From Our Own Correspondent

Kate Adie introduces stories and insight from Iraq, Iran, Israel, Ireland and Spain: Jeremy Bowen is in Mosul for the first elections there since the defeat of Islamic State. An exceptional leader is needed to help Iraq recover, he says, though he isn’t hopeful that one will emerge. Rana Rahimpour explores what the US’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal might mean for the people of Iran - including their taste for toothpaste. Simon Maybin visits a Bible camp where one Jewish Ethiopian student is testing Israel’s approach to citizenship. Vincent Woods attempts to unravel the knots of politics, religion, and morality that lie behind Ireland’s upcoming referendum on changes to its abortion laws. And John Murphy meets the independent winemakers of Catalonia trying to escape Cava’s image problem and low prices.

Tales of revolutions, rainforests and the migrants returning home from Libya. Kate Adie introduces stories and insight from correspondents around the world: In Nigeria, Colin Freeman meets some of the migrants who have given up on their European dreams and accepted the UN’s help to return home. The ‘Velvet Revolution’ in Armenia saw its prime minister (and former president) relinquish power – all without a shot being fired. Rayhan Demytrie was in the capital Yerevan as tens of thousands of people took to the streets demanding change. “Scum of the earth” is how one Goan politician described visitors from other parts of India, prompting Sushma Puri to try and find out what other residents of the southern Indian state think about domestic tourists. The usual rule of thumb in rainforests is that you hear lots and see little, says Huw Cordey, but things were different in Suriname thanks to his guide Fred Pansa, who might just become the most famous South American conservationist from a country few have heard of. A

Amidst the violence, there are signs of a small but growing peace movement in Afghanistan. Kate Adie introduces stories and insight from correspondent around the world: "This has again become, largely, an Afghan war," says Kate Clark in Kabul, " it is now overwhelmingly Afghans killing Afghans," but she has also noticed growing public exasperation at the conflict. Diana Darke joined the British peers and priests recently granted access to Syria by the government, but as an Arabic speaker, who knows the country well, she was able to look beyond the official narrative and what her guides wanted her to see. In a refugee camp in Bangladesh, home to some of the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people who have fled violence in Myanmar, Aisha Gani stumbled across an unlikely scene. As they prepare their makeshift homes for the monsoon season, young men still find time to party. Kevin Connolly has been rummaging through his attic and wondering what the changing design of matrioshka, or Russian, dolls reveal about R

In the latest programme of the monthly series, Mishal Husain introduces dispatches from journalists and writers that reflect the range of contemporary life across the country. Andy Kershaw visits the most cluttered workbench he's ever seen to discover how restoration work is going on a monument to British endeavour in speed on water; Jane Labous samples libraries in two counties to assess exactly what they have to offer; Adrian Goldberg indulges his sweet tooth among the burgeoning dessert shops of Birmingham; Ruth Alexander discovers how the town that's trying to turn itself around - literally - is faring; and Travis Elborough discovers perestroika among sixty thousand tulips on the South Downs. Producer: Simon Coates

Chechnya's bucolic beauty, touching hospitality and jihadi brides now lost in Iraq. Caroline Wyatt introduces correspondents' tales from around the world:Chechnya's bucolic beauty, touching hospitality and jihadi brides now lost in Iraq. Caroline Wyatt introduces correspondents' tales from around the world. In the foothills of the Caucasus mountains, Tim Whewell meets a woman whose life has been on agonising, soul-destroying hold ever since her daughter left to join Islamic State. Nick Beake wonders whether freedom of the press is on trial in Myanmar as he crams into a Yangon courtroom where two journalists are in the dock accused of receiving classified documents as part of their investigations into the massacre of Rohingya people. Nicola Kelly is in Tindouf, in Algeria, with Saharawi families who still dream of returning to their homes in Western Sahara which they were driven from by Moroccan troops in 1975. Laurence Blair finds that ghosts of its long dictatorship are haunting Paraguay as it prepares to

