India's deadly nightclub fire

0:00This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. If journalism is the first draft of history, what happens if that draft is flawed? In 1999, four Russian apartment buildings were bombed, hundreds killed. But even now, we still don't know for sure who did it. It's a mystery that sparked chilling theories. I'm Helena Merriman, and in a new BBC series, I'm talking to the reporters who first covered this story. What did they miss the first time? The History Bureau, Putin and the apartment bombs. Listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts. This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service.

0:48I'm Pete Ross and in the early hours of Sunday the 7th of December, these are our main stories. Police in India say more than 20 people have been killed in a fire at a nightclub in Goa. And the US Secretary of Defence, Pete Hegseth, issues a fresh justification of attacks on alleged drug trafficking boats. Also in this podcast, we have the latest from peace talks on the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. The Vatican returns indigenous cultural artefacts to Canada. These are not simply artefacts. They are our belongings, our ancestors, vital indicators of our nation's histories. And we've an update on the schedule for next year's World Cup.

1:35As we record this podcast, Indian emergency workers are gathered outside a popular nightclub in Goa, where a fire has killed at least 25 people. The police deputy general said it was an unfortunate incident.

1:53Alok Kumar said the fire in Aarpura was reported a few minutes past midnight when ambulances and fire trucks rushed to the scene. He said the blaze had been contained. Videos on social media show rescuers carrying the dead and injured on stretchers down the narrow stone staircase of the building. The BBC's Vikas Pandney is at the scene in Goa. This is Birch Club in Goa behind me where a deadly fire broke out between 1 and 1.30 a.m. last night. Now one eyewitness who was just outside on the road here told us that he heard a lot of screaming and shouting and people rushing out of the club. And when he reached the gate he saw one of the buildings had turned into a complete fireball.

2:34And it was total mayhem after that. Now, this morning what we're hearing is that all the bodies have been moved to Goa Medical College, where the difficult process of identifying them will begin now. Now, this is an area which has a lot of clubs. It's a favourite spot for party-goers. It also gets a lot of migrant workers from across the country and even in Nepal. Now, that might make the identification process a bit difficult, but officials are telling us that is their next focus. Our reporter, Davina Gupta, told me more. The initial reports from officials suggest that there was a gas cylinder that exploded in the kitchen of this nightclub, sending flames rapidly through the ground floor of the venue.

3:16Most of the bodies, officials have told the BBC, were found near the kitchen and some were on the stairs as well, suggesting that many of the victims were staff who were working at that time. Six others, we believe, are being treated in hospital and are in a stable condition as of now. But the extent of the blaze can be seen because with the fact that the rescue teams worked through the night, combing the wreckage and trying to bring this fire under control. And what else do we know, Davina? We're hearing reports that are problems with safety rules or even that the club wasn't licensed to operate.

3:56Well, these are, again, initial reports because local authorities have so far said there could be indications pointing towards negligence. Now, this is a place which is filled with nightclubs, as Vikas was just talking about. It's a popular party destination. And these clubs open during Christmas time to cater to local tourists. And these are also makeshift clubs, some of them which are dismantled as soon as the party season is over. So Goa's chief minister has confirmed that a formal inquiry is underway and that anyone found responsible will face action. The venue is among many such beach clubs, so there is an expectation there would be a review of these clubs as well.

4:41And there would be more answers to what exactly went wrong shortly. Davina Gupta. There have been protests around the world and outside the White House itself over the US military's actions off the coast of Venezuela. A wave of strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific have killed more than 80 people since September. The Trump administration says the strikes are targeting so-called narco-terrorists, and the defence secretary is doubling down. At the Reagan National Defence Forum, Pete Hegseth compared drug traffickers to the terrorists behind 9-11 and vowed the US would continue killing them.

5:21Right now, the world is seeing the strength of American resolve and stemming the flow of lethal drugs to our country. Here, again, we've been focused and here we've been clear. If you're working for a designated terrorist organization and you bring drugs to this country in a boat, we will find you and we will sink you. The days in which these narco-terrorists, designated terror organizations, operate freely in our hemisphere are over. These narco-terrorists are the al-Qaeda of our hemisphere, and we are hunting them with the same sophistication and precision that we hunted al-Qaeda. We are tracking them, we are killing them, and we will keep killing them so long as they are poisoning our people with narcotics so lethal that they're tantamount to chemical weapons.

