Global News Podcast - Historic win for far-right in Germany

Episode Date: September 7, 2026

Germany's Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is heading for a dramatic victory in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, far ahead of its mainstream rivals. Although it is projected to fall short of a majority, the AfD says it has won a mandate to govern. Commentators and political opponents speak of the outcome as a watershed and break with the past. No far-right party has won control of a German state since World War Two.Also: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says he expects the war with Russia to continue into the winter, following talks with Donald Trump's top envoys in Kyiv. The BBC investigates the claim that individuals working for the Saudi government may have been involved in the 9/11 attacks. Iran warns of "a faster, heavier, and more painful response" to US attacks, as hostilities between the two sides escalate. At least five people have been killed and five others injured after a cargo plane sped off a runway at Miami International Airport. Portugal gives festival-goers wristbands that can instantly detect the date-rape drug GHB. We look at how Nigeria's problems with mass abductions from schools are affecting children's access to education. A volcanic eruption in Indonesia disrupts thousands of flights, and how sleep tracking can actually make your sleep worse. 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] Photo: Ulrich Siegmund during a far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) election party following Saxony-Anhalt state election, in Magdeburg, Germany, 06 September 2026. Credit: EPA/Shutterstock

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ad-free, with an Amazon music subscription. You're listening to the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. Hello, I'm Oliver Conway. We're recording this at four hours GMT on Monday the 7th of September. The AFD secures the biggest election win for the German far right since the Nazi era. US envoys leave Ukraine with no breakthrough on ending Russia's war. And the BBC investigates a claim that individuals working for the Saudi government might have been involved in the 9-11 attacks.

Also in this podcast? I remember it often. It makes me feel sad and I cry. We hear from Nigerians who survived a school abduction, and we take a look at sleep maxing. We begin with what could be a significant moment for post-war Germany. Supporters of the AFD celebrating a landslide election victory in the former East German state of Saxony Anhaus. It was the biggest win for the far right in Germany since the Nazi era. The party more than doubled its support, taking 44% of the vote, though it fell just short of a majority of seats in the state parliament.

It was a very bad result for the German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz. His party's vote was halved. The man who now hopes to become the first AFD chief minister of any German state, 35-year-old Ulrich Siegmund, said they'd made history. This election victory is a vote of confidence from the people of this country. country and we will live up to that trust. We will not compromise our principles. We will not give up on ourselves. We will never become like those who've rightly been punished this evening. We are alternative for Germany. The AFD tapped into a wave of nostalgia for communist East

Germany and managed to secure support from at least 150,000 previous non-voters. The party wants to heavily restrict immigration, restore ties with Russia, quit the Euro, and promote unashamed German patriotism, defunding so-called anti-German art and teaching children less about Hitler. Mainstream politicians have refused to work with the AFD,

but a small left-wing pro-Russia party might provide support if it can get into the state parliament. As our correspondent there, Jessica Parker, told Tim Franks. All eyes are on whether the, smaller party, BSW or BSV as it's known here, whether it's going to reach the 5% threshold that could allow it to get into Parliament. The reason that's important is BSV have signalled that they would maybe be open to helping the AFT actually take power in this state, even if it wouldn't be any kind of formal coalition. If the BSV didn't make into the parliament, the AFD

would potentially get more seats, more likely to get state-level power. So still some convoluted German political maths going on here. But the big picture is they've won in terms of votershare, the AFD, big, and they've won big here in Saxony-Anhalt. And in terms of both the state, I mean, obviously states in Germany have a considerable amount of power, not unfettered power, so that could be important. But nationally, what does this huge victory for the AFD mean, do you think? nationally I think it means the AFD feels they're on the march and they have been growing in popularity.