The twists in Brazil's politics recently would shame the most melodramatic TV soap opera - but as she reported on last week's tense stand-off, with ex-President Lula da Silva at bay, Katy Watson was also moved to reflect on how polarised the political climate has become. As some Brazilians blame Lula for everything and profess nostalgia for the days of dictatorship, others denounce the media as lying right-wingers. In South India there's more drama as Andrew Whitehead traces the intimate relationship between the Tamil-language cinema box office, and the ballot box in local elections. Lorraine Mallinder reports from Guinea Bissau on whether international efforts to suppress the cocaine traffic have really driven the drug trade out, or just driven it underground. As the city of Basel prepares to mark the 75th anniversary of history's first LSD trip - with a commemorative bicycle ride - Matt Pickles traces the long and strange relationship between this rather staid place and one of the world's most notorious hal

Nick Thorpe in Hungary, contemplating this weekend's parliamentary election, wonders whether a recent vote in a small town near the Croatian border portends change for prime minister Viktor Orban or politics as usual. Claire Bolderson is in eastern Ohio, where opioid drug addiction has become the most serious public health crisis to hit the mid-Western US state in a generation. Speaking to recovering addicts, she discovers how it's affected their lives and communities - and their job prospects. Attending a premier of the new blockbuster movie, "Black Panther", in Guangzhou reveals to Marcus Ryder just how close the link between China and Africa has become - and what it may mean for the future. Rebecca Henschke in Jakarta considers what it has meant for her to go viral with stories three times in recent months in a country where social media platforms command huge numbers of enthusiastic users. And in Zambia Nick Miles speaks to firefighters in the capital and discovers they often have more than just flames to

Kim Jong Un’s train rolls into to Beijing as the North Korean leader meets President Xi. Kate Adie introduces stories, wit, and analysis from correspondents around the world: China correspondents were once known as tealeaf readers, now they’ve become motorcade analysts and trainspotters says Stephen McDonell, as he tries to unpick the meaning of Kim Jong Un’s surprise visit to Beijing. Jonah Fisher has the story of Nadya Savchenko and her journey from prison to national hero and back to prison again. Bethany Bell explores why Austria won’t be implementing a smoking ban any time soon and finds out what the coffee drinkers of Vienna think of that. Mike Wendling joins the pro-gun control crowds at the ‘March For Our Lives’ in Washington DC and reflects on how things have changed since he was a teenager in the US when he and his classmates would shoot at paper targets in their school’s basement. And in Morocco, Kieran Cooke learns what impact Chinese tourists are having on Fes and comes face to face with the he

The US Air Force has a third of its drones stationed at Kandahar airbase in Afghanistan. Kate Adie introduces stories, insight, and analysis from correspondents around the world: During almost two weeks with US Forces in Afghanistan, Justin Rowlatt gets a glimpse of the intensity of the air war that is a key part of President Trump’s new strategy there. In Belarus , Lucy Ash hears talk of dancing tractors and virtual tanks tearing through computer generated downs – unlikely indicators of economic success. Paul Blake returns to the British Virgin Islands to see how they’re coping six months after Hurricane Irma tore through the Caribbean. Jane Dyson marvels at the Pandav Lila – an epic, twelve-day re-enactment of the Hindu Mahabharata which consumes a village high up in the Indian Himalayas every two years. And Petroc Trelawny meets a Transylvania aristocrat who’s just got his castle back three-quarters of a century after it was seized.

