Global News Podcast - Gaza: 20 reported dead in Israeli hospital attack

Episode Date: August 25, 2025

At least 20 people, including five journalists, are reported to have been killed in an Israeli strike on a hospital in the southern Gaza Strip. Also: Ukrainian soldiers in the Donbas speak to the BBC about fierce fighting and high casualty rates; paramilitaries in Sudan's Darfur region are accused of killing civilians fleeing the besieged city of El Fasher; President Trump threatens to send National Guard troops into another Democratic stronghold, Baltimore. The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: [e-mail]

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This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Valerie Sanderson, and at 13 hours GMT on Monday the 25th of August, these are our main stories. At least 20 people, including several journalists, are reported to have been killed by Israeli strikes on a hospital in Gaza. We're on the front line in eastern Ukraine, where tens of thousands of people have died trying to hold back Russia's invasion. Also in this podcast, in the US, troops have begun,

carrying firearms on the streets of Washington, D.C. The Democratic governor of Maryland condemns President Trump's threat to deploy them in Baltimore. This serves as a distraction from the fact that the president's disastrous economic policies. I am against this and I will not authorize the Maryland National Guard to be utilized for this. We start in Gaza where two Israeli strikes have hit Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Han Yunus. Amongst the panic and dense smoke, people scramble to help the injured after the blasts. As we record this podcast, at least 20 people have died, according to Gaza health officials. Among the dead are several journalists working for the international media.

Fadi Umar is an aid worker who witnessed the attack. What's happened today is a new horrific crime, bombed twice, by the occupation forced at the Nasser Medical Complex in Khanyuns. and what we are seeing, our eyes, that the journalists were targeted by a drone, journalists were taking their usual photos from the top of Nasser Hospital. In a statement, the Israeli army confirmed it had carried out a strike in the area of Nassar hospital and would conduct an initial inquiry as soon as possible. The IDF said it regretted any harm to uninvolved individuals and did not target journalists as such.

I'm Midley's correspondent Yolandelle, who's in Jerusalem, told me about three of the journalists who died. Reuters confirmed that Hussam al-Masri, a cameraman working for the news agency, was killed. He was operating their live camera feed, which is used sometimes by the BBC, and it shut down at the moment of the initial strike. Another Reuters worker was also injured. The Associated Press have said there will be a statement about Mariam O'Daka, who was a journalist working for that agency.

There was also Mohamed Salameh, a cameraman for our government. Al Jazeera. There was also a rescue worker among those killed, according to the reports that we have. It does seem that there was, after an initial strike, an attempt by, you know, some people to hurry to help those who had been wounded when there was a second strike. And there is live camera footage that shows a position appears to be a live TV position that was attacked in one of these strikes. And this comes, doesn't it, you land on a day when Israel's top top. General has reportedly said that the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should accept the ceasefire deal, which Hamas agreed to last week. Indeed. So there have been these increased signs of tension between the military and the government from which it's taking its orders. And this comes

just as the Israeli Prime Minister is supposed to meet the security cabinet on Tuesday evening to discuss the war in Gaza and the new hostage deal proposal from regional mediators that Hamas accepted. Very similar to one that Israel previously accepted, but it's not explained. to agree to this deal saying it's a partial one. It will only talk about a deal, it says, now, which involves freeing all the hostages at once and ending the war on conditions that Israel can accept, basically tantamount to the surrender of Hamas.

But against that backdrop, reports say, based on classified discussions that the BBC's not being able to verify that the chief of staff, Ayl, as Amir, speaking at a naval base on the Sunday evening, said there's a deal on the table, it needs to be taken. The Israeli military has created conditions for a hostage deal. Now it's in Netanyahu's hands. You know, restating this argument, the Israeli military fears that going into Gaza City, conquering it, as the Israeli security cabinet has ordered, will endanger the lives of the remaining hostages. It's

believed that 20 out of 50 held by Hamas are still alive. And their conditions, according to the Israeli security establishment, are believed to be worsening, deterioration. and the hostages and missing families for them, the biggest hostage support group has said, the Chief of Staff voiced what most Israelis are demanding. They're getting ready for another big day of protest tomorrow, demanding a ceasefire and hostage release deal at ending the war in Gaza. Yolinnell in Jerusalem.