They're leading the polls nationally even though their support is heavily skewed to eastern Germany. I think as well it's a bad night for Friedrich Merz, the Chancellor, CDU, who was already very embattled but this could potentially further destabilise him and his government. Now remember his government is, for example, a key supporter of Ukraine, whereas the alternative for Deutsche am want to end support to Ukraine and to Ukraine. have pro-Russia policies. Now, as you say, important to understand states, they don't set foreign policy, state governments, but they do run things like education, policing, culture. So as well, I think, for the AFD, they see this as a potential blueprint for how they would

look in power in other states or indeed nationally, something that they aspire to. So they're seeing it as a stepping stone for their aspirations, whereas other people, I think, critics of the of which there are many in Germany, this is a party class as right-wing extremist in this state by domestic intelligence. Critics of the party fear this is a moment of peril for the country, if indeed there is some kind of domino effect. Jessica Parker in Saxony, Anhalt. President Trump's envoys have left Ukraine after talks with President Vladimir Zelensky. Steve Wittkoff and Jared Kushner visited Kiev after talks in Moscow with Vladimir Putin. As expected, there was no breakthrough on ending Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

correspondent James Landel is in Kiev. This is the first time Steve Whitkoff and Jared Kushner have set foot on Ukrainian soil since Russia's full-scale invasion. And they arrived by train because they couldn't risk flying and running the gauntlet of Russian drones. But the welcome they got was warm, a chance for President Zelensky finally to give them his assessment of the war firsthand here on the ground in Kiev. to greet the US envoys in the city's famous St. Sophia Cathedral,

not only a symbol of Ukraine's ancient past, but also only yards from where Russia attacked the headquarters of the country's security services on Friday. Both sides said the talks were substantive, and they appeared good-humoured, including jokes at Russia's expense. They were joined later by European National Security Advisors, but was anything actually agreed, While they discussed new ideas to end the war

and a fresh round of U.S. broker talks, but President Zelensky's focus was on his need for more energy and air defenses now. We very much hope that we will be able to reach agreements with our American partners, and we are counting on the support of our European partners if the war continues in winter, and this is how it appears at the moment.

President Zelensky reiterated Ukraine's red lines for peace, security guarantees and a strong army, something Russia opposes. Mr. Wittkoff hoped a deal could be done. It's going to take both sides to make some compromises and narrow the issues between them.

And we think we have the ingredients to get to that place. But in the Kremlin yesterday, there was little sign of compromise. President Putin insisting the root causes of the war must be addressed. Short-hand for Ukraine giving up territory

and self-determination. Today, his forces launched yet another attack on a town in Western Ukraine, hitting an apartment block, injuring seven. Talk of ceasefires and diplomacy, not saving them from Russian drones. James Landau in Kiev. 25 years after the September 11th attacks,

new evidence is raising questions about a man who helped two of the hijackers after they arrived in America. Saudi National Omar Al-W. Bayeumi was arrested in Britain just days after 9-11. He was never extradited back to the US, although compelling evidence against him was uncovered by British police and shared with the FBI.

This report from Jane McMullen. It's a day that I would like to only think of my husband, and we can't do that if the truth remains buried. Terry Strada's husband, Tom, with whom she had three children, was working in New York's World Trade Center when the attacks happened. I had a newborn in my arms. He was four days old. Tom went down the stairs, turned around, said, I'll be home by two. I love you. Tom was one of nearly 3,000 people who were killed that day.

The plane has crashed into the World Trade Center. The passenger plane crashing into the South Town. Within days of the attacks in which four planes were crashed, investigators had identified the 19 al-Qaeda hijackers. Two of them, Nawafal Hasmi and Khaledar Midar, had lived for months in San Diego. The FBI quickly discovered that they had received help from a Saudi man called Omar al-Bayumi.

We needed to know everything about them. Danny Gonzalez was an FBI special agent. You focus on who helped them, who assisted them. It was a network. But when you see who's the principle of this network is Omar Al-Bayumi. Bayoumi helped the two men secure an apartment, co-signing their lease. But before 9-11, he moved to the UK, and 11 days after the attacks, British police arrested him in Birmingham.

