royal Tank Regiment and the author of a new book on the subject, Tank Command, takes Roland Oliphant through the history of armoured warfare. They discuss why the tank has long been the ultimate instrument of battlefield shock action from World War 1 to the Arab-Israeli war to Ukraine today. Hamish argues that in 100 years from now, armies will still be fielding - and fighting against - tanks. Plus, Hamish shares what it’s like to command a Challenger, his ultimate "petrol-head" tank from history, and the definitive Hollywood film every enthusiast needs to watch. Highlights  Why the lessons of tank development are still hugely relevant todayWhat it’s like to command a Challenger CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, former tank commander @HamishDBG CONTENT REFERENCED: Hamish de Bretton-Gordon’s new book Tank Command is out June 4: https://linktr.ee/TankCommand Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With Iran peace talks deadlocked, US military attention appears to be turning to another longtime enemy: Cuba.  This week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared Cuba a threat to US security. Indictments have been issued against its elderly former president Raúl Castro. Claims about a Cuban drone stockpile aimed at the US have been leaked to the press. The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier has been deployed to the Caribbean. A blockade has been in place for months, leading to mass blackouts.  Carlos Solar, RUSI’s senior research fellow for Latin American security, joins Roland Oliphant to examine whether the United States is creating a pretext for an attack on Cuba. They discuss why things are escalating in the Caribbean and what an attack on the country might look like. Plus, how it is all connected to the war in Iran.  Highlights First Venezuela, then Iran. Is Cuba next on Trump’s hit list?How the Iran war is pushing Cuba’s regime over the edge CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Carlos Solar, RUSI Latin American Security senior fellow @CSolar CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump: deploying aircraft carrier to Caribbean is not meant to intimidate Cuba Rubio: Cuba is a national security threat Cuba is dark, desperate and still deluded Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oil flows will not return to normal until the second half of next year - even if the Strait of Hormuz opens now. That’s the grim prognosis of the UAE’s most senior oil executive. But even if it does open, Iran is implementing a system of tolls that will have long-term implications, both in the Middle East and further afield. International economic editor Hans van Leeuwen tells Roland Oliphant how the ongoing crisis in the Strait of Hormuz is transforming shipping all over the world.  Hans also looks at why India’s leader Narendra Modi is in Europe at the moment trying to drum up deals amid fears the Iran war could impact his country’s superpower trajectory.  Meanwhile, Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu clash over whether to restart active hostilities, Pakistan’s army chief heads to Tehran to coax the regime towards a peace deal, and Iran says it will not give up its Uranium.  Highlights How Iran’s Strait of Hormuz toll could spread worldwideWhy the Iran war is throwing India off its superpower trajectory CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Hans van Leeuwen, international economics editor @hansvan333  CONTENT REFERENCED: How Trump trampled on Modi’s dream of an Indian superpower https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/05/20/how-trump-trampled-on-modis-dream-of-an-indian-superpower/ Iran weaponised world trade and others are following suit https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/05/19/iran-weaponised-world-trade-and-others-are-following-suit/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran has threatened to spread the war beyond the Middle East if Donald Trump starts bombing the country again. Is it an empty threat or should we be worried? Jonathan Hackett, a former US Marine Corps interrogator and special operations intelligence officer, joins the podcast again to discuss the state of Iran’s military capabilities, their Mosaic Doctrine and what next for the war with Venetia Rainey, Sophia Yan and Roland Oliphant. They also discuss reports today that the US wanted to install former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Ali Khamenei’s place, news of secret Israeli bases in the Iraqi desert, and the shady Iran-linked group known as HAYI behind a series of attacks on Jews in London.  Plus, as Vladimir Putin visits Xi Jinping in China, Sophia looks at how the energy crisis caused by the war has boosted Moscow by forcing the UK and US to drop sanctions on Russian oil, and Venetia looks at JD Vance’s latest comments on peace deal talks.  Highlights Iran warns Trump: ‘We’ll take war global if you bomb us again’A US Marine on Iran’s terror war against the West CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Jonathan Hackett, former US Marine Corps @jonathanhackett CONTENT REFERENCED: Akhtar Makoii: Iran’s plan to strike back in second round of war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/19/iran-plan-strike-back-second-round-war/ Badenoch: PM’s sanctions U-turn will fund killing of Ukrainian soldiers https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/20/starmer-eases-sanctions-on-russian-oil/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has postponed his “scheduled” attack on Iran for now, but who is winning the online war between the two countries? America’s military has pumped out videos of air strikes and missile attacks, often spliced in with video game footage and overlaid with high octane music for maximum effect. Meanwhile, Iranian activists have created slick Lego animation videos set to hip hop music. Venetia Rainey chats to information warfare specialist Tal Hagin about which is cutting through more.  They also discuss the rise in AI-driven misinformation, anti-Semitism and desensitisation during the Iran war, from the deadly Minab school attack to Benjamin Netanyahu’s “extra” finger and rumoured death.  Plus, how can Israel deal with the growing Hezbollah drone threat? Lieutenant Colonel Sarit Zehavi, founder of the Alma Center, explains what it’s like living in northern Israel at the moment and why a bigger war with Lebanon would be needed to root out the terror group.  Highlights  America’s Call of Duty vs Iran’s Lego videos: who is winning the online war?Why Israel wants to go deeper into Lebanon to root out Hezbollah CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Tal Hagin, information warfare analyst @talhagin Lt Col. Sarit Zehavi, founder Alma Center @ZehaviAlma Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Executions have soared inside Iran, with new Amnesty data today showing more than 2,000 people were given the death penalty in 2025.   Roland Oliphant speaks to Iranian journalist in exile Maryam Mazrooei about the “bloodthirsty” regime’s latest tactic to scare citizens into silence amid the war with the US and Israel. She also explains why the mood inside the country is increasingly dark amid a growing economic disaster, with mass layoffs and no internet. Plus, the UK has fitted new laser-guided missiles to its Typhoon jets on patrol in the Gulf. Venetia Rainey talks to acting defence editor Tom Cotterill about how they have been designed to talk on Iranian Shahed drones and why they were developed so fast.  Tom also talks about his recent trip to the Falklands, where locals dismissed rumours that the US may drop its backing for British sovereignty over the Islands as punishment for not joining Donald Trump’s war against Iran.  Highlights  Gulf gets new laser-guided missiles to help smash Iranian drones‘Bloodthirsty’ Iran regime executions hit all-time high as economy freefalls CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Tom Cotterill, acting defence editor @TomCotterillX Maryam Mazrooie, journalist @MaryammazrooeiS CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump: There won’t be anything left of Iran if it refuses peace deal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/17/trump-wont-be-anything-left-of-iran-if-refuses-peace-deal/ Typhoon jets equipped with cheaper missiles to fend off Iranian attacks https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/17/typhoon-jets-new-missiles-iran-attacks/ Tom Cotterill: Trump is using us as a pawn, says Falklands chief https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/10/falkland-islands-trump-is-using-us-as-a-pawn/ David Blair: Iran’s regime is confident of victory. It may be overplaying its hand https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/17/irans-regime-confident-of-victory-it-may-overplaying-hand/ Amnesty: Executions surge to highest recorded figure in 44 years https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2026/05/executions-surge-highest-recorded-figure-44-years/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump ended his high stakes trip to China claiming Xi Jinping had promised not to arm Iran, wanted the Strait of Hormuz open, and backed his goal of preventing Tehran getting a nuclear weapon.  But does any of that amount to a change in Chinese policy, and will it do anything to bring the frozen but still rumbling conflict to a close?  Sophia Yan speaks to Andrea Ghiselli, a China-Iran expert who has spent the war in China, about how the conflict is perceived in Beijing. Plus, Roland Oliphant summarises the latest news from the Middle East, including renewed drone strikes in Iraq. Highlights: Trump says that Xi has pledged no military equipment to IranCautious optimism in Lebanon as talks with Israel progress CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent, @sophia_yan  Andrea Ghiselli, China-ME expert and lecturer at the University of Exeter @AGhiselliChina Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As two more ships are attacked in the Strait of Hormuz and the ceasefire in Lebanon nears its end, all eyes are on the high-stakes US-China summit in Beijing. Donald Trump and Xi Jinping say they agree that Iran must not have nuclear weapons and that the Strait must be reopened - but what does that mean in practice?  Ahmed Aboudouh, Associate Fellow for Middle East and North Africa at Chatham House, joins Roland Oliphant and Sophia Yan and explains how Beijing’s complex relationship with Tehran and the Gulf monarchies will inform its approach to the war. Highlights  What Beijing really wants from the Iran crisisThe balancing act between Tehran and the Gulf states CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent, @sophia_yan  Ahmed Aboudouh, Chatham House @AAboudouh CONTENT REFERENCED: China ‘secretly planning to ship arms to Iran’ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/05/13/china-weapons-deal-iran/ China will benefit from the Iran war, regardless of any deal between Trump and Tehran https://www.chathamhouse.org/2026/05/china-will-benefit-iran-war-regardless-any-deal-between-trump-and-tehran  Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Weeks of American and Israeli airstrikes inflicted grievous losses on Iran’s military. Or so we thought.  Now, US intelligence assessments suggest that Iran retains 70 percent of the missiles and launch vehicles it had before the war - including most of the sites threatening the Strait of Hormuz.  Holly Dagres joins Roland Oliphant and Sophia Yan to unpack the implications. She also explains why Iran’s hardliners are unlikely to listen to China’s leader Xi Jinping, have stepped up execution of opponents and alleged spies at home, and are nose-diving the economy with a crippling internet black out. This is the latest from Donald Trump’s war against Iran – which will overshadow his summit later this week with Xi. Highlights  Iran retains 70 percent of its missile arsenalWhy Tehran's hardliners will resist pressure from China CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent, @sophia_yan  Holly Dagres, Washington Institute, @hdagres Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US-Iran ceasefire is on ‘life support,’ says Donald Trump. Iran may enrich Uranium to weapons grade if the war resumes, says its government.  All this sets the stage for Donald Trump’s trip to Beijing this week, where he will ask Xi Jinping for help bringing the war to a satisfactory end. Might the two most powerful men on the planet might find a way to re-open the Strait of Hormuz and end the war? But does China have the leverage to force Iran to act, and would Xi Jinping be willing to use it to help out Donald Trump? Highlights  Can China stop the Iran conflict from spiralling further?What will a successful US-China Summit look like for Trump? CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Allegra Mendelson, Asia Correspondent Dr Alessandro Arduino, RUSI Associate Fellow, International Security CONTENT REFERENCED: Antonia Langford, Putin expands world’s largest drone factory https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/11/putin-expands-worlds-largest-drone-factory/  Benedict Smith, Trump: ceasefire with Iran is on life support https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/11/iran-us-war-latest-tehran-executes-alleged-cia-mossad-spy/ Robert White, UAE ‘carried out secret attacks on Iran’ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/12/uae-secret-attacks-on-iran/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Donald Trump rejects Iran’s rejection of his peace terms, diplomatic efforts to end the war are back where they started. David Blair explains how this leaves Donald Trump with little choice to restart the war - but with little appetite to do so.  And with time running out before the US president heads to China for a high-stake summit with Xi Jinping. Memphis Barker explains how Xi Jinping could help Donald Trump to end the war, why he is unlikely to be terribly helpful, and why some fear the US might sell out Taiwan in exchange for Chinese help.  Highlights  Netanyahu preparing to reengage militarilyCan Xi Jinping help Donald Trump find an off-ramp from the Iran war? CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator, @davidblairdt  Memphis Barker, senior foreign correspondent, @memphisbarker CONTENT REFERENCED: ‘Double-dealing’ Pakistan plots windfall from Iran peacemaker role https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/03/pakistan-takes-centre-stage-in-iran-negotiations/  Trump now has three options. They are all bad https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/06/trump-three-options-all-bad/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US and Iran have traded fire - and blame - in the Strait of Hormuz, is the war about to restart? The ceasefire is looking shakier than ever after America bombed Iranian coastal cities overnight. It said it was a response to Tehran attacking three US destroyers passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Today, Iran has attacked the UAE with drones and missiles. President Donald Trump says the US strikes were just a “love tap”, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi calls it a “reckless military adventure”.  Venetia Rainey is joined by Washington bureau chief Arthur MacMillan to discuss the view from the US following a week of U-turns and uncertainty. He explains why he does not have high expectations of a peace deal being struck before Trump goes to China, what the American public make of the war, and why the US may well pull more troops out of Europe.   Plus, Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin takes listeners inside a Hezbollah tunnel in a dispatch from southern Lebanon, where he reports on Israel’s plan to create a northern buffer zone in the style of Gaza.  Highlights  ‘Love tap’ or ‘reckless adventure’? US and Iran trade fire and blamePlus: a dispatch from inside a Hezbollah tunnel in Lebanon CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Arthur MacMillan, Washington bureau chief @arthurmacmillan Henry Bodkin, Jerusalem correspondent @HenryBodkin CONTENT REFERENCED: Connor Stringer: How Trump’s ‘Project Freedom’ fell apart in one day https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/05/06/us-iran-trump-military-diplomacy-project-freedom/ Henry Bodkin: Inside the tunnels that show Hezbollah doesn’t want peace with Israel https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/07/inside-tunnels-show-hezbollah-doesnt-want-peace-with-israel/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The focus of the US-Iran war rests once again on the Strait of Hormuz, is there any way to get it open again?   Since Donald Trump cancelled Project Freedom, Iran’s chokehold on the vital waterway is as tight as ever. But James Parkin has some ideas. The former Royal Navy rear admiral was in charge of the task force that broke the last attempted IRGC shut down in 2019, and tells Roland Oliphant that the US could do it again - if it really wanted to.  He also explains what it is like fighting the fanatical but talented sailors of the IRGC navy, and why he thinks their claims to have mined the Strait are probably lies.  Plus, The Telegraph’s foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii gives the view from Iran amid growing expectations of an imminent peace deal today, and Venetia Rainey looks at why Israel has suddenly bombed Beirut despite a ceasefire. They also discuss the latest news of extensive damage to American bases in the Gulf and the long-term implications.  Highlights  ‘Trump could reopen Hormuz if he dared, I’ve done it’Retired Royal Navy rear admiral James Parkin speaks out CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent @akhtar_makoii James Parkin, retired Royal Navy rear admiral  CONTENT REFERENCED: Connor Stringer: How Trump’s ‘Project Freedom’ fell apart in one day https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/05/06/us-iran-trump-military-diplomacy-project-freedom/ Henry Bodkin: US and Iran ‘close’ to deal to end war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/06/us-iran-close-deal-end-war-israel-middle-east-hormuz-strait/ Akhtar Makoii: Trump and Mojtaba Khamenei have more in common than they realise https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/06/trump-and-mojtaba-khamenei-have-more-in-common-they-realise/ Washington Post: Iran has hit far more U.S. military assets than reported, satellite images show https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2026/05/06/iran-us-bases-satellite-images/ NBC: Trump’s abrupt U-turn on a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz came after backlash from allies https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/trumps-abrupt-u-turn-plan-re-open-strait-hormuz-came-backlash-allies-rcna343845 Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is America’s Operation Epic Fury really over? Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the US’s military campaign against the Iranian regime has finished, and there are growing reports of a US-Iran peace deal in the offing. Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant break down the top three news stories you need to know today, from why Donald Trump has ended Project Freedom in the Strait of Hormuz to the importance of talks between Iran and China.  Plus, did a spat over the Iran war prompt Trump to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany last week? Berlin correspondent James Rothwell explains the significance of America’s significant troop presence in the country and why America’s pull-out is fuelling speculation that Nato is well and truly over.  Highlights  The end of Operation Epic Fury amid growing talks of a peace dealWhy Trump has pulled troops from Germany following Iran war spat CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant James Rothwell, Berlin correspondent @JamesERothwell CONTENT REFERENCED: David Blair: Trump now has three options. They are all bad https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/06/trump-three-options-all-bad/ Akhtar Makoii: Trump and Mojtaba Khamenei have more in common than they realise https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/06/trump-and-mojtaba-khamenei-have-more-in-common-they-realise/ Donald Tusk: Nato is disintegrating https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/05/02/donald-tusk-nato-is-disintegrating/ Why the US cannot fight another war after Iran without China’s help https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/30/us-cannot-fight-another-war-after-iran-without-china-help/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the US-Iran war about to restart amid escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz? Donald Trump has launched Project Freedom - a US Navy mission to break the Iranian blockade imposed since the beginning of the war. However, while the White House has framed the escort of neutral vessels as a “humanitarian gesture”, Tehran sees it as an escalation. Iran has fired missiles and drones at ships and an oil port in the UAE, and today says it is “just getting started”.  Roland Oliphant and chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair discuss the latest updates and why both sides are now likely locked in a downward spiral, putting us “one step” away from renewed all-out fighting.  Plus, former US Navy submariner Bryan Clark, director of the Center for Defense Concepts and Technology at the Hudson Institute, explains why America must put more force into the Strait of Hormuz if it wants to win against a patient enemy like Iran. He also talks through Iran’s remaining naval capabilities, from midget subs to fast boats.  Highlights Why Trump’s Project Freedom will fail without more forceAn ex-US Navy submariner on what it will take to reopen the Strait of Hormuz CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Bryan Clark, senior fellow Hudson Institute @clarkdefense CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump has finally realised he must seize the Strait of Hormuz https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/04/trump-finally-realised-seize-the-strait-of-hormuz/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Within living memory, Tehran ruled an oil-rich great power brimming with intellectuals inspired by British democracy. So how did it become an impoverished rogue state at war with the West? In this special Bank Holiday edition, Ali Ansari, professor of Iranian history at the University of St Andrews, takes Roland Oliphant through Iran's tumultuous modern era: from the 1906 Constitutional Revolution and the 1953 coup, to the 1979 ousting of the shah and the 2026 US assassination of Ali Khamenei. From the blunders of the unlikely "midwife" of the modern Iranian state - Great Britain - to the catastrophic decisions of successive Supreme Leaders after the founding of the Islamic Republic, he charts the course that shaped the country Donald Trump is fighting today.  How do the myths overshadow the facts of the CIA's 1953 coup and the Iran-Iraq war? Why is the regime so obsessed with enriching uranium and fighting Israel and America? And is the UK guilty of betraying Iranian dreams of democracy? Plus, how the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company brought association football to Tehran.  Highlights  Oil, revolution and ayatollahs: how Iran went from great power to rogue state Professor Ali Ansari explains 20th-century Iranian history CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Ali Ansari, professor University of St Andrews @aa51_ansari CONTENT REFERENCED: Part 1: ‘Iran thinks it’s still a great power’: Why the regime won’t surrender https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/03/why-the-iranian-regime-wont-surrender-ali-ansari/ Producer: Max Bower Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump faces a critical decision as the Iran war drifts into a stalemate: double down on military force or hope the US blockade will break the deadlock.   Amid a deadline today for Trump to get Congress’ approval for further military operations under the War Powers Act, new reports suggest the Pentagon has requested the deployment of America’s Dark Eagle hypersonic missiles to the Middle East. Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant discuss the latest updates from the region.  