US plans to livestream firing squad execution and other stories | Global News Podcast

This is the Global News podcast from the. BBC World Service. I'm Charlotte. Gallagher. Here's what's coming up. In. the first publicly broadcasted execution. in the US, the Pentagon says it will be. live streaming the firing squad. execution of Fort Hood attacker Nidal. Hasan. Protests in New York after ICE agents. shoot a man who was in a car with his. young child. >> What happened today. was an outrage. >> The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to Navi.

Pillay, a South African judge, for her. courage, integrity, and lifelong. commitment to justice. >> Why would you need courage. to speak the truth? You interpret the. law, you look at all the facts. Uh so, it's an impartial, [music]. you know, impartial decision-making. >> We speak to the people forced to flee. Kyiv as Russia's bombardment. intensifies. >> The better option will be. uh little village without any factories. and any storages and any railway.

stations. >> Also in this podcast, toxic smog from. Indonesian wildfires shut schools in. Malaysia as pollution hits record. levels. [music]. We begin in the United States, where the. Trump administration is facing criticism. after the US Defense Secretary Pete. Hegseth announced the public would be. able to watch an execution by firing. squad. The death of Nidal Hasan, who.

murdered 13 people on an army base in. 2009, is set to be live streamed. The UN. said it would amount to torture. Hasan. is in a wheelchair after he was shot by. soldiers responding to his attack. Our. reporter, Allison Freeman, has more. >> It was the deadliest ever non-combat. attack on an American military base. In. November 2009, 13 soldiers waiting for. medical checkups and vaccinations were. shot dead by this man, Army psychiatrist.

Nidal Hasan. This photo was taken in. 2010. His execution is set for early December. at Fort Hood in Texas. And Defense. Secretary Pete Hegseth says he wants to. make sure that people are able to watch. it. >> Uh Army major betrays his country, radical Islamist kills a bunch of. Americans at Fort Hood. Of course we're. going to do it at Fort Hood. Going to do. it on Thursday. We're going to do it at. 1:00, which is when he did it. It's. going to be soldiers with rifles. executing the firing squad.

>> Hasan from Virginia, who's now 50, was a. US Army psychiatrist. The military. funded him through medical school. During his court martial in 2013, he. said he believed he was protecting. Muslims and the Taliban in Afghanistan. And whilst his execution has been. welcomed by a survivor of the attack, a. former US Army sergeant, its possible. streaming has raised some concerns. >> I was shot seven times. So, I don't really have any sympathy for.

him as far as firing squad versus lethal. injection or hanging or gas chamber. Because he didn't have that same. compassion. when he did the deed on 5 November. To show the whole thing without it being. censored for the general public, I. really don't me personally, I don't. agree with that. But it's not about my. personal belief. >> And the plan from Pete Hegseth has. received even greater criticism from. some quarters.

>> North Korea and Iran. Those are countries, the kind of. countries that have public executions in. this era. It's terrible company for the United. States to be in. This is a really, really unfortunate. uh decision by Secretary Hegseth and the. administration. This is supposed to be a. dignified, important event and to. livestream. a an execution. is uh. just so.

out of the Middle Ages. >> A full legal review of Hassan's sentence. has not yet been completed and it's. thought he is likely to appeal it. But a public execution has never. happened before in the modern era United. States and it's not yet known under what. conditions and with which restrictions. it could be livestreamed. >> Staying in the US, protesters have been. marching towards a hospital in New York. City after US immigration enforcement. officers, known as ICE, shot a man who.

was inside his car with his child. New. York's Mayor, Zarah Momandani, said the. incident proved that ICE was rotten to. its core. >> What happened today. was an outrage. Tonight a 5-year-old child sits. traumatized and terrified. Tonight millions of our neighbors are. wondering whether they will be safe on. our streets, in our schools, at their. work sites. Tonight New Yorkers across the five. boroughs are asking whether their civil.

liberties will be respected, whether law. and order is supposed to look like a man. carrying a long gun wearing a mask. >> Our reporter, Stephanie Prentice, has. been following the story and told me the. latest. >> We're still waiting to get an update on. the condition of the man who was shot. We know that he was from Dominican. Republic. He was with his young child in. a car and they were in a northern part. of Manhattan when several rounds were. fired at that vehicle by ICE agents. during an attempted arrest operation.