They took him to London, where he was questioned for seven days. This interview is being audio and video recorded. At first, Bayoumi denied knowing the hijackers. I don't have any link with any hijacker. But investigators already knew. he had guaranteed two of the hijackers' rent. Eventually, he admitted to helping them after what he said was a chance meeting in Los Angeles.

Bayumi claimed to be a student who had no links to extremists, but Panorama has obtained Bayumi's personal videos, never broadcast before, of Anwar al-Aulaki, who would go on to lead al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. When questioned in 2021, Bayumi denied knowing Orlaki,

but the videos show them, paintballing and also embracing at a meeting. After 9-11, the FBI uncovered evidence and information suggesting Bayoumi might have been working on behalf of Saudi interests. Rick Lambert oversaw the FBI investigation in San Diego. It was a general consensus of people in the San Diego Muslim community that Bayoumi was an operative of the Saudi intelligence service. He was a spy.

He was a spy. Bayoumi is always denied being a spy. British police also seized evidence from his Birmingham home, including a video he filmed around the Capitol building two years before the attacks. At the time, Al-Qaeda was deciding which targets to hit. Byulah, time is 6 p.m. Bayoumi later claimed it was tourism, but in it he talked about a plan. The police also seized a handwritten diagram of a place.

with descent calculations. The plane diagram is a handwritten. He has Jody Westbrook Flowers, a lawyer representing the families of 9-11 victims in a lawsuit against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It's the mathematical calculation of the crash. When we figured out what it was, we knew that it was the smoking gun that we'd been looking for.

I would have agreed to work... Jeff Brineholt was an official at the Department of Justice. The flight designs and calculations, is the worst, that's the most inconvenient evidence for him, in my opinion. We've convicted people for less. When they found the diagram, the MET marked it up as top priority and handed it to the FBI. But neither the FBI nor the MET told the detectives interviewing by Yumi about it. He wasn't asked about the diagram while he was in custody.

It's not clear why. FBI documents show it was decided there was insufficient evidence to exercise. extradite by Yumi to the United States. He was released and returned to Saudi Arabia where he remains. September 11th, when it comes around every year, as they mark the 25th anniversary of the attacks, the families hope they can take their case against Saudi Arabia to a trial and get all the answers to what happened. The FBI declined to comment, while the U.S. Department of Justice says it's unable to comment on matters and decisions from 25 years ago involving staff who longer work there. The Metropolitan Police says it can't comment because of the ongoing legal

case. Panorama attempted to reach Omar al-Bayumi through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Islamic Affairs. Neither he nor the Saudi government responded to our request for comment. He has previously denied knowing that Hasmin Mhdad would go on to be hijackers, said the plane diagram was just an equation and denied any involvement in the 9-11 attacks. McMullen reporting. How well did you sleep last night? Well, these days, many of us use smartwatches, rings and apps to get a precise answer to that question. But experts are warning that the pursuit of the perfect sleep, a trend known as sleep maxing, could actually end up keeping people awake. Doctors call it orthosomnia, an unhealthy obsession with getting the perfect night's rest. Dr. Alana

Hare is a sleep medicine consultant. What I'll often see is individuals who are very, very focused on high performance, well-being, maybe they're going to the gym, and quite understandably, they also want to address their sleep and improve that. Unfortunately, sleep doesn't respond in the same way as diet and exercise do. When we really focus on our sleep and we try and optimize or max our sleep, actually often that can create the opposite issue where our sleep becomes worse. Well, in a study at the University of Oxford, scientists gave participants trackers which displayed a score each time they woke up. These were actually just random numbers, but participants with low scores said they genuinely felt more tired and less

mentally alert. James Wilson, or the sleep geek, works with professional sports teams to improve athletes' rest. What we believe about our sleep is often the thing that comes true. So there's lots of things that feed into how we sleep. We have an underlying sort of genetic makeup when it comes to sleep in terms of how much sleep you need in terms of how good and how much. Your sleep type when you're more suitors going to bed and waking up. But then we also have the world around us, our lives around us. And if you've been a poor sleep for your life, often it's that story of, you know,