Plus, what is Russia’s role in the Iran war? Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’s Iran program, explains how Moscow has supported Tehran and is using it as a “pawn” in the broader fight against the West. He also analyses the significance of the viral Iranian Lego propaganda videos and Mojtaba Khamanei’s latest statement.  Highlights  US 'could deploy hypersonic missiles' to Middle EastHow Russia is supporting Iran to fight the West CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Behnam Ben Taleblu, Foundation for Defense of Democracies @therealBehnamBT CONTENT REFERENCED: US asks to move Dark Eagle hypersonic missiles towards Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/30/us-asks-to-move-dark-eagle-hypersonic-missiles-towards-iran/ 1,000 targets a day in Iran: How AI is accelerating war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/01/1000-targets-day-how-ai-accelerating-america-iran-war/ Maven: the AI system helping the US bomb Iran https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdHYDGHN5rQ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The UK is in shock after an Iran-linked Islamist group claimed yet another attack on Jews in London.  In the wake of the Golders Green stabbing attack, national security editor Rozina Sabur looks at what we know about the shadowy online group known as Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (HAYI) and its links to the Iranian regime.  Plus, as Donald Trump weighs whether to take further military action against Iran or in the Strait of Hormuz, Samuel Olsen, chief analyst at risk and intelligence firm Sibylline, explains that the conflict has further indebted the US to China. Why? Beijing’s near-total dominance of the supply chain of rare earths and critical minerals, which every bit of modern military kit requires. Trump’s upcoming visit to Beijing to meet Xi Jinping is likely to centre on this issue - as well as Taiwan.  Elsewhere, Venetia Rainey and Sophia Yan analyse what we learned from Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth’s first under-oath testimony on the war and why the ceasefire seems to be holding everywhere apart from Iraq.  Highlights Why the US cannot rearm post-Iran war without China Rozina Sabur on the Iran-linked group claiming to be behind the Golders Green attack CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Samuel Olsen, chief analyst Sibylline @samolsenx CONTENT REFERENCED: Project Vault: Trump’s battle to break China’s critical mineral stranglehold https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/02/09/project-vault-trumps-battle-to-break-chinas-mineral-strangl/ China just proved it can cripple the US military in days. Now Trump is furious https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/10/20/china-just-proved-it-can-cripple-the-us-military-in-days-no/ The Iranian sleeper cell bringing terror to Europe https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/23/iranian-sleeper-cell-islamic-movement-companions-synagogue/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From the Strait of Hormuz to Lebanon, the Iran war has seen the West’s foes adopt asymmetric warfare with growing efficacy.  Fresh off the boat from the Omani side of the Strait, Adrian Blomfield joins Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant. He explains how being out on the busy, misty and historic waterway helped him to understand why it is almost impossible for the US to counter Iran’s so-called “mosquito” fleet of fast boats. Meanwhile, Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin discusses the growing threat posed by Hezbollah as it adopts Ukrainian drone tactics to fight Israeli troops in southern Lebanon. He talks through a particularly worrying video showing the terror group flying a fibre-optic first-person view (FPV) drone at a medivac helicopter.  Plus, Venetia and Roland run through the latest updates from today, including Donald Trump’s new threat to Iran and bad signs from the Iranian economy.  Highlights:  Adrian Blomfield on his trip to the Strait of HormuzHenry Bodkin on the growing threat posed by Hezbollah as it adopts Ukrainian drone tactics CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Adrian Blomfield, senior foreign correspondent @adrianblomfield Henry Bodkin, Jerusalem correspondent @HenryBodkin CONTENT REFERENCED: Hezbollah attacks Israeli military helicopter with fibre optic drones https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/28/hezbollah-attack-israeli-idf-helicopter-fibre-optic-drones/ Adrian Blomfield: Here in the Strait, Iran’s mosquito fleet renders Trump blockade futile https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/28/strait-of-hormuz-irans-mosquito-fleet-winning-blockade/ Akhtar Makoii: Iran’s cost of living is out of control as Trump’s blockade takes hold https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/29/irans-cost-of-living-trump-blockade/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran’s regime is facing an existential crisis prompted by the US-Israeli war.  Despite taking a military battering and the economy being in ruins, Tehran refuses to surrender to Donald Trump. Historian Arash Azizi takes Roland Oliphant and Sophia Yan inside the clash between the regime establishment and the ultra-hardliners who fear their vision of the Islamic Republic will not survive peace.   He explains why the country’s powerful, IRGC-linked chief negotiator Mohammad Ghalibaf is increasingly being attacked in Iranian media and the dilemma facing the Islamic Republic as it looks to make a deal without surrendering the anti-American dogmatism that revolutionaries hold so dear.  Plus, senior foreign correspondent Adrian Blomfeld reports from the Strait of Hormuz and Sophia and Roland discuss the significance of the UAE pulling out of OPEC.  Highlights Arash Azizi on why Iran’s hardliners are a “bunch of losers with no power”How the Iranian regime is facing a choice between reform and destruction  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host @rolandoliphant Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophiacyan  Arash Azizi, author and historian Yale University @arash_tehran  CONTENT REFERENCED: Adrian Blomfield: Here in the Strait, Iran’s mosquito fleet renders Trump blockade futile https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/28/strait-of-hormuz-irans-mosquito-fleet-winning-blockade/ Robert White, Iona Cleave: Trump ‘unlikely to accept’ Iran’s Hormuz deal https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/28/iran-war-live-trump-peace-talks-hormuz-strikes-lebanon/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US has severely depleted key munitions in the Iran war - and it’s already having global consequences.  From delayed deliveries to allies such as Japan, South Korea and Ukraine, to a knockon impact on any future wars - such as a potential conflict with China over Taiwan - new analysis of America’s strategic stockpiles do not make for comfortable reading. Venetia Rainey talks to Mark Cancian and Chris Park from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) about what’s running low, why and what impact it will have.  Plus, will Donald Trump strike a deal with Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz instead of prioritising a nuclear agreement?  That’s what Tehran is reportedly proposing today, but as veteran US diplomat David Satterfield explains, that comes with its own problems. With Iran playing the long-game in an asymmetric war, the former ambassador says Trump does not have many good options available.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey David Satterfield, former US diplomat and director of Baker Institute for Public Policy Mark Cancian, senior fellow CSIS @MarkCancian Chris Park, research associate CSIS @chrhspark CONTENT REFERENCED: Last Rounds? Status of Key Munitions at the Iran War Ceasefire https://www.csis.org/analysis/last-rounds-status-key-munitions-iran-war-ceasefire Producer: Elliot Lampitt Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US-Iran ceasefire has limped into its third week, but can stuttering peace talks deliver a deal before war resumes?  Roland Oliphant is joined by Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House, to discuss the latest news and updates, including what Mojtaba Khamanei’s reported injuries tell us about the balance of power in Tehran.  She also explains why the normally factional Iranian regime is united in its need to end the war, and how Donald Trump’s attempt to drive a wedge between “moderates” and “hardliners” is likely to fail. Plus, international economics editor Hans van Leeuwen explains why the world has been watching the wrong oil price - and how the global impact of the war could be worse than we thought.  Highlights  Why time is not on Trump’s side in the Iran warMojtaba Khamenei’s injuries and what they say about the Iranian regime CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Hans van Leeuwen, International economics editor @hansvan333 Sanam Vakil, MENA programme director Chatham House @SanamVakil CONTENT REFERENCED: Hans van Leeuwen: The world is watching the wrong oil price Producer: Elliot Lampitt Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What will it take to protect the Strait of Hormuz from Iran’s sea mines and fast boats? With Tehran now charging extortionate tolls, attacking commercial ships who do not get permission to transit and reportedly laying around 20 sea mines, the vital waterway has become a living nightmare. President Donald Trump today told the US Navy to fire on any boats laying mines, but with Pentagon estimates that it will take six months to mine-sweep the Strait, is that enough?  To discuss the problem, Venetia Rainey is joined by Emma Salisbury, an Associate Fellow at the Royal Navy Strategic Studies Centre. Emma explains how American minesweeping capabilities became so heavily degraded, why Iran’s non-conventional navy remains so effective and hard to destroy, and the maritime signs that Trump may be considering a return to all-out war.  Plus, senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan talks through the latest news and updates from the region, including the status of the US-Iran ceasefire, reports that America is running out of munitions, and the Lebanon-Israel peace talks to disarm Hezbollah.  Highlights:  Why it would take the US six months to minesweep the Strait of Hormuz - in peacetimeSophia Yan on how the Iran war became a game of chicken CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Emma Salisbury, associate fellow Royal Navy Strategic Studies Centre @salisbot CONTENT REFERENCED: The Mine Gap: America Forgot How to Sweep the Sea Iranian shadow fleet tankers break through US blockade Trump has eight days to make up his mind on Iran Last Rounds? Status of Key Munitions at the Iran War Ceasefire Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Instead of peace talks today, the US-Iran ceasefire is on the brink of collapsing and the Strait of Hormuz is heating up.  Despite the two-week deadline expiring today, JD Vance never boarded a plane to Pakistan for negotiations and neither did anyone from Iran. Instead, Donald Trump has extended the ceasefire indefinitely and the IRGC has today attacked several more international ships. Is the war about to restart? Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant are joined by chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair and foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii to discuss the latest news, decode the signals from each side and explain what might happen next.  Plus, Roland chats to Richard Mead, editor-in-chief of the maritime industry bible Lloyd's List, about the wider implications of the Strait of Hormuz being in “utter chaos”, how ships are increasingly going dark to avoid detection, and China’s role in everything.  Highlights David Blair and Akhtar Makoii discuss whether the Iran war will restartWhy the Strait of Hormuz being in “utter chaos” matters for everyone CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent @akhtar_makoii CONTENT REFERENCED: Connor Stringer: ‘It’s all a giant clusterf---’: Inside Trump’s floundering Iran peace process Akhtar Makoii: Iran’s real negotiator is staring Trump down from the shadows David Blair: Trump’s flip-flopping will only embolden Iran to harden its demands Hormuz chaos shows Iran is too fractured to speak with one voice Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can the US and Iran strike a last-minute nuclear deal to end the war? With the two-week ceasefire deadline expiring on Wednesday, peace talks are tentatively set to go ahead in Pakistan between US Vice President JD Vance and an Iranian delegation led by Mohammad Ghalibaf. Donald Trump has threatened to resume bombing if negotiations fail, but a major stumbling block remains: Iran’s nuclear programme.  Washington wants Tehran to end all advanced uranium enrichment and give up its 450kg of “nuclear dust” that is currently buried under rubble. Rafael Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, tells foreign editor Louis Emanuel that without proper verification on the ground, any agreement will be an “illusion”.  Meanwhile, senior foreign correspondent Memphis Barker explains how the "ghost" of the previous Iran nuclear agreement - Barack Obama's 2015 JCPOA - looms large over everything. Can Trump strike a better deal now than the one he tore up in 2018? Plus, Roland Oliphant runs through the latest updates and news from across the region, including what is going on in the Strait of Hormuz and some clarity on when the ceasefire actually ends.   Highlights: Rafael Grossi, head of the IAEA, on why a nuclear deal with Iran is tricky but doableWhy the ghost of Obama’s 2015 Iran nuclear deal looms over peace talks CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Memphis Barker, senior foreign correspondent @memphisbarker Louis Emanuel, foreign editor @louisjemanuel Rafael Grossi, director general IAEA @rafaelmgrossi CONTENT REFERENCED: Exclusive interview: World faces new nuclear arms race Why Obama’s Iran nuclear deal looms large over Trump’s negotiations Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will the weekend showdown in the Strait of Hormuz collapse the US-Iran ceasefire? After Iran opened and then closed the Strait, attacked an Indian tanker and turned around ships, Donald Trump ordered the seizure of a sanctioned Iranian vessel that was attempting to pass through the US blockade. What followed was a new first for the war: shots fired at the Iranian container ship’s engine and the whole vessel taken into custody.  Retired Royal Navy commodore Steve Prest looks at how such seizures normally happen, the tricky question of what will happen to the vessel now and the long-term prospects of the Strait of Hormuz being reopened for global trade.  Plus, with the deadline for ceasefire talks in Pakistan fast approaching, Venetia Rainey looks at the signs today that talks may go ahead on Tuesday despite Iranian denials. She also explains the latest updates from Lebanon, where Hezbollah killed two Israeli soldiers over the weekend.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Steve Prest, ex-Royal Navy commodore @fightingsailor CONTENT REFERENCED: Akhtar Makoii: Hormuz chaos shows Iran is too fractured to speak with one voice ‘Vacate your engine room’: US Navy warns Iran ship before firing You’re firing, let me turn back: Panicked sailor pleads with Iranian attackers Israeli soldier smashes Jesus statue in face with sledgehammer Times of Israel: 26 years later, IDF restores its south Lebanon security zone — with key changes Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is Iran giving up its enriched uranium? US President Donald Trump says Tehran has agreed to hand over all of its “nuclear dust” - a potentially huge concession in the war. Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant discuss why this would be so significant and what might have been offered to Iran in return. They also discuss what this means for US-Iran peace talks and the latest updates from the Strait of Hormuz after Tehran said it was “completely open”.  Plus, as the separate Israel-Lebanon ceasefire comes into force today, The Telegraph’s Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin and AP’s Beirut correspondent Kareem Chehayeb look at the prospect of it lasting. Kareem explains why disarming Hezbollah is desirable for many Lebanese but difficult, while Henry analyses why Israelis are feeling dejected and pessimistic about all fronts of the war.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Henry Bodkin, Jerusalem correspondent @HenryBodkin Kareem Chehayeb, AP Beirut correspondent @chehayebk CONTENT REFERENCED: Lebanon can’t expel one Iranian. So how will it disarm Hezbollah? Lebanon peace deal in full – and how it could unravel Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today’s episode, Donald Trump wrangles the leaders of Israel and Lebanon into their first direct talks in decades. Ending the fighting in Lebanon would bring the White House’s “grand bargain” peace deal with Iran itself a step closer. But on the ground, Israel’s offensive against Hezbollah rages unabated.  While the ceasefire In Iran itself is holding, the war is remaking the political map of Europe. James Crisp, the Telegraph’s Europe editor, explains how the conflict has turned Donald Trump from populist inspiration to an electoral kiss of death for the European right, and asks whether Iran’s attempts to manipulate Western voters with Lego propaganda videos is paying off. CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant James Crisp, Europe editor,  CONTENT REFERENCED:   Starmer and Macron to cut Trump out of Hormuz patrols Meloni-Trump love-in falls apart as a political affair comes to an end How Trump’s ‘toxic’ Iran war broke the European Right Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With a tenuous ceasefire hanging in the balance, Vice President of the United States JD Vance has come out offering a ‘grand bargain’ with Iran, signalling a possible reset of ties with the Islamic Republic. Is this a shift in position? Or is it postponing the inevitable reckoning? The Telegraph's Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator David Blair gives us his take on the chances of diplomacy breaking the deadlock. Plus, Venetia Rainey talks to former Mossad analyst Sima Shine and asks what role Israel played in launching the war in the first place, and whether Netanyahu would prefer the ceasefire to fail? CONTRIBUTORS: Sophie O'Sullivan, cover-host David Blair, Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator @davidblairdt Venetia Rainey, co-host Sima Shine, a senior researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

America's naval blockade of Iran is meant to choke Tehran into lifting its own restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz, but will it work and can it be enforced? Former Royal Navy Commander Tom Sharpe joins Roland Oliphant to explain the operational challenges.  The first day of the maritime siege has drawn vocal condemnation from  Beijing, in the latest sign of growing Chinese involvement in the crisis. Chinese officials were key to persuading Iran to accept the ceasefire. There are claims that Chinese weapons are on their way to re-stock Iranian air defences. Telegraph Asia Correspondent Allegra Mendelson explains China's role in Iran, what it wants from the war, and what would happen if an American warship dared to board a Chinese freighter.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Tom Sharpe, former Royal Navy Commander and Telegraph columnist @TomSharpe134 Allegra Mendelson, Asia correspondent @amendelson_ CONTENT REFERENCED: Connor Stringer and Allegra Menedelson: How China helped seal Trump’s 11th hour Iran truce Tom Sharpe: Trump’s blockade on a blockade is possible That doesn’t mean its a good idea Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could Donald Trump’s naval blockade break Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz? As the shaky ceasefire between the US, Israel and Iran continues to hold despite failed peace talks over the weekend, Washington is trying a new tack to end the war: barring Iran’s use of its ports. With the US Navy enforcing a blockade of the Strait as of today, Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant are joined by senior foreign correspondent Adrian Blomfield in Oman to discuss whether it could work.  Adrian also looks at the reasons behind the failure of US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad, Pakistan over the weekend and why there are still hopes that something positive will come of it.  Plus, Venetia and Roland discuss the latest news updates from the region, including talks between Lebanon and Israel and Trump’s spat with the Pope.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Adrian Blomfield, senior foreign correspondent @adrianblomfield CONTENT REFERENCED: Connor Stringer: 21 hours, a dozen calls to Trump and no deal – how the peace talks fell apart Adrian Blomfield: The strategic deadlock now facing Trump and Iran Battle Lines: How MAGA Catholics won the White House Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can the US and Iran broker a peace deal while Israel and Hezbollah continue fighting? All eyes are on Pakistan this weekend as US Vice President JD Vance flies to Islamabad to meet with Tehran’s negotiating team, led by Parliament speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf. But with disagreement over whether the ceasefire applies to Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz still closed, it’s not clear what progress will be made.  Meanwhile, Donald Trump is pressuring Nato to come up with a solution to the Strait - and fast. Venetia Rainey talks through the latest updates and news from across the region today.  Plus, could this ceasefire be a tactical pause to allow US forces to regroup? If you want to know America’s real intentions in the coming weeks, just watch the cargo and refuelling planes, says ex-British Army officer Robert Campbell.  He also reflects on his experiences serving in the Israeli army in southern Lebanon during the 1990s and explains why there is “no quick fix” to get rid of Hezbollah.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Robert Campbell, former British Army officer  CONTENT REFERENCED: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/04/10/why-the-tehran-tollbooth-will-never-work/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/09/netanyahu-fails-to-deliver-new-reality-promised-israel-iran/ Producer: Max Bower Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Listen to Iran: The Latest: YOUTUBE | APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | AMAZON Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will Israel’s war to eliminate Hezbollah in Lebanon collapse the fragile US-Iran ceasefire? Tehran has accused Israel of violating the terms of its deal with Donald Trump by launching a massive military operation against its Lebanese proxy on Wednesday afternoon, killing more than 250 people with strikes on more than 100 targets in the space of 10 minutes. Today, Hezbollah has responded by firing a barrage of rockets at northern Israel.  Iran and Europe want Lebanon to be included in the ceasefire, but Israel and the US say it’s a separate theatre of the war. Venetia Rainey talks through the latest updates and what it could mean for the upcoming peace talks in Pakistan.  Plus, as Keir Starmer tours the Gulf, countries in the normally stable region are reeling from more than 40 days of war.  Qatar-based IISS research fellow Sascha Bruchmann and Bahraini political consultant Ahmed Alkhuzaie discuss the Gulf’s scepticism of the ceasefire, why a counter-force in the Strait of Hormuz is essential, and how Ukraine is helping tackle the Iranian drone threat.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Ahmed Alkhuzaie, Bahraini political consultant @AhmedAlkhuzaie Sascha Bruchmann, IISS research fellow  Producer: Max Bower Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Listen to Iran: The Latest: YOUTUBE | APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | AMAZON Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is this the end of the Iran war?  