It's a prize that Russia has long wanted and has been hard fought over. Only about 30% of Donbass in eastern Ukraine is still under Keyes' control, and Moscow wants the rest. In peace talks being pressed by the US, one suggestion is that Donbas could be swapped for land elsewhere, along with the freezing of the conflict along current front lines. President Zelensky insists it will take Russia another four years to overcome Ukrainian forces there. But Ukraine is under increasing pressure, and the fighting is particularly fierce, taking a huge toll on both civilians and soldiers.

Our correspondent, Quentin Somerville, reports from the frontline town of Dobropilia. from the bus so we can pick them up. Universal aid, Ukraine, are running evacuation convoys in and out of the town of Dopropylia, which is under Russian attack. And these people, they must be out because the children, because it's people who need to stay alive.

And secondly, for the soldiers, because they need to defend the city. So this evacuation convoy is going as fast as it can. Dopropelia is increasingly under Russian attack, and they've been attacked. Hacking aid convoys as well, evacuation convoys. One was hit just a few days ago. We've just arrived at an apartment block. There are three people waiting to be evacuated.

You know, you come into these neighbourhoods where they're doing the evacuations and you see well-tended gardens, roses in bloom. These are homes that people love and might never see again. There's one man, he looks quite frail, has a bandage on his leg. He's about to leave getting the vehicle. he's just saying goodbye to his son Shah had drone landed just a couple hundred metres

away just beyond the rose bushes over there that's yet another explosion I think there's been six in the last and another one 10 15 minutes we were warned that there were many drones

flying overhead and it certainly seems that they are attacking the city just outside his apartment building is 56 year old Vitali he's been injured by an explosion of the Russian missile that's why he's leaving today I've actually had to come back to Vitaly's building

when they're in the corridor at the evacuation team just detected a drone directly overhead so we've taken cover for now explosion it sounded like it wasn't that far away but there's still one person to be picked up from this evacuation run

crammed in the car beside me is Alexander is 80 years old Alessander why are you leaving today? Well those sleepless nights it bangs and bangs all night long every time I hear that I must take shelter and then you know it's terrifying Yes, I'm old, but I still want to live.

This is a former kindergarten, but it's a place of safety now. It's a transit centre, and people are being brought here, mainly older people, from the shelling in Constantinivka, and then they're being taken further west. I arrived today, and I haven't eaten anything, only. liquid. I have nothing. I already had noodles here because you cook what's quicker. Some kind of porridge over the fire. That's it. And if it's almost ready and you hear shelling, you run to the basement. Small groups of Russian soldiers infiltrated Ukrainian lines around here. We've been told that they've been driven back, but it's come at great cost.

Heading to Dopropropelia. It's after dark. I'm just arriving at a medical stabilization point. They say it's best to retrieve their battlefield casualties at night. It's safer that way. This medical facility is underground. For obvious reasons, they say that the Shahid drones start attacking from about 10 o'clock. It's 10 past 9 now. They say here at this medical stabilization facility, there are about 25% of the injuries they get are gunshot wounds.

50% come from drones. But most importantly, they say they've never. never seen so many very badly injured soldiers. They just brought a man in a soldier. He's in a pretty bad way. It looks like a gunshot wound. About half a dozen doctors. Have him on the operating table. They're giving him oxygen.

They're trying to find whatever's inside him. Senior Lieutenant Dima is one of the surgeons here. I was mobilized in 2023. How is it compared to the work you did in civilian life? It's much different. Because in civilian medicine we have time. We can think. And here we don't have time.

We have to do something to save the life. And that's it. You have seen a lot of patients, some who made it, some who didn't. Tens of thousands of Ukrainian men have died for Donbass. Was it worth it? Hmm. That's a complicated question Yes, I think it is

Because it's our country It's our Land and it's our freedom You know the negotiations that are going on You never have to give up Donbass How does that make you feel it? It's painful We have to stop it

But we don't want to stop it like this We just want to go home to live in peace without this nightmare, this blood, death. And this is why Russia doesn't want a ceasefire. It is slowly advancing, and it can sustain casualties at a much higher rate than Ukraine can. It's a ruthless calculation. The longer it keeps fighting on the battlefield, no matter what the loss is, the more it has to gain at the negotiating table.