Now, we heard those protesters there. There's been a lot of outrage over this, uh particularly in that local area. Protests there outside the hospital, they did end in clashes with police. So, we may see more of that going into. Friday. And the focus from officials really is. an investigation into how this happened, why this happened, and why so many shots. were fired in this really busy urban. area. Now, we can listen to one resident. who said she was near a subway station, and she saw the aftermath of the.

shooting. >> When I came off the train from. Metro-North, I walked up, and we all. were down there, and we just saw ICE, like literally in like their militia. gear, their shiesties, their bulletproof. vests, their guns, AK-47s, and they're. all mara- marauding down there. [clears throat] And then they're like. they're walking in and out, and they're. dapping each other up after somebody. just got shot. You think it's okay to. dap somebody up after somebody's got. shot, like you did a good job? >> So, that term she's using there would. describe a celebration of sorts. Now,

the US Department of Homeland Security, that's defended what it's called the. targeted arrest. It said the man had a. criminal history, but there hasn't been. any explanation of what prompted those. shots to be fired. It did say the agents. gave the man medical assistance at the. scene. Jumaane Williams, he's called ICE rotten. at its core, said it causes chaos. And. along with other New York City leaders, he's calling for all agents to leave the. city altogether. >> But does he have any power, or does New.

York have any power to force the agents. to leave? >> Well, ICE, as we know, is a federal. authority. The US itself is a bit of a. patchwork of state laws, local laws, and. they all intersect in different ways. So, New York is among a few states that have. more protections in place when it comes. to limiting interaction with ICE from. their agents themselves. Earlier this year, it did strengthen. what's known as sanctuary protection. So, for example, ICE agents can't freely.

access any part of a school, they can't. go into any part of a hospital. New York. police officers don't have to assist. them with these immigration operations, but New York doesn't have the power to. ask ICE to leave completely, particularly not as things stand now. What New York does seem to have is an. appetite for mobilization on the ground. We've seen a growing number of videos. posted online where groups of neighbors. essentially band together and they drive. ICE agents out of their neighborhoods by. themselves. >> This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been.

awarded to the human rights lawyer, Navi. Pillay. The South African judge. represented Nelson Mandela in the fight. against apartheid and served as the UN. High Commissioner for human rights. More recently, she oversaw a UN report. that concluded Israel committed genocide. in Gaza. >> Why would you need courage. to speak the truth? You interpret the. law, you look at all the facts. Uh so it's an impartial, you know, impartial decision-making.

Um so right now, I'm still involved as. ad hoc judge. in the case brought by The Gambia. against Myanmar. So everybody says, "When you going to. stop? When you going to stop?" I just. turned 85 last last month, yeah. Uh I. can't. obviously stop my work in support of the. Nuremberg Principles Academy. because of the people we meet here. >> Earlier, I spoke to a reporter, Charles.

Haviland, who has interviewed Navi. Pillay and told me more about the work. she's done. >> Recently, she oversaw the publishing of. a report by the UN Commission of. Inquiry, which concluded that Israel had. committed and has been committing. genocide in Gaza. This is uh an. conclusion that Israel has rejected. But of course, you mentioned South. Africa. She is a South African. She was. part of what the apartheid regime in. South Africa all those years ago labeled.

the Indian community, so one of these. stratified racial groups. She set up her. own law firm in South Africa a full 27. years before the ending of apartheid. Uh so, she was active in mobilizing and. taking legal cases against apartheid. After that, she served uh among many. other things on the uh tribunal on the. Rwandan genocide of the 1990s. And then. she served 6 years starting in 2008 as. the UN human rights chief, the UN High.