How was Boko Haram able to kidnap more than one hundred school girls in Dapchi, Nigeria? Kate Adie introduces stories and analysis from correspondents around the world:A failure of the security services, conflicting official accounts, and misinformation - Stephanie Hegarty examines the similarities between Boko Haram’s 2014 attack in Chibok and the kidnapping in Dapchi last month. In Bolivia, Laurence Blair visits the multi-million-pound museum celebrating the country’s President and asks how much longer can Evo Morales can stay in power? In Greece, Sally Howard meets the anarchists who now see helping migrants, rather than spray-painting buildings or throwing Molotov cocktails at cops, as the best way to further their cause. In Afghanistan, Auliya Atrafi reveals how repeated foreign interventions have only made his fellow Afghans more inventive in their conspiracy theories. From judges to generals everyone seems to accept that foreign powers are to blame for almost everything. And in the US, Graeme Fife

In the latest programme of the monthly series, Mishal Husain introduces dispatches from journalists and writers around the United Kingdom that reflect the range of contemporary life in the country.We hear how a small Scottish market town is responding to the new that its last remaining bank branch is scheduled for closure; what a flag-waving, Cornish yomp through the sand dunes and encounter with a 1500 year-old holy man reveals about the place and people; how the English, who once prided themselves on not cheating at sport and their sense of fair play, are adjusting to a different moral position; why the forthcoming abolition of tolls on the River Severn road crossings may intensify enthusiasm among the English for living in Wales; and what a humble kitchen worktop can reveal about origins, belonging and what's in a name. Producer: Simon Coates

Is this going to be the moment when China's trajectory changed forever? Correspondents share their stories, wit, and analysis from around the world. Introduced by Kate Adie: With Xi Jinping now effectively allowed to remain in power for life, after the two-term limit on the presidency was removed, John Sudworth reflects on what this means for China and the rest of the world. Steve Rosenberg examines Russia's ever-shifting relationship with the West from the frozen rust-belt town of Karabash. Linda Pressly reports from Tysfjord, where police have revealed decades’ worth of allegations of sexual abuse in the tiny Norwegian community close to the Arctic Circle. Simon Maybin is on the tropical Panamanian island of Carti Sugdub to find out more about plans to move its entire population to the mainland and by doing so escape rising sea levels. And Lindsay Johns tries (and sometimes fails) to make himself understood in South Africa - the proudly polyglot nation.

Former Farc rebels stand for election, but for many Colombians, it’s too soon to forgive. Kate Adie introduces stories and analysis from correspondents around the world:Katy Watson is in Colombia as former guerrilla fighters for the rebel group turned political party fail to make an impact at the ballot box. Chris Haslam is on 'the roof of the world' world in Tajikistan to meet a man threatening to take up arms and fight for Pamiri independence. Cindy Sui reflects on her experience growing up in China and asks what the recent ban on foreign imported garbage reveals about changing attitudes to recycling there. Simon Calder boards one of the last remaining boat ferries in Europe on which the carriages slot in between 40-ton trucks as they make their way from Denmark to Germany. And Sian Griffiths marvels at Ottowa's annual river ice blast, as dynamite is used to break apart sheets of ice and stop meltwater flooding the city.

For the first time since the Vietnam War, a US aircraft carrier has arrived in the country. Kate Adie introduces stories, wit, and analysis from correspondents around the world:Jonathan Head watches a show of military diplomacy as a 100,000 tonne, nuclear-powered carrier docks in Vietnamese waters with more than 5,000 crew and 70 aircraft on board. A spot of misery tourism and a night on the town in Dublin help Louise Cooper understand what’s really going on in Ireland’s economy. At the height of the European migrant crisis, Richard Hall walked the Balkan route. As he retraces his footsteps he finds fewer migrants but more dangers. In Democratic Republic of Congo, Sally Howard joins the impressively dressed lady dandies or sapeuses. And what’s it like to be teased by the Dalai Lama? Justin Rowlatt finds out

From Lebanon, Syrian refugees watch the destruction of their homes in Eastern Ghouta. Kate Adie introduces stories and analysis from correspondents around the world: "Life now is just about blood and tears,” one woman tells Yolande Knell, “all of Ghouta is crying over its lost people.” In India, Krupa Padhy meets the head of a new union for unregister doctors - the quacks may be unqualified but they are also in demand. In Sierra Leone, Ed Butler examines the economics of the sex trade and the role rich Western men play in it. Vicky Baker meets the Nicaraguan women speaking, and singing, out against sexism. And in Sweden, Keith Moore tries to teach his son how to speak with the help of Old MacDonald and Per Olsson - but do their horses say neigh-neigh here or gnägg-gnägg there?