I'm not going to sleep tonight because of X, Y and Z, that then causes you not to sleep that night. And a big cause of that, and a big cause of something that's become known as Sophosomnia, is tracking your sleep. You know, if you're poor sleeper, you know you're a poor sleeper, you don't need a device to give you a score

that might actually not be quite true. You know, you can wake up fully, but if the score says you've slept poorly, that can really change how you view your sleep. If we actually acknowledge that sometimes sleep is a little bit difficult and our jobs can affect how we sleep, but know that our bodies can get us through it, then it doesn't have the same impact. So a lot of my work with the people I work with is actually getting to reconfigure how they see their sleep and accept that sometimes we will sleep poorly because we've got kids, we've got pets, we live in a noisy neighbourhood, with shift workers, we've got a disability or neurodivergence, or we're living with a menstrual cycle, or the menopause.

All these things can impact our sleep, and if we start to sort of obsess over it and think that sleep's got to be perfect, then you won't perform. So the athletes I work with, a lot of the work is actually giving a bit of context around their sleep and trying to get them to see, you're an elite athlete,

sleep will not always be perfect. Sleep expert, James Wilson. And still to come in this podcast, As a woman, I thought it was wonderful because I feel safer. I just put some of my drink on it to test it. A wristband that can detect whether your drink has been spiked. Growing businesses deal with the same problem. Too many tools, too much back and forth and not enough time.

Odu helps bring it all together. It's an all-in-one business management platform, fully integrated from sales and accounting to inventory and marketing, so your team can spend less time chasing information and focus on growth. Whether you're in retail, manufacturing or service, Odu gives you one place to manage your business. Visit Odo.com to book a demo. It's ODb-O.com.

Get more with BBC Podcasts, wherever you listen. Be the first to listen to your favorite shows, like evil genius, good bad billionaire, and you're dead to me, with a subscription to BBC Podcasts. premium on Apple Podcasts. You can also enjoy a range of our podcasts ad-free with an Amazon music subscription. You're listening to the Global News podcast. Iran's top negotiator has warned of a faster, heavier and more painful response to US attacks as hostilities escalate. Mohamed Bagha Ghalibaf said the Americans must understand, quote, before it's too late that

the rules of the game have changed. Charlotte Gallagher spoke to the BBC Persian. services, Parham Gobadi. In the past few days, Iranian commanders have been saying that Iran has shifted its military doctrine from defensive to offensive. They laid out some of the features of it, saying that responses are going to be fast, are going to be broad. Iran may resort to preemptive strike. And this disproportionate response, it appears that is the fourth feature of Iran's new military doctrine. Why do you think they are doing this? Because Iran feels that it is losing its leverage over the strait of Hormuz. This is really important. The other thing,

because the naval blockade, U.S. naval blockade, is hurting Iran's weak economy really hardly, and, you know, people are bearing the brunt of it. Iran has two options technically. One is going back to negotiating tables from a weaker position. The second one is that to escalate further. So it appears that Iranian authorities have chosen the ladder, and they have decided to go up the escalation ladder, which has a risk that is going to have unintended consequences and things spiral out of control. And is that the leverage ramping up the escalation? Yeah. So from the data that we have, like the US authorities have for the first time put out a figure saying that they are transferring almost 9 million barrels of oil through the

trade of hormones before the war it was somewhere around 20 million barrels. So that's something around 45% of oil transfer has been restored by the Americans. So Iran feels that, obviously, it's not like the pre-war. It is really costly for the Americans. They have to deploy troops, warships, et cetera, et cetera. But they've managed to transfer some oil through the Strait of Hormuz, 45% of that is already restored. So Iranians feel that they're being targeted.

