The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim

The World and This Is Why join forces for a special episode on Israel's election - a contest that could have significant consequences for the Middle East and the wider world.

Niall Paterson is joined live from Israel by Yalda Hakim and Richard Engel, asking why pollsters seem to have got it so wrong, why this might be the world's first AI election, and why Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after 19 years, looks like he might continue to be the most powerful man in the country.

Have you got a question for Niall? Email why@sky.uk

You can email questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can watch our podcasts on the Sky News app and on our YouTube channel here.

In 2023, US journalist Evan Gershkovich was meeting a source when he was arrested by the FSB, Russia’s notorious spy agency. It made him the first Western reporter to be held on espionage charges in Russia since the Cold War.

It would take 16 months before he was released in a historic prisoner swap brokered by President Biden - and he is now telling his story.

He speaks to Yalda about how the atmosphere in Russia changed for journalists, as the state tightened media controls over the war in Ukraine.

And he takes us back to the moment of his arrest, which he describes as being lured into a trap in a classic sting operation.

Also, he explains what life was like among political prisoners inside Moscow’s notorious Lefortovo jail - and why asking Vladimir Putin for an interview on his release was an act of defiance.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk. You can also watch our podcasts on the Sky News app and on our YouTube channel here.

We’re introducing Sky News' new podcast – Russell Brand: On Trial

Listen to Russell Brand: On Trial on your podcast app

What happened on Russell Brand’s first day in court as the trial process got underway? Sky News’ Martin Brunt and Katie Spencer take us through the day- inside and outside the court. It starts with queues of journalists arriving early to get a seat on the press benches of court 3 at Southwark Crown Court.

Outside photographers gather to get images of Russell Brand as he walks in with his wife. No broadcast cameras or recording are allowed inside so Katie Spencer - arts and entertainment correspondent for Sky and crime commentator Martin Brunt - are your eyes and ears in court.

The first development: selecting the jury, the people who will decide if Russell Brand is guilty, or not guilty.

He faces three counts of rape, three of sexual assault and one of indecent assault. He denies all charges and the trial continues.

Follow the feed to get every episode.

Email us with your thoughts

skynewspodcasts@sky.uk

Since 2025, NATO has had to scramble fighter jets about 400 times in response to Russian drones or missiles entering its territory. So, is Europe ready to defend itself against Russia?

Richard, recently back from observing NATO exercises in Latvia, speaks to Sky News’ defence and security editor Deborah Haynes about why some European governments are sending out instruction manuals telling people what to do in the event of an attack from Russia.

They also discuss Russia's growing "hybrid attacks", which include tactics such as cyberattacks, sabotage, disinformation, and deniable incursions - that can complicate or divide an Article 5 response, the rule where all NATO members are expected to come to the aid of an ally under attack.

Haynes cites concerns from intelligence officials about possible Russian provocations and also describes her podcast-turned-TV show The Wargame, which models a Russian attack on the UK, exposing limited air defences and the narrow gap between conventional weakness and nuclear escalation.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can watch Richard’s NBC News package on the NATO exercises here.

You can listen to The Wargame podcast here.

For information about Sky's TV adaptation of The Wargame, click here.

To subscribe to Sky News’ Defence Insider click here. Paid subscription required for full access. UK only. 18+. T&Cs apply.

Why is Pakistan so worried about Imran Khan?

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan has been locked up since 2023 but now a huge planned march demanding his release has sparked a strong reaction from the government.

Three of Imran Khan's sisters have also been detained, roads into Islamabad have been blocked with shipping containers and thousands of police officers have been deployed.

On today's podcast, Yalda speaks to Zulfi Bukhari, the former special advisor to Imran Khan, to find out why the former international cricket star provokes such emotion.

She also speaks to Taha Siddiqui, a Pakistani journalist currently living in exile, about what it's like being on the country's "kill list"

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

Space entrepreneur and former NASA scientist, Will Marshall, believes we're on the cusp of "the most profound choice humanity has ever made".