Donald Trump has announced a two-week ceasefire deal after 40 days of fighting, with peace talks mediated by Pakistan set to go ahead this Friday. Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth today said the US had achieved a “historic and overwhelming victory on the battlefield”. But many questions remain unanswered. Will the ceasefire turn into a lasting peace? What guarantees and concessions have been offered by each side? Will the Strait of Hormuz ever be fully open again? And why is Israel still attacking Lebanon?  Venetia Rainey is joined by chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair and foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii to discuss the latest news and what it could mean for the region in the weeks and months ahead.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent @akhtar_makoii CONTENT REFERENCED: David Blair: Trump’s ceasefire threatens to hand Iran a critical advantage Akhtar Makoii: Trump will never be able to wipe out my civilisation New York Times: How Trump Took the U.S. to War With Iran Producer: Max Bower Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Listen to Iran: The Latest: YOUTUBE | APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | AMAZON Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What will happen after Donald Trump’s midnight deadline for Iran to strike a deal?  The US president has issued a series of increasingly hardline threats to Tehran to force it sue for peace and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, from the complete demolition of all of its bridges and power plants to destroying its entire civilisation. Venetia Rainey is joined by senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan to discuss Trump’s latest ultimatum, the frantic peace talks underway to avoid further escalation, and the possible impact on Iranians of such a widespread campaign of destruction.  Plus, they discuss China’s fuel shipments to the Iranian regime, the fallout from the latest attacks on the Gulf, and how Israel’s invasion of southern Lebanon is heightening sectarian tensions among local communities. CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan CONTENT REFERENCED: Akhtar Makoii: How Trump is turning Iran into a full military dictatorship Adrian Blomfield: Ceasefire remains unlikely while both Iran and the US think they’re winning Producer: Max Bower Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did America manage to rescue two airmen after their plane was shot down over Iran? In this bonus bank holiday episode, Venetia Rainey is joined by Jack Murphy, ex-US special forces who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, including as a Green Beret. He is now a journalist and military commentator and hosts The Team House national security podcast. He broke the story that the weapons systems officer (WSO) from the downed F-15E had been rescued alive after 36 hours stranded behind enemy lines. Jack provides a unique insight into the dramatic double rescue mission - already being described as the most complex in American military history. He explains the initial search and rescue (CSAR) efforts, what the WSO would have been doing to survive on the ground, and why the US abandoned and blew up two multimillion-dollar aircraft at a remote desert airstrip. Plus: what role is AI playing in the Iran war and beyond, in battlefields from Ukraine to Gaza?  The US military increasingly relies on an AI decision support system called Maven to help with targeting, intelligence assessments and troop deployments. Israel and Ukraine use similar technology. Proponents of artificial intelligence argue it makes warfare faster and more efficient - giving the West a key battlefield advantage in a time of rising conflict.  But critics say there are concerns over safety and low accuracy, and worry humans are increasingly being left out of the loop. Some of these concerns come from industry insiders such as AI company Anthropic, which is in a dispute with the Pentagon over the use of its system Claude for autonomous weapons.  Venetia Rainey is joined by Adam Wishart, the filmmaker behind new Channel 4 documentary, Click to Kill: the AI War Machine, and Heidy Khlaaf, chief AI scientist at the AI Now Institute and previously at OpenAI.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Jack Murphy, ex-special forces and host The Team House @JackMurphyRGR Heidy Khlaaf, chief AI scientist AI Now Institute @HeidyKhlaaf Adam Wishart, director Click to Kill: the AI War Machine @adam_wishart CONTENT REFERENCED: Click to Kill: the AI War Machine on Channel 4  Producer: Rachel Porter Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why hasn’t the Iranian regime surrendered yet? The Islamic Republic is at the centre of a war sending shock waves around the world, and despite being pummelled by the US and Israel, it remains defiant. The explanation lies in the country's ancient history and myths, which still permeate modern Iranian politics today.   For this special Easter edition, Ali Ansari, professor of Iranian history at the University of St Andrews, joins Roland Oliphant to take us all the way back to the empire of Cyrus the Great and the legendary heroes of Persian literature on a quest for the origins of the country. Who are Iranians? Why do they think of themselves as a great power that can rival the West? And how has their long history shaped the regime at war with Donald Trump today? Ansari explains how Iran is not as Islamic as the ayatollahs make out, why Iran adopted Shia rather than Sunni Islam, and how history and myth are used by both the regime and its opponents. Plus, perhaps most importantly, why the ancient Persians loved a drink. CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Ali Ansari, professor University of St Andrews @aa51_ansari Pic credit: The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949 Producer: Rachel Porter Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could US amphibious troops re-open the Strait of Hormuz?  In his first major speech on the Iran war, Donald Trump said America is on course to finish its military campaign in the next three weeks. But to do so, he will have to find solutions to both the Strait, and Iran's remaining stockpile of enriched uranium. To discuss, Roland Oliphant is joined from Saudi Arabia by Andrew Milburn, a former US Marine Corps colonel and ex-deputy Commander of Special Operations Command Central (CENTCOM), the headquarters responsible for all American special operations in the Middle East. He explains what operations the Marines could undertake in the Strait, why a potential plan to seize Iran’s uranium is do-able but dangerous, and why some in the Gulf are worried there could be a premature ceasefire.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Andrew Milburn, former US Marine Corps colonel and co-host of Eyes-On @andymilburn8 Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could the UAE help solve the Strait of Hormuz stalemate caused by the Iran war? The US is growing increasingly angry with its allies for refusing to help fully reopen the blocked waterway, which has led to soaring oil prices and dire economic warnings. From President Donald Trump threatening to pull out of Nato (a Telegraph exclusive) to Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth lambasting the UK, Washington’s ire is palpable.  Venetia Rainey runs through the latest updates from the Middle East, including Trump’s claim ahead of his big speech tonight that Iran has asked for a ceasefire, and a potentially game-changing report that the UAE is pushing for a coalition to help reopen the Strait by force.  Plus, Roland Oliphant and senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan speak to Iranian-American analyst and author of the Iranist newsletter, Holly Dagres. She explains why there haven’t been more protests and how the Islamic Republic is becoming a “zombie regime”.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Holly Dagres, Washington Institute analyst @hdagres CONTENT REFERENCED: Roland Oliphant: The four outcomes if Trump surrenders the Strait of Hormuz to Iran Trump interview: I am strongly considering pulling out of Nato Iona Cleave: Iranian fortress at the centre of the battle for Hormuz Akhtar Makoii: How Iran plans to fight US troops if Trump invades Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After one month of the US-Iran war, who is winning and who is losing? Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey step back to examine how much of US President Donald Trump’s original war goals have been achieved, from destroying Iran’s missiles, navy and regional proxies to regime change and preventing the development of nuclear weapons.  They also look at the role of Israel, the impact of attacks on the Gulf and the global economic shock caused by Iran’s closure of the vital waterway, the Strait of Hormuz.  Plus, they discuss the depletion of global munition stocks after a month of air strikes, how the conflict has further frayed the Western alliance and what all that means for Ukraine and Russia.  If you’ve been struggling to keep up with the latest news from the Middle East conflict, this is an update and analysis of everything you need to know from March 2026.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey CONTENT REFERENCED: Why tens of millions face hunger and poverty in wake of Trump’s Iran war American troops forced to withdraw from Middle East bases RUSI: Over 11,000 munitions in 16 Days of the Iran War: ‘Command of the Reload’ Governs Endurance Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the US about to invade Iran?  Warship USS Tripoli has arrived in the Middle East with thousands of fresh troops, and the USS Boxer is not far behind - but Iran has vowed to “rain fire” on any American troops who set foot on its territory. Meanwhile, Trump is said to be considering taking Kharg Island and has been claiming regime change has already happened.  Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant discuss all the latest updates, along with the impact on the price of oil and Israel expanding its offensive in southern Lebanon. Yemen expert and University of Cambridge mistress Elisabeth Kendall explains why the Houthis joining the war is so significant and how they could turn things into a “nightmare”.  Plus, a glimpse into daily life on the ground in Tehran. Norwegian Refugee Council’s Iran director, Martje van Raamsdonk, joins from the Iranian capital to talk about how bombing has intensified in recent days, prompting residents to tape up their windows, and growing fears and uncertainty amid talks of a US invasion.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Elisabeth Kendall, president of Girton College, @Dr_E_Kendall Martje van Raamsdonk, Norwegian Refugee Council’s Iran director CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump needs troops to seize the Strait of Hormuz. These are his options ‘Gate of Tears’ could be a strait too far for Trump’s military Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has already pushed up oil prices. But is a bigger global economic disruption yet to come? And how long will it last? The Telegraph’s World Economy Editor Ambrose Evans-Pritchard joins Roland Oliphant to explain why the Iran conflict is sending shock waves around the world - and not just in the oil market.  From fertiliser to helium to sulphur, the block on shipping through the Strait carries other key commodities used by the tech industry, hospitals and farmers. Ambrose explains how the war will almost certainly cause a global food shock in 2027.  They also discuss how Russia and China are benefitting from the Iran war and why the Houthis in Yemen remain the dog that hasn’t barked - but could make things even worse than they are now. Plus, Roland Oliphant and senior foreign correspondent Sohia Yan analyse the latest news from the Iran war, including Donald Trump’s ongoing attempts at peace talks with Tehran, the US Navy’s first ever use of unmanned surface boats and why AP is now calling Israel’s attack on Lebanon an invasion.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, world economy editor  CONTENT REFERENCED: Roland Oliphant: Trump needs troops to seize the Strait of Hormuz. These are his options Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: China has already won the Gulf War Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: The longer Trump’s war drags on, the worse the coming global food crisis Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will Israel’s assassination of the IRGC’s naval chief lead to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz? Hosts Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey analyse the latest news from the Iran war, from the killing of navy commander Alireza Tangsiri to Donald Trump’s claim that Tehran is “begging” for a deal.  With thousands of US troops en route to the Middle East, the stakes are high. Among them are the 82nd Airborne Division; acting Defence Editor Tom Cotterill explains what sort of missions this elite group of paratroopers might be able to execute. Plus, former UK ambassador to Iran Sir Richard Dalton gives his insights into why striking a deal with the regime will be so difficult and how he thinks the war is based on a lie around Tehran’s nuclear capabilities.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Tom Cotterill, acting Defence Editor @TomCotterillX Sir Richard Dalton, UK’s former ambassador to Iran CONTENT REFERENCED: What 2,000 US paratroopers could do in Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/25/what-2000-us-paratroopers-could-do-iran-war-america-trump/ Trump denies it – but two wars are becoming one https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/26/converging-wars-leave-europe-panicked-and-putin-emboldened/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has set out a 15-point Iran peace plan, but is he serious about ending the war? With news that another 2,000 elite American troops are en route to the Middle East, Tehran has its doubts - particularly as they’ve been here twice before with Trump.  The Telegraph’s senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan joins Venetia Rainey to talk through how realistic the proposal is and how it’s being viewed in Iran. They also discuss Turkey’s role as a potential mediator and the impact of the conflict on China.  From the Telegraph’s US bureau, editor Lottie Tiplady-Bishop explains why Vice President JD Vance is now involved in peace negotiations and how boots on the ground is a red line for Trump’s MAGA base.  Plus, how is the Iran war being viewed by ordinary Americans? Reporter Natasha Leake takes the temperature on the streets of Washington DC. CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan Lottie Tiplady-Bishop, associate US news editor @lottietipbishop Natasha Leake, US reporter @NatashaLeake CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump hands Iran 15-point plan to end war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/25/donald-trump-iran-war-15-point-plan-nuclear-missile/ ‘Where the hell is JD Vance?’: Why Trump’s VP is missing in action https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/politics/2026/03/10/jd-vance-trump-iran-war-missing/ JD Vance met with Trump security official who quit over Iran war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/politics/2026/03/18/jd-vance-met-joe-kent-quit-iran/ Donald Trump said he would be the president of peace https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/20/trump-promised-peace-then-he-started-war/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After four weeks of war with Iran, is Donald Trump calling it quits?  The US president claims he is in advanced talks with a highly placed regime insider on a peace deal that would end Iran’s nuclear ambitions, reopen the strait of Hormuz, and give the country’s leadership a reason to make up with the rest of the Middle East.  Pakistan and Egypt say they have brokered a meeting between US Vice President J D Vance and an Iranian delegation in Islamabad later this week. But who is the mystery Iranian negotiator? Does Iran have any reason to stop fighting now? And if peace is about to break out, why is the Iran war on the battlefield accelerating?  Meanwhile, amid a bruising war with Israel, Iran’s Lebanese ally Hezbollah is finding itself increasingly isolated. Roland Oliphant is joined by David Blair, the Telegraph’s chief foreign affairs commentator, and Lina Khatib, associate fellow for the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House. CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Lina Khatib, associate fellow Chatham House @LinaKhatibUK CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump may have blinked, but his war of necessity will grind on https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/23/iran-war-no-end-in-sight/ Iran now has a clear path to victory https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/24/iran-now-has-a-clear-pathway-to-victory/ Producer: Elliot Lampitt Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could US Marines seize Kharg Island and reopen the Strait of Hormuz? President Donald Trump has U-turned on his threat to bomb Iranian energy infrastructure after announcing a five-day moratorium and peace talks underway. But the Strait of Hormuz problem remains.  Iraq veteran, Ohio State University military historian and former US Colonel Peter Mansoor joins Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant to discuss the hard power options open to Trump, from taking an island in the waterway to invading the mainland coastline.  He also talks about the option of conducting special raids to seize enriched uranium to hobble Iran’s nuclear programme and explains why the war risks becoming a quagmire for the West akin to what he saw first-hand in Iraq.     Plus, The Telegraph’s acting defence editor Tom Cotterill explains what we know about the hugely significant Iranian ICBM attack on Britain’s Diego Garcia base and how worried the UK and Europe should be of repeat incidents.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Tom Cotterill, acting Defence Editor @TomCotterillX Peter Mansoor, chair military history Ohio State University  CONTENT REFERENCED: Telegraph View: Britain must do what it can to open the Strait of Hormuz https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/22/britain-must-do-what-it-can-to-open-the-strait-of-hormuz/ Britain ‘defenceless against Iranian missiles’ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/22/britain-defenceless-against-iranian-missiles/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Thousands of US Marines and sailors are heading towards Iran - does this mean boots on the ground?  Venetia Rainey is joined by Reuters global defence commentator Peter Apps to discuss the war three weeks in, how to open the Strait of Hormuz and whether as part of it, Trump will order troops to take Kharg Island.  They also discuss whether this counts as a world war and why this conflict is likely deterring China from taking Taiwan by force for at least another few years.  Plus, how is Iran still able to inflict so much damage on its neighbours? University of Oslo missiles expert Fabian Hoffman explains why Iran’s launchers may run out before its missiles do and how much longer interceptor stocks in the Gulf and Israel could last.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Peter Apps, Reuters defence columnist @pete_apps Fabian Hoffman, University of Oslo @FRHoffmann1 Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Has Israel gone rogue with the attack on Iran’s South Pars gas field? The bombing triggered a furious response from Tehran and led to a further escalation in the energy crisis caused by the US and Israeli war with Iran. President Donald Trump says the US did not know about it but Israeli officials say it was coordinated. The Telegraph’s Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin joins Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant to explain why the attack is consistent with Israel’s war goals and how tactics are potentially being prioritised over strategy. Henry also discusses his reporting from northern Israel where troops are readying for an expanded ground invasion of Lebanon to root out Hezbollah and why talk of a buffer zone there may not match up with the threat. Plus, senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan joins to discuss her time on the ground in Iraq and why things there are much worse than being reported. She also shares her thoughts on how Turkey is so far staying out of the conflict and why Iranian Kurds are pushing the US to let them invade. CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, Senior Foreign Correspondent @sophia_yan Henry Bodkin, Jerusalem Correspondent @HenryBodkin CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump’s three options for reopening the Strait of Hormuz: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/18/trump-three-options-reopening-strait-hormuz/ Missiles and drones chase Americans out of Iraq https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/15/missiles-and-drones-chase-americans-out-of-iraq/?recomm_id=faf315cd-c56c-4a5d-a833-90e89545db06 Tehran won’t fall without a ground offensive, says Kurdish leader https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/18/tehran-iran-war-ground-offensive-kurdish-leader-khabat/?recomm_id=35c185da-6605-4d40-aa0e-d19bf63781b0 Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When an Iranian primary school was bombed on the first day of the war, killing dozens of children instantly, it spawned a cycle of denials, conspiracy theories and online speculation.  Nearly three weeks on, it’s clear that an American Tomahawk missile was responsible for the deadliest attack of the conflict so far. The Telegraph’s chief foreign affairs analyst Roland Oliphant and OSINT expert Gareth Corfield join Venetia Rainey and Arthur Scott-Geddes to go through all the evidence and explain why it matters.   Plus: Israel is upping its war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, with strikes on central Beirut, troops invading from the south and flyers invoking the threat of Gaza.   The Telegraph’s global health security editor Paul Nuki joins from Beirut to discuss the latest news on what’s been targeted, the displacement crisis and attempts at peace talks. He also outlines three scenarios for how the war in Lebanon may unfold in the weeks to come.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Arthur Scott-Geddes, co-host @ascottgeddes  Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Gareth Corfield, transport editor @GazTheJourno CONTENT REFERENCED: A girls’ school in Iran was blown up. Here’s what locals say happened https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/10/girls-school-iran-blown-up-locals-say-happened/ The evidence that shows a US missile hit an Iranian girls’ school https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/10/evidence-shows-us-missile-hit-iranian-girls-school/ The top US intelligence official who turned on Trump over Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/politics/2026/03/17/joe-kent-tulsi-gabbard-right-hand-man/ Producer: Louisa Wells Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ali Larijani, Iran’s security chief, is believed to have been assassinated today by Israel in what could be a huge blow to the Iranian regime. Roland Oliphant is joined by Akhtar Makoii to explain who Larijani was and why his death could be more significant for Tehran than Khamenei’s amid the ongoing US war. Plus, Roland speaks to opposition figure Ali Safavi, part of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran. The NCRI is essentially Iran’s anti-monarchy opposition group and is led by the highly controversial People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (MEK) - previously designated as terrorists.  MEK supporter Safavi argues that an armed uprising rather than a war is needed to overthrow the Islamic Republic. He also discusses the MEK’s chequered history, the Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, and the enormous divisions among Iranian diaspora opposition groups.