Commissioner for Human Rights. >> And I know that you interviewed her. What was your impression of her? >> Yes, I interviewed her during that. tenure. Um. it was when I was based in Nepal as the. correspondent there, and she visited. Nepal, which was just coming out of a. very bitter civil war. I would say that what I remember is that. she was entirely straightforward. She. was also at pains to be evenhanded. There were mass killings that had taken. place. There were disappearances still. unsolved to this day, perpetrated both.

by the regime of the former royalists uh. and the Maoists uh who were uh. um. then entering government. And. the point is that she wanted to look at. the facts on the ground. uh rather than putting any ideological. hat on. And in the years that followed, um. it you can see that, for instance, in. back in 2014, she was also accusing. Israel of possible war crimes in its.

then offensive uh in the occupied. Palestinian territories. She was also. accusing Hamas of similar possible. crimes. And a couple of years before. that, she had been in um Syria uh under. the former Assad regime and denounced. what she saw as their violations, their. killings of children um up to date um. up to that time. So, I think that her. straightforward application of human. rights. um. um dictums is is is uh what's been quite.

notable in her career. >> And has there been any reaction? I know. it didn't happen that long ago, but what. have people been saying? >> Yes. Well, there's been a very positive. reaction from the UN Human Rights. Office, the OHCHR. Its spokesperson described it as amazing. news, saying we need more dedication and. commitment to human rights, and saying. we hope it'll encourage and continue to. encourage and inspire others to speak. out in protection and promotion of the.

human rights of all people. Um she also. made a quip, which I think I've just seen that if you. clap a little bit more, I may share this prize with Trump. >> Still to come, a naked gold statue of. Donald Trump has been unveiled at the. European Parliament. >> [music]. >> Two Malaysian acts where schools in. several states were closed on Friday. after toxic smog pushed air quality.

levels to unhealthy across the country. It comes as wildfires have been burning. throughout parts of neighboring. Indonesia for weeks. Our global affairs. reporter, Johanna Keene, has been. following the situation. >> We've had families reporting things like. coughs, fever, sore throats and eyes, and then more serious breathing. difficulties. And some schools had. already been saying, "Look, let's take. learning online." But now the government. said, "Look, in the areas where this air. quality poses a hazard to health, let's.

close those schools for now and do it. solely online." We've also seen impacts. in Indonesia. I mean, animals there. Not. only is their natural habitat being. destroyed, but the orangutans in Sumatra. and Borneo, experts are saying they're. being left without food and water. And. we can actually see the impacts for. ourselves online. So, you know, look at. the landmarks. Singapore, the. skyscrapers in the business district, in. the shopping district, they're sort of. disappearing in this haze. Kuala Lumpur,

same happening to the Petronas Towers. Now, on social media, KLCC usually. stands for Kuala Lumpur City Centre. They've rebranded it as KL cannot see. So, you know, people sort of. trying to have a bit of fun with this, but obviously, you know, a big impact. Singapore Grand Prix is taking place. this weekend. That attracts thousands of. visitors. Um some F1 drivers have been talking to. the media. Lewis Hamilton said, "No big. deal, you know, I've got other things to. think about." Another driver saying, "Look, we love the smell of fuel. We're.

used to that, but this haze is really. different and it doesn't feel that. healthy." But they have said, "Look, we'll listen to the authorities." F1. organizers insist this is going to go. ahead. There is no problem. But maybe we. can expect I mean, people normally take. their earplugs, don't they, and their. noise-canceling headphones. Maybe quite. a few masks as well this weekend. >> And you mentioned Indonesia as well and. the destruction of wildlife habitats. Is. that just because the wildfires fires or. are there other things going on as well?

