Afghan activist: Either we let them kill us or keep working

When Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space 60 years ago, his chances of survival were only estimated to be less than 50:50, author Stephen Walker has told BBC World News. Mr Walker, whose book, Beyond, tells the story of Yuri Gagarin’s mission, says the cosmonaut was launched into space sitting at the top…

People in Zimbabwe are living at the very edge of survival, the writer Tsitsi Dangarembga, has said. She told BBC Hardtalk that young girls are engaging in transactional sex just to be able to eat. “We no longer look at each as co-nationals, as people who have a common history and should be constructing a…

The Taliban say they will not extend the deadline for Western forces to leave Afghanistan. A spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, told the BBC’s Yalda Hakim that the 31 August was a red line and that any extension would be a “clear violation” of the Doha agreement between the United States and the Taliban. He said that…

A protester, Thuta, says he is prepared to die in the fight to restore democracy to Myanmar, also known as Burma. Thuta told BBC World News that he has lost four friends in protests against the military coup, and how soldiers had opened fire on civilians. “I’m prepared to be killed… live or die, I…

Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has spoken about the trial of her husband Sergei Tikhanovsky which is taking place in a closed court. He is accused of inciting violence ahead of the election and she rejects the charges. “It is fake trial of course and fake judges, fake prosecutors, because they made this process closed…

Several European countries have paused the use of a coronavirus vaccine over the safety concerns, but delays to the rollout of coronavirus vaccine programmes will have an economic fallout, a professor of economics at Koç University, has said. When there is a slowdown in vaccination programmes people who are not immunised will need to minimise…