in Somerville reporting from the frontline town of Dobripilia in the Ukrainian region of Dombas. Paramilitaries in Sudan's Darfur region have been accused of killing more than a dozen civilians as they try to flee the besieged city of Alfasha. The Sudan Doctors Network accused fighters from the rapid support forces of continuing a campaign of ethnic cleansing. Calcutan Yebolthal has the latest. A statement by Sudan's doctor's network says among those killed by fighters from the paramilitary rapid support forces or Arresaf were five children. The incident took place on the road between the besieged city of Elfashir and Tawila. The Arresaf has repeatedly been accused of targeting non-Arab communities in Darfur,

an allegation it dismisses. Fighting between the Arresaf and the Sudanese army has continued to intensify in parts of Sudan. On Sunday, the paramilitaries claimed downing a military drone belonging to the army over Niala in North Darfur. The army has not yet responded to the claim. The escalating tensions are making the food crisis worse. Dr. Mohamed Faisal Hassan, who's from the Sudan Doctors Network, spoke to Rob Young. South Kurdafan in western part of Sudan, what we're hearing the news over there are absolutely horrible, absolutely catastrophic.

Parts of Kurdistan state, including South Kurdistan, is actually under the control of the rapid support forces, which I will be called it like RSF. They are doing a massive blockhead to the civilians and people who are living in there. So every report made by the NGOs on the United Nations, they're covering like partial areas of Kordofan and Darfur. So whatever numbers that mention in these reports, they are actually only the numbers within their area of cover. So we in Sudan Doctors Network, we believe that the actual numbers are far more than whatever is being published in. media and in the official reports by the United Nations and the NGOs, and the information and the data there are almost impossible to get.

Although I'm saying 46 people have died of malnutrition in South Quarterfam, in recent weeks you're saying it's likely to be significantly greater than that. Oh yeah, definitely. The actual numbers are far more beyond than that. What is the availability of food like in South Quarterfam? The numbers within August and July, the availability is nearly impossible because they're providing like a blockade and a siege for all these cities so they're not allowing any like food or any humanitarian aids to come to these areas so then

people are there South Kudofan and even in Darfur and Fasher they are struggling so much they have no food they're nearly eating nothing now so they guess they have their local for whatever is there which isn't enough and that's why the numbers of the man nutrition and all these like mortalities are very uprising at this date. Dr. Mohamed Faisal Hassan. As we record this podcast, heavy rain and strong winds have been

battering coastal provinces in Vietnam as Typhoon Kujiki made landfall after moving west through the South China Sea. More than a half a million residents have been moved from their homes and schools and public buildings have been converted into temporary shelters. Our Vietnamese reporter in the region,

Cairn Wyn, told me more. The eye of the storm is predicted to move further inland in a few hours. So I think that people will start seeing much stronger rains. At least half a million people have been evacuated. So I think the government has been trying to do as much as they can to minimize the human impact. Right now there are concerns that there would be river levels rising above the acceptable amount.

And so people are concerned about how long the water will retreat after the storm. and there will also be risk of landslides in at least 400 communes across six provinces in Vietnam. And so I think a lot of people will be worried about the aftermath of how it will affect their livelihood in these provinces. So they've evacuated half a million. Do you know if there are plans to evacuate more and if, you know, a lot of properties have been boarded up and airports and schools closed? Yeah. So there hasn't been news that more people will be evacuated at this moment. but flights have been cancelled in affected provinces like Tanghua and Guangbing. At this very moment, I think the government is trying very hard to show sympathy,

especially when the impact of Typhoon Yagi last year is still being felt right now. Yes, tell us about that typhoon, because that caused quite a lot of damage, isn't it? Yeah, so one big difference between Typhoon Kajiki and Typhoon Jagi is that Typhoon Jagi happened in many northern provinces. And so not so much in central Vietnam. And people in central Vietnam are actually more accustomed to living through many seasons of storms where they are. So people are more aware, more alert, and they know what to do. Whereas for many provinces in the north, that's not necessarily the case. And so a lot of people are caught off guard, especially given the intensity of Typhoon Yagi. And that was the worst one we saw in 30.

years. And there have been predictions that the wind powers of Typhoon Kajiki can be as powerful at Typhoon Yagi. But because of the preparation, there are hope that it will be less damages, but it's too soon to say right now. Sen Win. Still to come in this podcast. He gave me a call and he said he had a cameo that he wanted me to do. I would do anything for him. He said it's called the Sopranos. I said, well, I just want to warn you, I can't sing. The American actor Jerry Adler, best known for his role in the Sopranos, has died at the age of 96. Next to Australia, and the latest in the case of the mushroom poisoner that's made headlines around the world. Today, for the first time, Aaron Patterson's surviving victim and relatives of the three people killed

after eating a meal she'd cooked containing death cat mushrooms, addressed her directly in court. Simon Atkinson is our reporter in Melbourne and told us more. The first person we heard from today was Ian Wilkinson. He's the only person who survived that lunch back in 2023. His wife, Heather, was one of those who died, who consumed those death cat mushrooms, which had been hidden inside parts of beef Wellington.