He tells Richard about the extraordinary potential of AI – and the risks it could pose to humanity.

Will, who is co-founder and chief executive of space company Planet, believes there could be a 50% or greater risk of humans losing control of AI if we continue on our current trajectory.

He suggests we could be approaching recursive self-improvement – when machines independently improve their own code and capabilities.

And he discusses what could happen if AI begins to develop at an accelerating pace, and the potential "one-way door" of handing over power.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk. You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

Could AI really destroy humanity?

Nate Soares is a former AI scientist and author of If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies. He has been warning for years about the dangers of building AI superintelligence.

Yalda speaks to Nate about what could happen if AI development continues unchecked. Are we past pressing "off" if we had to?

The two also discuss the AI race between China and America as well as Nate's bleak warning for the future.

Check out last week's episode with ex-CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, on this feed.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

It’s been said this year that Ukraine has had some successes on the battlefield thanks to its use of drone warfare.

But- is that progress starting to slow down as Russia catches up?

This week, Richard is joined by Eric Schmidt, the former CEO and Chairman of Google, and ex-chairman of the US National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence.

He is now using his experience to advise Ukraine on its use of AI in drone warfare and provides them with advanced AI technology in his role as Chair and CEO of Relativity Space, an American manufacturing company.

Eric talks to Richard about why the use of AI has changed the nature of warfare forever, and why the West should still be worried about Russia’s use of it.

In this episode, Richard cites a NYT report on the alleged use of a Nvidia chip and AI in a Russian drone. For context, the report cites Ukrainian officials.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

See you in September!

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

Tear gas, baton charges and hunger strikes.

Thousands of young people have descended on New Delhi to demand the resignation of the education minister and a complete overhaul of the education system.

Many of them march under the banner of the ‘Cockroach’ - a movement that started as a satirical joke, but which has now become the symbol of youth resistance. What began online has now moved to the streets.

Yalda talks to Neville Lazarus, our correspondent in India, who has been at the protests, talking to those caught up in the police crackdown.

The two of them discuss the origins of the protests as well as the wider problems facing India's Gen Z.

Warning: today’s episode contains references to suicide and violence against women and girls.

If you have been affected by any of the issues Yalda and Neville discussed you can call The Samaritans, free of charge in the UK, on 116 123.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

Richard has just returned from Iran, where he witnessed the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

He shares what he saw inside the country, answers your questions about reporting from Tehran as tensions flared once again, and explains what the funeral revealed about the mood inside Iran after months of conflict.

Richard is also joined by Professor Robert Pape, one of the world's leading experts on war and military strategy.

They look at why the Iranian regime still appears so resilient when the country has suffered such significant military blows. And is the US and Israel's strategy achieving its goals - or risking something much bigger?

Together they unpack Pape's theory of the "escalation trap", explore where Iran still holds leverage, and ask whether this conflict is any closer to ending, or about to accelerate.

Email your questions about to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk. You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

Communism, cigars and Cadillac cars.

A beautiful island that has been the thorn in the side of the U.S government for 67 years.

But what is it about this small island of approximately 10 million people and 90 miles off the coast of Florida that makes president after president so frustrated?

Yalda has just been in Havana, interviewing the president who rarely gives interviews to foreign press. He told her he was ready to give his blood to defend Cuba, if Trump decides on military action.

But will he? And what about the people of Cuba? What is life actually like under a blockade, with blackouts and a growing humanitarian crisis.

This week, Yalda is joined by Dr Christopher Sabatini, director of the Latin America programme at Chatham House. He has spent a lot of time in Cuba and talks to Yalda about the state of the nation at this pivotal time.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

America has lost the war with Iran and suffered their biggest strategic defeat in history.

That is according to Robert Kagan, a prominent foreign policy analyst and historian. He joins Richard on the podcast in this extra episode to talk about America’s position in the world following the start of the war in the Gulf.

