US gives Iran 48 hours to make deal or open Strait of Hormuz

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1:13No jargon, no misinformation. Make your next financial move with confidence. Follow NerdWallet's Smart Money podcast on your favorite podcast app. This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Celia Hatton, and in the early hours of Sunday, the 5th of April, these are our main stories. Donald Trump ramps up the diplomatic pressure, warning all hell would rain down on Iran if they don't make a deal by Monday. Tehran's responded with similar threats. The hunt for a missing American aviator continues inside Iran. A former hostage interrogator tells us what Iran might be planning.

1:55And in Ukraine, mines are being cleared so farmers near the front lines can get back to the land. Also in this podcast... There's a lot of happiness. And then, you know, right away you are humbled. The fact that four of us get to be out here, let me assure you, It is another level of amazing up here. The four astronauts on NASA's Artemis II mission are thrilled to be moving ever closer to the moon.

2:26Let's start with the latest exchange of threats between the U.S. and Iran. The President of the United States wrote on social media that all hell would rain down on Iran if it didn't make a deal within 48 hours. He'd previously said he would move ahead with attacks on Iranian energy plants. Tehran's pushed back with similar words, with a spokesperson saying that if hostility escalates, the entire region will turn into hell. Also, as we go to air, an American aviator is still believed to be missing inside Iran. That person landed in enemy territory on Friday after ejecting from a U.S. fighter jet when it was shot down.

3:06American rescuers are searching for their compatriot to find that person before the Iranians do, but it's a high-risk mission. One U.S. crew member from that downed jet was found on Friday in a dangerous operation that saw a U.S. Black Hawk helicopter come under fire. And a second military jet involved in the rescue crashed, with the pilot in that plane ejecting safely. As that hunt is happening in a remote area in southern Iran, people across the country are coping with the effects of war. Communications networks are down, but some inside Iran have sent some messages through to our colleagues in BBC Persian.

3:45Here are some of their words voiced by our producers. Let's just wait to see what Donald Trump actually does. I fear that things could swing pretty sharply in favor of the Islamic Republic if he actually decides to destroy energy infrastructure after this. The U.S. has done things they hadn't done before in Iran, I think. The situation is not normal. I hope they don't take the pilot as a hostage. Our correspondent in Washington, Simi Jalawa Show, told me more about President Trump's latest ultimatum. His latest Truth Social post was a reminder of this 10-day deadline that he gave Iran two weeks ago.

4:22And he's threatened that if they don't reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Monday, 6th of April, the U.S. would launch attacks on its energy infrastructure. But bear in mind, his deadlines have shifted repeatedly, and they've come amid his claims that talks with Iran are going very well and are productive. But these are talks that Tehran has denied. And it also comes in the midst of this military buildup we're seeing in the Middle East of American paratroopers and Marines. So there's a lot of speculation whether this is simply a pressure tactic or this is a preparation for an escalation, such as further attacks along Iran's shoreline to push them to free up the Strait of Hormuz or even for possible ground invasion.

5:08And this is all happening, we should say, as an American aviator is missing inside Iran. What have you been hearing from the American side? So we haven't received any updated information from Central Command on how the search for this missing aviator is going. The White House simply told media the president has been briefed. President Trump said this incident wouldn't affect any negotiations with Iran. When asked what his response would be if the service member is found and is found harmed, he simply said he hopes that wouldn't be the case. In terms of reaction from the public, well, there's this growing concern of a risk to U.S.

5:52service personnel in this war, particularly with all this talk about a possible ground invasion. Across the political spectrum, there's little appetite for another so-called forever war in the Middle East, but also for further American casualties. Simi, you're in the United States. You're seeing the media coverage of the missing aviator there. What's that coverage like? Is it wall to wall? What are ordinary Americans saying? In terms of the media coverage, there's a lot of speculation as to what has happened to this crew member. But the main sort of reaction is just a lot of well wishes for the crew member that is missing and also for the crew members that were involved in the initial search and rescue operation.

6:39They came under fire, Iranian fire, but they managed to escape out of Iranian airspace, or I've been seeing in these reports. And also just speculation around how this war will end. The big question that a lot of people here don't feel like the Trump administration has answered is what would victory look like and when will that happen? Simi Jalawasho in Washington. As Washington and Tehran carry out competing searches for the American aviator missing inside Iran, what kind of threats is that person facing and how have they been trained to survive in enemy territory? The BBC's military analyst Mikey Kay has been speaking to a former military hostage interrogator who's chosen to remain anonymous.