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent Ali Safavi, National Council of Resistance of Iran @amsafavi CONTENT REFERENCED: Larijani’s death is more significant than that of supreme leader https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/17/ali-larijani-killing-hits-iran-more-than-ayatollah-death/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected] ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No one knew how Iran’s new supreme leader survived the 30 bombs dropped on his father’s compound. Until now.  The Telegraph’s foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii has obtained exclusive audio from an IRGC meeting that explains how Mojtaba Khamenei escaped the deadly US-Israeli strikes that killed his father, wife, sister, and other relatives on the first day of the Iran war. It also sheds new light on why he was chosen as Ali Khamenei’s successor.  Plus: how do you reopen the Strait of Hormuz and what can the UK really do to help Donald Trump? Jack Watling, senior research fellow for Land Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, joins Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey to discuss the military options and why even they might not be enough.  They also talk about how China might be looking to take advantage of this conflict and the impact of the Iran war on Indo-Pacific security. Watling’s new book, Statecraft: The New Rules of Power in a Divided World, is out this week and is published by Macmillan.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent @akhtar_makoii Jack Watling, senior research fellow RUSI @Jack_Watling CONTENT REFERENCED: Mojtaba Khamenei escaped death by seconds, leaked audio reveals https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/16/exclusive-mojtaba-khamenei-escaped-death-leaked-audio/ Trump wants Britain to send a warship to the Gulf. Starmer has sent eight sailors https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/15/trump-wants-starmer-warship-gulf-sent-eight-sailors/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From Iran’s perspective, this war is going according to plan. Even though America and Israel have dominated the battlefield, the regime has not collapsed, the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked, and the entire region is under pressure. Yet major questions remain over how many missiles they have left and how long they can stop major protests from erupting once again on the streets.  Roland Oliphant is joined by The Telegraph’s chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair and foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii to discuss the conflict so far and answer listeners’ questions.  Plus, Jonathan Hackett, a former Marine Corps interrogator, counterintelligence agent, and special operations intelligence officer, returns to give his assessment of the past two weeks, discuss the Israeli covert ops taking place on the ground, and look at where things might go from here.  CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt Akhtar Makoii, foreign correspondent @akhtar_makoii Jonathan Hackett CONTENT REFERENCED: Mojtaba Khamenei has called for Iranian unity – but he may not be alive https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/13/mojtaba-khamenei-uniting-iran-against-trump-may-not-alive/ David Blair: Iran’s leaders have every reason to believe they’re succeeding https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/12/irans-leaders-every-reason-believe-succeeding/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Does the US war with Iran make strategic sense? No, says Britain’s foremost military expert and strategist, Sir Lawrence Freedman. Talking to Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey on The Telegraph’s Iran: The Latest podcast, Sir Lawrence shares his damning verdict of Donald Trump’s military operation against the Iranian regime: no proper preparation and no thinking through the risks. They also discuss the global oil crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, Israel’s attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon, lessons (or not) from the Iraq war, and the impact on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Sir Lawrence is the emeritus professor of war studies at King’s College London and has spent half a century looking at wars, national security and defence doctrine. He is new book, On Strategists and Strategy, is a collection of essays covering the Iraq war, the importance of tactics and nuclear deterrence. CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, Chief Foreign Affairs Analyst and co-host @RolandOliphant Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Sir Lawrence Freedman, emeritus professor of war studies King's College London @LawDavF CONTENT REFERENCED: A girls’ school in Iran was blown up. Here’s what locals say happened https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/10/girls-school-iran-blown-up-locals-say-happened/ The evidence that shows a US missile hit an Iranian girls’ school https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/10/evidence-shows-us-missile-hit-iranian-girls-school/ Con Coughlin: Putin has been the Iran war’s big winner https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/12/putin-iran-war-big-winner/ Tom Sharpe: The Strait of Hormuz has been opened by force before, and it can be again https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/12/strait-hormuz-us-navy-escort-tanker-war-iran-force-open/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do Iranians inside Iran feel about Trump’s war? With no independent reporting allowed, an internet blackout in place and harsh punishments for anyone who speaks out against the regime, it’s hard to tell. But there are some voices getting out - and some are happy about the American-Israeli attack. Sahar Zand, an Iranian-British investigative journalist based in London, shares messages from Iranians in the country who have been speaking to her. Plus, The Telegraph’s Global Health Security Editor Paul Nuki joins from Beirut to talk about the latest in Israel’s escalating war against Hezbollah and the death, damage and disruption it’s causing on the ground.  CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Arthur Scott-Geddes, co-host @ascottgeddes  Sahar Zand, journalist @SaharZand Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ CONTENT REFERENCED: How Iran’s ‘horizontal warfare’ could trap Trump in another Vietnam https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/10/iran-horizontal-warfare-trap-trump-another-vietnam/ UN claims 700,000 displaced in Lebanon after Israeli bombings https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/10/un-claims-700000-displaced-in-lebanon-after-israeli-bombing/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is this what the start of World War Three looks like? On the 11th day of the US-Israeli war with Iran, Roland looks at how the conflict is broadening well beyond Iran’s borders. President Donald Trump has hinted the war is nearly over, but ACLED CEO Clionadh Raleigh says it is dangerously close to dragging in Russia and China given they have already openly backed Iran. She also talks through what the data says about this conflict so far, from the high intensity of the military campaign to the surprisingly low casualty rates.  Plus, Senior Foreign Correspondent Sophia Yan reports from the Iraqi side of the Iranian border where she has been speaking to Iranian Kurdish separatist leaders who say they have thousands of fighters ready to go. Trump has flip-flopped over whether he would support the separatist groups as a proxy ground force in the US-Israel war against Iran. But they say America cannot topple Tehran’s regime without their help. CONTRIBUTORS: Roland Oliphant, Chief Foreign Affairs Analyst and co-host @RolandOliphant Sophia Yan, Senior Foreign Correspondent @sophiayan Clionadh Raleigh, ACLED CEO, @cliona_raleigh CONTENT REFERENCED: Trump needs us to win war, says Kurdish opposition commander https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/08/kurdish-militia-leader-trump-needs-us-to-win-iran-war/ Kurds desperate to invade Iran... if they get Trump’s jets https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/08/kurds-desperate-invade-iran-cover-trump-jets/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could Iran’s new leader be worse than the old one? On the 10th day of the US-Israeli war with Iran, Roland looks at why IRGC-favourite Mojtaba Khamenei has been chosen as the new supreme leader to take over from his assassinated father and what it means for the regime. Plus, Venetia gets a view from the Gulf about the growing oil crisis, fears over dwindling interceptor missile stocks and how the war is dragging in countries there. CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey Roland Oliphant, Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator and co-host @RolandOliphant Sascha Bruchmann, IISS Research Fellow for Defence and Military Analysis CONTENT REFERENCED: David Blair: New supreme leader shows folly of Trump’s war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/09/new-iran-supreme-leader-folly-trump-iran-war/ Iran has already made its first big miscalculation of the war https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/09/iran-first-big-miscalculation-war/ Iran war, day ten: Everything you need to know https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/09/iran-war-day-ten-everything-you-need-to-know/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on [email protected]  ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s the seventh day of the US-Israeli war with Iran and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has said America is about to dramatically increase the amount of firepower over the country as the military campaign moves into the next phase. On today’s episode, Venetia takes a step back and looks at what has been achieved so far over one week of war. She is joined by Col. Simon Diggins, a former British Army Officer who has served in the Middle East, and Matthew Savill, director of military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute. They discuss how much progress America has made with its stated objectives, whether Iran is running out of missiles or holding them back, the Shahed drone problem, what’s left of the Iranian navy and why regime change still seems a distant prospect for now. Plus, two arguments for and against the UK becoming militarily involved - is it Keir Starmer’s moral duty or does Britain have nothing relevant to offer? Read Iran war, day seven: Everything you need to know: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/06/iran-war-day-seven-everything-you-need-to-know/ Read Trump to use British bases for ‘surge’ in Iran attacks: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/06/trump-to-use-british-bases-for-surge-in-iran-attacks/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On the sixth day of the US-Israeli war with Iran, the Strait of Hormuz is remains effectively closed to shipping, despite the US Navy crippling Iran’s surface fleet - including by torpedoing a Frigate off Sri Lanka.  On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Roland Oliphant speaks to former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe about how Western militaries have prepared for years for a big war with Iran; why Iranian maritime forces are equally well prepared; and the cruel necessities of submarine warfare. And Nicholas Hopton, a former British ambassador to Iran, explains the three conditions necessary for a regime collapse - and why none of them have yet been met.  Read: The US submarine which torpedoed the Iranian frigate will soon be flying the Jolly Roger, by Tom Sharpe: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/05/us-submarine-torpedo-iranian-warship-jolly-roger/ Read: Will America betray the Kurds again? by Owen Matthews: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/05/will-america-betray-kurds-again/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the wake of an attack on a British military base in Cyprus, the UK has said it will send an extra warship to the region. Does this make Britain militarily involved in America and Israel’s war against Iran? Or was that already true after Prime Minister Keir Starmer allowed Donald Trump to use British bases? Venetia and Roland discuss Europe’s growing involvement in the conflict and the countries that are resisting.  Iranian-British journalist Nazenin Ansari talks about why she is pro-regime change but doesn’t want this war, the brutality of the IRGC, and how Khamenei’s son Mojtaba would be just more of the same if picked as his successor.  Plus, senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan sends a dispatch from the Turkish-Iranian border where she has been speaking to fleeing Iranians, and Dr Hanan Balkhy, WHO’s Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, explains how the UN’s health body prepared for the conflict.  Read Sophia Yan’s analysis of why China is unfazed by the war: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/04/why-china-is-unfazed-by-donald-trump-epic-fury/ Read Tom Cotterill on why this could be the Royal Navy’s biggest humiliation: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/03/is-this-the-royal-navys-biggest-humiliation/ Read our visual journalism deep dive on how Trump sank the Iranian navy: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/03/how-trump-sank-iranian-navy/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Battle Lines is now Iran: The Latest! Roland and Venetia are going to be covering the new conflict every day for the weeks to come, bringing you the best of The Telegraph’s reporting from around the world and exclusive interviews with world-class experts in military strategy, diplomacy, and the Middle East. On today’s episode, Venetia and Roland look at America’s devastating attacks on Iran’s official Navy and the possibility of Saudi Arabia joining the war.  The Telegraph’s foreign reporter Akhtar Makoii shares his insights from speaking to people inside Iran about how ordinary people are now facing threats from both American bombs and the regime, who are out in force on the streets.  Maya Gebeily, Reuters’ bureau chief in Beirut, discusses the state of Hezbollah and the mood on the ground in Lebanon after Israel announced it is invading.  Plus, The Telegraph's US Correspondent Connor Stringer talks about his exclusive phone call with Donald Trump in the midst of the Iran war and why the president thinks Keir Starmer is “disappointing”.   Read Connor Stringer's exclusive chat with Trump: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/03/02/exclusive-trump-very-disappointed-in-starmer-over-iran/ Read Akhtar Makoii’s interviews with people inside Iran: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/02/iran-war-tehran-live-in-fear-us-bombs-whats-left-regime/ Read Akhtar Makoii’s rundown of Khamenei’s possible successors: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/03/the-four-men-who-could-save-or-destroy-iran/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran's leader Ayatollah Khamenei was killed in an Israeli and US strike on Saturday morning, kicking off a major war that has since expanded to the entire Middle East. On day three of the conflict, Venetia and Roland run through the big updates, including the UK’s involvement, the ongoing death toll and how Iran is striking back on key targets in the region.  They also talk to former Israeli intelligence official and Iran expert Danny Citrinowicz about how poorly defined the war's goals are and why we aren't seeing any cracks in the regime yet. Plus, The Telegraph’s David Blair on the significance of Khamenei's assassination and Trump's conflicting messaging. Read Iran war, day three: Everything you need to know: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/02/iran-war-day-three-everything-you-need-to-know/ Read David Blair on why Trump’s incoherence on Iran maximises the risk of failure: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/02/28/trump-is-taking-a-monumental-risk-on-iran/ Read Roland Oliphant on the eight-month plot that led to Trump’s attack on Iran: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/28/donald-trump-attack-iran-israel-how-it-came-to-this/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US and Israel have launched what President Donald Trump has described as "major combat operations" to try to bring about the end of the Iranian regime. In this bonus episode, Roland and Venetia look at what we know so far - from Trump’s speech to strikes across the Middle East - and what might happen next, while Henry Bodkin, The Telegraph’s Jerusalem correspondent, reports from on the ground in Israel amid air raid sirens around the country. Plus, Roland speaks to Jonathan Hackett, a 20-year US Marine Corps veteran and special operations capabilities specialist, as well as the author of Iran's Shadow Weapons: Covert Action, Intelligence Operations and Unconventional Warfare. Their conversation - which was recorded shortly before the attack began - covers how Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was offered an escape route but refused to take it, the state of the IRGC and why regime change in Iran will be so difficult. Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For sixty years Washington and Havana have been having a geopolitical tango fuelled by obsession and ideology. The island nation of Cuba has been a socialist splinter in the finger of the Florida coastline, its regime infecting the region.  Now, with the toppling of Nicolás Maduro and Venezuelan oil tightly controlled by the US, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel could be next. To get into the finer details of the US’s new found dominance in the Caribbean, Venetia is joined by The Telegraph’s foreign reporter, Lily Shanagher. Plus, former national security advisor John Bolton, voices the need for regime change in Venezuela, Iran and Cuba. Coining the phrase ‘Troika of Tyranny' in 2018, Bolton has had Cuba in his sights for many years as a rogue state. So what should happen next in the region? John Bolton lays bare the truth about Trump’s decision making and the need for swift action. Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Drugs and gangs have created an explosion in HIV cases in Fiji. This week on Battle Lines: Global Health Security, Arthur Scott-Geddes is joined by Sarah Newey, The Telegraph’s correspondent in Bangkok who recently travelled to Fiji, and Dr Jason Mitchell, the head of the country’s HIV task force. On the archipelago known as the gateway to the Pacific, Chinese triads, Mexican cartels, and Australian biker gangs are all involved in a booming methamphetamine trade. The result is that an island paradise is now home to the fastest-growing HIV epidemic on earth. Read Sarah’s dispatch from Fiji: The island paradise with the world’s fastest growing HIV epidemic https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/fiji-island-paradise-with-the-worlds-fastest-growing-HIV-epidemic/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The British Indian Ocean Territory, AKA the Chagos Islands is home to the American super-base of Diego Garcia. Located on the largest island in the archipelago and home to the joint UK/US military base since the 1970s. The Chagos handover to Mauritius has been controversial from the outset and shifting signals from Donald Trump have left the Starmer government open to a political backlash. Has the special relationship turned toxic over these islands? And should the sovereignty transfer be stopped? To discuss, Roland turns to Ben Judah who has worked for the previous foreign secretary and Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator, David Blair.  Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The drumbeat of war in the Middle East is getting louder - and once again it’s Iran in America’s crosshairs. A second round of talks over Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons programme ended this week without a deal. In the last few days, dozens of American fighter jets and refuelling tankers have joined the US's two carrier strike groups in the region. This is now the largest American military buildup in the Middle East since the Iraq war in 2003. Venetia chats to Henry Bodkin, The Telegraph's Jerusalem correspondent, and Roland Oliphant, chief foreign affairs analyst about when war might break out and how it could unfold. Plus Roland speaks to Maryam Mazrooei, an Iranian journalist and war photographer who fled the country after being arrested and imprisoned in 2022, about whether American-led regime change would spark a civil war in Iran. Read - Trump sends fighter jet squadron to ‘kick the door down’ in Iran: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/18/us-military-aircraft-heading-towards-iran/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two years ago, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in a Siberian penal colony. There was an outcry and many suspected foul play, but nothing could be proved.  That is until last weekend, when five European countries including the UK announced that they had made a startling discovery: Navalny had been killed with a rare frog poison. How was the poison was identified, how were the samples smuggled out of Russia, and why does the evidence point directly to Moscow? Venetia and Arthur speak to former commanding officer of the UK’s Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment and Telegraph columnist, Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, and Dr Gemma Bowsher, Senior Research Associate for the Centre for Conflict and Health Research at Kings College London. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