Why did Trump get involved? What next for Israel? Can the Gulf States still count on America to defend them? The two get into all of these questions and debate whether this actually was America’s biggest global loss.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

Do all roads in the Middle East lead to Lebanon?

Journalist and historian Kim Ghattas thinks so. She argues that it is often the fate of small nations to be playgrounds rather than players.

Iran, America and Israel all have interest in the country. It is also now central to the Memorandum of Understanding that exists between Iran and America.

After months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah and a bombing campaign by the Netanyahu government that has left over 4,000 people dead, a shaky ceasefire is now in place. So what does the future hold for this country?

Richard and Kim discuss all of this on this week’s episode of The World podcast.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

The US and Iran have agreed a framework for peace talks, but Israel is deeply unhappy with the direction of travel.

With mixed messages from Donald Trump, growing scepticism in Israel and no guarantees the deal will hold, how fragile is this peace process?

Yalda Hakim and Richard Engel unpack the deal, why Vice President JD Vance has become its public face and whether he is being set up to take the blame if it fails.

Plus, Yalda reflects on her interview with US conservative commentator Tucker Carlson and what his growing influence says about the changing debate around Israel in America.

Send your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk.

Also, you can watch The World on our YouTube channel here.

Four months of fighting between America and Iran has led to this: a one-and-a-half-page agreement. But what does it actually mean?

The details are sparse, but the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened, the US blockade will end and in the next 60 days there will be negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme.

Trump says Iran can never have a nuclear weapon - will Iran agree?

This week, Yalda is joined by Ali Vaez, the Iran project director at the International Crisis Group. He was involved in the negotiations that led to the 2015 nuclear deal and is a nuclear scientist.

He talks to Yalda about what the next 60 days could bring and why he thinks this war may have actually encouraged Iran to develop its nuclear programme quicker.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

LEDs were supposed to be one of the great environmental success stories: a revolutionary technology that uses a fraction of the energy of traditional light bulbs. But have they really saved the world?

In our new podcast Stuff Matters, economics and data editor Ed Conway takes an object, cracks it open and reveals the world shaping forces hidden inside.

Each episode follows a trail of ideas that stretches beyond the object itself, uncovering far reaching economic powers that shape how we live.

Along the way, Ed meets fascinating characters, from brilliant inventors to Latin American revolutionaries. He dives into their personal stories and reveals how they’ve changed the course of industries and economies.

Because when you look closely enough, even the simplest things turn out to matter more than you think.

Follow Stuff Matters to never miss an episode.

Why did President Zelenskyy write an open letter to Vladimir Putin? Why did Putin say he was rude? And why are ordinary Russians complaining about the price of cucumbers?

In this episode of The World podcast, Yalda is joined by Sky’s Moscow correspondent Ivor Bennett to find out what it's like reporting from Russia. They talk about Zelenskyy’s open letter, Putin’s reaction, and what Russians are saying about price rises and internet shutdowns. The pair also examine whether the Kremlin is getting nervous, and how the war with Ukraine might end.

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

In 2012, a former CIA analyst ran a war game between the US and Iran.

One of the first things he found was that Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz after America attacked. From there, his war game spiralled to a grisly end.

So why did the Trump administration expect a quick victory?

Fourteen years after the war game, Richard Engel sits down with Ken Pollack - the man behind the war game and now vice president for policy at the Middle East Institute to ask him exactly this.

Would Trump and his team have been given this information? Why did he press ahead?

The two also discuss the situation inside Iran as well as Israel's renewed strike on Lebanon, and ask the big question: where is this all going next?

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.

Will China ever produce an Elon Musk?

Kyle Chan, research fellow at the Brookings Institution and an expert on the AI race between the two superpowers thinks not.

He talks to Yalda about the new Cold War - the race for the best AI between China and America.

The two talk about Taiwan, Tehran and the different ways that each country approaches AI research and development. Could the Chinese government actually be holding progress back?

You can email your questions to Richard and Yalda at theworld@sky.uk

You can also watch our podcasts on our YouTube channel here.