6:04Our correspondent in Washington, Sean Dilley, was listening to the keynote speech. It was a speech Pete Hexeth was making to military personnel, but clearly one that was intended to be heard the world over. The language he was using was quite strong, talking about narco-terrorists and likening people who he said were parts of organisations who wanted to smuggle drugs into the USA with the 9-11 terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda. And his message to anyone he said who wanted to bring drugs into the US and poses that threat is, we will find you and we will sink you. What do you think was behind today's speech by Pete Hegseth?

6:41He's come under increasing pressure, it seems. Some have described what the US is doing in the region as a war crime. Do you think that's significant to some of the language and some of what he had to say today? Yeah, one way or another, I'd describe it as an argument around the legality of lethality. There are so many professors from so many universities of law talking about whether it's a war crime or not, because obviously would international law apply if it's not actually in the theatre of conflict? And those details really don't matter in the wider picture of Pete Hegseth's stall to US military in the world more generally, because he's painting a picture of people posing a real and present danger to the United States and setting out his stall, I guess, on behalf of the United States and his boss, President Trump.

7:25there's been an awful lot of controversy about one particular boat strike on the 2nd of september where it was struck a second time where two people were clinging to a shipwreck which you know appeared to be very distressing to many of the lawmakers who had seen it but it's not just about that strike there is the question of under what circumstances is it lawful and reasonable to use that force and certainly a very strong defense of the u.s position from pete exeth sean dilly Ukraine's President Zelensky has had a long telephone conversation with the US peace envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner to discuss bringing an end to the war with Russia.

8:06Mr Zelensky called the talk substantive and very constructive. But as Russia continues to bombard Ukraine with missiles and drones, ripping up energy sites, roads and railways, is the Ukrainian leader being realistic about the prospect of peace? That's a question I put to our correspondent, Joe Inwood. There are two ways of looking at this. Either that is because there genuinely is progress being made and things really have been agreed. That would be the positive interpretation. Or the other way of looking at it is it is inevitable he's going to be positive, even if nothing was agreed. Because one of the things that Kiev needs to be seen to be doing is to be contributing towards talks.

8:45If President Zelensky is seen by the US administration, by Donald Trump, as being in some way opposed to peace, opposed to a deal, well, he risks incurring his wrath. And we've seen what happens when you get Donald Trump coming at President Zelensky. People remember the White House confrontation. It was not pretty and it actually had real consequences for Ukraine on the battlefield. You talk about President Zelensky being wary of President Trump's wrath. You could also perhaps say the same about European leaders. And Zelensky is due to meet some European leaders on Monday, I believe. They're obviously also treading a fine line between trying to remain positive and keep things going, but watching out for Donald Trump and how he reacts to all of this.

9:22Yeah, it's really interesting you say that. It's notable now. Whenever you see any statement from a European leader, they go out of their way to praise Donald Trump, even when it doesn't seem necessarily appropriate at that time. They are very, very keen to emphasise to the White House that they appreciate what he is doing in order to find peace. And there really clearly are efforts being made. In terms of the meeting on Monday between Friedrich Merz of Germany, Emmanuel Macron in France and Sakhir Starmer of the UK, along with President Zelensky, I think they're going to be talking about a few things, most importantly, these talks that are going on, because the Europeans have been sidelined to some extent over recent weeks by the Americans and by the Russians.

9:57And they're keen to reinsert themselves into that conversation, although quite how they do that is difficult to see. More than that, though, they're going to be trying to demonstrate to all audiences, whether they're in Moscow or Washington or Kiev, that they still back President Zelensky. I mean, President Zelensky has had a very, very difficult few weeks, not just on the battlefield, not just in terms of missile strikes, but also in terms of these corruption allegations really that have gone to the heart of his administration. And I think this is going to be a much needed boost, an arm around his shoulder, which is a strategy we've seen the Europeans use many times in the past.