North Korea’s dynasty dictatorship has taken on a new leather clad, second-in-command. Reports from South Korea have suggested that Kim Jong Un’s daughter Kim Ju-ae is now the heir apparent in the totalitarian state. Could she one day be the youngest person to command a nuclear arsenal? Roland chats to The Telegraph’s Lily Shanagher and from the University of Oxford, North Korea watcher, Dr Edward Howell, to unpack what we know from the shadows. Plus, after the Munich Security Conference at the weekend, Europe is facing a new future without Washington’s steadying hand and will have to be less reliant on the Stars and Stripes. But is European defence manufacturing scaling up in line with these new demands? Roland speaks to Philip Lockwood from defence startup Stark to find out just how quickly the ambitions are being realised.  Read Lily's article on Kim Ju-ae: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/16/kim-opens-neighbourhood-families-soldiers-killed-ukraine/ Pic credit: KCNA via Reuters Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A year ago, JD Vance gave an explosive speech at the Munich Security Conference. It marked a fundamental shift in the relationship between the US and its European allies that have since been cemented through tariff wars, a new National Security Strategy and threats to take Greenland.   So has Europe risen to the challenge laid down by Donald Trump's administration and started to take care of its own security? Is there any trust left in the trans-Atlantic relationship? And will there be another attack on Europe at this weekend's Munich conference?  Venetia and Roland chat to David Blair, Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator, and Joe Barnes, Brussels Correspondent to find out.  Read Joe Barnes's story on how Europe ‘must become military superpower’ to survive without US: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/11/europe-must-be-military-superpower-to-survive-without-us/ Read David Blair's analysis: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/authors/d/da-de/david-blair/ Pic credit: Matthias Schrader/AP Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nearly a year after Donald Trump shuttered USAID, the world is still reckoning with the consequences. But what really happened next? Venetia Rainey examines the fallout and what it means for global health, security, and stability. Joined by Global Health Security Editor, Paul Nuki, she explores how the abrupt withdrawal of America’s largest aid agency sent shockwaves through the global aid system, disrupted lifesaving programmes, and potentially contributed to millions of preventable deaths. They are joined by Angeli Achrekar, Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS, and Kevin Melton, a former USAID official and now CEO of PAX Strategies, offering insider perspectives on what was lost and what may be emerging in its place. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Pic credit: Simon Townsley Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has moved the war for critical minerals from the margins of policy to the heart of great power rivalry. In this episode of Battle Lines, we look at Project Vault, America's bid to take back control of the critical minerals and rare earths supply chain from China.  This bid to build a vast new stockpile and industrial strategy was unveiled at the inaugural US Critical Minerals Ministerial Summit last week. Supporters see it as a necessary first step to protect American industry and national security. Critics warn that for middle countries, it may simply shift dependencies rather than break them. Venetia talks to Sibylline Chief Analyst Sam Olsen to unpack what Project Vault really means, why processing matters more than mining, and how China has weaponised its dominance in ways OPEC never could.  Plus, a deep dive on how Greenland fits into the West's rare earths strategy. Greenland Energy, Business and Mineral Resources Minister Naaja Nathanielsen on that Trump deal, Chinese influence and the challenges of mining on the island.  Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Was Peter Mandelson's appointment as UK ambassador to the US a national security risk? Should the US and UK bomb Iran to spark regime change? Will Nato survive Trump? And how should European countries deal with the threat of China? British shadow defence secretary and former procurement minister James Cartlidge joins Roland and Venetia to discuss the biggest news stories in British and global defence at the moment, from Russia's Yantar 'spy ship' to the 'poison chalice' and beleaguered Ajax tank program. We want to hear why you enjoy Battle Lines! Email us: [email protected] Read Sophia Yan's story on how China is powering Putin’s deadly new Oreshnik missiles: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/28/china-helping-russia-build-nuclear-capable-missile/ Read Roland's analysis of the Army’s £6bn Ajax disaster: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/12/23/inside-army-ajax-disaster/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, the New START treaty expires, ending the last remaining major nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia. With no binding limits on the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals and China rapidly expanding its own, many fear the start of a new and dangerous era of proliferation. On this episode of Battle Lines: Global Health Security, Arthur Scott-Geddes and Sophie O’Sullivan are joined by Darya Dolzikova of the Royal United Services Institute and Matthew Bunn of Harvard Kennedy School to unpack why Donald Trump wants to rebuild America's nuclear stockpile and whether an arms race is already underway. As the Doomsday Clock edges closer to midnight, how worried should we be? Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The United States appeared poised for a major military confrontation with Iran after Donald Trump ordered a powerful naval force into the region in response to the killing of thousands of Iranian protesters.  The expected strikes never came. Instead, Washington has shifted towards using military pressure as leverage for a renewed nuclear deal. Does this mark a genuine de-escalation? Or is it merely a pause before conflict? As diplomacy falters, tensions remain high and, inside Iran, the regime faces deepening political fractures as internet blackouts lift and grim details of last month’s massacres begin to emerge. Roland is joined by The Telegraph’s Akhtar Makoii and Sascha Bruchmann from the International Institute For Strategic Studies. Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Xi Jinping is purging again. Generals once seen as untouchable are gone, rivals erased, loyalty enforced through fear. Is this the move of a leader under real threat or the paranoia of a man who has ruled too long and trusts no one? To find out more, Venetia talks to Oriana Skylar Mastro, director of the Indo-Pacific Policy Lab at Stanford University’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been to Beijing, the first British leader to do so in eight years, talking trade, visas and whisky tariffs while security concerns barely made the script. We hear from The Telegraph’s Ben Riley-Smith, behind the smiles come burner phones, burner laptops, fears of honey traps and even planes being bugged. Economic opportunity versus national security. Values versus power.  Meanwhile Britain faces its own reckoning. Spies in Parliament. Phones hacked inside Downing Street. A vast Chinese mega embassy rising in central London amid warnings from MI5. Venetia is joined in the studio by The Telegraph’s Gareth Corfield and Rozina Sabur to discuss the extent of the national security threat posed by China. Read Rozina Sabur's hacking scoop: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/26/china-hacked-downing-street-phones-for-years/ Read Gareth Corfield's embassy scoop: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/12/revealed-china-embassy-secret-plans-spy-basement/ Read Colin Freeman's analysis: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/27/general-zhang-youxia-chinas-nuclear-secrets/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gaza has entered the next phase of the peace process but is the ceasefire actually bringing peace? This week, Venetia Rainey and Arthur Scott-Geddes speak to Tess Ingram, UNICEF spokesperson who has just returned from four months on the ground. She outlines the humanitarian situation following the ceasefire, from winter shelters and malnutrition to unexploded ordnance, orphaned children, and the daily challenges facing civilians. Plus, The Telegraph’s Global Health Security Editor Paul Nuki examines Donald Trump’s controversial Board of Peace: how it works, why it has divided international allies, and what it could mean for disarming Hamas and the future of the conflict. Read Paul's article on how Northern Ireland can provide a roadmap for Gaza: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/23/how-northern-irelands-peace-can-provide-a-roadmap-for-gaza/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For more than a decade, Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria were America's most trusted ally, spearheading the war against Isis, taking responsibility for guarding thousands of jihadi prisoners of war, and in the process carving out an autonomous statelet that seemed poised to realise the dream of Kurdish independence. Over the past few weeks, that dream as has been crushed. In a sudden offensive, Ahmed Al Sharaa's transitional Syrian government has evicted the Kurds from vast territories including the country's biggest oilfield. Abandoned by their American allies, the Kurds have been forced to cede ground including the sprawling Isis prison camps. What now for the Kurds, for Syria, and for the jihadists Isis veterans? To answer this and more, Roland is joined by The Telegraph's senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan and Senior Research Fellow, Middle East Security, Dr Burcu Ozcelik from RUSI. Read Dr Burcu's research paper on northern Syria: https://www.jstor.org/stable/27342855  Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has abruptly backed down over the US takeover of Greenland. From the icy streets of Nuuk our correspondent James Rothwell reports from the centre of an unusual geopolitical spotlight as Greenlanders try to make sense of their island’s sudden importance and the anxiety of being discussed by faraway powers. Greenland itself emerges not as a prize but as a place with its own history identity and quiet resilience. James paints a picture of a small Arctic capital balancing fishing tourism and everyday life while navigating long memories of colonial rule and new questions about sovereignty security and self determination. Back in the studio Venetia and Roland are joined by Chief Foreign Commentator David Blair to unpack what Trump’s partial retreat really means and to explore the wider implications of Mark Carney’s striking Davos speech. Carney argues we are living through a rupture not a transition and urges middle powers to face reality and work together in a world where power politics is once again shaping events. Read James Rothwell's Greenland dispatch: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/24/trump-provokes-a-rare-emotion-in-greenland-blind-rage/ Read David Blair's analysis of the Greenland deal: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/22/predicted-greenland-deal-not-good-one/ Read Roland Oliphant on Trump's Board of Peace: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/22/monarchs-and-pariahs-join-trumps-board-of-peace-parade/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After five years of brutal civil war, Myanmar’s ruling military is holding an election that many say is a sham. But it has a major backer: China. So why is Beijing suddenly interested in democracy in this conflict-stricken country? Venetia Rainey and Arthur Scott-Geddes speak to the Telegraph’s Global Health Security correspondent Sarah Newey about her recent trip to Yangon and Joe Freeman, researcher for Amnesty International. Read Sarah's dispatch: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/why-china-is-forcing-myanmars-junta-to-stage-an-election/ Watch Sarah talking about scam centres in Laos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nRBG037FT0 Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With tariffs aimed at Europe over Greenland, Nato teetering on the brink and Donald Trump flexing military muscle like never before, this is geopolitics as a personal power play. Venetia and Roland are joined by the Alliance’s former Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) Philip Breedlove who lays bare the strategic and moral fallout of Mr Trump’s actions and why he would refuse the order to invade Greenland if it came. The retired four star US Air Force general also reflects on the impact of America’s new National Security Strategy and the state of the Pentagon’s fleet of fighter jets.  Plus, US correspondent Connor Stringer on what it’s been like having a front row seat to the president’s second-term storm, sharing what it is really like to cover an administration that is rewriting the international security architecture. Read David Blair on why this is a gift to Putin: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/19/trump-handed-putin-prize-soviet-union-40-years/ Read Tom Sharpe on why the US doesn’t need Greenland militarily: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/18/us-never-needed-greenland-for-military-reasons/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

President Trump’s talk of taking Greenland isn’t a joke, that much is now clear. His ambition to "conquer" the autonomous Danish territory is a direct challenge to the EU, Nato, and the post-Cold War security order - so what should Europe do? Roland chats to Rachel Ellehuus, head of British defence and security think tank RUSI and formerly a senior US official in Nato and the Pentagon. She explains why Greenland matters far more than most people realise: from missile defence and Arctic dominance to critical minerals and great-power competition.  They also discuss why Trump’s threats should be taken seriously, how Denmark and Greenland are responding behind the scenes, and why this moment is critical for Europe if it wants to protect its values and way of life.  To watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/96WiO6QE6WQ Archive: PBS News.  Picture credit: OLIVIER HOSLET/EPA/Shutterstock, BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran is in crisis. The price of bread has more than doubled, the currency has collapsed to record lows, and protests have erupted across the country. As security forces respond with deadly force, doctors inside Iran are being warned not to treat injured protesters and hospitals are buckling under the strain. In this episode of Battle Lines: Global Health Security, we go inside Iran’s overwhelmed healthcare system. We speak to Dr Kayvan Mirhadi, an Iranian-American doctor who has gathered testimonies from doctors across the country.  Venetia and Arthur also speak to Dr Sanam Vakil from Chatham House to examine the deeper forces driving this moment: food insecurity, economic collapse, water shortages, women’s rights, and years of systemic mismanagement. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Picture credit: AP Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since late December, Iran has been gripped by a wave of protests that began in Tehran’s bazaars over economic collapse and rapidly spread nationwide. Cash handouts failed. Brutal force followed. Internet cut. According to human rights groups, more than 500 people are dead and over 10,000 arrested. This is not another Tehran uprising. This time the anger is coming from small towns, poorer regions, and even the regime’s traditional supporters. As blood fills hospital corridors, the big question looms. Is this finally the end of the Islamic Republic? Venetia and Roland are joined by foreign correspondent Akhtar Makoii and Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator David Blair, to unpack what makes this moment different. From the historic role of the Grand Bazaar to the shocking violence on the streets, from young protesters paying with their lives to the absence of any clear opposition leader, the panel confronts a stark reality. The regime is determined to survive. And despite his threats, Donald Trump cannot simply bomb Iran into freedom. Military intervention could just as easily strengthen the regime, fracture the country, or trigger chaos far beyond Iran’s borders.  Read Roland's analysis of the key signs to watch for: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/09/iran-protests-regime-fall/ And Roland examines Iran’s growing water crisis: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/12/evacuate-tehran-the-catastrophe-threatening-iran/ Read Akhtar's reporting on the protest victims: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/10/they-protested-peacefully-iran-answered-with-bullets/ Read David's analysis of the Ayatollah vs Trump: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/12/ayatollah-iran-protests-trump/ Pic credit: NEIL HALL/EPA/Shutterstock Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Washington openly floats the idea of asserting control over Greenland, a dramatic naval operation unfolds in the freezing waters between Iceland and northern Scotland. A Russian flagged tanker is seized in the Greenland Iceland UK gap, raising urgent questions about maritime law, alliance unity, and who really controls the North Atlantic sea lanes. At stake is something far bigger than a single ship. For the first time in its history, the transatlantic alliance is being pulled apart by the actions of its most powerful member. Could Nato survive a confrontation between allies, or are we watching the foundations begin to crack? Roland speaks to Ben Hodges, a former commanding general of the US army in Europe, about how Nato has handled internal disputes in the past and why this moment is different. And former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe explains what was on board the seized vessel, why it mattered, and what this incident means for the future of freedom of navigation. Picture credit: Katie Miller/X, Alex Wong/Getty Images Read David Blair's analysis: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/06/usa-donald-trump-take-greenland-collapse-nato/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Donald Trump reshapes global trade and cuts foreign aid, countries around the world are being forced to adapt fast - and some leaders are doing better than others. Among them is Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema, who was voted No. 5 in The Telegraph's World Leaders 2025 for turning his country into a prize both Trump and Xi Jinping covet despite enormous economic headwinds. The Telegraph's Ben Farmer visited Zambia to interview Hichilema about navigating Trump, China, aid cuts and debt. He tells Venetia and Arthur why Zambia has become a key battleground in the fight for resources such as copper. Read Ben Farmer's profile of Hichilema: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/12/27/telegraph-world-leader-2025-hakainde-hichilema-zambia/ See the full Telegraph World Leaders 20205 list: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/01/telegraph-world-leaders-2025-readers-vs-the-panellists/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two days on from Donald Trump’s extraordinary capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, the dust has barely begun to settle. Maduro is appearing today in a New York court where he will be charged with “narco-terrorism” and conspiracy to import cocaine, which can carry life sentences under US law. But Maduro is not the only loser in all of this. Iran, Russia and China have all lost a valuable client - one who sold them oil, bought their weapons, and provided them with a beachhead on America's doorstep.  Venetia is joined by Dr Carlos Solar, a Latin American Security at RUSI, and Adrian Blomfield, The Telegraph's senior foreign correspondent, to discuss the downsides - and upsides - for America's enemies, the Monroe Doctrine's renewed relevance, and what will happen next.  Pic credit: Marcelo GARCIA/AFP Read Adrian's analysis of what the capture of Maduro means for China and Russia: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/03/venezuela-regime-change-russia-china-impact/ Venezuela becomes Trump’s energy superweapon against China: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/01/05/venezuela-becomes-trumps-energy-superweapon-against-china/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the early hours of this morning, US President Donald Trump gave the order for the Pentagon to bomb Venezuela’s capital Caracas and capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, along with his wife.  Trump has just given a press conference in Mar-A Lago sharing fresh details.  In this emergency bonus episode of Battle Lines, Venetia is joined by The Telegraph's Chief US Correspondent Rob Crilly to cover everything we know so far about how it all unfolded, why Trump has done this, and what might happen next.  Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From Taiwan to Estonia and Latvia, the prospect of World War Three feels closer than ever - that is unless you're one of those people who thinks it's already begun. Peter Apps, Reuters' Global Defence Commentator, is not one of those people, but he does think there is a 30-35% chance of it erupting in the next decade. He talks to Roland and Venetia about what it might look like, where it might start, when and how to prevent it. Peter is a British Army reservist and one of the most plugged in voices on modern warfare. He has reported from around the world, served in the British Army during the Covid pandemic and the Ukraine war, and has just written a new book, The Next World War: The New Age of Global Conflict and the Fight to Stop It. Peter will be speaking about his book at the 2026 Oxford Literary Festival in partnership with The Telegraph. Tickets: oxfordliteraryfestival.org; Telegraph readers can save 20% with the code 26TEL20 Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bird-flu, bombs and asteroids: are we heading for disaster in 2026? What are the biggest threats to global health security in 2026? Is it bird flu? Or the rising threat posed by nuclear weapons? Could we even be hit by an asteroid? Dr Becky Alexis-Martin, a Lecturer in Peace Studies at the University of Bradford and an expert on nuclear weapons, argues that the threat they pose will continue to rise in the new year. Paul Nuki, the Telegraph’s Global Health Security Editor, warns that numerous diseases linked to conflict are likely to continue to spread in 2026 – in particular cholera and HIV. Meanwhile, the possibility of H5N1 bird flu making the jump to humans and causing a pandemic remains a primary threat, as does the continued spread of mpox around the world. Lord Martin Rees, the former Astronomer Royal and a founder of the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, assesses the risk of space-based threats. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode goes straight to the jugular of modern air power and asks a brutally simple question: has the last great manned fighter already been born? Roland is joined by Tom Withington of Royal United Services Institute and Sophy Antrobus from King’s College London, two people who actually know what they’re talking about when it comes to fighter jets. They unpack the mystery and the hype surrounding the sixth generation fighters. These are not just faster jets with shinier wings. They are flying data centres, designed to hoover up information, evade the most lethal air defences on the planet, and command swarms of drones doing the truly dangerous work. We cut through the fog of acronyms to explain what sixth generation really means, how it differs from the F-35, and why programmes in the US, Britain, Europe and Asia are racing ahead despite eye watering costs. This is air dominance, power politics and future war rolled into one.  Picture credit: United States Air Force Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This has been a year when the world lurched from crisis to crisis at breakneck speed. Trump back in power. America wavering on Europe and Ukraine. China strutting with new confidence. Russia grinding on. Iran bombed. Gaza paused. If you feel dizzy you are not alone. Venetia is joined by Adelie Pojzman-Pontay from Ukraine the Latest and Asia correspondent Allegra Mendelson to take a sharp eyed look back at the moments that mattered and the ones you may have missed but cannot afford to ignore.  We focus on the three powers shaping everything China, Russia and the United States. Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant @amendelson_ @adeliepjz Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode of Battle Lines Global Health Security, international photojournalist Simon Townsley joins Arthur Scott-Geddes and Sophie O’Sullivan to share his most memorable photographs of 2025.  From visiting mpox quarantine zones in Sierra Leone, to bat caves infected with marburg virus, Simon explains the value and pitfalls of ‘parachute’ journalism.   This year alone, Simon has traveled to Sierra Leone, Guyana, Sudan, Chad, Zambia, Honduras, Kazakhstan, and Burundi. He reflects on how the world has changed in his nearly 40 years of work, and why now people often mistake him as Chinese. Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/X5p4hvB_cSA View Simon's images: Guyana’s oil bonanza: Will the vast wealth it is generating ever trickle down? https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/guyana-oil-boom-wealth-inequality/ ‘It’s all dead now... nothing will grow’: Fish and hippos dissolve in polluted acid river https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/climate-and-people/zambia-river-pollution-china-industrial-investment/ Inside the Red Zone: Sierra Leone’s terrifying mpox outbreak https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/inside-sierra-leones-terrifying-mpox-outbreak/ Atomic bombs destroyed their lives – now they want Russia to pay https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/soviet-union-nuclear-testing-atomic-bomb-kazakhstan/ ‘I poured gasoline then set fire to my clothes – the flames shot up my body’ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/women-and-girls/kurdistan-iraq-suicide-self-immolation-domestic-violence/ ‘My child is gone... life is empty’: agony of Ukrainian mother collecting her son from the morgue https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/child-gone-life-empty-agony-ukrainian-mother-collecting-son/ Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special festive edition of Battle Lines, Roland Oliphant and Dominic Nicholls cut through the tinsel to tell a story that actually matters. In aid of, The Not Forgotten, a charity born out of the carnage of the First World War, they are joined by Hari Budha Magar, a Gurkha veteran who lost both his legs while serving in Afghanistan. From a remote village in Nepal to the battlefields of Afghanistan, Harry recounts the moment an IED changed his life and how he rebuilt it again. Join Roland, Dom and Hari for dark humour, blunt honesty and genuine inspiration. Read Jack Rear's profile of Hari Budha Magar: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/christmas-charity-appeal/2025/12/02/first-double-amputee-to-summit-everest/ The Not Forgotten is one of The Telegraph’s four Christmas charity appeal charities, the others are Motor Neurone Disease Association, Prostate Cancer Research and Canine Partners. You can donate by visiting telegraph.co.uk/appeal2025 or call 0151 317 5247. Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former UK ambassador Laurie Bristow speaks to Roland and delivers a blunt and unsettling warning about the state of the world and Britain’s place in it. Drawing on more than three decades at the heart of the Foreign Office, including some of the most dangerous postings of modern times, he argues we are living through the most volatile and complex global moment of our lifetimes. From war returning to Europe and the rise of China, to artificial intelligence, pandemics and the collapse of old assumptions about power, nothing is stable and nothing is simple. Speaking candidly about Vladimir Putin, he explains why the west misread Moscow for years and why there are no easy deals or quick endings ahead. This is a forensic, unsparing account of a world in turmoil and a challenge to Britain to wake up before it is too late. Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you ever been scammed? If you have, the chances are that it happened somewhere in Asia. Often overseen by Chinese criminal gangs, the places where these scams are happening have become hubs for people trafficking, drugs trade, and prostitution. On today's episode, Venetia speaks to Global Health Security Correspondent Sarah Newey, who has visited Sin City in Laos, a scam centre hotspot. She tells us about what happens inside these compounds. We also hear from political analyst and Myanmar adviser to Crisis Group, Richard Horsey about why power vacuums are creating the perfect conditions for these criminal activities. Watch the visualised episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/6nRBG037FT0 Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today, Britain’s MI6 chief delivered a chilling message: the frontline is now everywhere. Look around the world and the evidence is overwhelming. From Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan, violence is spreading fast and growing more lethal by the month. New data from ACLED shows that Europe is now the most intense conflict zone on the planet - a fact that should shock anyone in the West still clinging to the idea that war happens elsewhere. Plus, with drone strikes now accounting for more than a quarter of all attacks worldwide, war is only a short flight away.  This is not a bad patch, this is a dangerous new era. And next year will be even bloodier still. The warning signs are screaming at us.  The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data organisation, known as ACLED, has been tracking all of this data and more. Venetia speaks to their CEO Clionadh Raleigh to find out more. Read ACLED's report: https://acleddata.com/conflict-index-2026-watchlist Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Britain's military has seen better days - that much everyone can agree on. Enter ex-Royal Marine Commando Colonel Alistair Scott Carns, aka Wee Al, the UK's brand new Minister for Armed Forces. Part of the fresh batch of Labour MPs who entered Parliament in 2024, he has risen quickly through the Ministry of Defence and is considered "one to watch". Carns sat down with The Telegraph's associated defence editor Dominic Nicholls to talk about his plans to get the military into shape, the UK's commitment to Ukraine, and the ongoing Ajax debate. Plus he shared his views on Reform leader Nigel Farage and the legacy of Stakeknife in Northern Ireland. Read Dom's profile of Al Carns: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/authors/d/dk-do/dominic-nicholls/ For backgrounders on the tensions between Trump and Venezuela:  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/10/24/is-trump-about-to-invade-venezuela/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/17/trump-builds-case-for-venezuela-war-as-worlds-biggest-aircr/ Listen to Venetia's dispatch from Sweden's Gotland Island: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/06/17/the-tiny-swedish-island-regiment-tasked-protecting-europe/ Producer: Peter Shevlin Executive Producer: Louisa Wells ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As global landmine casualties reach a four-year high, Venetia is joined by Major General James Cowan, former British Army commander in Iraq and Afghanistan and now CEO of The HALO Trust.He lays out why he believes foreign aid and defense are inseparable, how clearing weapons post-conflict shapes global health and security outcomes, and why Britain’s safety begins far beyond its own borders. From minefields in Ukraine and Syria to unexploded bombs in Gaza, Cowan argues that true security relies not only on military strength, but on the stability created through development and humanitarian action. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has detonated a political earthquake with a National Security Strategy that doesn’t just tweak America’s global role, it torches seven decades of US foreign policy. In a move that’s left European allies stunned and scrambling, Trump’s new blueprint casts Europe as weak, directionless and on the brink of “civilisational erasure,” while pointedly avoiding calling Russia a threat. And guess who’s absolutely thrilled? The Kremlin. Vladimir Putin’s spokesman practically applauded the document, hailing it as “largely consistent” with Moscow’s own vision. While EU leaders warn the strategy dangerously rewrites reality and echoes far-right rhetoric, Trump is pushing ahead, embracing “patriotic” parties across Europe and accusing the EU of holding back peace in Ukraine. It’s a bold, brash, America-First gambit and one that’s left America’s closest allies wondering if Washington has just switched sides. To find out more, Roland talks to former British Ambassador to the United States Kim Darroch.  ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ajax was meant to be the British Army’s modern embodiment of the mighty Greek warrior, strong, unbreakable, unstoppable. Instead, it’s become a national embarrassment. This week the Army suspended the entire fleet after 31 soldiers fell ill inside vehicles that were supposed to protect them. We’re talking tingling hands, ringing ears and troops vomiting on Salisbury Plain. It’s a £6.3 billion “world-beating” programme that’s been spiralling into chaos for two decades. To make matters worse, a whistleblower claims the manufacturer, General Dynamics, tried to shift the blame onto soldiers which was followed by an astonishing Facebook outburst from a company employee. With inquiries now launched and Parliament demanding answers, Roland is joined in the studio by The Telegraph’s Dom Nichols and Ben Barry from The International Institute for Strategic Studies. Read Tom's story: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/12/04/defence-boss-mocks-troops-deafened-ajax-armoured-vehicle/ For blow-by-blow coverage of the peace talks, follow Ukraine the Latest: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/03/02/russia-ukraine-war-listen-daily-podcast/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nigeria is facing a security crisis. Extremist violence, mass kidnappings and deepening food insecurity has created what the UN has called the country’s worst emergency in a decade. Recent weeks have seen a spate of high profile abductions, including 300 schoolgirls and teachers from Niger state. Security officials now fear these pupils could be used as human shields to deter a military intervention being threatened by the United States. At the same time, aid is being slashed, and extremist groups and criminal gangs have disrupted food supplies, leaving 35 million people projected to face “severe food insecurity” next year. This week, Arthur and Venetia speak to Chi Lael, Head of Communications for the World Food Programme in Nigeria to get a clearer picture of the crisis. Plus Global Health Reporter Lilia Sebouai explains how tensions have worsened since she visited the area last year. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced the return of military service in the country, 25 years after mandatory national service was phased out. And he's not alone, with the German parliament set to vote on similar measures, while Belgium and the Netherlands have already introduced voluntary military service. But what do the measures entail exactly? How effective, or even necessary are they, and will the UK follow suit? To discuss all of this Venetia Rainey is sits down with Dr Lynette Nusbacher, a military historian and strategist, and James Crisp, The Telegraph’s Europe editor, to hear more. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump’s latest effort to end the war in Ukraine unleashed a week of diplomatic turmoil. And some of the most dramatic diplomatic twists and turns bear the finger prints of one man: Jonathan Powell, the British national security advisor, not only led a diplomatic rescue mission to recast Donald Trump’s original Russian-inspired proposals in Ukraine and Europe’s favour. His influence can also be seen in Anglo-French plans for a “coalition of the willing,” and even earlier this year in Donald Trump’s Gaza Peace Plan. He is a low-profile figure who wields real influence. So can the man who some have called Britain’s Henry Kissinger guide the war in Ukraine to a peaceful and palatable conclusion? Is his philosophy of engagement suited to grappling with Putin’s Kremlin? And have the week’s acrobatics brought Ukraine and Russia any closer to peace? David Blair, the Telegraph’s chief foreign affairs commentator, and Orysia Lutsevych, the head of the Ukraine Forum at Chatham House, joins Roland Oliphant on this edition of Battle Lines. David Blair on Jonathan Powell: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/25/jonathan-powell-britains-kissinger-ukraine/ For blow-by-blow coverage of the peace talks, follow Ukraine the Latest: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/03/02/russia-ukraine-war-listen-daily-podcast/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With conflicts raging around the world, aid budgets are being slashed in favour of defence spending.  But experts are warning that cutting aid may not just hurt the world’s most vulnerable, it could make life in Britain more dangerous. This week, Lord Dannatt, the former head of the British Army, tells Venetia and Arthur why cutting aid to boost defence actually makes us less safe.  Plus we hear from the author of a new Chatham House report, Olivia O'Sullivan, about the risk of China filling the power gap and the impact on global health. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle Read Lord Dannatt's Telegraph article here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/24/britain-invest-security-sudan-dangerous-world/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Xi Jinping is the most authoritarian and longest serving Chinese leader since Mao - and probably the most powerful man on earth. But what makes him tick, and what does is upbringing tell us about his behaviour today? Joseph Torigian spent nine years researching this question. The result is The Party's Interests Comes First - a biography of Xi's father, Xi Zhongxun. Torigan sat down with Roland Oliphant to discuss what he discovered about Xi's family history, and how it's shaping China and the world today. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

TNT, the unglamorous but indispensable ingredient of modern warfare, is now in critically short supply and Britain is feeling the consequences. A new parliamentary report warns that the UK’s war-fighting readiness is being eroded not only by dwindling stockpiles but by its failure to meet Nato Article 3 obligations to maintain the capacity to resist armed attack. The shortage of TNT is particularly alarming: Europe and the United States currently rely on a single Polish factory, a fragility that exposes the entire alliance to strategic risk. Ministers insist they are responding, with Defence Secretary John Healey outlining plans for up to 13 new British factories to produce munitions and explosives. But the pace remains slow. In this episode, Venetia speaks to Joakim Sjöblom, CEO of Sweden Ballistics, about his bid to build Europe's next TNT plant and gets reaction from The Telegraph’s acting defence editor Tom Cotterill on how serious the crisis really is. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Credit: Sgt Robert Weideman / MoD Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More children are being killed by explosive weapons than at any other time in history, according to a major new report by Save the Children and Imperial College London. It’s clear there has been a shift in the way wars are being fought, and children are being caught in the crosshairs.  In this exclusive interview, Arthur and Paul ask George Graham, Executive Director for Global Impact at Save the Children, and Shehan Hettiaratchy, from the Centre for Paediatric Blast Injury Studies at Imperial College London why have wars become so much more deadly for civilians and children in particular?  Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Picture credit: MAHMUD HAMS / AFP Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

America is flexing its muscles in the Caribbean and the world is holding its breath. Washington has trained its sights on Socialist-run Venezuela, and the arrival of the colossal USS Gerald Ford has sparked the biggest military buildup since the Cuban Missile Crisis. Operation Southern Spear is now under way: a dozen warships, thousands of troops, and a barrage of so-called “anti-narco” strikes that have already left scores dead. The White House insists it’s about drug traffickers, but few believe that. With President Nicolás Maduro about to be officially labelled a terrorist and Trump accusing him of heading a major cartel, the scent of regime change is hard to ignore. Maduro says America is inventing a war. So what’s really happening? Venetia is joined by former British Royal Navy officer Tom Sharpe and RUSI Senior Research Fellow Carlos Solar. Three possible scenarios: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/13/donald-trump-venezuela-nicolas-maduro-options/ Tom Sharpe on his time fighting drug smugglers in the Caribbean: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09/08/ive-gone-up-against-drug-smugglers-in-the-caribbean/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Syrian civil war raged for years, wrecked a nation, and then quietly vanished from the headlines. Last December, a jihadist faction once aligned with Al-Qaeda toppled Bashar al-Assad’s dictatorship. Their leader, al-Sharaa is now President of Syria and he met Donald Trump this week in the Oval Office, yes, really. Al-Sharaa is calling it a “new era” for Syria, no enemies, just friends. He’s courting everyone: Russia, Israel, Iran, the Gulf, even Turkey. But can a man with blood on his hands truly change? Or is this a master of reinvention pulling off the biggest PR stunt in modern history? So who really is Ahmed al-Sharaa? Joining Roland for Battle Lines we have Jerome Drevon, co-author of “Transformed by the People Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s Road to Power in Syria” and The Telegraph’s very own Adrian Blomfield. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/10/ahmed-al-sharaa-syrian-president-donald-trump-white-house/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For more than two years a vicious civil war has been raging in Sudan. It’s been defined by massacres, rapes, displacement, and starvation.  As the UN has long said, it is one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century. Most media didn’t pay attention until Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab published satellite images of bodies and bloody sand. Suddenly, there was hard visual evidence of the scale of the slaughter. This week, we speak to Nathaniel Raymond, Executive Director of Yale's Humanitarian Research Lab about how satellites are being used to track wars and war crimes from space. We also hear from Shashwat Saraf, Norwegian Refugee Council's Country Director to get an on the ground update from near El Fasher. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Picture credit: AP / Airbus DS 2025 Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sanctions, nationwide protests, even Israeli airstrikes haven’t broken the Iranian regime. Could a drought finally bring the Islamic Republic to its knees? Iran is running out of water and now the president has warned that if the rains don’t come, all of Tehran may have to be evacuated. This isn’t a war fought with bombs or bullets, it’s far more devastating. Roland Oliphant is joined by The Telegraph’s Iran correspondent, Akhtar Makoii and former Iranian politician Kaveh Madani to unpack how things got so bad and what it might mean for the regime. Credit: Geoff Pugh/The Telegraph ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Germany is rearming, and fast. A sentence that once sent shivers down Europe’s spine is now a shocking reality. This isn’t the Germany of old; it’s a nation powering up for a new era of danger. With Putin’s war machine grinding on, Berlin’s gone from pacifist to powerhouse, pledging a staggering 3.5% of GDP to defence by 2029, outpacing the UK. So what’s behind this dramatic transformation? And is it enough to protect Europe from another Russian rampage? Venetia is joined by The Telegraph’s Berlin correspondent James Rothwell and defence expert Ulrike Franke to find out about Germany’s great rearmament. Read Matt Oliver's deep dive into Germany's rearmament: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/11/02/germany-wants-to-arm-itself-to-the-teeth-is-the-world-ready/ Credit: AFP/Genya Savilov ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Ukraine, tens of thousands of soldiers have returned from the frontlines without limbs. Most of them will require support in some form for the rest of their lives.  But not all of those amputations are purely the result of direct hits on the battlefield. Ukraine’s Chief Military Surgeon has said the improper use of tourniquets could be responsible for as many as one in four lost limbs.  Have medics become too reliant on the tourniquet? And what does this enormous burden of injury mean for Ukraine in the long term? To find out, Arthur and Venetia are joined by two former military medics, Captain Rom Stevens and Eddie Chanoler.  Did you know, you can watch this podcast? Just click here to watch on on YouTube: https://youtu.be/YWbRNvfZhFs Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle Read more about this issue: ‘Cult’ of tourniquets causing thousands of unnecessary amputations and deaths in Ukraine, say surgeons How Ukraine rehabilitates its war wounded will define it as a nation ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Picture credit: Jose Colon/Anadolu via Getty Images https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump’s been on a triumphant tour of Asia, shaking hands, signing peace deals, and lapping up royal treatment fit for, well, himself. From Tokyo Tower lit in red, white and blue to 250 cherry trees gifted in his honour, it was a spectacle of ego and diplomacy rolled into one. In South Korea, they even played YMCA as he strutted past a military band. Trump’s “12 out of 10” meeting with Xi Jinping was big on smiles but is it enough to combat Beijing's increasingly confident posture in the Pacific? Plus, beyond the fireworks and photo ops, what did this Asia trip actually achieve? Were the rare earth and critical mineral deals Trump struck enough to protect Western militaries from China’s stranglehold on this key industry? Venetia is joined by Ben Bland from Chatham House and Steve Tsang from The School of Oriental and African Studies to find out. Trump may already be losing the economic war for the Asia-Pacific: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/11/03/trump-may-already-be-losing-war-china-asia-pacific/ Air Force One is stuffed with golden gifts but the promises remain paper-thin: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/10/30/air-force-one-stuffed-gifts-trump-trade-deals-uncertain/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a rhythm to wartime atrocity. First come the warnings, ignored, dismissed. Then the whispers, the shaky videos, the satellite images that no one can quite believe. And finally, the horrific truth. That’s where we are today in el-Fasher, Sudan, where the militia calling itself the Rapid Support Forces is perpetrating a massacre that can literally be seen from space. The crime has refocused attention both on Sudan's war, and the RSF's regional backers. Who are they, and why are they bankrolling such bloodshed? And why is such a vast and visible atrocity drawing such a muted reaction from the international community? Battle Lines is joined by Sudanese analyst Kholood Khair from think tank Confluence Advisory and terrorism and conflict specialist Michael Jones from Royal United Services Institute. A massacre visible from space: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/10/28/sudan-bloodied-sands-massacre-thousands/ Attack on El Fasher hospital: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/hundreds-die-in-el-fasher-hospital-massacre-darfur-sudan/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Credit: AFP PHOTO / HO / SUDAN RAPID SUPPORT FORCES (RSF) TELEGRAM https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's been over two weeks since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect in Gaza. While the full-blown war has stopped, the World Health Organisation is warning that Gaza is experiencing a health "catastrophe" that will last for "generations to come". How do we make Gaza healthy again? How do you heal a city that’s been under siege and rebuild a health system destroyed by war? To find out, Arthur and Venetia are joined by Professor Paul Spiegel, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health, and Nick Maynard, a consultant surgeon at Oxford university hospital who’s regularly been into Gaza during the war. Did you know, you can watch this podcast? Just click here to follow our playlist on YouTube. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Picture credit: OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the Arctic ice melts, a new Cold War is heating up. Russia and China are rewriting the rules of global power, testing missiles, flexing muscles, and pushing into the world’s last frontiers. A 294-metre container ship has just blazed through the Arctic route from China to Europe in record time. If trade can flow through, what’s to stop warships? Are we watching the start of a polar power grab? Should NATO be bracing for a Chinese fleet in the North Atlantic, or even Antarctica next? Military historian Caroline Kennedy-Pipe and Arctic expert Dr Elizabeth Buchanan plunge into the freezing front line to expose what’s really happening beneath the ice. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Credit: Anthony Upton/Telegraph https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Caribbean is heating up and Trump’s fingerprints are all over it. U.S. warships, stealth fighters, elite troops… and whispers of regime change. Is Donald Trump about to launch a full-scale invasion of Venezuela? Behind the “war on drugs” rhetoric, Washington has been quietly building up military power near Maduro’s shores, reopening bases and even authorising covert CIA operations. Venezuela’s leader says America is trying to overthrow him. Trump insists it’s about stopping criminals and cartels. So who’s telling the truth? And how close are we to another Cold War-style showdown in America’s backyard? Senior Adviser at International Crisis Group, Brian Finucane, joins us to expose what’s really happening on the edge of the Caribbean. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Credit: AFP/Federico Parra https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last month, Donald Trump raised the spectre of biological weapons at the UN, calling on the world to help him end their development. He said AI could help enforce the ban on these weapons. But scientists are increasingly concerned that technologies like AI and gene editing tools could also make them more accessible – and even more dangerous. So we’re asking: has the threat of biological weapons returned? We are joined by Dr Brett Edwards, Senior Lecturer in Security and Public Policy at the University of Bath. His research focuses on both the history and contemporary threat posed by biological and chemical weapons. Plus we speak to Dr Ken Alibek, Former Deputy Chief of the Soviet Union's Biological Weapons, who lifted the lid on their secret bioweapons programmes to find out what threat Russia poses today. Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle For more insights and exclusive content, sign up to the Global Health newsletter: https://secure.telegraph.co.uk/customer/secure/newsletter/global-health-security/ Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @TelGlobalHealth @venetiarainey @ascottgeddes Dr Brett Edwards hosts the Poisons and Pestilence Podcast on the history of biological and chemical weapons and warfare. Dr Ken Alibek is the author of 'Biohazard'. Credit: UN clip - ABC News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Here’s a sobering reality: China could bring America’s military to its knees — without firing a single shot. The weapon? Rare earth minerals. These hidden elements power everything from fighter jets and submarines to missiles and drones. If Beijing pulled the plug tomorrow, Western stockpiles would run dry within weeks — and rebuilding them wouldn’t be easy. Now, with China tightening export controls and Trump hitting back with 100% tariffs, the global standoff is escalating fast. This week on Battle Lines, Samuel Olsen from Sibylline and Neha Mukherjee from Benchmark Minerals expose the fight beneath the surface — the battle for the world’s rare earths. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Credit: Getty/ US Navy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We surface a story that’s been making waves. A Russian diesel-electric submarine, The Novorossiysk, is being trailed through the North Sea by NATO ships, sparking headlines about a “crippled” vessel and “embarrassment for Moscow.” But is it really in trouble? Or are we, once again, jumping to Cold War-style conclusions? Yes, it leaked fuel last month. Boats do that. It’s now heading home. They do that too. It’s been politely shadowed by eleven ships from six nations—Britain, France, the Dutch—all watching closely, all behaving exactly as they should. And it’s on the surface? Perfectly normal for a diesel-electric sub. These boats run on a mix of diesel and battery power—surfacing to recharge before diving again. The truth is, diesel-electric submarines are both silent hunters and noisy neighbours. On battery, they’re whisper quiet; on diesel, they roar like thunder. So, could The Novorossiysk simply be recharging, not retreating? Is NATO flexing its muscles for show, rather than necessity? And in an age of nuclear subs and high-tech stealth—are diesel-electrics just relics running on borrowed time? Former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe dives deep into the story. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/10/15/russia-navy-putin-mediterranean-naval-threat/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/10/14/broken-russian-submarine-novorossiysk-channel-north-sea-tug/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

War is the perfect petri dish for disease. In the conflicts of the 18th and 19th centuries, many more troops died of illnesses than in battle. And, at the start of the 20th century, the Spanish Flu pandemic emerged out of the chaos of the First World War. With anti-microbial resistance on the rise and HIV cases soaring among Russian soldiers, might ‘Disease X’ – the mystery pathogen that could cause the next pandemic – be lurking in Ukraine, or Gaza, or Sudan?  In the first episode of a brand new Global Health Security Series for Battle Lines, Venetia Rainey is joined by Arthur Scott-Geddes to ask: Could war spark the next pandemic?   We hear from Amesh Adalja, Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security about pandemic preparedness and how war zones breed disease.  Plus, Laura Spinney, author of best selling book, Pale Rider, explains how the First World War paved the way for the Spanish Flu to kill up to 100 million people.   Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan Executive Producer: Louisa Wells Studio Operator: Meghan Searle Contact us with feedback or ideas:  [email protected]  @TelGlobalHealth @venetiarainey  @ascottgeddes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China isn’t just spying — many Western security officials believe it’s waging a full-blown, whole-of-government campaign against the West. From hacking our systems to manipulating elections and social media, Beijing’s playing the long game to undermine Britain, America, and their allies. We speak to former FBI agent Michael Feinberg who quit under very controversial circumstances — he lifts the lid on how China’s outsmarting the FBI, America, and the entire Western intelligence machine. Rooted in centuries of pride and grievance, he says that China sees itself on a divine mission to topple Western dominance. And while our governments talk tough, we’ve tied ourselves to China economically — a dangerous bind. ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Credits: Steven McDowell / Science Photo Library RF https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this explosive episode of Battle Lines, Venetia Rainey is asking the question everyone else is too afraid to: is Britain ready for a Russian-style drone onslaught? Drones have been spotted across Europe — Poland, Germany, Denmark, Belgium — sparking fears of a new kind of hybrid war. Could the UK defend itself if those drones turned up on our shores? To find out, Venetia is joined by ex-RAF pilot and CEO of FlyBy Technology, Jon Parker, and The Telegraph's senior foreign correspondent, Memphis Barker. Their verdict? Britain’s readiness score — a pitiful two or three out of ten. This is a wake-up call. Read Memphis' Wales drone dispatch:https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/14/britains-best-attack-drones-are-stuck-chasing-sheep/ ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Credits: Mariusz Burcz / Alamy Stock Photo https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two years on from October 7th, Donald Trump is on the cusp of brokering a fragile peace deal between Israel and Hamas. But with Hamas showing signs of reconstituting itself and Israeli forces still in control of much of the Strip, few believe the war is truly over. In this episode, we hear from The Telegraph’s Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin, fresh from an Israeli army embed inside Gaza City, about what he saw on the ground and why Hamas’s resilience could shape what comes next.  Venetia also speaks to Dalia Horn, whose brother-in-law Eitan Horn is one of around twenty hostages believed to be alive in Gaza out of the 48 not yet released.  Plus, Sophia Yan catches up again with two close friends from the Oasis of Peace — one Jewish Israeli, one Palestinian — who she has spoken to throughout the conflict about their friendship and whether they still believe in the two-state solution.  Read Henry’s dispatch: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/10/04/inside-gaza-city-idf-face-younger-braver-hamas/ Read El Sharabi’s book extract: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/10/04/eli-sharabi-hamas-hostage-book-extract-2/ Listen to Sophia’s previous conversations with the best friends:  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/02/14/battle-lines-israel-oasis-of-peace-palestine/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/10/09/israels-oasis-of-peace-one-year-later/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and President Trump delivered extraordinary speeches to top military generals this week, declaring a war on the "enemy within" and signaling a radical transformation of the US armed forces. To decode what it all means, Roland Oliphant speaks with Mark Cancian, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a former Marine Corps colonel. Are American soldiers lazier than before? Is there any chance the US Navy will start building battleships again? And how significant is Trump's call for cities to be used as "training grounds"? They also discuss the ongoing redrafting of the National Defense Strategy and what it means for America's allies and enemies. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines  Contact us with feedback or ideas:  [email protected]  @venetiarainey  @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss bringing an end to the conflict in Gaza. Last week, he was giving a fiery speech at the UN General Assembly denying the accusation of genocide levelled at Israel following a UN report. In response to an earlier Battle Lines interview with one of the report's authors, Venetia gets the other side of the argument with Dr. Eran Shamir-Borer, a former head of the International Law Department in the Israel Defense Forces and part of Israel's team at the International Court of Justice defending the country's against a genocide case there. He is now director of the Center for Security and Democracy at the Israel Democracy Institute and shares his legal perspective on why the UN Commission of Inquiry's report was wrong and Israel is not committing genocide in Gaza. Plus he discusses how Hamas' operating tactics makes the Gaza war one of the most morally and legally complex in modern history. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines  Contact us with feedback or ideas:  [email protected]  @venetiarainey  @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the darling's of the global populist movement, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, has recently been sentenced to over 27 years in prison in his native country. So what does that tell us about the possible fortunes for other political leaders of the same ilk across the globe, and where does the South American country go from here? Roland hears from the Telegraph's senior foreign correspondent Adrian Blomfield, who has just returned from Brazil, about his meeting with Bolsonaro's wife and the extraordinary phenomenon of one of the world's largest Catholic majority countries being set to become majority Evangelical Christian in the coming years. Also in the programme, Roland speaks to Moldovan policy analyst Andrei Curăraru about the country's historic parliamentary elections this Sunday, and how Russia is trying to influence the result. Read Adrian Blomfield's interview with Mrs Bolsonaro: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/24/michelle-bolsonaro-rise-like-lioness-husband-languish-jail/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines  Contact us with feedback or ideas:  [email protected]  @venetiarainey  @RolandOliphant Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the UN still relevant? The organisation faces numerous unresolved conflicts, a cash crisis, deep polarisation among its members, a bloated bureaucracy and the waning interest of its biggest backer, the US. Venetia Rainey speaks to Richard Gowan, veteran UN watcher and UN director for the US think tank International Crisis Group. He says the body is “rotting from the top” and questions if parts of it will survive another 10 years. Plus, a wave of Western countries including the UK, Canada, France and Australia have recognised the state of Palestine in the hope of preserving the two-state solution. But that option is long dead, according to The Telegraph's chief foreign affairs commentator, David Blair. Read David Blair's analysis: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09/20/starmers-middle-east-madness-in-recognising-palestine/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines  Contact us with feedback or ideas:  [email protected]  @venetiarainey  @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What links Elon Musk, Steve Bannon and Tommy Robinson? They all believe England is on the cusp of civil war. As US President Donald Trump wraps up his second state visit to the UK, hosts Venetia Rainey and Roland Oliphant examine the darker side of the transatlantic “special relationship” — from American support for the British far-right to the spread of populist extremism across borders. They’re joined by Rob Crilly, The Telegraph’s chief US correspondent, who explains MAGA-world’s obsession with the idea of British decline, Trump’s surprisingly friendly ties with Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and what the president’s visit means for US-UK relations and the defence industry. They also discuss Musk’s speech at Robinson's "free speech" rally in London, Steve Bannon’s influence, and the rise of political violence in America following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a bombshell report, the UN has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza for the first time. Chris Sidoti, one of the report's authors and a human rights law expert, explains why on this bonus episode of Battle Lines.  Speaking to host Venetia Rainey and Telegraph reporter Lilia Sebouai, he delves into the report's findings, how his team reached their conclusions, and concrete examples of Israeli genocidal acts and genocidal intent in Gaza. They also discuss criticisms of the report, its authors and the UN at large - including Israel's allegations of anti-Semitism.  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The assassination of Charlie Kirk marks more than a shocking act of political violence - it is a symptom of America’s accelerating era of violent populism, and it will continue to escalate without intervention. That's according to Robert Pape, one of the world’s foremost experts on political violence, terrorism, and national security and director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats.Roland speaks to Pape about what next after Kirk's murder, the deeper forces driving America’s unrest and what lessons other countries in the West should take from it.  Plus, Venetia speaks to The Telegraph's Samaan Lateef about the historic protests in Nepal and how Gen Z demonstrators overturned a government by using new online technology such as Discord and Chat GPT. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's been a week of big developments, with Nato planes scrambled after Russia sent more than a dozen drones into Polish airspace, and Qatar on high alert after Israel bombed a Hamas negotiating team in the centre of Doha. Roland and Venetia unpack the significance of the events and what might happen next.  Plus, the team spends a day at DSEI, one of the world's largest arms fairs, to look at how the UK is getting its armed forces ready for the next war. They catch up with a veteran British tank commander on the pros and cons of the upcoming Challenger 3, the managing director of Ukrspecsystems, Ukraine’s largest drone manufacturer, on why they’re investing in the UK, and Hamish de Bretton-Gordon on chemical warfare and the importance of good defensive kit. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Image: Petty Officer Joel Rouse © Crown copyright 2024 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For three generations the Kim dynasty has ruled North Korea with ruthless precision. Now Kim Jong Un appears to be grooming his 12-year-old daughter, Kim Ju Ae, as his heir—a bold move in a country where women have never held power. At the same time, reports surface of a disastrous US Navy SEALs mission to bug Kim’s communications, ending in civilian deaths. So what does all this tell us about the Hermit Kingdom’s future, its ties to China and Russia, and the grip of one family dynasty? We are joined by leading North Korea analyst Rachel Minyoung Lee to cut through the mystery, the propaganda, and the paranoia. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09/04/kim-jong-un-daughter-kim-ju-ae/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andrew and Jihi Bustamante aren’t your average married couple — they met inside the CIA and their romance played out under the shadow of espionage. In this gripping conversation, they reveal how they fell in love during training, the reality of life inside America’s most secretive agency, and how a mole within the CIA blew their cover. Love, lies, and life on the frontline of the new spy war. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Andrew’s CIA book ‘Shadow Cell’: https://geni.us/ShadowCellBook If you want to hear more from Andrew, you can follow him on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@Andrew-Bustamante Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China's biggest ever military parade boasted sophisticated new weapons, thousands of goose-stepping troops, and a guest list designed to put the West on notice.  The footage of Chinese President Xi Jinping walking in between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un in particular was a clear message to the US, Europe and its democratic allies: Beijing now officially heads up a new world order of authoritarian states.  Venetia is joined by former Russia correspondent Roland Oliphant and former China correspondent Sophia Yan to explain everything you need to know about the new weapons unveiled, the leaders who were and weren’t there, and what it means for the West. Read Sophia's exclusive drone investigation: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/03/how-china-is-secretly-arming-russia/ Read Sophia's analysis: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/03/china-parade-xi-putin-kim/ Listen to our mini series on the rise of China's military: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/08/battle-lines-podcast-inside-the-rise-of-chinas-military/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the war for Sudan's Darfur region heats up, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are stepping up their brutal siege on the last remaining army stronghold of El Fasher, with new satellite pictures showing a wall being built around the northern city. The RSF have been accused of genocide for conducting a campaign of violence, rape and murder against Darfur's non-Arab communities. Famine has been declared in the region and millions have been displaced. To understand what is going on in El Fasher, Venetia speaks to the head of the Darfur Human Rights Network, Mohammed Adam Hassan, who is Darfurian and in contact with people on the ground. Plus Amnesty's head of crisis research, explosives expert Brian Castner, explains why he believes the UAE is arming the RSF, including with sophisticated Chinese weapons. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the old cliché goes, the first casualty when war comes is truth. In the past week, Israel has denied that it has caused a famine in Gaza, accusing the UN-backed body behind the report of a “blood libel”, and killed five more journalists in a widely condemned double-tap attack on a hospital.  It is part of a wider trend that has made getting to the facts of the war in Gaza difficult. To understand how a war on truth is being waged in Israel, Venetia speaks to UNICEF’s Tess Ingram in Gaza City, Phil Chetwynd, global news director of news agency AFP, and Israeli information warfare specialist Tal Hagin. READ MORE: What really happened with Israel’s ‘double-tap’ strike on Gaza hospital? https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/08/27/what-really-happened-with-israel-double-tap-gaza-hospital/ Seven common tropes used to deny Gaza’s famine: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/seven-common-tropes-used-to-deny-gazas-famine-debunked/ Listen to our mini series on the rise of China's military: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/08/battle-lines-podcast-inside-the-rise-of-chinas-military/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How can Nato make itself future-ready? What are the biggest threats facing Western democracy? And what black swan event helped change the course of the First World War? To find out, Venetia chats to Dr Gabriele Rizzo, a defence futurist and foresight strategist whose job is to imagine different possibilities and help his clients prepare for them.  He has years of experience working with the US Space Force, NATO, the Italian Government, the European Defense Agency, and the United Nations. In 2022, UNESCO elected Dr. Rizzo as a UNESCO Chair in Futures Studies and Foresight, making him the youngest recipient ever. He is also in the process of writing the Handbook of Foresight, Strategy, and Futures Studies for Defense and Security, which looks at how foresight strategies can be used in government and policy. Listen to our mini series on the rise of China's military: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/08/battle-lines-podcast-inside-the-rise-of-chinas-military/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In his desperate attempt to win the Nobel Peace Prize, President Trump claims to have ended at least six wars around the world. But how does that stack up in reality?  In this episode Roland Oliphant hears from Telegraph correspondents Adrian Blomfield and Sarah Newey alongside Caucasus expert James Kilner about Trump’s actual involvement, or not, in halting these conflicts and how likely it is that he’ll win the prize he seemingly covets above any other… Listen to our mini series on the rise of China's military: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/08/battle-lines-podcast-inside-the-rise-of-chinas-military/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eighty years on from Victory over Japan day in 1945, the contribution of British and Commonwealth soldiers in a brutal battle against the Imperial Japanese armed forces is often overlooked. The fact that the dropping of two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki saved the lives of many in prisoner of war camps is even less discussed.  Featuring voicenotes from readers whose family fought in Asia and the Pacific, Venetia and Roland dive into this tangled history and reflect on the legacy they have left behind.  Plus, The Telegraph's Gareth Corfield gives the inside scoop on the story behind the biggest British data leak in history - the Ministry of Defence's Afghan list - and how Iran is using it to hunt for MI6 spies.  Read David Blair's piece: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/06/the-bombing-of-hiroshima-saved-my-grandfather/ Read more VJ Day veteran accounts: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/15/vj-day-80th-anniversary-veterans-who-were-there/ Listen to our mini series on the rise of China's military: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/08/battle-lines-podcast-inside-the-rise-of-chinas-military/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As US President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin get ready to meet in Alaska, there has been lots of talk about what Washington, Moscow and even Europe want from the historic summit. But what about Ukrainians? What do they want? To find out, Roland speaks to former Ukrainian defence minister and chairman of the Center for Defence Strategies Andriy Zagorodnyuk and veteran frontline soldier Max Kuzmenko. Plus, Ukraine: The Latest host Dominic Nicholls and acting deputy US editor Connor Stringer dial in from Anchorage to talk about international expectations ahead of the meeting.  