Alex Ritson

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This edition of The Global News Podcast was mixed by Philip Bull and the producers were Pete Ross and Peter Hyatt.

The editor is Karen Martin.

I'm Alex Ritson.

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I'm Alex Ritson and at 16 hours GMT on Friday the 27th of February, these are our main stories.

Pakistan says it's killed almost 300 Taliban officials and militants in Afghanistan as the conflict between the South Asian neighbours escalates.

Another purge at the top of China's military as President Xi punishes any sign of perceived disloyalty.

Also in this podcast, people in Gaza mark Ramadan under a shaky ceasefire after two years of war.

And we'll hear from Cuba about the consequences of the US oil blockade.

Let's start the podcast in South Asia and the sharp escalation in hostilities between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which is causing alarm across the region.

That's the sound of the emergency services responding to a series of explosions in the Afghan capital Kabul overnight on Thursday.