Julia McFarlane

Anshel Pfeffer, the Israel correspondent from The Economist, and you also heard from Salman Sheikh, who's a Middle East expert and former advisor to Kofi Annan. Now let's go back just over a year to South Korea.

Kuukauden aikana kymmenet protesterit olivat selvänneet, että he eivät käsittele, mitä he arvioivat, että se oli yllättävä kuu. Vahvistaa maatilannetta. Vahvistaa Jun, he kääntyivät.

That was the BBC's Laura Bicker reporting there in December 2024, when President Yoon Suk-yool, facing growing political opposition, briefly declared martial law and blocked members of parliament from the National Assembly building. Today he's been sentenced to five years in prison for a number of offences, including abuse of power and obstruction of justice. Our Seoul correspondent Jake Kwon told me more.

To football now, and the hosts Morocco are just one win away from claiming the Africa Cup of Nations title for the first time in 50 years. The government there has invested huge amounts of money into the game as a tool for societal and cultural change. The Moroccan side, the Atlas Lions, will face Senegal in Sunday's final.

Now, every host claims it will put on the best AFCON ever. But how has this tournament gone so far? And do people think it's been worth the cost? BBC Sport Africa's Ian Williams reports now from Rabat.

Jokaisessa paikallisen Afrikasopimuksen paikallisessa paikallisessa paikallisessa paikallisessa paikallisessa paikallisessa paikallisessa

Seuraavaksi Afconin markkinointi, joka meni minuun järjestelmään, johon tuli Yusef, opiskelija, joka työskennelli järjestelmään ja auttoi tutustujia löytämään paikoille. On todella isoja vaikeuksia, mutta luulen, että me teimme sen. Näen, että ihmiset ovat toiminnassa. Me olemme morokkaita. Ihmiset, jotka tulevat muista maista, työskennellään tällaista.

The Atlas Lions are hosting AFCON for the first time since 1988, but playing in the Moroccan winter means conditions haven't been ideal. The first few weeks were very wet. But the pitches held up, something which pleased Omar Kayari from the Royal Moroccan Football Federation.

Me olemme erittäin onnellisia teknologioiden kanssa, ja olemme myös erittäin onnellisia, koska se näyttää maailmalle, että Afrikassa voi tehdä asioita paremmin kuin muissa maissa. Ja viimeisenä, ja ehkä enemmän tärkeintä, kaikki nämä teknologiat ovat markkinoiden yrityksistä. Organisaatiot kertovat, että he ovat onnellisia tikkitilanteissa, jotka ovat ylhäällä Ivory Coastin kaksi vuotta sitten. Mutta me näimme yleisöä, jotka ongelmassa, jotka saavat tämän ylhäällä.

Last year's Gen Z protests showed there is discontent with some of the investment around football. But the new railway station outside the Prince Mule Abdallah Stadium has eased traffic congestion on match day. As fans here on the final leg of our journey pour out of its sleek new glass entrance, do they think AFCON has been worth the money?

And that was BBC Sport Africa's Ian Williams reporting from Rabat.

And that's all from us for now, but there will be a new edition of the Global News Podcast later. If you want to comment on this podcast or any of the topics covered in it, you can send us an email. The address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. This edition was mixed by Joe McCartney and the producer was Paul Day. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Julia McFarlane. Until next time, goodbye.

If journalism is the first draft of history, what happens if that draft is flawed? In 1999, four Russian apartment buildings were bombed, hundreds killed. But even now, we still don't know for sure who did it.

It's a mystery that sparked chilling theories. I'm Helena Merriman, and in a new BBC series I'm talking to the reporters who first covered this story. What did they miss the first time? The History Bureau, Putin and the apartment bombs. Listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service.

I'm Julia McFarlane and at 16 hours GMT on Thursday the 8th of January, these are our main stories.

The Lebanese government says it's completed the first phase of a plan to disband armed groups in the south of the country, the traditional heartlands of Hezbollah.

Protests and fury erupt in the US city of Minneapolis after a 37-year-old mother was shot dead by immigration agents.

And President Trump withdraws the US from dozens of UN groups, including a climate change treaty and bodies to advance peace and democracy worldwide.

Humanoid robots unveiled at a trade show capable of folding laundry.