7:27He began by explaining the protocol to avoid capture. He or she will want to get rid of any kit they can get rid of and if they get the chance to bury it if the ground so allows them to do that. In addition to that, in regards to themselves, their whole persona will be extremely heightened in terms of adrenaline, their hearing, sight, smell, because what they'll be doing is wanting not to engage with anybody whatsoever. So although they'll be heading, in this case, hopefully due west, it's very important that that individual manages to stay completely out of sight if at all possible. They found the first crew member within roughly about 12 hours.

8:14What's hindering the detection and extraction by the combat search and rescue crews of the second crew member? Well, first and foremost, we don't know if the beacon itself is operational. Was it serviceable in the first place? Was it damaged when he or she exited the aircraft? Or was it damaged on landing? It's important to remember also certain powers have the ability to hand information to Iran to get around that encryption. And are there any scenarios where the second crew member could have been captured but the Iranians aren't letting on to that? Yes, the Iranians no doubt want to find this individual if they already haven't done so because if I put my nasty head on I will have kept saying yes we can't find this individual whatsoever because what they will do or might have the capability to do is fire that beacon in draw the American forces in to take them out as well.

9:17I remember when I was operating over Baghdad we were trained in in conduct after capture that was operating in an urban environment what does conduct after capture look like potentially for this second crew member as with anybody who's captured they're going to suffer first and foremost from the shock of capture they will be interrogated without doubt but as i always like to say and use the term say whatever you want but whatever you say say nothing because what the iranians will be trying to do is trip that person up for the hope that they're going to elicit some information that's useful to them.

9:52Torture is probably put to one side because that elicits nothing so they'll be using isolation, hunger, sleep deprivation but also an individual who's asked to stand or sit for a long time in certain stress positions that will again wear that person down. And in terms from your extensive experience you've spoken about trying to get information from that crew member but from a propaganda perspective What will the Iranians be doing on that front? Well, I foresee that they're going to put him, he or she, in front of the cameras, which is a good thing because that allows the individual to be known to the world because the Iranians obviously are going to have to fess up if anything then happens to that individual, he or she.

10:35But I think potentially they might even go for some sort of trial just to further embarrass the Americans. A former military hostage interrogator speaking to Mikey Kay. Staying with the war, Iran's continued to fire more missiles at Gulf states, Iraq and Israel. But the fact that an American aviator is missing on Iranian soil has complicated Israel's retaliation strategy. Our reporter Joel Gunter is in Jerusalem. Israel is cooperating, sharing some intelligence, and has agreed to stop launching airstrikes against the specific area where this member of the American aircrew may be missing. We've heard from a spokesman for Iran's military command that they are saying that this downing of the jet was because of a new advanced Iranian air defence system, boasting that it was a humiliation for both the US and for Israel.

11:35It does show that, however badly degraded Iran's air defense systems are, that it is still capable of downing U.S. jets. Israeli defense officials had said previously that they had pulverized Iran's defense systems, and the U.S. Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, had boasted of the crushing of Iran's air defense systems. but this does go to show that they still have the capacity to potentially down an American jet. Here in Jerusalem, we have had yet more sirens, followed by the sound of successive very loud booms, very likely detonations by Israel's interception system of missiles or drones from Iran.

12:22That's the story across the region, in a way. We've heard from the United Arab Emirates that they have intercepted dozens of drones and missiles from Iran, again showing that Iran still has that launching capacity. Israel has been continuing strikes against Lebanon and operating militarily in the south of Lebanon. And we've heard from the Israeli military that a member of the IDF was killed in clashes with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. We've also seen increasing strikes across the region on infrastructure, most notably in Iran, an Israeli strike which killed a worker outside an Iranian nuclear plant, although we understand that the nuclear plant itself was not damaged and the IAEA says no higher levels of radiation detected.