They're losing their most important leverage. And at the same time, the naval. blockade is continuing. So Iran cannot, according to reports, Iran's oil sales has dropped to zero. And that is Iran's main income and main revenue. And this is what some Iranian authorities had warned already that we should not overplay our hands, including Muhammad Bogart, who mentioned this today. He was one of those people who were saying that our benefit is in the straight-of-hormost functioning and ships going through it. I'm Ghabadi of the BBC Persian Service. At least five people,

have been killed after an Amazon cargo plane overshot the runway as it trying to land at Miami International Airport. I got the details from the BBC's Anna Aslam. This cargo plane took off from San Juan in Puerto Rico. I was coming into land at Miami International shortly before 2pm local time when it overran the runway. Flight data shows it was going about 200 kilometres per hour when it hit the runway, kept going, then just went off the runway completely. It crossed a large road hitting 6.000. several vehicles there and then burst into flames before grinding to a halt in what it's called

the field, but really just a grassy area sort of in between that road and a parking lot. Videos and pictures online show the tilted plane, so you've got the damaged nose on the ground, tail high up in the air with the Amazon logo visible, and then large plumes of smoke just coming off of it. Firefighters arrived pretty quickly, extinguished the flames, leaving soot on the wreckage. The fire chief, Ray Jedullah said it was a complex. situation. The airplane did strike a couple of vehicles that required a couple of victims that were actually trapped in the vehicles. So a complex extrication with our technical rescue team started to occur. In addition to that, we had a very complex fire engine compartments that were on fire,

including a search and rescue of the pilot and co-pilot that were trapped in this aircraft. So as you said, we know five people have been killed, another five are injured three in critical condition. Do we know what caused the plane to run off the end of the runway? Not yet. It's still an active scene and federal investigators have said they've sent a team to go out there. Amazon released a statement. It said it's working with local authorities to gather details about exactly what happened. And a spokesperson said the loss of life was heartbreaking. A dedicated hotline has been set up for the relatives of those affected. County Mayor Daniela Levine Kava said the community is grieving. Today is an incredibly difficult day for all of us here in Miami-Dade County.

My heart is with all of the families who were affected and to everyone who is grieving tonight. And we're also praying for the injured and for their families. The airport was obviously completely shut down after that incident. Now, as it reopens, travelers have been told to expect delays and possibly cancellations. Miami International is one of the busiest airports in the U.S., especially this weekend, because of Labor Day bank holiday. So there will be a lot of disruption in the coming hours. Anna Aslam.

Meanwhile, ash sent into the sky from an erupting volcano has closed eight airports in Indonesia, leading to the cancellation of more than a thousand flights. Lisa Tambunan reports from Jakarta. The eruption began late on Friday and sent ash nearly 10 miles into the sky. Mount Anna Krakatao, which sits in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra,

was active once again. The seismic activity has continued through the weekend, with two more eruptions triggering widespread flight disruption. These passengers at Indonesia's main international airport near Jakarta didn't know how long they would have to wait for a flight. If a volcano erupts, I understand that. The problem is, why weren't we informed? That way, passengers wouldn't have needed to come here.

It has caused problems for me. People are waiting for me. But this is nature. I have to accept it. Roots to and from Singapore, along with major international flights to Doha, Sydney and Kuala Lumpur, have all been affected.

On the ground, residents of Jakarta and other cities have been sweeping up the ash outside their homes. They've been advised to wear masks and eye protection and to remain indoors. Fishing boats and other vessels have been banned from within three kilometres of the active crater. The sea level is being monitored, but the authorities say the likelihood of a tsunami is low.

Lisa Tambun and in Jakarta. Reports of people being sexually assaulted after having their drinks spiked have risen substantially in recent years, prompting a search for a simple way of testing whether drugs have been added to a drink. Well, over the weekend, thousands of date-rape drug-detecting wristbands were handed out at a concert in Portugal. More details from Wendy Irkut. Imagine the horror of waking up in a strange place with people you've never met and realizing you've been sexually assaulted or raped.