India’s missing children, selling drugs in Colombia & searching for paradise in Costa Rica. Kate Adie introduces stories from correspondents around the world:Activists say that as many as 500,000 children went missing in India last year – Sonia Faleiro meets the father of one of them who says he’s been forced to marry off his other daughters in order to protect them. Mathew Charles spends an evening with a Colombian drug dealer and learns how criminal gangs are searching for new ways to make money. Jenny Hill visits a fairy-tale mansion in Hamburg whose 71 elderly female residents are celebrating their role in bringing about a ban on diesel cars. Roger Hill goes to a market on the shore of the Panj River which separates Tajikistan and Afghanistan and looks for signs that life is getting better there. And in Costa Rica, Benjamin Zand discovers that while the lure of paradise may be strong, it’s always so difficult to find.

How the father of one of his presidential rivals helped Vladimir Putin to power. Kate Adie introduces this and other stories from correspondents around the world: Ahead of elections in March, Gabriel Gatehouse looks back at the rise of President Putin and speaks to one of his challengers - Ksenia Sobchak. Vladimir Hernandez returns to Venezuela to find a coffee now costs the same amount as he paid for his first flat, his relatives have lost weight and children are starving. It may be thousands of years since the ancient Phoenicians traversed the seas but in modern day Lebanon claims on Phoenicians identity are still controversial, discovers Fleur MacDonald. Gavin Fischer explores the recently released archive of recordings from the Rivonia trial in South Africa. His uncle defended Nelson Mandela and some of his co-accused. And Phoebe Smith enjoys the solitude of Greenland’s Arctic Circle Trail – but for how much longer will others be able to experience its unspoilt landscape she wonders.

A Gambian spymaster, a Czechoslovak secret agent and a South African ghost called Sam. Correspondents share wit, analysis, and tales of strange encounters. Introduced by Kate Adie.Gambia’s intelligence agency has a new name and its boss is busy rebranding it – but beyond repainting the torture chamber, what does that mean, wonders Colin Freeman. Rob Cameron scours the archives of the StB – Czechoslovakia’s communist-era secret police– on the trail of ‘agent COB’. He meets the man who says he tried to recruit Jeremy Corbyn as an asset. Helen Nianais has coffee with a former jihadi who faces three years in jail after spending nine days in Syria. Now he’s trying to counter extremist propaganda online and help others reintegrate back into normal life in Kosovo. Shabnam Mahmood returns to Pakistan and finds that Uber and other cab-hailing apps are driving rickshaw drivers out of business, but there are still some parts of Lahore where older methods of transport dominate. And Harriet Constable visits Kaapsehoop –

Many Haitians see Oxfam’s actions as the latest part of a much bigger problem. Kate Adie introduces stories, wit and analysis from correspondents around the world. “Being poor, we’re a market for the NGOs” one Port-au-Prince resident tells Will Grant, “but it’s time to admit that we cannot develop our country with international aid.” Ahead of elections in Italy, Dany Mitzman watches fascists and anti-fascists face off in Bologna - a city famed for its left-wing politics.In Mozambique they’re trying to persuade parents not to give up on disabled children – Tom Shakespeare examine the latest development in inclusive education there.In Uzbekistan, Caroline Eden visits the capital Tashkent - famed for its chewy, golden bread and its kindness. And Alastair Leithead takes a trip along the Blue Nile with Marvin – a ball on a stick that sees virtually everything.

BBC correspondents take a closer look at the stories behind the headlines.