10:31And I think they'll be doing that again this Monday. Joe Inwood. Negotiations are also continuing over the war in Gaza. A ceasefire came into effect nearly two months ago, but Hamas has yet to return the remains of one hostage and there have been constant Israeli airstrikes in the Strip. More than 350 Palestinians have been killed since October. The warring parties haven't decided how to move on to the next phase of the peace plan. Qatar has said negotiations are at a critical moment and called for the IDF's full withdrawal. Another mediator, Egypt, said an international stabilisation force must be deployed as soon as possible.

11:09So what should we make of all of this? Our Middle East analyst, Sebastian Usher, has been speaking to Jeanette Jaleel. I think this is very much the mediators from the Palestinian and the Arab side, one could say, trying to put across their sense of elements of the Trump-US administration peace plan not being fulfilled from the Israeli side. I mean, we've heard from the US side and the Israeli side that Hamas is breaching the violations. They haven't returned all the hostages, as you were saying, a very slow process. This was Qatar and Egypt saying that Israel is essentially not honouring this.

11:44They have to withdraw in the next phase of the ceasefire. There's no sign of that at the moment, much further than they have. They're still in control of more than 50 % of the territory. And there's no sign at the moment that's going to change. In fact, this yellow line, as it's called, that Israel has drawn down almost the middle of Gaza, we're hearing reports almost daily that it's being widened a bit more into the part that Israel hadn't been controlling. So there's that and also the urgencies, as you were saying, of this international stabilisation force getting in. And that will be going in essentially to the side that isn't controlled by Israel at the moment to try and ensure that Hamas does step back.

12:23It's meant to disarm in the next phase. And some kind of stability is there, some sense that for Gaza and their people there, things have improved. But who wants to join the stabilisation force with the possibility that they might have to face up actually in direct conflict with Hamas or other militants? Egypt, which has been, you know, talked about as being the likeliest leader of it, is hesitant about that. Turkey was also at this meeting. They've been playing a part in mediation recently. Now, they want to, but Israel doesn't want them. And the critical thing will be the return of the last hostage, that last dead Israeli in Gaza.

12:59Then we should be able to move on to the second phase. But as you say, there are so many issues that still need to be resolved, not least allowing in more aid into Gaza. Yes, no, there is that. I mean, the Rafa crossing in the south that has been talked about, you know, being open finally. but that's just for Palestinians, presumably with medical conditions being allowed to leave, Palestinians outside not being allowed back in and aid not coming in. It is true to say that the aid that would come in itself is coming through another crossing, but it's still nowhere near, as far as aid agencies are saying, what's needed.

13:31So there is a sense from both sides that this process has been drawn out to stop getting into the second phase. This last Israeli who's left, a police officer, you know, who's dead, he was killed on October the 7th. There was pressure being put again by Israel just a couple of days ago on the mediators saying that Hamas knows where the body is, they need to give the body. This Israel has been saying throughout that Hamas has been trying to slow the process down in order to be able to rebuild, regroup. That's true. But from the Israeli perspective, you could say that the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in no great hurry to move on to that second phase either.

14:06Sebastian Usher, as peace talks continue, the holy city of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank has begun its first public celebrations of Christmas in two years, lighting up a giant Christmas tree. All of its traditional festivities were cancelled when the war in Gaza began. Our correspondent, Yolande Nell, is in Manger Square. With the pipes and drums of a traditional Palestinian scout band, the Christmas festivities, suspended for the past two years, were back on. A large crowd gathered outside the Nativity Church, built on the spot where Christians believe Jesus was born. The fragile ceasefire in Gaza hasn't ended the suffering and hardship of Palestinians there, but the Palestinian mayor, Mahir Kanawati, said restarting Christmas celebrations should be seen as a symbol of hope.

14:57This is reigniting the spirit of Christmas that was never supposed to be cancelled, And we also have grief for Gaza. The people of Gaza are our people. Gaza is Bethlehem. Gaza is Palestine. The war has caused an economic crisis in Bethlehem, which relies heavily on tourism. Nearby in the West Bank, Israeli settlements seen as illegal under international law have expanded. With regional tensions still high, this Christmas, Palestinians say they're praying for peace. and switching on the lights of the Christmas tree in Manger Square is bringing some comfort and joy. You'll learn now. Still to come.