That happens to many people, especially women, whose drinks have been spiked with drugs that cause dizziness or make them pass out and remember nothing about what's happened. And the majority of these attacks are never reported. It's become such a major problem that countries always all over the world are trying to come up with a solution that not only protects people, but is also fashion-friendly and easy to wear. At the weekend, 5,000 wristbands that were developed by researchers at Lisbon University in collaboration with the University of Valencia and the Spanish

company Salentis were handed out at a DJ Carl Cox concert in Lisbon. And there are plans to distribute thousands more at other events in Portugal. So how does it work? Well, all you have to do is put a tiny amount of liquid from your glass onto a spot on the wristband. If it turns orange, everything's fine.

But if it turns a greenish colour, it means your drink has been tampered with. It's an idea that's gone down very well with these users. I think it's a good thing because it ends up giving us some peace of mind. The pressure is on women

because they end up being the victims of more situations where her drinks might be spiked. As a woman, I thought it was wonderful, because I feel safer. I just put some of my drink on it to test it. I think the City Council's initiative is great. Several other countries have used jewellery, straws and even magnets to detect drugs such as GHB, ketamine and MDMA. And Portugal is hoping this wristband will also help protect people from dangerous predators.

Wendy Urquhart. In recent years, Nigeria has been scarred by a series of mass school abductions, as gunmen launched lightning raids and take dozens, even hundreds of children away to captivity. The country is already struggling with poor access to education. The UN says about 19 million kids are missing out on school, and many parents are simply too scared to send their sons and daughters to class. Yemisei Ede Goke has been to northwest Nigeria to meet. two young people caught up in an attack on their school.

So we've just arrived at the school and the senior girls are out in the courtyard. They're all wearing bright green uniforms and it's raining a little bit, but they're just carrying on regardless. One of the pupils singing and dancing here ahead of the end of school is Hanatu. Like many teenage girls here in Gasau in northwest Nigeria,

she's nervous about her exam results. The BBC has followed Hanatou. story closely ever since a shocking, life-changing incident. I remember it's often. It makes me feel sad and I cry. Reports say a large number of schoolgirls have been abducted after gunmen stormed in government school and kidnapped them from their dormitories. This part of Nigeria has been plagued by motorbike riding gangs of bandits who abduct people for ransom. In Zamfara State, almost half familiar.

children are out of school, partly driven by fears over abductions. After the attack, Hanatu spoke to BBC Africa-I. We heard gunshots, people crying for help and shouting. Here come the bandits. About five of us ran and locked ourselves in the toilet. There were about 350 students in the school, but only 32 of us escaped. Umu was another pupil at the school and was one of those abducted. She now studies early childhood education at a nearby university,

but she was deeply affected by the incident. I heard a man's voice shouting, Come out or I'll kill you. I was thinking that they would kill us. Nearly 300 girls were taken. They were eventually freed, but it's disputed as to whether a ransom was paid for their release. But the girls' school remained closed, threatening their futures.

Nigeria already has one of the highest rates of out-of-school children in the world. Missing out on education can have devastating consequences, especially for girls. After the BBC filmed with Hanatu and Umu, donors reached out via the Illamy Children's Fund. They offered to help some of the girls affected. This allowed them to attend a secure school in the state capital. Both Hanatu and Umu now dream of careers where they can help others. I want to be a doctor so I can help the community and my relatives and the people that have supported me. The attack on their old school changed their lives, but Hanatu and Umu are determined that it will not define them.

Yemisi Ade goke. And that is all from us for now, but the Global News Podcast will be by back very soon. This edition was mixed by Sydney Dundon. Our editor is Karen Martin. I'm Oliver Conway. Until next time, goodbye. Get more with BBC Podcasts, wherever you listen. Be the first to listen to your favourite shows, like Evil Genius, Good, Bad Billionaire, and You're Dead to Me, with a subscription to BBC Podcasts Premium on Apple Podcasts. You can also enjoy a range of our podcasts ad-free with an Amazon music subscription.