13:12But it does lead to concerns about an escalation across the region in strikes against industry and civilian infrastructure. The BBC's Joel Gunter in Jerusalem. U.S. federal agents have arrested two women who are thought to be the niece and grandniece of Qasem Soleimani. He was a top Iranian military commander who was assassinated in a U.S. strike six years ago. The Trump administration says the women's U.S. visas, or green cards, were revoked, and it's preparing to deport them. It's accused one of the women of voicing support for Tehran. BBC Persians Bahman Kalbasi, who's in New York, told me more.

13:54All the information about this has come from the U.S. government, And they have said that the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has used his authority to go after their green card. And then they have been arrested to be deported. We've seen this method used before in some high-profile cases, including Mahmoud Khalil, the Palestinian-American student here at Columbia University in New York, where his green card was revoked by the secretary. Then he was arrested. Then he was in jail for a number of months. But eventually the judge ordered him to be released and found the rationale not to be sound legally.

14:39But it seems like they have now reused the same authority in this case. We don't know if the allegation that they are the niece and grandniece of Qasem Soleimani is correct, because the daughter of former Iranian general came out a few hours later denying that his father even has a niece and said that he has family members that none live in the United States, and all of them are in Iran, and he does not have a niece. So that, to some extent, has poked some holes in the story by the U.S. government. But what they did say is that these individuals were celebrating the Iranian government's victories, developments that they saw as victories, and cheered for the Iranian government.

15:32So both of them are new frontiers in terms of, first, if you are a member of family with somebody that the United States find to be an enemy, but also if you express opinions that is seen to be cheering for the other side of the war that has crossed a certain line from the perspective of the administration and can be kicked out of the United States. I'm going to imagine that news of this green card cancellation spread like wildfire among those of Iranian descent inside the United States. What's it like for members of the Iranian diaspora in the U.S. right now? I have to say a portion, a sizable portion of this society welcomes, the Iranian community welcomes these moves if it's really proven that they're members of the Iranian family.

16:25It's been an ongoing complaint by a lot of people in diaspora that say that Iranian government officials oppress people, brutally kill Iranians in Iran, but then their sons and daughters comfortably live in the United States. So that has been a flashpoint in the diaspora politics. The problem is a lot of people are getting caught in between that have nothing to do with the regime. And that includes many people who are here legally and trying to adjust their status to become permanent residents. All of them are on this basically pause of processing. So if you're an Iranian, all your applications while you're already in the United States has been paused.

17:07And that has caused people to lose jobs, have caused people to lose university degrees because they couldn't finish their studies or not be able to join their husband or wife or family member who sponsored them. So it has caused a lot of pain in the community as well. BBC Persians, Bahman Kalbasi. Still to come in this podcast. Women are just not being listened to. So when they give instructions to boys, the boys just ignore them. Yet when they're given the same instruction by a male teacher, they will do what they're told. How the manosphere is poisoning the atmosphere in British classrooms.

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20:43of an initiative by the United Nations Development Programme and Ukraine's Ministry of Economy. All proceeds from those meals will be donated towards demining efforts. Our Eastern Europe correspondent, Sarah Rainsford, went to the project's launch, which included a bread-making workshop. Don't be shy. Just take your places. This was a masterclass in Kyiv with a message. Today, approximately 20 % of Ukraine's territory is potentially contaminated with mines. Clearing all of that is a huge task, but it is a vital one in a country that's famed for its soil and its farming. So what better way to highlight the problem than a baking class?

21:27Denise, the baker, is mixing together in a huge wooden trough. flour, water and the sourdough starter. And the main thing about all of this is that the baskets of flour that he's using have come from land in Ukraine that has been cleared of the landmines that have been planted in huge numbers by the Russian military. So what's your name? Roman Primus, Deputy Head of State Emergency Service of Ukraine. Brilliant. So you know all about the problem of landmines. When we have liberated the territory, unfortunately, we saw that so many territory was mined, especially its agricultural territory. That's why it's one of the priorities to clear this territory as quick as possible.

22:09It's a problem for Ukraine because we have more than 600 died or injured because the Russians use wooby traps, cluster munitions. Maxim supplied the flour for the masterclass from up in the Sumi region near the Russian border. He says many farmers there can't access their fields at all anymore because the mines blow up their tractors. And even if the soil's clear, he says there are Russian attack drones overhead almost constantly. Maxime tells me he keeps going on sheer enthusiasm.