And what we got was a kind of a two-part statement, really, He partly a tribute to his wife, somebody who he called the great mother to their four children, somebody who's compassionate and brave, a delightful person. And his voice cracked when he talked about how difficult life was without her. He said, I only feel half alive without her now. But then he addressed Aaron Patterson. He said he wanted justice, but he also offered forgiveness, which brought a gasp for many in the courtroom.

He said he didn't bear Aaron Patterson any ill will He hoped she would use her time in jail wisely To become a better person and that he was praying for her He said, now I am no longer Aaron Patterson's victim And she has become a victim of my kindness He also talked about how medically He's still not recovered at all from the ordeal He had seven weeks in hospital

Doctors didn't think he was going to survive The next statement we heard came from Heather Wilkinson's daughter and Ruth de Bois, she was very angry that Aaron Patterson had the opportunity to cancel her plans. She didn't have to go ahead with this murderous plot, she said, but she did it anyway. Another statement we heard was from Simon Patterson. Now, he is still the husband of Aaron Patterson. He didn't go to the lunch.

He was invited, but bailed at the last minute. But his parents, Don and Gale, did go and they both died. He spoke how much he missed his parents, but also about the implementation. Pack this at all had. The children that the couple shared together, he said they'd been robbed of hope for the kind of relationship with their mother that every child wants. I said it was very difficult for those kids, knowing that nearly everyone knew their mother had murdered their grandparents. Was there any reaction from Aaron Patterson? Yeah, I mean, she sat and looked very intently, particularly as Ian Wilkinson was delivering

his statement and also as the words of Simon Patterson were being read out. During Ian Wilkinson's statement. At one point, she reached for some tissues and appeared to be crying. She looked very upset as well as those words of Simon Patterson were relayed about the impact on their children. But she didn't say anything. She wasn't given the opportunity to say anything, and she was led away out of the courtroom. This afternoon, we've heard from some of her defence lawyers to be making some recommendations and some comments about her conditions in jail, but she'll be back here on the 8th of September to be sentenced. And the judge, Justice Christopher Beale is inevitably going to give for several decades in prison for those crimes.

Simon Atkinson in Melbourne. In the US capital, Washington, D.C., troops have begun carrying firearms on the streets. President Trump has doubled down on deploying troops to other cities, accusing them of being weak on immigration and crime. He's threatened to send National Guard troops into another democratic stronghold, the city of Baltimore, in the state of Maryland. It's Governor, Wes Moore, hit back. it is not sustainable. You cannot continue this type of pace of operations, particularly when

it's costing over a million dollars a day. The second, it's not scalable. You're not going to be able to do this in every single major American city, particularly when many of the cities that have the highest crime rates are the places that have actually deployed their National Guards to Washington, D.C. So who's going to go do the work in their cities? The third, it's unconstitutional. It's a direct violation of the 10th Amendment. And for a party that talks about state rights, it's amazing how they're having such a big government approach in the way they're conducting public safety, when we're thinking about the fact that it serves as a distraction from the fact that the president's disastrous economic policies are making everything more

expensive for everyday Americans. There is a multitude of reasons that I am against this and I will not authorize the Maryland National Guard have utilized for this. Pamela Wood, a reporter with the Baltimore banner, told the BBC's Victoria Owencunda more about the president's plans. President Trump has been criticizing a lot of American cities for their crime numbers. as we know he sent troops and law enforcement into Washington, D.C. He has threatened to do it elsewhere, and Baltimore is the latest target, alleging that it's crime-ridden and infested and that he should send in the troops. Is Baltimore the city you live in?

We are speaking to you from crime-ridden and infested. It is not as bad as President Trump makes it out to see. Yes, Baltimore, like many, American cities. does have a high rate of violent crime, but it has been trending downwards very significantly the last few years. Governor Moore, the mayor of Baltimore, Brandon Scott, police community groups have worked together on a strategy to prevent crime and as well to hold offenders accountable.

