Newshour

The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog has said the Natanz nuclear enrichment facility in Iran has suffered “some recent damage” as US-Israeli attacks on the country continue. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed the damage was confined to entrance buildings to the underground fuel enrichment plant.
Also on the programme: a weight loss drug is now off patent in India meaning prices are expected to drop sharply; and the Australian teens grappling with the country's social media ban.
(Photo: Satellite imagery taken in January 2026 showing a new roof over a previously destroyed building at Natanz nuclear site, Iran. Credit: Planet Labs PBC/via Reuters)

US President says Nato allies are "cowards" for refusing to help open the Strait of Hormuz, as the head of the International Energy Agency claims the closure of the waterway poses the "greatest global energy security challenge in history”.
Also in the programme: Iranian-American artist Shirin Neshat on celebrating the ancient Persian festival of Nowruz; and the action movie star, and martial arts expert Chuck Norris has died aged 86.
(Photo: US President Trump departs the White House to spend the weekend at Mar-a-Lago on 20 March 2026. Credit: Shawn Thew/Pool/EPA/Shutterstock)

Nowruz is a traditional festival that marks the spring equinox, the rebirth of nature and the start of the new year in Iran and other countries. But this year's Nowruz will be the first many in the country have experienced at war. And across the Gulf, millions of Muslims are marking Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan, under the shadow of war. We hear from journalists in Iran and the UAE.
Also on the programme: Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez has announced sheis replacing the country's senior military commanders, a day after replacing the longtime Defence Minister General Vladimir Padrino López; and we examine how artificial intelligence is being used in the publishing industry.
(Photo: Iranian people shop at Tajrish Bazaar in Tehran, ahead of Nowruz, on the 19th of March, 2026. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)

It has been a day of turmoil on the world's financial markets after Israel - on Wednesday - struck an Iranian facility in the South Pars gas field, part of the world's biggest natural gas field, which Iran shares with Qatar. That, in turn, prompted Iran to retaliate against energy facilities in Qatar and its other Gulf neighbours sending the price of both gas and oil surging upwards.
Also in the programme: a mysterious signal is being broadcast in the Farsi language on shortwave radio from Europe - what is it? And how a conversation in the Caribbean Sea about quantum information led to a big prize.
(Photo: Traders work on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) floor after the opening bell in New York, USA, 19 March 2026. Credit: Sarah Yenesel /EPA/Shutterstock)

Oil and gas prices have risen sharply after fresh strikes hit energy infrastructure in the Middle East, including Qatar's main gas facility.
Gas prices jumped by about 25% on wholesale markets in the UK and Europe in early trading, before easing slightly. We've also been hearing from the US defence secretary Pete Hegseth who says the Pentagon will go to Congress to ask for funding for the war as it continues on.
President Trump says he knew nothing about the Israeli attack on the Iranian South Pars facility; we'll examine what this says about US-Israeli military co-operation.
Also in the programme: The world's longest coastal path is opening in England; and newly discovered letters from the renowned palaeontologist Mary Anning show even she got sick of fossils.
(Photo shows a file photo of QatarEnergy's liquefied natural gas production facility in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar on 2 March 2026. Credit: Reuters)