Global News Podcast - Notre-Dame cathedral returned to former glory

Episode Date: November 29, 2024

Emmanuel Macron praised workers for restoring Paris's Notre-Dame cathedral, five years after the fire. Ukraine faces blackouts as Russia targets energy facilities, plus an interview with the world's best nurse.

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This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Alex Ritzen and at 14 Hours GMT on Friday 29th November these are our main stories. French President Emmanuel Macron returns to the restored Notre Dame Cathedral ahead of its reopening five years on from the fire. Ukraine fights to keep the lights on as Russia attacks its main energy facilities. Protesters in Georgia clash with police after the pro-Russia government suspends progress towards EU membership. Also in this podcast… I like the uniform. It's superficial, right?

But eventually, through the years, I learned to love and be passionate about being a nurse and taking care of the soldiers because I have seen the sacrifices. I say I'm really amazed if they can do this. Why can't I? The best nurse in the whole world. Five years ago, a fire almost destroyed one of the world's most recognisable buildings, Notre Dame, in Paris.

But now, the medieval Gothic cathedral has been restored to, some would say, beyond its former glory. The revamped interior had been kept a closely guarded secret but was unveiled on Friday in front of President Emmanuel Macron, who paid tribute to all those who'd made the restoration possible. The shock of the reopening will be, I believe, and I want to believe that it will be as strong as the shock of the fire. But it will be a shock of hope. And that's because of all the work that you've done. You did your alchemy here on this site to turn charred coals into art. The fire of Notre Dame was a national wound and you were its remedy.

One of those people, Damien Pinahti, a carpenter who worked on the restoration, has been speaking to the BBC's Michel Hussein. Producing beans out of logs, using axes and then scry them, join them together and raise them and using the same tools that were used 800 years ago. That's one of the reasons why I was called into this project. And is that for reasons of tradition or because you need to use those tools to get exactly the same look today? Yes, you do need to use the same tools to have the same texture and also the structure

properties are much, much better when you use an axe. So we can actually follow the fibres of the tree and keep as much as possible the original structure of the tree. Overall, the structure of the roof will be more stable and it will last for much longer. And when you first walked in and saw the site and realised the scale of what you'd have to do? What did you think? Oh, well, it completely changes everything for me because at the beginning, it was kind

of a selfish reason to get there. And then once I saw everything, I was like, I'm not there for myself. I'm just there for something much bigger than myself. The group, the trade, the cathedral became a perspective. So I realised how small I was. And what does it look like on the inside? Our Paris correspondent, Hugh Schofield, tried to see it for himself. I had a glimpse inside. I did not get a tour of the inside. I managed to thrust my head through the portals and just got an impression of what it is like, this new refurbished building.

And it is spectacular. It is what the few people who've seen it have been saying it is, a new experience because it's lighter, it's fresher. The opportunity has been taken not just to replace what was lost, but to clean the interior, to clean 40,000 square meters of limestone on the interior, which has really transformed the sensation that you have when you enter it now. It was always a spectacular moment when you cross the portals,

but now you have a much more uplifting, lighter, more luminous effect because of the cleaning of the stonework and the cleaning of the stained glass windows and the return of polychrome decoration in the side chapels. It all feels very new, very fresh and undoubtedly a big success and achievement for the hundreds of craftsmen and women who worked for it and for President Macron, whose rather rash promise it was to get it all done in five years. Well, it is five and a half years, but it's been done. Hugh Schofield in Paris. Winter has arrived in Ukraine.

Millions are battling the below freezing temperatures with regular power cuts amid ongoing Russian attacks on the country's energy system. There was another large-scale one on Thursday, the 10th this year. Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky said any blackmail from the Kremlin must be met with a firm response. But what is life like for Ukrainians living with regular blackouts? We heard from two women, both with children, both running businesses from Kyiv. Fashion brand owner Alina Ocheretiana and restauranteur Lily Morozova.

I have a little son, he is seven years old. We live on the twenty-first floor, it's so high and we are scared about this and we run to the parking calls and I'm actually sleeping in the car, we have a blanket over there. We don't have electricity. So he doesn't have a breakfast. We don't have water at this high. You have to check all the time where the rockets is, where the drones is. It's not easy.

