TV Shows

Venezuela has accused Washington of a “colonial threat” against its sovereignty after US President Donald Trump said he was shutting down the country’s airspace.

The Latin American nation is on high alert after United States attacks on boats nearby and a major military deployment in the Caribbean that includes the world’s largest aircraft carrier.

Trump says he is fighting drug trafficking.

But is that the real reason?

Presenter: Bernard Smith

Guests:

Mark Pfeifle – US Republican strategist and a former White House deputy national security adviser

Paul Dobson – Independent journalist and political analyst in Venezuela

Christopher Sabatini – Senior research fellow for Latin America at Chatham House

Did the Biden administration help cover up the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by Israeli forces?

This week on UpFront, Marc Lamont Hill speaks to Steve Gabavics, a colonel-turned-whistleblower who was sent by the United States Department of State to investigate Abu Akleh’s killing in 2022.

Gabavics found that Israel intentionally killed Abu Akleh, who was fired at 16 times while wearing a blue vest marked “press”, but the State Department labelled her killing “accidental” to avoid angering the Israeli government.

Gabavics claimed that Abu Akleh is among several American citizens killed by the Israeli military for whom the US has taken no action to hold Israel accountable.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s top aide resigned this week amid a growing corruption scandal.

Andriy Yermak had been due to lead key talks with the US on the war with Russia this weekend.

So, what does this mean for Ukraine?

Presenter: Bernard Smith

Guests:

Olena Tregub – Secretary-general of Ukraine’s Independent Anti-Corruption Commission

Leonid Ragozin – Independent journalist and political analyst

Donnacha O Beachain – Professor of politics at Dublin City University

The United States’ deadly “counter-narcotics mission” off Venezuela’s coast hinges on an unproven drug-smuggling narrative – a familiar pretext for regime change, and one the mainstream media have been quick to echo. Meanwhile, Venezuelans face escalating repression at home.

Contributors:
Spencer Ackerman – Author, Reign of Terror and Waller vs Wildstorm
Abby Martin – Journalist, The Empire Files
Miguel Tinker Salas – Professor, Latin American history, Pomona College
“Pablo” – Anonymous Venezuelan journalist

On our radar:

New leaks, from a disputed 28-point peace proposal to a secretly recorded call between Trump’s envoy and a Russian official, have upended the delicate Russia-Ukraine negotiations. Meenakshi Ravi explores what these revelations mean for any future deal.

Israel’s settlers: From margin to mainstream

Israeli settler violence in the West Bank has surged to unprecedented levels, driven by a fringe movement whose far-right ideology has been amplified and normalised across Israeli news outlets. The Listening Post’s Nic Muirhead reports on the movement’s growing power and the media ecosystem enabling its rise.

Featuring:
Hilla Dayan – Sociologist, University of Amsterdam
Nimrod Nir – Political psychologist, Hebrew University of Jerusalem / Director, AGAM Labs
Oren Ziv – Photojournalist, +972 Magazine

South Africa secured a declaration from the rest of the G20, despite United States objections.

Washington boycotted the meeting over President Donald Trump’s accusations that South Africa persecutes its white minority, a claim widely rejected.

The document calls for more funding for renewable energy, fairer critical mineral supply chains and debt relief for poorer nations.

The first G20 summit on African soil broke with tradition by releasing the document at the start.

And there was no ceremonial handover between the outgoing South African and incoming American chairs.

Also, can Britain’s Labour government satisfy both businesses and households?

Plus, the weight-loss drug booming industry.

The military has seized power in Guinea-Bissau, a day before Sunday’s presidential election results were due to be announced.

The African Union and West African regional bloc ECOWAS have condemned the coup.

Why has it happened and what are the implications?

Presenter: Dareen Abughaida

Guests:

Kabir Adamu – Managing director of Beacon Security and Intelligence

Bram Posthumus – Political and economic analyst specialising in West Africa and the Sahel region

Ovigwe Eguegu – Peace and security policy analyst at the consultancy Development Reimagined

Finland’s Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen speaks to Talk to Al Jazeera about the prospects for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal, whether Trump can bring Putin and Zelenskyy to the negotiating table, and why Europe insists on clear red lines. From frozen Russian assets to NATO deterrence and Finland’s unique position as a NATO member sharing a long border with Russia, Valtonen explains what a realistic settlement would require, and why she believes Moscow is still not interested in genuine peace.

An Israeli air strike on Beirut has killed Haytham Ali Tabatabai, Hezbollah’s chief of staff.

Tabatabai was the highest-level Hezbollah official targeted by Israel since a ceasefire came into force a year ago between the armed group and Israel’s military.

There have been frequent Israeli breaches of the agreement, but observers say the latest attack is a major escalation.

So why is this strike coming now – and what are the implications?

Presenter:

Imran Khan

Guests:

Joe Macaron – Geopolitical analyst specialising in US strategy in the Middle East

Nadim Houry – Executive director of the Arab Reform Initiative

Alon Pinkas – Former Israeli ambassador and consul general of Israel in New York

Africa’s first-ever Group of 20 (G20) summit – and the first boycotted by a prominent member – has wrapped up.

Host South Africa hailed it as a success, as a declaration was agreed covering a wide range of issues.

But what’s next for the G20?

Presenter: Imran Khan

Guests:

Thembisa Fakude – Director of Africa Asia Dialogues (Afrasid) in Johannesburg

Richard Weitz – Senior non-resident associate fellow at the NATO Defense College in Washington, DC

Omar Ashour – Professor of strategic studies and international security at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies

United States President Donald Trump “looks at Saudi Arabia like a piggy bank or an ATM machine” and that’s why the recent Saudi-US summit focused on deals instead of strategic regional issues, such as Sudan, Palestine, Iran and Syria, argues political scientist Gregory Gause, professor emeritus of international affairs at Texas A&M University.