And the homicide rate in particular has been sharply declining the last couple years. Are people seeing this as a political? motivated, moved by the president, because it looks like it comes down to the politics with the Republican president in charge of the government coming into conflict with what is essentially Democrat-led states and cities. People in Baltimore and the state of Maryland really do see this as politically motivated. Some see this as racially motivated as well. Here in Maryland, we have black leadership. We have a black mayor. We have a black governor. President Trump has gone after other black-led cities. So it's both political

and potentially some see it as racial as well. And in general, how are people in Baltimore in Maryland feeling about these comments by the president that he might be sending in the National Guard? People are not taking it too well. Certainly people who live in Baltimore are very proud of where they live in their city. The progress on violence is something that people are rightfully proud of. And people are defensive about the city and don't want to see, you know, troops coming in, don't want to see President Trump meddling in Baltimore. People don't take it too kindly. And let Governor Moore the other day said to President Trump, if he's not going to try and

help, if he just wants to hurt, then he should get our names out of his mouth, a slang term, saying basically, shut up and stop talking about us. Reporter Pamela Wood from the Baltimore banner. A posthumous memoir by Virginia Joufrey, who accused the British royal Prince Andrew, as well as the disgraced financier Geoffrey Epstein of sexual assault, is to be published later this year. Miss Joufrey took her own life in April at the age of 41. Prince Andrew, King Charles's brother, has strongly denied any wrongdoing. Anisa Cadre reports.

Virginia Joufray was one of the most outspoken accusers of the convicted sex offenders, Jeffrey Epstein, and his former girlfriend, Gillane Maxwell. She alleged they trafficked her to London to meet the Duke of York when she was 17, which Prince Andrew has strenuously denied. Her publisher says the book will share intimate, disturbing and heartbreaking new details about her time with them. Prince Andrew reached an out-of-court settlement with Mr. Dufray in 2022. This included a statement in which he expressed regret for his association with Epstein,

but it contained no admission of liability or apology. Anisa Cadre. The American actor, director and producer Jerry Adler has died at the age of 96. He had a long career in film, theatre and television. But as Guy Pitt reports, there's one role for which he'll be best remembered. If anything, define the career of Jerry Adler. Perhaps it was the groundbreaking New Jersey mob television series The Sopranos. Adler, already 70, played Hesh Rabkin, a lone shark and advisor to the mob boss Tony Soprano.

His was one of the very few Jewish characters in a series about the Italian-American mafia. Jews, because of the history, have common cause with the oppressed. Some Indians were deliberately given blankets, tainted with smallpox, died like flies. Yeah? You want to talk about terrorism? Look who started it. Years later, during COVID, he told the Talking Sopranos podcast how the series creator David Chase had given him the role. He gave me a call and he said he had a cameo that he wanted me to do. do? And was I available? I said, sure. I would do anything for him. And he said, it's called the Sopranos. And I said, well, you just want to warn you, I can't sing. Other major television

shows would follow, the good wife, the good fight, but it was the Sopranos which put him on the TV map. His polished ease in front of the camera belied a late start to acting, despite his roots in Yiddish theatre. He was born in 1929 and raised in Brooklyn, New York, another member of the huge Adler dynasty, his cousin Stella Adler was the famed acting teacher. Jerry Adler began his career as a stage manager in 1950 before eventually starting to perform himself. On screen, he made his mark in Woody Allen's comedy drama Manhattan Murder Mystery in 1993,

though it was only his second cinema film. He played Paul House, whom a married couple, Woody Allen and Diane Keaton, suspect of murdering his wife. Now look at these presidential. Look at the color work. Even the perforations are still in there. Where's Carol?

I should really be going, actually. A clever, understated performer, he had a clear idea of what a theatre director needed, no great surprise since he himself was won, directing notably the award-winning Broadway revival of My Fair Lady in 1976. His credits on stage and screen were numerous. He was still acting age 90, but it will probably be for Hesh Rabkin that he will be forever remembered.

Guy Pitt on Jerry Adler, who's died at the age of 96. And that's it from us for now, but there'll be a new edition of the Global News Podcast later. If you want to comment on this podcast or the topics covered in it, send us an email. The address is Global Podcast at BBC.co.uk. You can also find us on X at BBC World Service. Use the hashtag Global NewsPod. This edition was mixed by Andy Mills, the producers were Chaz Geiger and Stephanie Tillotson. The editor is Karen Martin.

I'm Valerie Sanderson. Until next time, bye-bye. Thank you.