Global News Podcast

The governor Wes Moore said his executive order marked "the most sweeping state-level pardon in American history". Also: the Kremlin has confirmed that the Russian president Vladimir Putin will travel to North Korea on Tuesday, and the British actor Ian McKellen falls off stage during a performance in London.

Israel's PM dissolves his six-member war cabinet with no plans for a replacement. The BBC hears from witnesses who say the Greek coastguard threw migrants to their deaths. Also: Denmark says it's looking at additional ways of stopping Russian oil exports passing through the Baltic Sea, and news avoidance at record levels.

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, was speaking at the close of a summit for peace in Switzerland. Also: Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has described the introduction of daily "tactical pauses" in military activity in a part of southern Gaza as “unacceptable”, and the original multi-coloured dancefloor used in the 1977 film, Saturday Night Fever, has been sold at auction.

The two-day gathering follows President Putin outlining Russia’s ceasefire terms, which have been widely dismissed. Russia has not been invited to the peace summit and China, a key strategic partner, is not attending. Also: Israel has launched an investigation into the deaths of eight IDF soldiers in Rafah, and Sweden welcomes home two citizens who had been arrested in Iran after a prisoner swap.

This week's edition comes from Finland, the country repeatedly crowned the happiest in the world, and the Helsinki Happiness Hacks event introduced people - selected from thousands of applicants across the globe - to Finns willing to share the secrets of their contentment. These include skateboarding, dancing with friends, messy art, walking barefoot, ice cream for breakfast, and of course, a sauna. And we explore how happiness is measured and why a dose of pessimism doesn’t preclude happiness.

Bump stocks were banned after they were used in America's deadliest mass shooting in 2017. Western leaders dismiss Russian President Putin's call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, as they meet at the G7 summit in southern Italy. Also: A Chinese court sentences a journalist who reported on #MeToo to jail for "subversion", and why grey whales are shrinking.

Three political parties have supported the ANC’s bid for a unity government. The ANC lost its parliamentary majority in last month’s election. Parliament has already been sworn in. Also: G7 leaders focus on tensions with China on the second day of their summit in Italy; And the authorities in Thailand search for three oil tankers which went missing.

In a separate landmark security deal, the US pledges to provide Ukraine with a range of military aid and training over the next decade. Also: The US Supreme Court rejects an attempt to restrict access to a widely-used abortion drug, and endangered wild horses return to the Kazakh plains for the first time in centuries.

Leaders want to use $50bn in interest from frozen Russian assets to extend a loan to Ukraine. Also: Hungary is ordered to pay a fine for violating the European Union's rules on asylum and immigration, and residents in a suburb of Nairobi in Kenya are on high alert after a lioness eats a family dog.

Lawmakers in Congress were debating drastic measures put forward by President Javier Milei to address the country's dire economic situation. Also: US top diplomat Antony Blinken says a deal to end the war in Gaza is still possible, and EU health officials warn that an invasive mosquito is spreading dengue fever in Europe.

The report comes as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits Qatar to push for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. Israel - which refused to co-operate with the investigation - was quick to reject the report, accusing it of “systematic anti-Israeli discrimination". Also: North Darfur's main city is on the brink of falling to Sudan's paramilitary RSF, according to a US envoy, and Denmark recalls Korean ramen for being too spicy.

Hunter Biden was accused of lying about his drug use on a handgun application form. Also: Hamas seeks a "complete halt" to the war in Gaza in response to an American ceasefire proposal, and the Italian robbery that caused a stink.

US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, made his comments as Hamas is yet to respond to an American ceasefire plan which was backed by the UN Security Council on Monday night. Also, a plane carrying Malawi's vice president has crashed, killing everyone on board, and elephants call different members of the herd by name.

The UN proposal sets out conditions for a "complete ceasefire" in Gaza and the release of hostages held by Hamas. Also: Aircraft carrying Malawi vice-president goes missing, and two-in-one flu and Covid jab passes advanced trial.

Ursula von der Leyen says the result comes with great responsibility for the parties on the political centre. The reactions in France following a surprise parliamentary election. Plus analysis on why voters have backed far right parties in such large numbers. Also: the BBC speaks to the widow of the IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi about the persecution of Yazidis in Iraq, and the South African photographer who's won international acclaim for challenging discrimination.

The French president Emmanuel Macron has called elections on 30 June and 7 July, after exit polls show his party is set to be trounced by National Rally in the European elections. Also: Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz quits the emergency government, and tributes are paid to the popular TV presenter Dr Michael Mosley who was found dead on the Greek island of Symi.

The high representative of the EU, Josep Borrell, said that reports of -- what he called -- "another massacre of civilians" were appalling. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says more than two hundred Palestinians were killed in the Israeli raid, to rescue the four hostages. Also: President Biden says France remains America's best friend, after a wide-ranging discussion with his French counterpart in the Élysée palace, and tributes are paid to the Nasa "Earthrise" astronaut William Anders who has died in a plane crash aged 90.

Christian nearly drowned while swimming in the sea in Italy as a child. He returned to the beach with his wife and child - only to find that Yuri, the man who saved his life, was still there. The two men tell us about their emotional reunion and the profound effect the experience has had on them. Also: The New York couple who found a safe full of cash, and get to keep it, thanks to the increasingly popular hobby of magnet fishing. We speak to Yazzy Chamberlain and her grandad John, whose duets of classic songs have earned them millions of online viewers -- including Coldplay. How the powers of nature are being used to help solve water shortages in Mexico City by cleaning polluted rivers. The skull of a giant prehistoric bird known as the demon duck has been found in Australia. And don't waste a moment - the final message from Rob Burrow, rugby league star and Motor Neurone Disease campaigner.Our weekly collection of happy news and positive stories from around the world.

Israel's envoy to the UN says he's been informed of the decision, which has not been confirmed by the UN. The report on children and armed conflict will also include Hamas and Islamic Jihad. President Biden has spoken in defence of democracy, and against isolationism, on the site of a Nazi stronghold stormed by American troops on D-Day. We explore the impact of YouTube's new restrictions on gun videos in reducing youth violence. And, the stress suffered by students in China as they face end-of-high school exams.

President Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, have been meeting in Paris, a day after they both attended commemorations of the Second World War D-Day landings. Mr Biden apologised for delays to the delivery of military aid, caused by some Republicans in Congress, but stressed that the US would not walk away from Ukraine. Also: the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak apologises for skipping the main D-Day commemoration event in Normandy; and workers at the tech giant Samsung go on strike for the first time.