15:38Everything is sacrifice. You just have to pray you don't sacrifice the wrong thing. The Independent Films picking up awards and Oscar buzz.

15:53If journalism is the first draft of history, What happens if that draft is flawed? In 1999, four Russian apartment buildings were bombed, hundreds killed. But even now, we still don't know for sure who did it. It's a mystery that sparked chilling theories. I'm Helena Merriman, and in a new BBC series, I'm talking to the reporters who first covered this story. What did they miss the first time? The History Bureau, Putin and the apartment bombs. Listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

16:54Traction of the seats are directly elected and all under China's Patriots Only rule. I'm currently standing outside a polling centre in the north-east of Hong Kong and I'm watching people come in and leave after casting their vote. There are also police officers outside and some officials welcoming people to vote. Now, this is the second election that Hong Kong has held since the authorities overhauled and reformed the electoral system. Currently in Hong Kong, only people deemed patriotic to China are allowed to stand as candidates. That means there's a vetting session. Now, many people have criticised this.

17:35They say that this is not really a, it doesn't really represent a wide range of views in this election. Hong Kong has transformed drastically since the introduction of a national security law in 2021. Many opposition voices, people that traditionally would have been in LegCo, people that would have been standing in this election today, many of them have been detained. Many are living in exile. So the city has transformed drastically. But then on top of that, people are seeing this election, especially they're looking into the turnout. And I think that will be somewhat of a sign of how people feel about the authorities and in a sense, a vote of confidence.

18:17also this is happening in the shadow of that devastating fire what sort of impact has that had that's right when the fire first broke out 11 days ago there was some speculation that this election would actually be postponed i think the authorities have recognized that this city is essentially in mourning this was the worst fire that the city has seen in in 80 years it was a a horrific fire. There was a huge loss of life. The fire itself burned for 40 hours. So it's been a real tragic period of time here in Hong Kong. However, the authorities went ahead with this election. They said they think it's necessary to bring in new lawmakers to try to oversee the changes and the reforms of some of the industries related to the fire.

19:06There's, of course, an investigation going into what caused the fire. So the authorities see this election as very crucial. Danny Vincent. The Vatican has returned dozens of indigenous cultural artefacts to Canada, a century after they were taken by the Catholic Church. Our reporter Peter Goffin has more details. First Nations, Inuit and Métis leaders in traditional buckskins, feathered headdresses and beads gathered on the snowy tarmac of the Montreal airport as 62 artefacts arrived from Rome. Most of the pieces had been taken by the Catholic Church between 1923 and 1925, after Pope Pius XI called on missionaries around the world to collect indigenous artifacts for a special Vatican exhibition.

19:52Some have spent decades in storage. Others were displayed in Vatican museums, including gloves embroidered with the ornate floral designs of the Cree people and a sealskin kayak used by the Inuit to hunt whales in the far north. The artifacts will be taken to the Canadian Museum of History near Ottawa to be unpacked and examined by experts before long-term homes are found for them. Katisha Paul from the Union of British Columbia Chiefs was part of the delegation that flew with the items. These are not simply artifacts. They are our belongings, our ancestors, vital indicators of our nation's histories.

20:34We are all looking forward to seeing our belongings feel the mountains, winds, the warmth of the sun and the cleansing energies of our lands and our waters. Now that they are back home with us, our nations will assert their rights to determine how best to take care of them. The Catholic Church has long been criticized for its role in what many Canadians see as the destruction of Indigenous culture. It was a driving force behind the early colonization of Canada by French explorers and missionaries. And beginning in the 1870s, the church operated dozens of Indigenous boarding schools on behalf of the Canadian government, part of a scheme to take Indigenous children from their families and forcibly assimilate them into white culture.