I want to cry all the time, but I can't. I have a lot of employees. I have business. I have my family. I also time thinking about the soldier that the border, they outside, they called, they scared all the time. So I'm happy that I can be at my home. I have to be strict for this situation.

Two years ago, I was really depressed in the same circumstances. I remember I cried almost every day. Now we are much better prepared because of independent sources of electricity, as for homes, as for businesses. Our electricians in the country, they are magicians because they fix everything so fast that for example tomorrow the situation will be better, the next day it will be better and better till we have more or less full electricity

power in the country. Our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams has been given rare access to one of the country's damaged thermal power plants. These vast power stations have a way of making you feel very, very small. And it's the same with the damage too. As I look down into the power plant, I can see tiny figures moving around, conducting repairs, removing damaged equipment, trying as best they can to keep up with this relentless assault on Ukraine's power grid.

In the huge turbine hall, there's wreckage everywhere and gaping holes in the roof. We've agreed not to name the plant, say, when it was hit, or identify its employees. All information, we're told, that could help Russia to direct its next attacks. But the plant has been hit by drones and missiles many times. Oleksandr occupies a senior position here. We can't keep up with the restoration work. We don't have time to restore the main equipment, let alone the roof and walls.

Everything gets destroyed again, from one strike to the next. destroyed again from one strike to the next. So here on the ground next to the damaged transformer is a pile of jagged silver metal fragments. These, we're told, are from a missile that landed here not that long ago. We find Dmitro taking a break in the control room. A veteran at the plant, he's been present for most of the attacks. What's it like working in a place that is so constantly targeted?

Well, it's our job. First of all, if we don't work here, then who will? Some are defending the front lines on the battlefield. We have our own energy front to defend." And while the engineers struggle to keep the lights on, Ukrainians do what they've done for three years now – cope. In the middle of the latest power cut, Natalia is warming up a pot of borscht on her portable gas cooker. She lives high up in an apartment block on the edge of Kiev. In a multi-storey building, when there's no power, there is no water, no heating.

Everything we use, everything normal people in the modern world rely on, none of that is available. But with necessity comes cooperation and innovation. Down in the basement I'm taken to see a brand new system that stores electricity and then kicks into action as soon as there's a power cut. It's expensive. The building's 700 residents clubbed together to buy it. It helps pump water to the top floors and keeps the lift working. Very good news for Natalia up in her apartment on the 19th floor.

It's a very strange feeling. I'm happy I can go downstairs with my dog and the lift. I don't have to walk down in the dark, that I have water in the tap. It scares me just how happy I am to have these basic things. That's report from Paul Adams. To Georgia, where police arrested dozens in a violent crackdown on protests outside parliament in Tbilisi. Thousands of people took to the streets after Prime Minister Iraqi Khabar Khan from the ruling Georgian Dream Party announced it would not pursue

European Union membership until 2028. Riot police used rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannon to disperse gatherings, some beating protesters and journalists. These people were involved in the protest. We're in the middle of the fight right now but the hope is that our society is not indifferent enough to let this illegitimate government destroy the future of our country basically. When Putin praises you that means that you are in wrong direction so we don't want to be back to Russia. I'm old enough, I lived in the Soviet Union. I'm old enough and I know what is the Soviet Union. The opposition had accused the pro-Russian government of steering the country away from its long-held dream of joining the bloc. The decision came hours after the European Parliament adopted a non-binding resolution rejecting the results of Georgia's elections on October 26th, alleging

significant irregularities. I heard more on the overnight protests from our caucus's correspondent, Rehan Demitri. Quite a brutal crackdown on protesters. It all began at about 2 a.m. when riot police backed by water cannons moved in to disperse the protesters. We've seen footage of some of the protesters being beaten up, among them journalists, journalists who had a very clear kind of wearing press jackets so it was clear that they're the press. Nevertheless they were targeted with water cannons, pepper sprays and also physically assaulted. We're also hearing that several opposition leaders suffered a broken

