Discover how a rusting barbed-wire fence along the Austro-Hungarian border unleashed a massive refugee wave that the East German regime couldn't stop. From desperate escapes through Hungarian vineyards to chaotic embassy standoffs in Prague, trace the dramatic sequence of events leading up to November 9, 1989 - when a single press conference error tore down the Berlin Wall overnight.

The 20th century was the bloodiest in history, defined by technological leaps and the brutal military tactic of "rapid dominance" or shock and awe. From the scorching sands of North Africa with Erwin Rommel and Bernard Montgomery, to the jungles of Vietnam and the deserts of the Gulf War, we explore the minds of the greatest military masterminds.

King Charles III is to speak with "unflinching honesty" and "sincere sorrow" on the lasting pain of the transatlantic slave trade, during the final leg of his Caribbean tour in Antigua, Buckingham Palace has said.

The King will address Commonwealth leaders on Tuesday in a speech which will touch on the issue.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said earlier he was "open" to the possibility of the UK formally apologising for its role in slavery - a change in the government's stance.

Experience London in the Middle Ages with a compilation of some of our best episodes exploring the medieval city!

When Dan Brown published "The Da Vinci Code" in 2003, it became a global phenomenon, selling around 80 million copies. The film adaptation starring Tom Hanks was another worldwide success, turning its blend of art, religion, mystery and conspiracy into a cultural talking point.

But the story also revived much older questions: what is fact, what is legend, and where do the two begin to blur?

The Russian Civil War was one of the 20th century's bloodiest chapters. The fight for Russia between Lenin's Red Army and the White Army was ruthless. Its legacy can be felt in Europe to this day.

The student movement in Serbia was born from tragedy that began with students blockading streets and turned into almost daily protests and a national movement against corruption and government negligence.

In just under two years the students have succeeded in tearing up 14 years of political dominance under Aleksandar Vučić, who has seen support for his Serbian Progressive party ebb away and ultimately fail in what became a referendum on the future of Serbia.

Celebrations erupted in Belgrade and other cities as supporters gathered in town centres or in front of Student List headquarters. In a post on social media, the students declared "Serbia is free".

An overnight fire engulfed Eagle's Nest, a historic Nazi-era site once used by Adolf Hitler in Germany's Bavarian Alps. Firefighters faced difficult conditions battling the flames at the mountaintop location, while one suspect has been taken into temporary custody. Police are looking into whether this is a potential case of arson. We speak to historian Sven Keller of the Obersalzberg Documentation Center about the site's historical significance, why it was preserved, and how Germany deals with landmarks associated with its Nazi past.

Can Ukraine still rely on America?

More than 80 years after the Yalta conference reshaped post-war Europe, some observers fear a new era of great-power diplomacy could once again shape the continent's future. Reports of a possible meeting between Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have prompted questions about what role Ukraine would play in any discussion about ending the war.

From Allende's fall to Saigon's last helicopter and Angola's mercenary trials, see how 1970s proxy wars collided with the nuclear arms race, detente and SALT II.

In Chile, 1970, Salvador Allende becomes the first Marxist elected president in Latin America by democratic means, moves to nationalize American-owned copper mines, banks and land, and faces U.S. pressure as credit is cut and a truckers strike is covertly funded. Street battles and a failed coup precede the 1973 air assault on La Moneda; Allende dies in the palace and Augusto Pinochet takes control, ushering in a 17-year dictatorship marked by killings and torture.

From Kabul to Moscow, the Cold War reignites. Afghanistan burns, KAL 007 falls, and spies turn the shadows into a battlefield.

After the hope of SALT II in Vienna (July 1979), the USSR invades Afghanistan, installs Babrak Karmal, and faces Mujahideen resistance fueled by covert U.S. aid and wealthy Arab donors. MiG-21s and Mi-24 gunships strike towns, allegedly with napalm; refugee columns swell from 600,000 to an estimated 2 million across Pakistan. In Kabul and Pagman, daily life buckles under rockets, hunger, and cold, while TASS accuses rebels of burning schools and killing teachers. Afghan women navigate a divided reality: urban freedoms under the communist state versus threats from fundamentalist factions, with militias vowing to defend their rights.

From Gaza and Ukraine to Sudan, the United Nations has repeatedly faced criticism for failing to stop wars and protect civilians. But what if some of its most controversial failures are not flaws in the system, but consequences of how it was designed?

