Global Eye – Series 1
A weekly programme from the BBC World Service, bringing forensic journalism from all corners of the world by BBC Eye, the World Service’s critically acclaimed investigative unit. It features expert global correspondents getting to the heart of the biggest international stories.
Episodes
08/09/2025: Ukraine Under Fire & Sudan’s Crisis
In the first episode, we hear from residents in Ukraine's Kharkiv and Nawal Al-Maghafi reports on the escalating crisis in Sudan.
15/09/2025: Syria’s Lost Children & South Korea’s Martial Law
In this week’s episode: an investigation into the disappearance of children under the Assad regime in Syria and Jean Mackenzie reports on the political turmoil in South Korea following the short-lived declaration of martial law last year.
22/09/2025: Fake News Network & Melting Alaska
In this episode, a BBC undercover reporter exposes a fake news operation in a European country about to go to the polls and Anna Holligan is in Alaska, America's last frontier, where rising temperatures are threatening communities, livelihoods and fragile ecosystems.
29/09/2025: Kenya’s Protest Killings
In this week’s episode, an investigation exposing members of the security forces who shot dead protesters at Kenya's parliament last year. And reporting from Nairobi, Waihiga Mwaura explores the aftermath of that brutal crackdown on those who took to the streets.
06/10/2025: Missing Leader Mystery & Cuba’s Economic Collapse
In this week’s episode, significant new evidence that may hold the clue to the fate of a Middle Eastern political leader missing for more than 40 years, and Will Grant reports from Havana on Cuba's worst economic crisis since the Cold War.
13/10/2025: Opioid Crisis in West Africa & Report from Kashmir
This week, an investigation into unlicensed opioids that have been driving a major public health crisis in West Africa and Diyva Arya is in Indian Administered Kashmir.
20/10/2025: Spies in Hong Kong & Lebanon's Uncertain Future
In this week’s episode, BBC Eye uncovers a growing culture of surveillance and informants in Hong Kong in the wake of the so-called “patriots law” and Carine Torbey reports from Beirut on how what is happening in Lebanon could shape the future of the entire Middle East.
27/10/2025: Gen Z Uprisings and the Fall of Two Leaders
In this week’s episode we explore the rise of gen Z protests around the world. The Eye team uncovers what really happened during the popular youth uprising that led to the downfall of Bangladesh’s prime minister Sheikh Hasina. Sammy Awami is in Madagascar, where another wave of political unrest driven by gen Z anger and frustration toppled President Andry Rajoelina.
03/11/2025: Dubai’s Hidden Sex Trade – and the Threat Facing Peru’s Uncontacted Tribes
In this episode, the Eye team goes undercover to expose an illegal prostitution ring in Dubai, and Stephanie Hegarty is in Peru to report on the plight of one of the world’s largest uncontacted tribes.
10/11/2025: Wildlife in Colombia’s River Magdalena in Peril as Brazil Prepares for UN Climate Summit
In this episode, BBC Eye investigates a disturbing trend of wildlife deaths along Colombia’s lifeblood, the River Magdalena, and Camilla Mota reports from Brazil ahead of the latest United Nations climate talks.
17/11/2025: New Evidence Challenges U.S. Probe into 2005 Haditha Killings
In this episode, Anna Foster reports from Iraq and BBC Eye uncovers new evidence raising serious doubts about the American investigation and trial for the 2005 killings of 24 Iraqi civilians carried out by US marines in the town of Haditha.
24/11/2025: Palau’s Role in the World’s Largest Bitcoin Seizure
In this week’s episode, BBC Eye tells the incredible story of the Chinese woman behind behind the scam that led to the world's biggest bitcoin seizure and Shawn Yuan reports from the Pacific Island Nation of Palau.
01/12/2025: Georgia Police accused of using chemical agent as Russia’s Shadow war expand
In this week’s episode, BBC Eye investigates allegations that police in the former former Soviet republic, Georgia used a chemical weapon against protestors and Elizaveta Fokht reports from Berlin on Russia’s shadow war against the West.