nose or broken hand. Altogether, the latest figures from the Interior Ministry is that 43 people have been arrested. But the Interior Ministry is also saying that more than 30 police officers were injured in last night's protests. The suspension came after the European Parliament voted to reject the results of Georgia's recent election, so I guess in some ways this might not be so much of a surprise. Well it was clear from the long statement that was made by the Prime Minister, Iraqliy Kobahidze, that the Georgian Dream government is quite angry at this latest resolution that came from the European Parliament, which stated that the elections were rigged last month's

parliamentary elections. Also, it called for targeted sanctions against Georgian Dream officials and for a rerun for new elections. So shortly after the statement was made by the Prime Minister and he said that Georgia still wants to join the EU. It will for now, we'll put it on hold for the next four years. And that of course angered so many people because for a long time, protesters, we've seen a lot of protests this year alone against the controversial laws that were introduced by George and Dream government and those election results last month. But what happened last night was it was really kind of a pure anger that brought people out to the streets because they believe that this government is taking away their European future.

Our caucus's correspondent, Ray Handemy, Tree. Over the past few million years, at least eight different species of human have walked the earth. Their timelines are thought to have overlapped, but now scientists believe they have the physical proof that two specific types of human existed at the same time. Preserved footprints at a site in Kenya showed that Homo erectus and Paranthropus boisei lived alongside each other. Stephanie Zacharison reports. The Tukana Basin in Kenya is one of the most important cradles of humankind in the world. Here scientists have discovered some of the oldest fossils that tell us about the evolution of animals and our human history. They've found bones and skulls belonging to animals such as an extinct saber-toothed cat and elephants, snakes and frogs, but also footprints.

Paleoanthropologist Kevin Hatala has been studying the site for years. A fossil bone represents the body of an individual who died, while footprints can show you how animals actually used their bodies at a particular instant during their lives. They also tell us how these individuals were moving across their landscapes at the moment when these footprints were created. The marks are often found near large bodies of water where animals large and small have at some point made their way to the water source and the volcanic ash in the earth layers around Tucana has provided the perfect environment for preserving them.

And now Kevin Hotala and the team believe they have found evidence showing that on the shores of the lake, more than 1.5 million years ago, two species of early humans might have laid eyes on each other. One set of footprints is distinctly human-like and probably belonged to Homo erectus, an early member of our evolutionary line. The others were harder to interpret, looking like the foot would have been flatter than humans, with a big toe that was angled away, indicating that the mysterious walker was probably Pyranthropus boisei, one of our more distant relatives. The plant's eating species is nicknamed the nutcracker man because of its large teeth and a cranial crest like those in male gorillas.

The researchers who have published their findings in the journal Science said the different tracks appear to have been left within hours or perhaps a couple of days of each other because the mud had never dried and cracked. Now being alive at similar times isn't the same as living together, so we don't know whether this was a chance encounter between our very different ancestors or if it was part of their daily lives. Stephanie Zakrasa Still to come.

My boy told me, don't cry mum, one day I will buy you land and you will live a good life. I thought it's jokes, but God was with him. I never dreamed of living in a house like this. The Kenyan runner who went from herding cattle to becoming Olympic champion. Science is done by people who constantly expect the unexpected. That thing that we couldn't figure out, we figured it out. But now you're like, OK, this is like a whole other can of worms. Unexpected Elements brings you the most unexpected bits. At the origin of the lightning discharge,

we have a temperature which is even higher than the surface of the sun. Unexpected elements from the BBC World Service. It's not Jurassic Park, is it? It's Cretaceous Park. All of the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park came from the Cretaceous period. Search for unexpected elements wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Three days into the Israel Hezbollah ceasefire and it is holding, although both sides have accused each other of breaking the terms of the truce. On Friday, the Israeli army told residents of 60 Lebanese villages along the border that they cannot return until further

notice. They published a map with a warning that anyone entering the zone puts themselves in danger. Thousands of citizens are returning to their homes in Beirut and other areas of southern Lebanon, including these residents in Nabatiya. They found their homes and businesses reduced to rubble. The war started and we had to leave. We went to Beirut, then Sedan. Today I've come home and everything is destroyed. The house and things inside. Everything is lost.