22:47The amateur bakers in the class do seem to appreciate that. I'm super happy. That's my first breath in my life. I've never done before, and especially to know from where this flower has been collected. It's super important to have it in my hands. As part of the effort to raise awareness about the problem of mines, some restaurants in Kiev have included items on their menus that are made using ingredients from decontaminated land. And we've come to one of them to find out a bit more. So this is the demining menu, soul of soil it's called. Yeah, it's our special dish with octopus and with sweet potatoes and papaya.

23:31But the onion and the carrot is from these territories. And all the money that we have from this dish helps for the main territories more and more. Chef Constantine is just chopping up the ingredients and preparing a frying pan. So these ingredients are from near the border area? Yeah, these are the ingredients from the fields. It's great. First of all, this project shows that we are able to take back our land and also people who are not there fighting on the front, they can donate money and get a delicious dish.

24:14The guests are just starting to arrive now for lunch and the big hope has to be that they actually order the special land wine dish from the menu. Of course, as the war is still ongoing, every day more and more mines are being laid, more and more cluster munitions being used, creating huge challenges for many years into the future. Sarah Rainsford in Kiev. We've heard a lot about falling vaccination rates leading to children around the world dying unnecessarily from diseases like measles. Now, Bangladesh is about to launch an emergency vaccination program. 38 children there have died from measles already this year.

24:55The fear is that the real number of deaths from measles could be even higher as many cases go unrecorded. Our global affairs reporter, Embarison Atarajan, told us more. It's a big outbreak in Bangladesh. The authorities are really worried because we are now only in the first week of April. and they're talking already about 38 cases. And the Bangladeshi media is reporting close to 100 deaths because many of them had to be tested. Of course, they can add to the official figure. But beyond that, the doctors are worried because in many villages, people may not even bring the children to hospital and probably they would have died.

25:36So the numbers could be much higher. Now, why this year, particularly in Bangladesh? You know, it's a country of 175 million people. And they managed to reduce the number of deaths measles. You know, it is highly contagious. The kids get mostly runny nose, very watery eyes, high temperature, and then they get rashes. And that also they lose a bit of immunity than other diseases attack. So it's a really a nightmare situation for parents. You know, Bangladesh witnessed a big political crisis in 24 and 25. and also there were some strikes by health workers. So once in four years, they're supposed to have this vaccination program.

26:16It has to be given in two doses. So they somehow missed the figures. And last year, probably around 40 % of the kids did not get the vaccination. Unfortunately, because of this political turmoil in the last two years. And also, remember the international funding stopped for many of these aid agencies, especially for health sector in the last two years. You see the spike in Africa and other places. So in Bangladesh's case, they ran out of money at some point late last year. Embarrassed, Aneta Rajan. There's been a lot of talk in recent years about the impact on young people of the Manosphere, a collection of social media accounts that promote a hyper-masculine, misogynistic view of the world.

26:59Now, one of the UK's largest teaching unions is drawing attention to the issue and its effects on pupils and on female teachers. According to a survey conducted for the union, a quarter of those teachers have been subjected to misogyny by students in the past year. Sally Rees is a teacher and a former president of the union. From its annual conference, she told James Kamarasamy more about what's been happening inside UK schools. Women are just not being listened to. So when they give instructions to boys, the boys just ignore them. Yet when they're given the same instruction by a male teacher, they will do what they're told.

27:40And then what we're seeing is that rise in sort of technology assisted abuse. So the use of AI where we have teachers reporting that they are being sent graphic sexual messages like on Google classrooms to women teachers telling them exactly what they want to do to them and how and where. And then when that's reported, the teachers are still expected to teach that pupil because we can't refuse to teach a pupil. there is also that kind of intimidation of female teachers. We had a case recently here in Northern Ireland where 19 boys were suspended for one day for surrounding and intimidating the female principal.

28:18There was an immediate onslaught online of parental complaints that their sons were then being villainised. And then in the same week, we had reports of AI images of girls being generated and shared among male pupils. And it certainly got worse because of the access to online extreme misogynistic content, which has then normalised the way in which you engage with women and girls in schools and colleges and how you speak to them. What has changed over the years that you have been teaching? I mean, 10 years ago, I was called into my principal's office and was informed that the police had found a USB stick that contained upskirt images and videos of me and a colleague.