>> Yeah, I mean, this wildfire they're. saying it's one of the worst seasons. Um. we're looking at more than a decade. We're talking about 400 fire spots were. recorded in 24 hours. Now, what's. happening is in peatlands, we've got. some of these burning underground. You've got thousands of firefighters. They put them out, but then these hot. spots spring up again and they're just. really easily reignited. But also, we. have to remember Indonesia is the. largest producer of palm oil. So, we've. had farmers, companies using a cheap, but an illegal method of slashing.

burning to clear this vegetation for for. plantations, basically. And also, experts are saying, "Look, we've got. really dry conditions because of the. ongoing El Niño." So, quite a few. factors at play here. >> As Russia steps up attacks on Ukrainian. cities, hitting power plants, bridges, schools, and warehouses in Kyiv, life in. the capital is getting even more. dangerous. And with winter approaching, some people are getting out of harm's. way, either moving to the countryside or.

in some cases abroad. Paul Adams has. been to meet two Ukrainian women who've. decided it's safer to leave the capital. >> Ukraine's capital is under attack by day. and night. It's been going on since August. The. people here are used to danger, but this. is relentless, exhausting. Maria has had enough. She's getting. ready to leave.

>> I I don't feel safety in Ukraine in any. way. I can't. rest. >> Maria's children, Artur and Kira, were. born after Russia's full-scale invasion. in 2022. The war is all they've ever. known. >> Then I said that I would be the last. person who left Ukraine because. why? How? What is the reason?

>> But life in Kiev in the past year has. given people plenty of reasons. Last winter was brutal. Russia's attacks. on the power grid left people without. heat and light. >> In these conditions, we couldn't. survive. So, back then, I started. thinking I'm not going through another. winter like this. >> When did you decide we're not going to. do that again? >> Everything changed in late August and. the beginning of September when Kiev.

started being attacked around the clock. >> Olena is getting out, too, but her. solution is just a couple of hours. outside Kiev in Ukraine's wide open. spaces. She's bought a house. >> Uh, >> can organize everything for normal life. >> It's small. It needs a bit of work, but. she plans to spend most of the winter. here. >> You have quite a big garden. >> Yes. >> Most of all, it's peaceful. >> I decided that uh the better option will.

be. uh little village without any factories, any storages, and any rail- railway. stations. Everything that uh. can be Russian's target. >> Polls show that as many as 40% of people. living in Ukraine's cities are thinking. of leaving if the situation gets worse. It's hard to know how many people will. actually do it. Maria [snorts] and her children are. already on the train bound for Vienna. They're heading for Egypt. It's cheaper.

and warmer than Europe and safer than. Kyiv. But after the winter, Maria isn't. sure what will happen. She and her husband, Yuri, know it could. be a long separation. The children seem to know it, too. >> And last, relations between Washington. and the European Union have been pretty. strained in the last few months with. President Trump recently threatening to.

potentially block trade with Europe over. Canada's proposed EU associate. membership. Well, these tensions are unlikely to. have been eased by a controversial new. statue of Donald Trump with no clothes. on. That's been unveiled at the European. Parliament in Strasbourg. The golden bronze sculpture is called. the orange plague and shows the naked. president sitting on the back of a frail. man while holding the scales of justice. in one hand and a golf club in the.

other. Well, what should we make of. this? Political strategist Democrat Doug. Farrar thinks the president, at least. artistically, might appreciate it. >> He loves a gold leaf, uh 23 karat. That's really his thing. Look, I'm not that surprised, especially. that it's a Danish MEP given the fact. that Donald Trump has aggressively tried. to seize Greenland from the Danes. Certainly this generally reflects. the America's poor standing in the rest. of the world, especially with allies.

based on the president's regular abuse. of them and. you know, look, I mean it's it's it's I. guess I would say if this was the US. it's a free country but you know, there's free speech all over the western. world and if they want to express their. dislike of the president, I think it's you know, it's a fine thing. to do. >> With a differing view, here's political. strategist Republican Jeanette Hoffman. >> I don't think this is going to make it. to the to Washington DC at all or any. photos of it. I just it's important. I.

mean this is bad diplomacy and this is. just kind of reflective of the the this. time in history that we're living in and. I can't wait for it to be over frankly. because it's just it's just ridiculous. frankly. >> And that's all for this edition of the. [music] Global News podcast. If you. would like to get in touch, our contact. details are below. I'm Charlotte. Gallagher. Until next [music] time, goodbye.