Global News Podcast - WHO declares an Ebola public health emergency in the DRC

Episode Date: May 17, 2026

Nearly ninety deaths have been recorded so far in the Democratic Republic of Congo with medical experts warning that the current strain of the Ebola virus has a very high mortality rate. The DRC's health minister said that no vaccine or specific treatment was available. Also, more than fifty children between the ages of two and five are abducted in northeast Nigeria during attacks on three schools in the same town. Several people are seriously injured after a car is driven into pedestrians in the Italian city of Modena. Two rival marches are held on the same day in London with pro-Palestinian demonstrators and British far-right activists kept apart by the police. And Bulgaria stuns Eurovision to become the surprise winner at the song contest in Austria.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]

This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Alex Ritson, and in the early hours of Sunday the 17th of May, these are our main stories. The WHO declares a growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo as an emergency of international concern. Several people are injured in Italy after a man drives his car into pedestrians, and more than 50 children, many of them toddlers, are kidnapped. from schools in Nigeria. Also in this podcast, an underwater tragedy in the Maldives claims another life. It could have been avoided, you know.

This shouldn't have been rushed. We get a military diver's assessment and... I want to thank everybody who felt the Bangaranga and felt connected to the force. A surprise winner at this year's Eurovision song contest. Ebola is no stranger in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has seen more than a dozen outbreaks since the virus was first identified there 50 years ago. But medical experts are concerned about the latest outbreak of the infectious disease, which is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids.

The DRC health minister Samuel Roger Camber has warned its astrain with a very high death rate, but sought to reassure the public. We've had confirmation that this is Ebola. The strain is already known. It notably struck in Uganda and also here back in 2012. There are no vaccines or specific treatment. But this is not our first time dealing with the epidemic. This is our 17th Ebola outbreak.

We know how to keep it under control. The challenge is to stop people thinking of it as a mysterious illness and ensure they seek proper health care. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern. But it said the outbreak doesn't meet the criteria of a pandemic. Our reporter in Kinshasa, Emery Makumino, told me more. The number of reasons over 330 contact cases and the number of deaths has gone also high to 87. one person who died in Bunya was transferred to the epicenter now, Mongolu.

And during the funeral, that's where it is believed that many people caught the virus and people started dying. And it was largely believed that there was a case of wishcraft, so that people did not want to go for treatment in hospitals. They were going to churches, to spiritual, to witch doctors to try to find solutions. And this is one of the causes why we have seen an increase of fatalities, particularly in Mongolo. Why is this happening? I mean, modern medicine is, it's everywhere, isn't it?

I mean, people know about this stuff. Not everyone knows the symptoms related to Ebola, and in that particular rural area of the DRC, you also have people who are also going more to what is more accessible. That means the traditional medicines, rather than going to seek more expensive healthcare, provided there's no universal. healthcare coverage over here. What are the authorities doing? Teams are being deployed on the ground. We understand that they haven't yet set up at the Ebola

treatment centres. So teams from the government and as well as teams from aid workers are all deploying to Bunya and later on they'll be deploying to the epicentre which is Mangualo. So at the moment you have tons of medical equipment and PPE

being airlifted by the WHO and also by the response team from the Congolese government. Emery Macomino in Kinshasa. Police in northern Italy are questioning a man after a car was driven into pedestrians in the city of Modena, injuring several people. The driver then reportedly tried to flee with a knife before being stopped by members of the public. Our reporter Carla Conti has been following the story. This happened on Saturday afternoon in the heart of modern. as historic centre on one of the city's main shopping streets. The area would have been busy as it usually is on a weekend afternoon with people strolling and doing their shopping when a car came down the street of full speed.

According to local reports, it appears to have mounted the pavement, hit several pedestrians that then carried on for a short distance before eventually crashing into the window of a clothing shop. Eight people were injured, four of them seriously. The most serious case is reported to be, that of a 55-year-old woman whose legs were crushed against the shop window on impact. The driver then got out of the car and tried to run away. He was reportedly armed with a knife and several members of the public chased him and managed to restrain him before police eventually

arrived. And one of them, Lucas Signorelli, described the moment when he tried to stop the suspect. I forced the car door open. The suspect left the car, and while I was trying to help the woman, his legs had been amputated, he ran away. So I chased him, and in the meantime, four or five other people followed me. He disappeared behind a row of cars and then came out with a knife in his hand. He was mumbling something, but he wasn't Italian. The suspect was eventually disarmed and handed over to police. And he has now been named, hasn't it? Yes, the driver has been named by Italian authorities and media as Salim El-Kudry.

