Republican concerns over US troop withdrawal

Tensions spike in the Strait of Hormuz

There's been an escalation of the conflict in the Gulf after the US said it had sailed two destroyers through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said it had fired warning shots at one warship and denied US claims that two US-flagged merchant ships had transited the waterway. Iran has retaliated. The UAE says four cruise missiles were fired towards its territory and a drone hit the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone. Also, Cape Verde has refused docking permission to a cruise ship with a suspected outbreak of hantavirus; and Samsung pays a massive inheritance tax bill in South Korea - but do some super-rich companies dodge tax bills? (Photo: Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz near Bandar Abbas, Iran, 4th May, 2026. Credit: Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA/WANA via Reuters)

US military says it's helped two ships transit the Strait of Hormuz

The US military's Central Command says two US-flagged merchant ships have passed through the Hormuz strait with its assistance. But a huge number of vessels and crew remain stranded. Can Donald Trump deliver on his promise to break the Iranian blockade? Also in the programme: The leaders of Europe and Canada stress a new unified approach to security, amid strained relations with the US; pet rescue scammers in Uganda; and the multi-billion dollar bid to buy eBay. (Photo shows vessels in the Strait of Hormuz near Bandar Abbas, Iran on 4 May 2026. Credit: Amirhosein KhorgooiWest Asia News Agency via Reuters)

Iran says US has responded to its latest peace proposal

Iran says US has responded to its latest peace proposal. Iran says President Trump must now choose between an impossible military operation and a bad deal if he wants to end the war. We hear from the brother of the jailed Iranian Nobel peace laureate Narges Mohammadi. He says she and other prisoners are dying as a result of deliberate medical neglect. Also on the programme: Ukraine's been stepping up its offensive against Russia's oil infrastructure in recent days; and ahead of the 2026 Met Gala, British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes and Elizabeth Way, curator at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, discuss if fashion is art. (Photo: Iranians walk past a huge anti-US billboard referring to US president Donald Trump and Strait of Hormuz at Valiasr square in Tehran, Iran, 02 May 2026. Credit: ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH/EPA/Shutterstock)

Jailed Iranian Nobel laureate hospitalized

The Nobel Peace Prize Committee has urged the Iranian authorities to release the jailed human rights campaigner, Narges Mohammadi, to her dedicated medical team. Her health has deteriorated sharply and she has been moved to a prison hospital. We speak to her brother, Hamidreza Mohammadi. Also in the programme: Ukraine says it has struck two oil tankers off Russia's Black Sea coast, as it continues its campaign against the energy exports that fund Moscow's war effort; a manufacturer of the United States' most widely used abortion pill has asked the Supreme Court to allow postal deliveries of the medication, a day after a lower court halted them; and Chinese-Icelandic singer, Laufey, on making jazz cool again! (Photo: Narges Mohammad. Credit: Getty Images)

Republican concerns over US troop withdrawal

The Republican chairmen of the US congressional armed services committees have said they're very concerned about the Pentagon's decision to withdraw five thousand troops from Germany. Senator Roger Wicker and Representative Mike Rogers warned that prematurely reducing America's forward presence in Europe risked undermining deterrence and sending the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin. NATO says it's seeking clarification from Washington about the plan. Also in the programme: FIFA will allow a team of Afghan women refugees to represent their country in international tournaments; and we look back on the life of a former racing driver and Paralympian. (Photo: A soldier pilots a drone during the 'Combined Resolve' exercise at 7th Army Training Command's Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels. More than 3,800 personnel participate in the exercise series, which is a reoccurring U.S. Army Europe and Africa exercise held several times throughout the year for its rotationally deployed troops. US-led army exercise 'Combined Resolve' - media day, Hohenfels, Germany - 30 Apr 2026. CREDIT: ANNA SZILAGYI/EPA/Shutterstock)