I love this cafe. I built it up from my own heart. Yesterday morning when I arrived, the feeling couldn't be described. But now we have a ceasefire. It's a victory that we are still standing. If this ceasefire endures, is it a step towards a wider peace in the Middle East or a chance for Israel to redouble its war on Hamas in Gaza? A question for our international editor Jeremy Bowen. The second of those. It is not in itself a step towards peace. Of course it's encouraging that there is at least one theatre where people who were

getting killed aren't getting killed. But I mean it's a fragile, it's a fragile agreement anyway. Both sides are accusing each other. The Lebanese army is accusing Israel of violating the agreement. Netanyahu has said there'll be an intense war of Hezbollah, violates the terms of the agreement. And he said it's a ceasefire. He didn't say it was ending the war. Lebanon was always, if you like, a simpler proposition.

It was about pushing Hezbollah back from the border and trying to stop the cross-border rocket fire. Gaza isn't just about Israeli border security. It's not just about trying to get hostages. It's also about things like continuing his political career. And it's also about just what the relationship is. And this is fundamental between Israelis and Palestinians, and there's an overwhelming sense of

dread really in the air, and as for the Jordanians and the Egyptian foreign ministers, they're both massively concerned by the Gaza War. There are deep suspicions that Israel would like, if it could at all do it, to expel Palestinians, not just from Gaza into Egypt, but from the West Bank into Jordan. 7th of October last year was absolutely seismic. It shook everything up and there isn't a new shape that's emerged. And instead, there is a massive amount of worry on all sides, actually, about where on earth all this is going in the region.

Jeremy Bowen, a Chinese state media journalist has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being charged with espionage. His family condemned his conviction as a grave injustice, saying he'd been targeted for his independence and his engagement outside China. Our correspondent in Beijing Laura Bicco reports. 62-year-old Dong Yu Yu was arrested back in 2022. He was having lunch with a senior Japanese diplomat at the time. Now we do not have the details of the court documents. We've only heard from his family that he has been sentenced to seven years for espionage and the court documents allege that he met with so-called agents of espionage. Now those agents of espionage are

named in the court documents, according to his family, as two senior Japanese diplomats, one being the former ambassador to Beijing. Now Dong You You had traveled a lot. He was a Harvard, he got a Harvard scholarship. He also was a visiting professor and a visiting scholar at two Japanese universities. But here in China, he was known for his prolific writing. He wrote a number of opinion pieces, some of which were critical of the Communist Party despite his writing being for a Communist Party affiliated newspaper. He did not criticize President Xi Jinping by name however and it is his writing that his family believes has got him sentenced today. In a statement they said that he's been persecuted for his independence and the independence he's shown as a lifetime spent as a journalist.

They also said that this is a grave injustice, not just for Dong Yiuyu, but also for every Chinese journalist and every ordinary Chinese citizen committed to friendly engagement with the world. Laura Bicker. In Paris earlier this year, 20-year-old Emmanuel Wan-Yong-Yi became the youngest men's 800 metres champion in Olympic history. It capped a meteoric rise for the Kenyan athlete who'd suffered personal loss as a child and dropped out of school in order to work. BBC Sport Africa's Kelvin Kamathi met the star at his family home in Sabaute, Western Kenya. Feeding Kato lays in easy work, even for an Olympic champion.

But for Emmanuel Wanyoni, it's part of who he is. Looking after Kato as a child was tough, but I had to do it so I could eat. Sometimes I wasn't paid, but it gave me a place to sleep. Born in Saboti village, western Kenya, Wanyoni was one of 11 children in a family struggling with poverty. At the age of 10, he dropped out of school to help provide for his loved ones. When I got something small, I would take it home to my siblings so they could also have something to eat. It's the only reason I endured the job.

Aged 13, Wanyony returned home and that's when he discovered his talent for running. When I was training at one of the nearby school grounds, the teacher noticed me and told me I can run very well and get into athletics, but I will have to go back to school. When I came back to school, my dad was really happy. He would see me going to practice, and he loved that a lot. Wanyoni's father worked as a caretaker at a dam, but tragedy struck when he was found dead at the site in 2018, a day that lives long in Wanyoni's mind.