21:18A Truth and Reconciliation Commission has found that physical and sexual abuse at these residential schools was rife. In 2022, Pope Francis apologised for the church's actions. I humbly beg forgiveness, he said, for the evil committed by so many Christians against the indigenous peoples. Peter Goffin. Next, looking ahead to the Men's Football World Cup in June. In the last edition of the Global News podcast, we reported on the draw. Now, football fans know where their teams will be playing. But with matches spread all across the US, Canada and Mexico, it's likely to be a logistical nightmare and an expensive tournament.

22:01Laura Williamson, who's editor-in-chief of the New York Times digital sports outlet The Athletic, told Sean Lay the weather could also be a significant factor, as some of the matches are scheduled to be played when temperatures will be nudging 30 degrees Celsius. I think they've done a really good job overall of trying to keep players and fans out of the searing midday and early afternoon heat in the US, Canada and Mexico. But the one exception is the final, which will take place at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on the outskirts of New York City on July the 19th and it's going to kick off at three o 'clock in the afternoon and the average temperatures there at that time of year are well above 30 degrees.

22:42I've covered matches there. It is so exposed, so hot and such searing heat. So as a spectacle, that could really damage it. But the other thing that teams are going to have to think about is trying to minimise travel wherever possible, because obviously it's an incredibly large place and not easy to get around. Spain, for example, play twice in Atlanta, which is obviously quite far south in the US, but then they go to Monterrey in Mexico. Teams are also boing about between Canada and the US. The tournament is split into three regions, roughly west, central and east. But that could take you all the way from Seattle, for example, in the northwest of the United States, all the way down to California and San Francisco.

23:23So these are big areas for teams and fans to try and navigate. Does it feel like it's going to be a fans tournament? It doesn't. I think with more teams, more games, all this extreme travel, it is going to be bigger. than ever, but that comes with a lot of caveats. The ticket prices are so prohibitive for so many people. On the flip side, it would be argued that the opportunity is there to buy tickets because of the secondary resale market. But since we found out where people are going to be playing and what groups they're going to be playing in, some tickets have gone up more than 100%. You're talking hundreds of dollars for even the least high profile games.

24:00And yes, there's another a ticket window coming up, which should give people the chance to hopefully buy tickets through a lottery. But it's a logistical challenge, this World Cup. So it'll be interesting to see what happens in terms of fan zones and if the people living in the 16 host cities can actually feel a part of this tournament, because ultimately that's what we want. It'll be here on the doorstep. Will people actually be able to see it is the question. Laura Williamson. Let's end with some glitz and glamour. The film awards season is getting underway. There have been ceremonies handing out prizes in London and New York.

24:31And as Tom Brooke reports, many of the early winners are generating Oscar buzz. London's Roundhouse is where the latest phase in movie awards season kicked off. At the British Independent Film Awards, there was excitement over the stories generated by independent cinema. Praise came from actor Emily Watson. It's really great to see that people are striking out and, you know, using a voice that's truly independent, asking awkward questions. Hi. The picture Pillian took home four prizes at the British Independent Film Awards. Its screenplay was also recognised at the Gotham Awards in New York. How do you get a man like that?

25:13I have an aptitude for devotion. It's a story of submission and dominance between two men starring Alexander Skarsgård as a leather-clad biker. It's seen as a thought-provoking, boundary-pushing film. And Skarsgård gives credit to the independent film community in the UK for getting the project off the ground. It's a small film about a subculture that's not often depicted on screen, especially not in this way. So the fact that movies like Pilly can still get made makes me happy at least. Akinola Davis won the Best Director Trophy at the British Independent Film Awards for My Father's Shadow, centred on family relationships involving two young brothers and their father at a pivotal time in Nigeria in 1993.

25:59Daddy, are you OK? The film is the UK's official submission in the Oscars race. It also picked up two Gotham Awards. It's a British-Nigerian film praised for its authenticity. Akinola Davis sees himself as part of a new generation of British filmmakers. We're able to make films that reflect ourselves from an honest point of view. I think they're really important for all the communities here in the UK. My father is a really good director. But he's a very difficult person. We can't really talk. And one film getting considerable early awards season attention is the Norwegian picture Sentimental Value, seen as a perceptive and finely crafted family drama with strong acting.