In 1945, the world’s most powerful countries struck a bargain: they would join a new international organisation, but retain the power to block major Security Council decisions.

More than 80 years later, that arrangement still shapes global diplomacy.

Before King Charles's Caribbean tour, Buckingham Palace said he would not shy away from the impact of the slave trade but, in line with the UK government position, would not apologise for Britain's role in the slave trade or offer reparations.

Laura Kuenssberg, Joe Pike and Paddy O’Connell discuss the what the timing of Andy Burnham’s comments mean for the King.

From peasants' son to revolutionary leader — Mao Zedong laid the foundation for modern China. This three-part documentary offers an in-depth look at one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. *Part 3 coming soon!*

Part 1: https://youtu.be/dP8dX4Pyzd0
Part 2: https://youtu.be/kml_5jNV0j8
Part 3: Available from 17 October 2026

How do you make a soldier shoot at unarmed protestors? Iran's regime has spent 40 years perfecting the answer. In this DW investigation, two high-ranking defectors expose the brutal system of repression.

For decades, people have predicted the collapse of North Korea. Yet the Kim dynasty seems more entrenched than ever. Propaganda, military posturing and a nuclear program are shoring up Kim Jong Un's power, both domestically and internationally.

The United States is once again at war in the Middle East, and most Americans say it isn't worth the cost.

Al Jazeera's Josh Rushing asks why the US keeps fighting: oil, a $2.4 trillion defence industry, lobbyists or a political system that rarely holds anyone to account?

Retired General Mark Kimmitt and journalist Spencer Ackerman debate why, and whether voters can end the forever wars.

Ukraine's capital has come under a new missile attack, hours after Russia said it was "ready in principle" to resume peace talks and the US president said the world was "the closest we've been" to ending the war.

Several houses were hit on Wednesday night, injuring six people, Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said.

The attack came amid a new diplomatic push led by Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Witkoff met Russia's President Vladimir Putin in the city of St Petersburg on Wednesday - a day after meeting Ukraine's leader.

What we know about human history is only a fraction of the full story. Much of the rest is like dark matter, invisible to us. We can’t see it, and we can only see the effects of its presence. But thanks to new techniques for DNA sequencing, dating ancient detritus, mathematical models, and aerial and lidar archaeology, we are now able to get a faint idea of what this world might have looked and felt like.

Nuclear standoffs, street uprisings, and a shock offensive that flipped the script. The 1960s took the Cold War to the edge.

Step inside the decade when the world held its breath: from JFK’s tense face-off with Khrushchev and a UN showdown that crackled with fury, to a Soviet submarine where three men weighed a terrifying choice. Follow the fallout from missiles 90 miles off Florida, the disputed spark in the Gulf of Tonkin, and the Tet Offensive that shattered American certainty. Witness Prague’s bid for “socialism with a human face” and the tanks that answered it, then the moon landing that lifted morale while the arms race roared on.

In June 1941, Adolf Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa, tearing up the non-aggression pact with Joseph Stalin and unleashing the largest military invasion in human history. Believing rapid Blitzkrieg tactics and racial ideology would force a swift Soviet collapse, the German army advanced across a thousand-mile front. However, fierce resistance, brutal winter conditions, and catastrophic miscalculations at Moscow, Stalingrad, and Kursk turned the Eastern Front into a devastating war of attrition that ultimately brought down the Third Reich.

A Prime Minister in disguise, a city of shattered glass, and a movement that refused to eat. This is the suffragette fight at full tilt.
From Bernard Shaw’s banned satire to Emmeline Pankhurst’s courtroom defiance, this documentary traces the WSPU’s escalation: hunger strikes met with brutal force-feeding, the Cat and Mouse Act’s revolving prison door, and Black Friday’s shocking police violence. Step inside the Savoy-catered prison cells, the Hyde Park sea of banners, and the split sparked by war. Discover how Emily Wilding Davison’s fatal Epsom protest, Mary Richardson’s axe at the National Gallery, and window-smashing raids across London forced a stalemated government to reckon with votes for women. Why did Asquith refuse, then relent? Why age 30? And how did a two-yard nasal tube and a single slogan reshape British democracy?
Watch to uncover the turning points, the tactics, and the voices that changed the franchise forever — and decide what courage looked like in 1909 to 1918.