³ÉÈËÂÛ̳

Since Indian administered Kashmir lost its autonomy in 2019, it has become much harder to work as an independent journalist in the region. Yogita Limaye, reflects on the enforced closure of the Kashmir Press Club which local journalists see as yet another nail in the coffin of press freedom in Kashmir.

In Russia, the state controlled media has largely been providing a positive view of the progress of what the Kremlin calls ‘special military operations’ in Ukraine. With the recent death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner Group, in a mysterious plane crash and the increasing drone attacks on Russian soil, are people changing their minds? Will Vernon, assesses the mood among Muscovites.

The stand off between the military junta who have seized power in Niger in West Africa and the regional bloc called ECOWAS, continues. ECOWAS is threatening military intervention if the coup leaders don’t relinquish power but in the meantime its member states have suspended all trade with Niger, sending shockwaves across the Sahel. Catherine Norris-Trent travels through bandit country to the Northwest Nigerian region of Sokoto to see how the sanctions are affecting communities, traders and transporters in this already poor, remote and largely lawless region.

Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni came to power last year promising to clamp down on illegal migration, since then numbers have almost doubled. The presence of newcomers can be felt across Italy which angers Meloni's party and plenty of others. In one place in Calabria in Southern Italy, James Copnall finds locals and migrants are literally cementing good relations.

Presenter Pascale Harter
Producer: Julie Ball
Editor: Bridget Harney

(Image: The closed Kashmir Press Club building is pictured through a gate in Srinagar on January 18, 2022
Credit: TAUSEEF MUSTAFA / AFP/ Getty)