My father was working, guarding water for someone to prevent people from destroying the pipes. He had never come to school before. I was in class and he made sure I was cold and I went to the fence. He gave me about two dollars and told me to go buy running shoes. It's like he was strangled and placed by the water. He was found with a mark on his head as if he was hit. What I think happened is that he placed his clothes there to swim and then someone came to rob him. I wish he was here to see me run. I would even push harder because of all the love he

had for me. Wanyoni's mother, Margaret Nassimiu, could not be more proud of her son and the way he has changed her life. My boy told me, don't cry mum, one day I will buy you land and you will live a good life. I thought it's jokes, but God was with him. I never dreamed of living in a house like this. Wanyoni quickly rose through the athletics ranks on his way to gaining a place in the

Kenyan national team. His coach Claudio Beraldelli continues to be impressed. Something which is unique in Wanyoni is his mental attitude. He's like he's fearless, probably because of his background. What makes a champion to be a champion is the mental attitude and he's a champion in his mind. That report from BBC Sport Africa's Kelvin Kamathi. And let's end this podcast with an interview with the world's best nurse Maria Victoria Juan, chief nurse in the Philippines Army, has beaten more than 78,000 entries from 202 countries to win the title at the Astagardin's Global Nursing Awards in Bengaluru

in India. As well as the award, Maria also scooped up $250,000 in prize money. She's been speaking to the BBC's Victoria Uwankunda. It means so much to me because I feel that this is not my personal award but an award for all the Filipino people, the military nurses, those we serve, the soldiers, the Filipino citizens. I share it with all of them. Yours is quite a fascinating story. You were a ranking officer in the Philippine Army. What's your journey been like for you? Yes, I have been a military officer for almost 34 years and I started I think I would say it's I'm a late bloomer I'm not really that well

many achievements because I am happy go lucky but eventually through the years I learned to love and because I'm happy-go-lucky. But eventually through the years, I learned to love and be passionate about being a nurse and taking care of the soldiers because I have seen the sacrifices of the Filipino people and the soldiers. And I say, I'm really amazed. If they can do this, why can't I? And you have done it. I wonder, how did you decide to go into the military medical side of things? Actually it started because my aunt who is a former military nurse died of gunshot wounds while going to her assignment in the most hostile environment. That was years ago. I was just a little young female child. But then after that, I like the uniform. It's superficial, right? Once I get there, I get to learn about the military and I kept

to appreciate what the soldiers are doing. How challenging has it been for you being in what often is seen as male-dominated sector, being in the military and being a female nurse and high-ranking officer. Yes, in a male-dominated organization, so there might be some gender issues, but actually there is not. Because if you're an officer,

whether you're a female or a male in the armed force of the Philippines, you are well-regarded. You are assessed not by your gender, but how you perform. That's what is a good thing about the armed forces of the Philippines. Learning from the good leadership characteristics of the male and adapt it with you as a female,

it will be really a great way to lead. So that's what I did. I felt like a man, but still acted like a lady. I like that. So tell me then Maria, what is the best thing about being a nurse? Well, the best thing about being a nurse is the trust you are given. No other profession, aside from being a doctor of course, will give you absolute trust, right? No one will shed their clothes for you and look at their body. It's because of the trust.

So to reciprocate the trust, competence is not enough. You have to be compassionate and of course you have to have courage to advocate for the health needs of those you serve. The world's best nurse, Maria Victoria Huan. And that's all 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, you can send us an email. The address is globalpodcast.bbc.co.uk. You can also find us on X at Global News Pod.

This edition was mixed by Volodimir Muzetska and the producer was Ella Bicknell. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Alex Ritzen. Until next time, goodbye. Goodbye. Science is done by people who constantly expect the unexpected. That thing that we couldn't figure out, we figured it out. But now you're like, OK, this is like a whole other can of worms.

Unexpected elements brings you the most unexpected bits. At the origin of the lightning discharge, we have a temperature which is even higher than the surface of the sun. Unexpected elements from the BBC World Service. It's not Jurassic Park, is it? It's Cretaceous Park. All of the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park came from the Cretaceous period. Search for unexpected elements wherever you get your BBC podcasts.