He's a 31-year-old Italian citizen of Moroccan origin. born in Bergamo and living in the province of Modena. Officials say he holds a degree in business administration and is currently unemployed. They've also said that he had previously been known to local mental health services, including for what they described as schizoid disorders. He is now in custody and being questioned while investigators look at his recent movements, contacts and background. Anything on motive yet?

Well, that is one of the central questions, Alex, but we don't know much at this stage. but the city's mayor, Massimo Metzetti, said that the footage appears to show a deliberate act because the car seems to turn towards the pavement before hitting people, but investigators have not established a motive as of yet. Officiers have also said that early checks did not show that he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of his arrest. Reports have also said that so far, investigators have not found clear evidence of links to extremist groups,

but they are still looking at all the possibilities. Carla Conti. On Thursday, five Italian scuba divers died while exploring an underwater cave in the Maldives believed to be the worst single diving accident in the tiny Indian Ocean Nation. A rescue team went in to find the missing bodies, but the search has now been suspended after one of the military divers involved in the operation, Mohamed Mahoudi, died. The government spokesman Mohammed Hussein Sharif told us what happened. He was rushed to the capital by seaplane about 15 minutes. minutes from where they were. But he was rushed here and taken to the hospital.

Unfortunately, he succumbed while being given treatment. He's a staff sergeant. Also a very popular young man, by the way. I knew him personally because he was also a very popular young sportsman in the country. He's a very popular basketball player. Our Global Affairs reporter, and Barrasanne Etirajan has more details. A very unfortunate incident. For the last two days, the Maldivian government has been using different divers.

and Maldives has a tradition of scuba diving. It attracts tourists from all around the world. But this seems to be one of those complicated operations. And one of the team members, when they sent about eight divers into the water, one of them did not come up again. So they went back into the water to find him. So Sergeant Mohamed Mahdi, he was like unconscious in the water, deep in the water. So they had to bring him up.

And he was airlifted to the capital. Malay. And while he was undergoing treatment, unfortunately, he passed away. That was a big shock for the Maldivian team and the rescue team. And also, it's a very small country. It's a city that news spreads very fast and people know each other very well. So it was a big shock for the rescue teams. And this has come in addition to the already very tragic situation. Let's hear a bit more about the cave and what might have gone wrong. Shafras Naim is a former military diver from the Maldives who trained the rescue diver who died. He spoke to James Kumar Asami. I've dived that cave over 20, 30 times. It's massive. The entrance, the first chamber is very

big, and then there's this smaller tunnel, I'll call it, and then it goes into another big chamber, which is at around 70, 75 metres. You can't be in there unless you're trained. What is your assessment of what might have gone wrong? Yeah, with the Italians, first of all, they were bringing. in the Molda's dive regulations, which is 30 meters maximum for recreational divers. And secondly, from what I found out, they don't have a special permit to go and dive this deep or do any kind of a research in this cave. As far as I know from the information that I've gathered from my contacts there and also from

the military and the police divers, they dived on a single tank of air. There needs to be extra tank, a single tank. They're not going to last longer under that pressure. And somebody even told me that they were wearing long blade fins, which is like the free dive fins you see that free divers are using. Those fins can create a lot of, if you kick, a lot of silting in that area. Maybe they must have got nitrogen narcosis at depths. All these factors tend to build up and become a big problem.

What about the response to this? Because your former colleague has died, how do you feel? about what has happened to this gentleman that you knew and trained? It could have been avoided, you know. This shouldn't have been rushed. I am coordinating with a rescue team, world-class recovery team from Finland. They will land in Maldives tomorrow morning. We know the five Italian divers are dead and now it's a recovery operation.

Why risk the lives of other divers to recover the dead bodies? We could have waited for the proper rescue team that is going to. from Finland to arrive there. Shafras Naim. Bulgaria has won the Eurovision song contest, with Dara's dance anthem Bangoranga coming out on top. It's unbelievable. I still don't know if this is a dream or reality.

Either way, I love it and I enjoyed it, and I'm still shocked, but it's the first time Bulgaria ever wins Eurovision, and I'm so excited to welcome you all in Sofia next year. Dara topped both the public and the jury, vote with her intricate choreography and catchy chorus. The 27-year-old told the BBC Bangoranga means an inner feeling that everything will be all right and anything is possible.

Well, that energy may have helped her clinch the trophy, as she initially wasn't even considered to be in the running. Our correspondent at the venue in Vienna, Nomiya Iqbal, told me it was a surprise win. It really was a nail-biter. It was, in the end, between Bulgaria and it. Israel, and I have to say Bulgaria was a big surprise. I've been here all week, and we've been talking about favourites, bookmakers' favourites, and Bulgaria was never in the top five. I mean, there's lots of people that really love that song, and including members of our team

and when we're out and about. People were saying that they loved that song, but it wasn't seen as an actual favourite, although it did shoot up the betting odds after the singer performed earlier this evening. And so yeah, they ran away with it, beating Israel, coming out number one. It looked like an amazing party, frankly. Has Eurovision for its 70th birthday cemented its place at the heart of the music industry? Very, very good question. And I'm not entirely sure. Look, Eurovision will always have some sort of place. It's the world's biggest live music event. The weather's not been great. So you've not seen people out and about as much, but you know, you still get the costumes, the glitter, the flags, all that kind of thing. People really, really love Eurovision.

