BBC News Briefing

16 April, 2026

Sofia has long brown hair and brown eyes and is wearing a green top.

Sofia Lotto Persio

Hello. Chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet speaks to Iranians about the fragile ceasefire as she undertakes a 12-hour journey to Tehran from the Turkish border. We report on an "unprecedented" fire at a major oil refinery in Australia, while my colleague Koh Ewe discovers why the hunt for an elusive runaway wolf in South Korea has captivated the country.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

Cautious Iranians head back to their homeland

A woman walks through Tehran's Vanak Square with a poster referring to the Strait of Hormuz in the background and yellow taxis on the street

A large-scale billboard in Tehran references the Strait of Hormuz, a red-button issue in the US-Iran talks. Credit: EPA

Lyse Doucet travels with Iranians on a long journey from the Turkish border to Tehran, as the main bridge linking the northern city of Tabriz with the capital, via Zanjan, collapsed under missile fire last week. As the end of the two-week ceasefire with the US and Israel nears, Pakistan's Army Chief, Field Marshall Asim Munir, arrived in Iran to try to accelerate mediation efforts, while reports swirl of an extension to the truce. As Lyse writes, inside Iran there's a sense that people are taking things one day at a time, whatever their many different views on their country's future.

Read Lyse's report

Watch: Security correspondent Frank Gardner explains China's role in the Iran war.

BBC Verify: An analysis of satellite images and videos reveal the extent of Israeli demolitions in southern Lebanon.

Get the latest: An Israeli minister said talks with Lebanon will happen today, after Beirut casts doubt on plans. Follow live updates.

WORLD HEADLINES

An oil refinery with smoke seen billowing out from several areas

Fears for Australia petrol supply after refinery fire

Emergency crews battled a blaze at Viva's Corio oil refinery that burnt for 13 hours before being extinguished.

What happened >

About two dozen men stand outside a school building, which has a sign reading 'Ayser Calik Ortaokulu', wearing a mix of plain civilian clothes and police uniforms.

Police seek arrests over praise of school shootings

Turkish police have ordered the arrests of 83 people accused of posting controversial content online about two deadly shootings.

Read more >

A grey Allbirds shoe placed on a display platform for a promotional image

Allbirds shares soar after pivot from shoes to AI

The shoe brand said it has struck a $50m (£37m) deal to become an "AI compute infrastructure" firm and change its name.

What to know >

A split screen of a rendering of arch on the left and a woman in red on the right.

Trump's arch to be twice as tall as Lincoln Memorial

Correspondent Ione Wells reports from the site selected for the proposed, and controversial, gold-accented victory arch.

What it would look like >

Meghan looking serious standing inside a room with students at the University of Technology in Hawthorn, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia,

Meghan says she was world's 'most trolled'

The Duchess of Sussex reflected on her online experiences while speaking to students about the harms of social media.

Read her remarks >

NEWS FROM THE UK

Investigation: Migrants are falsely claiming to be victims of domestic abuse in order to stay in the country, the BBC has found.

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Alzheimer's disease: Influential analysis has concluded that "breakthrough" drugs are unlikely to benefit patients.

Sister Clare: Thousands have attended a retreat named after the nun and would-be saint, 10 years after her death in an earthquake in Ecuador.

BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Inside the long hunt for a runaway wolf

It's unclear what remains of Neukgu's feral instincts, after a life in captivity. Credit: Daejeon City Corporation/Handout

More than 300 firefighters, police officers and military troops have been deployed in South Korea to find a two-year-old wolf who has been eluding capture after burrowing under a fence at his zoo last week. The hunt for Neukgu has undergone twists and turns, captivated the country and even inspired an eponymous meme coin.

Read now

A woman wearing a grey suit jacket sits behind a desk. She has white hair that is parted on the side and is wearing glasses with a black frame. Her hands are clasped in front of her and she looks inquisitive.

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Not so toxic?

The Devil Wears Prada 2 is eagerly awaited - but its villain may have lost her bite.

Here's why

And finally... in Wales

"Extremely rare" evidence of early humans and animals have been discovered in a cave under a castle. Now, researchers have expressed their enthusiasm ahead of a new dig planned at the hidden site in Pembrokeshire. Previous digs have already unearthed remains such as the bones of a hippopotamus which roamed Wales 120,000 years ago. Take a look.

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