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BBC World Service

Interviews, news and analysis of the day’s global events.

Newshour

Investigators have questioned two French managers from the bar and are looking into the insulation foam used on the ceiling.

Iran has warned President Trump against interference, after he said the US would come to the rescue if protesters were killed. We hear from a protester. And President Zelensky of Ukraine has appointed the country's military intelligence chief as the new head of his presidential office. But what do we know about Kyrylo Budanov?

(Picture: Tributes left in the town of Crans Montana in Switzerland. Credit: Bott / EPA)

Swiss officials believe that the fatal fire was started by sparklers

As new images emerge of the fire at "Le Constellation" bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana, the families of those still missing face an agonising wait for news: we have the latest from the investigation.

Also in the programme: President Trump says he's ready to step in to defend the anti-government protesters in Iran; we hear from a protester. Plus life at a hundred – we speak to one woman, still laughing - and still performing – at 100 years old.

(IMAGE: People pay their respects to the victims with flowers near the area where fire broke out at the 'Le Constellation' bar leaving people dead and injured, during New Year's celebration, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, 02 January 2026 / CREDIT: Jean-Christophe Botte/EPA/Shutterstock)

Swiss fire families face agonising wait

The President of Switzerland says the fire at a ski resort early on New Year's Day which killed around 40 people is one of his country's worst tragedies. Witnesses at the bar in the ski resort of Crans Montana say the entire ceiling was ablaze within seconds. 

Also in the programme: There have clashes in a number of small towns across Iran, on the fifth day of anti-government protests; China has introduced a series of tax incentives - including levies on contraceptives and exemptions for childcare - to try to boost its falling birth rate; and new tax regulations are taking effect today in forty-eight countries over the personal ownership of cryptocurrency. 

Plus punk rock is 50 years old this year. Why does this rather simple music keep influencing musicians even now? 

(Photo: Officials say around 40 people were killed and 115 injured in the fire. Credit: Getty Images)

Around 40 people killed and 115 injured in New Year fire at Swiss bar

Swiss police say dozens of people have died in a fire at the ski resort of Crans-Montana. More than a hundred others were injured, many seriously. The fire broke out early in the morning in a bar packed with people celebrating the New Year. We hear from the scene. 

Also in the programme: as the latest US visa bans and restrictions take effect in a large number of countries, mainly in Africa, we hear from the Nigerian government; plus what's behind the latest purges of China's top military officers?

(IMAGE: Furniture pieces lie on the ground as an ambulance stands at the site of an explosion and fire at the "Le Constellation" bar, where several people died and others were injured after an explosion tore through a crowded New Year’s Eve party, according to Swiss police, in the upscale ski resort of Crans-Montana in southwestern Switzerland, January 1, 2026, in this screen grab obtained from video / CREDIT: Valais Canton Police/Handout via REUTERS)

Dozens of people die after fire at Swiss ski resort

Some international humanitarian organisations operating in Gaza and the occupied West Bank say they cannot comply with Israel’s demands to supply details of Palestinian staff due to data infringement and safety concerns.

Also in the programme: we ask why there is a shortage of female toilets in Japan’s parliament; conservation efforts saving albatrosses in South Africa; and we look at the best moments from Newshour in 2025.

(Photo: A Palestinian man carries food items collected from aid packages dropped from an airplane, amid a hunger crisis, in Deir Al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, August 12, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed)

Will Israel’s NGO ban in Gaza impact the ceasefire deal?

The EU says a new Israeli ban on nearly 40 aid groups working in Gaza and the West Bank would prevent lifesaving assistance from reaching Palestinians.

 Also in the programme: How did thieves use a drill to steal €30m in a German bank heist? And the best moments from Newshour in 2025.

(Photo: MSF treat displaced Palestinians in Rafah. Credit: Haitham Imad/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

EU objects to Gaza NGO ban

Supporters of southern Yemen's separatist movement have taken to the streets in Aden to protest at an ultimatum delivered by Saudi Arabia to the group's main backer, the United Arab Emirates. The UAE said on Tuesday it would abide by a Saudi demand to end its military involvement in Yemen. Riyadh has been angered by separatist advances towards the Saudi border. Overnight on Monday, a Saudi-led strike force attacked a port in southern Yemen, where Riyadh said two UAE ships had docked with weapons for the separatists. The UAE has denied this.

Also in the programme: Another day of street protests in Iran as inflation soars and the currency tanks - how will the government respond? And after 400 years, Denmark’s national postal service has delivered letters for the last time.

(Photo: The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) seeks independence for southern Yemen. Credit: Photo by Najeeb Mohamed/EPA/Shutterstock)

UAE says it will withdraw from Yemen

The United Arab Emirates has agreed to withdraw its forces from Yemen after a Saudi bombing of the port of Mukalla. Saudi authorities say it targeted weapons intended for UAE-backed separatists who threatened its security. 
 
Also in the programme: the latest search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 begins today; why a Japanese folk tale of a ghost that haunts school toilets still persists; and we look ahead to some of the big stories of next year with our correspondents who cover health, the environment and sport.
 
(Picture: People hold a South Yemen flag during a rally calling for South Yemen's independence, in the southern port city of Aden on 25 December 2025. Credit: NAJEEB MOHAMED/EPA/Shutterstock)

Is Yemen's civil war escalating again?

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has met President Donald Trump in Florida to discuss Gaza's future, including the issue of Hamas' disarmament. The two leaders also spoke about Iran's nuclear programme and the fragile Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire in Lebanon.

Also on the programme: British boxer Anthony Joshua has been injured in a car crash in Nigeria; shopkeepers in Tehran have been demonstrating over the depreciating rial; and a special report on songbird poaching in China.

(Photo: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival for meetings at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., December 29, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

Netanyahu and Trump discuss second phase of Gaza ceasefire

Taiwan has put its forces on high alert after China began a live-fire rehearsal of a blockade of the island. Is Beijing responding to a recent US-Taiwan arms deal?
 
Also in the programme: a special report from Myanmar, where some people have been voting in elections for the first time since a military coup five years ago; and how the discovery of a silver coin has excited historians in Scotland.
 
(Photo: Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000 fighter jets prepare for takeoff at an airbase in Hsinchu, Taiwan, 29 December 2025. Reaction in Taiwan after China announces live fire drill around Taiwan - 29 Dec 2025. Credit: Photo by Ritchie B Tongo/EPA/Shutterstock)

Taiwan on high alert as China holds military drills

President Zelensky says he's prepared to withdraw Ukrainian troops from the eastern part of the country, if a demilitarised zone is created in its place. He gave details of an updated plan as "the main framework for ending the war", he said it proposed security guarantees from the US, Nato and Europeans for a co-ordinated military response if Russia invaded Ukraine again.

Also on the programme: European leaders have condemned a US visa ban on the official who drew up the bloc's tech regulations; and people in Bethlehem are celebrating Christmas Eve for the first time since the war began in Gaza.

(Photo: NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni take part in a family picture at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. Credit: Clemens Bilan/Pool/EPA/Shutterstock)

Ukraine's Draft Peace Plan: Zelensky moves towards demilitarised zones

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