麻豆社

Kate Adie presents stories from Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Latvia, South Korea and Finland

The US-Israeli war with Iran saw a marked escalation this week with strikes on some of the world鈥檚 biggest gas fields. Israel鈥檚 attack on Iran鈥檚 south Pars gas field triggered a swift response from Tehran, who launched strikes on the Ras Laffan terminal 鈥� the world鈥檚 largest liquefied natural gas facility, and other gulf countries. The attacks caused oil and gas prices to spike. Frank Gardner has been in Riyadh and Doha.

In Venezuela, billboards and banners of former President, Nicolas Maduro still line the roads of Caracas after he was seized in January by US forces. Washington has outlined a plan for Venezuela and eased sanctions but hasn鈥檛 provided a timeframe for elections. And many young Venezuelans are sceptical that much will change, says Ione Wells.

Next week the 麻豆社鈥檚 Russian Service marks its 80th anniversary. The service鈥檚 editor Jenny Norton reflects on how the team have found ways to adapt after the clampdown on media freedoms and the invasion of Ukraine, and setting up a new base in Latvia.

In South Korea, a new genre of movies is taking the entertainment world by storm: the 鈥渕icro-drama.鈥� They鈥檙e carefully curated one- or two-minute-long shows with intense plotlines, made to be watched on your phone. Jake Kwon in Seoul went behind the scenes.

The 麻豆社's climate editor, Justin Rowlatt, isn鈥檛 just interested in our warming world, he鈥檚 also a keen cold-water swimmer. And he recently found himself competing in the Winter Swimming World Championships in Oulu, a town in northern Finland, about 100 miles south of the Arctic circle.

Series Producer: Serena Tarling
Production Coordinators: Katie Morrison and Sophie Hill
Editor: Richard Vadon