08/12/2025: South Africa’s G20 - Housing Woes & Trump’s Refugees
Nomsa Maseko reports from South Africa in the wake of the first-ever G20 on African soil. In two exclusive reports, Eye Investigations hears from residents of abandoned and hijacked buildings just a few kilometres from the summit location and, in the province of Free State, meets some of President Trump’s South African refugees.
15/12/2025: The Deceit Behind Cancer Charity Scams in Conflict Areas
BBC Eye’s Simi Jolaoso reports on a global scam network that claims to raise millions of dollars for children with cancer in war zones and deprived areas, but none of the funds raised ever reach them.
05/01/2026: Greenland’s Stolen Children & The Future of the French Republic
In this week’s episode, how Greenlandic parents across Denmark are fighting to be reunited with children forcibly taken into care. Andrew Harding reports from Paris on whether the French Republic, created to bring stability after years of upheaval, can still hold together today.
12/01/2026: Silicon Valley and the Future of AI
AI is changing everything – from how we work to how we live. The World Service’s cyber correspondent Joe Tidy is in Silicon Valley, California, the beating heart of the AI revolution to report on exactly what’s at stake. And he’ll be exploring the next frontier of artificial intelligence, one that was, until recently, a sci-fi dream.
19/01/2026: Jerusalem, Bethlehem and the Impact of War
In this week’s episode, Emir Nader reports from Jerusalem on the impact of the Israel-Gaza war and there’s a special report from the BBC Eye team who spent a year at the Holy Family Hospital in Bethlehem at the heart of the Occupied West Bank; a facility that serves all expectant mothers, regardless of religion or ethnicity.
26/01/2026: Russia Accused Over Interpol as Trump Targets Greenland
In this week’s episode, BBC Eye reveals allegations that Interpol’s systems are being abused by Russia in order to repress dissidents abroad, and Katya Adler reports from Greenland on Donald Trump’s attempts to take control of the island.
02/02/2026: Russia’s Foreign Fighters and the Struggle to Rebuild Syria
In this week’s episode, the foreigners lured to fight on the front line for Russia, and more than a year on from the fall of Bashar al-Assad, Lyse Doucet reports from Damascus on the challenges of building a new Syria.
Ukraine: Growing Up Without Dad
In this episode, Zhanna Bezpiatchuk reports from Kyiv on four years of war, death, destruction, resilience and hope. Has the war of attrition - attacking Ukraine's energy infrastructure - made Ukrainians more likely to give up territory in return for peace, or has Ukrainian resolve only strengthened in the face of Russian aggression?
The Untold Story of Nepal's Mass Protests
In this week’s episode, Norberto Paredes reports from Venezuela on the future of Venezuela’s oil sector. President Trump sees it as a big business opportunity for the US oil sector, but will the return of US firms be the answer the country needs? Plus, as interim President Delcy Rodríguez walks a diplomatic tightrope, can she continue to satisfy Washington without alienating her socialist base? And BBC Eye’s forensic investigators uncover the untold story of last year’s mass protests in Nepal that toppled the government. With exclusive eyewitness accounts, we can reveal where the order to use live ammunition came from and how unarmed demonstrators were killed as authorities lost control of the crowds.
The Week That Changed The Middle East
This week Carine Torbey is in Lebanon reporting on the impact of the US-Israel war with Iran and Nawal Al-Maghafi looks at the events of an extraordinary week when longstanding tensions finally erupted into open conflict.
Battling Islamic State group in Somalia
This week, the Eye team follows Puntland forces on the front line in far-eastern Somalia, examining how the Islamic State group has expanded its influence across Africa, and Kalkidan Yibeltal has rare access to Jonglei state in South Sudan, where renewed conflict threatens a fragile peace accord.
Inside Australia's Big Social Experiment
This week, the accounts of some of the women brutally repressed by the Iranian government during the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom protests and Katy Watson is in Australia examining the impact of the country’s first of its kind social media ban for under 16s, three months on.
The global trade fuelling one of the world’s biggest wildlife crimes
This week, the Eye team reveals how soaring global demand for eel has fuelled a vast illegal trade worth billions, exposing criminal networks, trafficking routes and controversial deals. Plus Rebecca Henschke reports from Indonesia on how the archipelago’s extraordinary natural wealth is under renewed threat.