Gause tells host Steve Clemons that if Riyadh can seal a deal to house a joint AI data centre, “that’s the best guarantee of US security.”

He adds that China may be Saudi Arabia’s biggest customer but the US is Riyadh’s “preferred partner on security, AI, economics and defence cooperation”.

Division marked the COP30 climate summit in Brazil as countries struggled to reach a consensus on several sticking points, including a push to phase out fossil fuels.

As the world seeks to address the climate crisis, experts say scientists, politicians, media and business all have a role to play in keeping the public engaged.

But are they succeeding?

Presenter: Neave Barker

Guests:

Professor John Sweeney – Contributor to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Nobel Peace Prize-winning assessment report

Professor Allam Ahmed – Leading scholar in sustainable development and the knowledge economy

Michael Shank – Climate communication expert and former director of media strategy at Climate Nexus

Annual military spending is rising globally at its steepest level since the Cold War.

And after a break of more than 30 years, the United States says it might restart testing nuclear weapons.

So if the global arms race is back on, who’s winning, how is war changing, and what’s the true cost of escalation?

Presenter: Neave Barker

Guests:

Michael Boyle – Professor of political science at Rutgers University–Camden

Elijah Magnier – Senior political risk analyst and a regional military expert

Fabrice Pothier – Former head of policy planning at NATO and a senior defence and strategy analyst

The World Food Programme is warning that 318 million people will face critical levels of hunger next year. The United Nations agency says that is double the number from 2019.

What is behind this worsening crisis that is putting so many people in danger?

Presenter: Adrian Finighan

Guests:

Jean-Martin Bauer – director of food security and nutrition analysis at the World Food Programme

Shahin Ashraf – head of global advocacy at Islamic Relief Worldwide

Manenji Mangundu – Oxfam’s country director in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

For Palestinians, the olive harvest is both an essential source of income and a treasured cultural tradition. Each year, families gather beneath the groves to pick olives, press oil, and celebrate a connection to the land that spans generations. But this season has seen increasing attacks from settlers and Israeli troops, damaging or uprooting thousands of trees. With tens of thousands relying on olives for their livelihoods, each loss carries economic and emotional weight. This episode examines the harvest as a means of livelihood, a celebration, and a form of resistance.

Presenter: Stefanie Dekker

Guests:
Sami Huraini – Palestinian activist
Sarah Sharif – Palestinian American food blogger

The BBC is in turmoil. A leaked dossier exposing a misedited speech of United States President Donald Trump and other editorial concerns has triggered resignations at the top – and a $1bn lawsuit threat from the US leader. Why the leak surfaced now, and who steps in next, are still open questions. Most importantly, will the BBC be able to recover from this moment?

Contributors:
Ben de Pear – Former editor, Channel 4 News
Jane Martinson – Professor, University of London
Karishma Patel – Former newsreader, BBC
Tom Mills – Author, The BBC: Myth of a Public Service

On our radar

This week, Ahmed al-Sharaa became the first Syrian president ever to set foot in the White House. A landmark diplomatic trip filled with photo ops and political theatre, marking his transition from a US-designated terrorist to an ally. Meenakshi Ravi reports.

AI slop tsunami: Is the internet now a junkyard?

Elettra Scrivo explores how social media platforms are rapidly changing with the surge of AI content. Low-quality, mass-produced, artificially generated content, otherwise known as AI slop, is designed to trigger the algorithms and generate revenue for Big Tech companies.

Featuring:
Drew Harwell – Technology reporter, The Washington Post
Mark Lawrence Garilao – AI video content creator
Myojung Chung – Associate professor, Northeastern University

Speaking at this year’s COP30 in Brazil, UN chief Antonio Guterres called the inability to limit global warming to 1.5C (2.7F) a “deadly moral failure”.

But does the same apply when it comes to protecting the environment in conflict?

Israel’s two-year war on Gaza has created 61 million tonnes of rubble, with nearly a quarter contaminated with asbestos and other hazardous materials.

And scientists warn that Israel’s use of water, food and energy as weapons of war in Gaza has left farmland and ecosystems facing irreversible collapse.

In Syria, President Ahmed al-Sharaa has cited his country’s worst drought in more than six decades as evidence of accelerating climate change and warned that it could hinder Syria’s post-war recovery.

So, why isn’t conflict seen as a climate issue? And why is the environmental toll of war so often ignored?

Presenter: Adrian Finighan

Guests: Kate Mackintosh – deputy chair of the Independent Expert Panel for the Legal Definition of Ecocide

Elaine Donderer – disaster risk specialist

Farai Maguwu – director of the Zimbabwe-based Centre for Natural Resource Governance

Fighters affiliated with al-Qaeda have blocked fuel deliveries to Mali’s capital for two months, bringing the city of Bamako to a standstill.

They’ve sealed off the highways that tankers use to transport fuel from neighbouring Senegal and the Ivory Coast. This has put pressure on the landlocked Sahel country and its military government.

The scale of the blockade, and its impact, show just how much influence the armed group wields. So, are al-Qaeda-linked fighters trying to take power in Mali? And what does that mean for the battle against armed groups in the Sahel region?

Presenter: Nick Clark

Guests:

Moussa Kondo – Executive director of the Sahel Institute

Oluwole Ojewale – Coordinator for West and Central Africa at the Institute for Security Studies

Nicolas Normand – France’s former ambassador to Mali, Senegal and the Republic of the Congo/Congo-Brazzaville