Read Roland's analysis about the options available on the table in Alaska: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/14/ukraine-russia-alaska-summit-donald-trump-putin-zelensky/ Listen to our sister podcast Ukraine: The Latest for a special bonus episode on Friday after the Trump-Putin summit: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/03/02/russia-ukraine-war-listen-daily-podcast/ Listen to our mini series on the rise of China's military: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/08/battle-lines-podcast-inside-the-rise-of-chinas-military/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Australia holds a unique position in global geopolitics - on the other side of the world but still very much a 'Western' country. To that end, Roland Oliphant speaks with former Australian Defence Minister Christopher Pyne about the delicate balancing act his country faces in dealing with an increasingly sharp-elbowed China; and whether President Trump will stand by the AUKUS nuclear submarine pact with Australia. Also in this episode, Roland looks at developments in Gaza. Nearly 200 journalists have been killed while reporting in the strip, but for the first time, Israel has publicly stated that the death of one on Sunday - Al Jazeera’s Anas al-Sharif - was an assassination by its own forces... The Telegraph’s Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin discusses why the strike happened now and what it means for journalists either already in Gaza and those still trying to enter. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nuclear weapons are back.  This week, Moscow announced that it would no longer abide by the once hugely significant Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. Last week, President Donald Trump announced that he had moved nuclear submarines towards Russia. From growing stockpiles in China and North Korea, to growing cooperation between the UK and France, the direction of travel is clear.  As Japan marks the 80th anniversary of the devastating atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Venetia talks to Dr Sidharth Kaushal, a senior fellow in military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute in London. What’s driving this new nuclear arms race? Which country will be the next to go nuclear? And is there an argument that it actually makes the world safer?  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Amid growing international outrage over an unfolding famine in Gaza, lack of aid supplies and the high death toll in the ongoing war, Israel is increasingly isolated on the world stage.  Last week, several of Israel's major Western allies - the UK, France and Canada - set out a timetable for recognising a Palestinian state. In the following days, an apparently emboldened Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad both released fresh videos of hostages they kidnapped on October 7th, showing the two men in shocking conditions.  Venetia speaks to Gili Roman, brother of a released hostage and brother-in-law of a murdered hostage, about the pain of the videos and the mood on the ground in Israel amid fresh anti-government protests.  Plus, The Telegraph's chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair looks at whether recognising a Palestinian state is the right move and what other options were available to Prime Minister Keir Starmer.  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will China invade Taiwan? If so, when and what signs should we look for that will show it is imminent? How exactly could Beijing seize the island? And what would the US do in response? These questions have been at the core of Indo-Pacific security concerns for decades, but in recent years, the threat has become more tangible - and the questions more urgent.  In the final episode of this three-part series on China's military, Venetia Rainey looks at different analyses of whether Beijing is getting ready to invade the self-ruled island it claims as its own. Plus, she examines the different scenarios that could unfold and crucially, what that would mean for a conflict with the US and a potential Third World War.  This series dives into the strengths and weaknesses of China’s military and its remarkable transformation over the last few decades from obsolete to world-class. How significant is China’s military buildup? What does Xi Jinping’s ongoing purge mean for the People’s Liberation Army? And how likely is an invasion of Taiwan in the next few years?  As the US pivots to the Indo-Pacific and the threat of a truly global war looms, understanding the evolving role of China’s military on the world stage has never been more important. With thanks to Dr Phillip Saunders and Joel Wuthnow from the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, Oriana Skylar Mastro from the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University, Meia Nouwens from the China Programme at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Timothy Heath at RAND, Amanda Hsiao at Eurasia Group, and The Telegraph’s Asia Correspondent Allegra Mendelson.    Archive used: WION, SBS News, PBS News Hour, Channel 4, NATO, DRM News, CCTV, Weibo/social media Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China’s military is not a real army - it’s the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party. Ideology is paramount and corruption is endemic.  Plus, the People’s Liberation Army hasn’t fought a war since 1979. Xi Jinping calls it “the peace disease”.  In episode two of this three-part series, Venetia Rainey looks at the PLA’s weaknesses and how the Chinese president Xi is trying to fix them, from endless purges of top generals to a specially built training centre in Mongolia and live-fire drills around Taiwan.  This series on China’s military dives into the strengths and weaknesses of China’s military and its remarkable transformation over the last few decades from obsolete to world-class. How significant is China’s military buildup? What does Xi Jinping’s ongoing purge mean for the People’s Liberation Army? And how likely is an invasion of Taiwan in the next few years?  As the US pivots to the Indo-Pacific and the threat of a truly global war looms, understanding the evolving role of China’s military on the world stage has never been more important. With thanks to Dr Phillip Saunders and Joel Wuthnow from the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, Oriana Skylar Mastro from the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University, Meia Nouwens from the China Programme at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Timothy Heath at RAND, and Amanda Hsiao at Eurasia Group.   Archive used: WION, SBS News, PBS News Hour, Channel 4, NATO, DRM News, Shortwave Radio Audio Archive, Reuters Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dive into the strengths and weaknesses of China’s military and its remarkable transformation over the last few decades from obsolete to world-class in a new special series on Battle Lines. How significant is China’s military buildup? What does Xi Jinping’s ongoing purge mean for the People’s Liberation Army? And how likely is an invasion of Taiwan in the next few years? As the US pivots to the Indo-Pacific and the threat of a truly global war looms, understanding the evolving role of China’s military on the world stage has never been more important. In episode one of this three-part series, Venetia Rainey uncovers the strengths that define the PLA today, from its vastly modernised Navy, now the largest globally, to its Air Force equipped with stealth fighters and advanced drones. Plus, a look at China’s potent non-conventional forces, such as its highly sophisticated cyber warfare units, its independent aerospace and counter-space capabilities, and the secretive Rocket Force, responsible for a fast-expanding nuclear arsenal. With thanks to Dr Phillip Saunders and Joel Wuthnow from the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, and Oriana Skylar Mastro from the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University. Archive used: WION, SBS News, PBS News Hour, Channel 4, NATO, DRM News, CGTN, Getty Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected] @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What exactly is going on inside the Gaza strip? Amid growing reports of children starving to death and fears of full-blown famine, the international community appears to be becoming more critical of Israel. Roland Oliphant hears from a UNICEF staffer with recent on the ground experience in Gaza about why mass starvation is setting in - but is still avoidable. Tess Ingram shares the latest from the area and how it is now nothing short of a ‘hellscape’. Plus, in a dramatic escalation of tensions, Thailand bombed its neighbour Cambodia on Thursday with F16 fighter jets. But how did it come to this and why now? Roland speaks to the Telegraph’s Bangkok-based correspondent Sarah Newey to get the latest from the region. Exclusive footage showing acute malnutrition in Gaza: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/gaza-starvation-child-malnutrition-israel-hamas-war/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Amid growing speculation around China’s invasion of Taiwan, the island nation has held its largest ever military exercises.  Fresh from reporting on live fire drills off the Taiwanese coast, The Telegraph’s Asia correspondent Allegra Mendelson shares the latest on Indo-Pacific tensions with Roland Oliphant. Also, Roland speaks to Neal Urwitz, close friend of the US Under Secretary of Defense for Policy - Elbridge A. Colby - to discuss the latter’s push to dramatically refocus America’s military might purely on Taiwan. Read Allegra's dispatch here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/07/14/taiwan-forgotten-front-line-defensive-drills-may-not-matter/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Read Allegra's dispatch here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/07/14/taiwan-forgotten-front-line-defensive-drills-may-not-matter/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump—never one to shy away from controversy—has done another dramatic U-turn. After flatly refusing to send any more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, he’s now decided to send them anyway. So what’s changed? And why do these missiles matter so much? Let’s cut through the noise. Are Patriot missiles genuinely game-changers on the battlefield, or are they just a powerful symbol in modern warfare? To get to the truth, we’re speaking to someone who’s actually been there—Air Marshal Edward Stringer. He spent 39 years in the RAF, flew combat missions over Iraq, and went up against anti-aircraft systems himself. If anyone knows what Patriot missiles can really do, it’s him.  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

General Sir Patrick Sanders has a stark warning: Britain must prepare for war with Russia within five years and start building bunkers and better air defences. Speaking exclusively to our Defence Editor Danielle Sheridan, the former head of the British army points to the Nordic countries and says we need to start taking a leaf out of their book. He also discusses why an Iron Dome couldn’t work in the UK, his thoughts on the recent Israel-Iran war, and why he didn’t encourage his son to join the army. General Sanders stood down as head of the British army last summer. The former rifleman had been tipped to be the next Chief of the Defence Staff but fell out of favour with the Government for being too outspoken about the extent of troop cuts. Our defence editor Danielle interviewed him in his garden at his home in rural Wiltshire, with his blonde Labrador Fargo by his side. You can read her write-up and see some pretty extraordinary photos of General Sanders here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/07/11/britain-must-prepare-for-war-with-russia-next-five-years/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

US President Donald Trump has called out Vladimir Putin's "b******t" and appears to be getting ready to back major US sanctions against Russia. Could this be the end of Trump's soft spot for the Russian dictator?  Venetia chats to veteran army officer and chemical and nuclear weapons expert Hamish de Bretton-Gordon about what might happen next and why we can't trust either Trump or Putin.  They also discuss Russia's campaign of chemical weapons in Ukraine, the dangers of not supporting Syria's new Islamist government, and the significance of the new French-British nuclear weapons deal.  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets American President Donald Trump to try to hash out a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal, a new Middle East is emerging from the ashes of years of war. Iran's nuclear programme has been bombed, Syria's new leader is re-establishing diplomatic relations with the West, and the Gulf is considering normalising relations with Israel.  Roland talks to journalist Adrian Blomfield about how people across the region feel about these tectonic shifts and why Israel is emerging as the winner.  Plus, veteran interviewer Mick Brown reflects on the significance of the Dalai Lama's recent announcement on his reincarnation and why Beijing is furious.  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week, the Pentagon unveiled a jaw-dropping $47.3 billion plan to supercharge its fleet with 19 brand-new battleships. That’s right—nineteen. Up from a paltry five last year. And let’s not kid ourselves: this isn’t just about flexing maritime muscle, it’s a direct message to China—loud and clear. Enter Commander Tom Sharpe, a man who’s not only been there and done it, but practically wrote the manual. A retired Royal Navy heavyweight who’s commanded four warships and earned an OBE for saving HMS Endurance from a catastrophic flood, Sharpe joins us to tear into what this seismic shift really means. Are we gearing up for World War Sea? Has the age of battleship brinkmanship returned? Expect sharp analysis, no-nonsense truth bombs, and a few jaw-dropping tales from the frontlines of naval warfare. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this bonus episode, something a bit different: a special dispatch from the Swedish island that has become a Nato bulwark against Russian aggression in the Baltic Sea. Although all troops were removed in 2005, Gotland Island has since been remilitarised and is now home to the Swedish Armed Forces’ newest outfit: the Gotland Regiment. The troops are charged with protecting this hugely strategic Baltic outpost from Russia - and they are clear-eyed about the threat Moscow once again poses in northern Europe. Venetia Rainey takes us inside some of Sweden's trademark CV90s, chats to the regiment's commander about the challenges of defending the island, and embeds with elite British paratroopers practicing recapturing the territory from Moscow. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For several weeks, two Chinese aircraft carrier battle groups have been conducting unprecedented drills in the Western Pacific, sailing further from Beijing than ever before. What message is China trying to send to the world and what can we learn about its Navy’s capabilities? Venetia chats to RUSI's Philip Shetler‑Jones, who specialises in Indo-Pacific security. Plus, a rare journey through Gaza with UNICEF's chief spokesman James Elder and a look at an explosive story accusing Israeli soldiers of firing on unarmed Gazan civilians at aid sites they describe as "killing fields". https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week in Trumpland: Trump bombed Iran on Saturday, declared its nuclear programme "obliterated" by Sunday, shrugged off Iranian missile strikes on Monday, and by Tuesday had single-handedly forced a ceasefire between Iran and Israel—only for it to nearly collapse hours later. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, he turned up at the NATO summit in The Hague and strong-armed allies into a staggering 5% defence spending target, all while barely mentioning Ukraine. Was this the art of the deal or the brink of disaster? Venetia Rainey speaks to Brussels correspondent Joe Barnes for the inside track on NATO, and we ask KT McFarland, former Deputy National Security Advisor, the question gripping America: are we safer today, or just one bad call away from another endless war? https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The United States has just pulled off one of the most audacious bombing campaigns of the 21st century — attacking Iran’s nuclear sites in a stunning show of military might. The Pentagon is calling it a surgical strike. Donald Trump? He’s calling it a “obliteration.” Either way, it’s one hell of a moment in global history. But this didn't come out of nowhere. This is part of a full-blown war that started just ten days ago, when Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran. Since then, it’s been chaos. Missiles flying back and forth, and now — the world’s most powerful military dropping bunker-busting bombs with chilling precision. And while Israeli officials are tight-lipped about regime change, Trump certainly isn’t. Last night on Truth Social he posted: “If the current Iranian regime is unable to make Iran great again, why wouldn’t there be regime change?” Then he added “MIGA” — yes, Make Iran Great Again. Subtle, it is not. To cut through the spin and propaganda, Venetia speaks with Dr Shany Mor a Senior Research Fellow at the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre, Darya Dolzikova from RUSI and co-host Roland Oliphant. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/06/20/replace-khamenei-leader-of-iran/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/06/22/trump-stealth-bombers-mission-obliterate-iran-nuclear/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Israel and Iran are trading missiles. A hospital’s been hit. Thirty injured. Israel’s fired back — hard — targeting Iran’s nuclear sites. Inside Iran? Chaos. Power’s out. Hackers hijack state TV, urging revolt. And Donald Trump? He’s green-lit Pentagon war plans — but is holding fire. For now. We’ve got The Telegraph’s best on the ground: Sophia Yan in Beirut, Paul Nuki in Tel Aviv, and David Blair in the studio. Lebanon’s on edge. Israel’s braced. And the big question — will Trump strike? Or let Israel go it alone? The team also debates the broader stakes: Can Israel halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions without American help? Could the regime in Tehran collapse? And what happens if Hezbollah stays silent? With so many moving parts, this episode dives deep into the decisions and dangers shaping what may become the defining war of the decade. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a bumper, bonus edition of Battle Lines, we are talking to Iranians themselves, those both inside and outside the country, pro and anti regime, to get a sense of how the nation is responding to these missile strikes, what the war could mean for both the regime and ordinary people, and what comes next. Emotions on the ground and among the diaspora are running high, and the stakes are even higher. Israeli strikes have hit targets across the country, in populated parts of Tehran and other cities. Huge traffic jams have formed as people have tried to flee the capitol. There are petrol shortages and shops are closed. Iran hasn't seen this kind of attack since the war with Iraq in the 1980s. Fereshteh Sadeghi is a freelance Iranian journalist based in Tehran, who considers herself a supporter of the regime. She shares the conversations she's had on the streets of her city about this war. Giving a very different perspective, we hear from Holly Dagres, author of The Iranist, a foreign policy newsletter for Iran watchers. Plus we hear from Ali Vaez, the Iranian born Director of the Iran programme at Crisis Group,who tells us why the diplomacy had fallen apart so suddenly and dramatically, and whether there is any hope it could restart. And author of What Iranians Want, historian Arash Azizi, joins us to attempt to explain exactly that; what do the Iranian people want? https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s day four of Israel’s relentless bombing campaign against Iran, and the death toll is spiralling. Iran says 224 of its citizens are dead. Israel reports 24 lives lost and over 500 injured in a barrage of Iranian retaliatory strikes. And this war is only just getting started. The Israeli airstrikes have gone far beyond nuclear sites. Government buildings, intelligence headquarters, the ministries of justice and foreign affairs—obliterated. Tehran is being shaken to its core. Is this really just about nukes? Or are we watching an attempt to bring the regime to its knees? On the streets of Israel, the mood is grim but defiant. Iranian missiles have struck Tel Aviv and other cities hard. So how much more can Israel’s famed Iron Dome take? We speak to The Telegraph's man in Jerusalem, Henry Bodkin, who’s been reporting from the sites of the Iranian attacks. His frontline insights give us a chilling look at the damage—and the determination of a country under fire. Then we hear from two men who know what they’re talking about. David Albright has spent years analysing Iran’s nuclear ambitions. He tells us how close they really are to the bomb—and whether Israeli jets can stop it. And Frank Ledwidge, former intelligence officer and expert on air campaigns, tells us why this war will drag on, and what Israel’s real endgame might be.  https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode was recorded before the strikes on Iran — a major development we’ll be discussing in detail in Monday’s episode. Los Angeles has descended into chaos. A wave of ICE immigration raids has sparked mass protests, violent clashes with police, and nights of looting, fires, and fear. Now, President Trump has overridden Governor Gavin Newsom using a little-known legal loophole to send in the National Guard — and Marines are on the way. The move has ignited a fierce political battle between California and the White House, raising questions about federal power, state rights, and the limits of presidential authority. The Telegraph’s U.S. correspondent Susie Coen has spent the week in LA, documenting the unrest and capturing the mood of a city on the edge. And LA author Ryan Gattis joins us to reflect on how today’s turmoil compares to the 1992 riots — and what history tells us about what comes next. https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today’s episode, we confront the brutal realities of two of the world’s most controversial flashpoints. First, our man on the ground, Jerusalem correspondent Henry Bodkin, joins Israeli troops in Gaza for a rare and eye-opening embed. He takes us inside the tunnel where Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar was allegedly hiding before an Israeli airstrike on May 13th — one that struck the entrance of the European Hospital, sparking outrage and headlines around the world. We cut through the noise and get straight to what really happened. Then, we turn to the pariah state of North Korea. Despite suffocating sanctions, Pyongyang is now in its strongest strategic position in decades, doubling its nuclear arsenal and quietly amassing the world’s fourth largest military. How did that happen — and why isn't the West doing more about it? Our new Asia correspondent Allegra Mendelson explains all. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/06/08/inside-khan-younis-tunnel-gaza-european-hospital-sinwar/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/06/08/hamas-last-man-standing-faces-fight-keep-control-gaza/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/06/07/west-tried-make-north-korea-pariah-but-now-never-stronger/ https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lord George Robertson, former Nato Secretary General and lead author of the UK's new Strategic Defence Review, talks to Roland about what it will take for Britain to be warfighting ready.  His message is a vital clarion call for the British government and general public to wake up to the very real threat posed by Russia and the scale of change that needs to be undertaken: "This is not business as usual." But with President Donald Trump's call for spending 5% of GDP on defence likely to be adopted by Nato later this month, is a commitment of 2.5% and an ambition of 3% by 2034 enough? And are ordinary British people ready for the sacrifices involved in creating a credible deterrence to protect the UK? https://linktr.ee/BattleLines Contact us with feedback or ideas: [email protected]  @venetiarainey @RolandOliphant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.