I've spoken to people who tell me that this is their 20th year of coming to Eurovision. I mean, there's always some sort of politics with Eurovision, no matter how much Eurovision bosses like to say there aren't any politics. I think that has in some ways, dented the fun around Eurovision. And just to remind the controversy is, of course, the fact that five countries aren't here, including Spain, one of the big four, one of the big financial backers of Eurovision. And that is because of the participation of Israel. They don't believe Israel should have been allowed into the competition due to the war in Gaza. And also, they have expressed concerns about the Israeli government trying to influence the voting. Now, the rules were

And so basically juries were introduced for semifinals. Instead of people getting 20 votes, they got 10 votes. And also your voting was pinned to your credit card where your credit card is from. So basically you cannot vote from the country that you're in. So they've introduced various mechanisms to try and make the voting all fair and above board. But it wasn't enough for a lot of those countries. And they believe that Israel should have been kicked out. So, you know, that led to the political controversy.

But I have to say, when it came down to it today at the final, for a lot of the fans here and certainly the artists, they were very much trying to focus on the music. Normia Iqbal at Eurovision in Vienna. Still to come in this podcast, Central London is split in two. Generally, people are here to show that they are fed up with discrimination against the British people. I'm just fed up with the rise of racism and terrible things happening around the world in the name of the far right.

Our correspondents go to opposing protests a few streets away from each other. This is the Global News podcast. Mass kidnappings have become a major security challenge in Nigeria in recent years, blamed on Voko Haram and other jihadist groups. But the latest attacks in northeastern Borno state have shaken the country, with some residents reportedly fleeing the area. Gunmen have abducted more than 50 children from three schools in the town of Musa, most of them toddlers. Our correspondent Chris Iwaka is following developments from Abuja. This is about the first time we are seeing a situation where toddlers,

literally babies are being abducted from school anywhere in Nigeria. I've spoken to some parents who told me how devastated they have. I've also spoken to heads of schools who told me that some of the children who were taking between the age of two and five. I've reached out to the governor of Borno state. He is currently being briefed by security forces. We also understand that soldiers have been deployed. As a matter of fact, when the abduction happened, there was a distress call and soldiers tried to follow the kidnappers, but could it fire at them because they were using the children as shield, as they cutted them away using motorcycles.

We know that Boko Haram had been waging insurgency against the Nigerian state, but it also has a splinter group, which is the Islamic State, West Africa province. But because the parents have told me that no one has gotten in touch with them, so they don't know which group is responsible at the moment. But in the past, Boko Haram militants have abducted people in 2014. Boko Haram invaded Chewok School and abducted nearly 300 school girls. Most of them never found up till now. Chris Iwaka in Nigeria.

The funeral has taken place in Gaza of the head of the armed wing of Hamas, one of the architects of the October the 7th attacks, Iz al-Din al-Hadad was killed in an Israeli airstrike late on Friday. The BBC is not allowed to report freely from Gaza. Emir Nada sent this report from Jerusalem. The body of Azzardin al-Hadad was held aloft by mourners, alongside posters bearing his face. The 56-year-old had spent nearly four decades in Hamas,

a long-time military commander and the de facto leader in Gaza as of last year. His wife and daughter are believed to have been killed alongside him. Haddad's assassination is being touted as a... significant moment by Israeli officials. He's believed to have been one of the last living masterminds of the October the 7th attacks. Following the strikes, the Israeli defense minister Israel Katz called the family of a former hostage who said Haddad had been her captor in Gaza. Israel believes he had used a number of hostages as human shields. In reality, Haddad's killing serves the cause of Israeli retribution more than being a strategic win. Hamas's positions

have rarely been softened by more martyrs being made of their leaders. With eyes, elsewhere, a grim salesmate has replaced Gaza's peace process. Israel continues to seize territory and is accused of ongoing restrictions of vital humanitarian aid, while the Israeli government says Hamas has so far failed to disarm. Haddad's death will do little to change this reality. Emir Nader. The fault lines in British society couldn't have been more stark on Saturday when two rival marches were held in London. Demonstrators were kept apart by a huge police operation involving around 4,000 officers to stop any violence between the protesters. One was in support of Palestinians. The other was called Unite the Kingdom March, which was led

by the far-right anti-Islamic activist Tommy Robinson. He spent years campaigning against immigration to the UK and has been in prison several times. Tom Simons reports from the march. Unite the Kingdom is becoming a regular protest led by Tommy Robinson drawing together a range of voices and opinions on the right. Tens of thousands of marches carried union and England flags and declared themselves patriots and defenders of British culture. Many oppose immigration by asylum seekers and condemn the record of the current government.

The Prime Minister's claim that the organisers were peddling hatred and division was met by expletives aimed directly at Sarkir Stama. Some said they had come because they felt that the white working class were being left behind in mob. Britain. Generally, people are here to show that they are fed up with discrimination against the British people, to be honest with you. We're all here to take a stand for this country. This country has to come first now because it's just falling apart. Every single one of you see here is working class and we're all struggling. And so the message

is to get starmer out, let's have changed. The matter who it is, less have changed. Yeah. Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, told the crowd from a stage in Parliament Square that this was a cultural movement. He called for a Battle of Britain at the next election to remove the government from power. The other protest was held to Mark Nakhberday, which Palestinians referred to as the catastrophe when 750,000 of them who were living in what is now Israel fled

or forced from their homes between 1947 and 1949 when the Jewish state was established. Whilst Palestine was the main objective of the demonstration, It was also pro-immigration in direct contrast to the Unite the Kingdom March, which at one point was just a few streets away. Nick Johnson sent us this report. This annual march organised by the Palestine's solidarity campaign ended with a rally at which speakers called for the country to unite against racism and genocide.

Pro-Palestine marches such as these have become more prominent in central London since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7th, but calls to ban them have grown, following several incidents of anti-Semitic hate crime around the UK. But these protesters say they're conveying an important message. I'm very worried about the rising tide of racism and fascism. I find that very worrying, the increase in attacks. And it seems that the establishment is making racism respectable again.

I'm just fed up with the rise of racism, and I can't believe in 2026 that we're having these discussions at the moment. see terrible things happening around the world in the name of the far right, and it just makes me sick. Police indicated they would take swift action against chance or placards, which breached hate crime laws. We witnessed two arrests, and in both cases, those apprehended, told us they'd been held for allegedly refusing to remove a face covering when asked. The Metropolitan Police, supported by other forces from around the country, used the geography of central London to ensure this protest was kept separate from the parallel Unite the Kingdom Rally.

Nick Johnson and the police said there were 43 arrests at the two protests in London. Away from the protests, it's been a big day for football here in Britain. Hearts have been broken in Scotland. More on that in a moment. But first to Wembley where Manchester City came out on top against Chelsea in Saturday's FA Cup final. The BBC's Lee James was at the home. of football and told Anco Desai about yet another trophy for Pep Guardiola. His 20th major title success since he moved to Manchester City.

This was a tight and tense final and it took a moment of quality to settle it from Garner International, Antoine Semenio. Scoring in the 1-0 win, a 72nd minute back-heel flick that really was so super, one of the great Cup final goals, which deservedly won it for Manchester City. Chelsea did produce one of their best performances in recent months. They came close and had opportunities as well, but ultimately it was about Semenio. He said afterwards that everything happened so fast. It came straight to me.

I had to improvise myself as quickly as I can, deservedly scoring. The goal then, yes, has given Pep Guardilla another trophy. Of course, the speculation is whether this will be the final Cup trophy. It may well be a Premier League title down the line. We'll have to wait and see. But he left today, at least with the FA Cup. Incredible. I think 20 trophies in 10 years now for Pep Guaddi.

but earlier in the day, a huge story in Scotland. The title decider, Hart's had been leading the league since September. But a dramatic finale, they had to avoid defeat against host Celtic to clinch their first title since 1960. And the hoops, well, they needed to win to get their hands on the title.

And what, with matter of minutes and seconds to go, the score was won one-ly. And then some crucial goals tip the title towards the Glasgow Asians. Yes, that's right. As you say, an astonishing finale. Hearts so close to denying Celtic, the title and winning their first since 1960.

Won a piece until the late stage is Dysen Meida in the 87th minute scoring, a goal that was eventually awarded after a VAR review, and then Callum Osmond broke later and scored a third. So Celtic taking their fifth successive title, and this fairy tale season of hearts, they were denied right at the end. Lee James from Sportsworld. And that's all from us. For now, if you want to get in touch,

you can email us at Global. podcast at BBC.co.uk. You can also find us on X at BBC World Service. Use the hashtag Global NewsPod. And don't forget, our sibling podcast, the global story, which goes in-depth and beyond the headlines, on one big story. This edition of the Global News podcast was mixed by Sydney Dundon, and the producer was Muzafar Shakir. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Alex Ritson. Until next time, Goodbye.