Newshour Extra

The use of mercenaries in warfare has a very long history, and still very much in evidence today. African governments seeking to push back rebel insurgents often employ mercenaries to carry out the task. From Yemen to Syria, mercenaries are directly involved in combat roles. And defence and training work once carried out by national armies is now often done by private military contractors. In this week’s Newshour Extra, Owen Bennett Jones and his guests consider the role played by these privatised forces fighting someone else’s war.Photo: soldier firing automatic weapon Credit: Getty Images

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are seen as the most unpopular candidates to have ever stood for the presidency of the United States. So why is it so difficult for a third party candidate to break through and make a real impact? Owen Bennett Jones and his guests discuss whether the US political system, trumpeted as a shining beacon of democracy across the world, really does give the voter the best choice.(Photo: A Trump supporter at the first US presidential debate in September 2016. Credit: Getty Images)

Tensions are high in the disputed region of Kashmir. Weeks of protest in the Indian-administered part have left dozens dead and hundreds injured many of them blinded by crowd-control pellets fired by the Indian army. Kashmir has been a dangerous flashpoint between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan for more than six decades. Currently a boundary – the Line of Control – divides the region in two and it remains one of the most heavily militarised zones in the world. In this week’s Newshour Extra, Owen Bennett Jones and his guests discuss the future of Kashmir and the options for a political resolution to the highly complex dispute over the region’s sovereignty.Photo: Kashmiri protestors throw stones towards Indian police during clashes in Srinagar. Credit: Getty Images

How comfortable would you feel getting into a vehicle driven by a computer? Versions of the driver-less car are now a reality, already on public roads in Singapore and as a taxi service in the city of Pittsburgh in the United States. But can a computer safely navigate complex, unpredictable situations in poor visibility? And can government legislation keep up with the fast-changing pace of technological progress? Owen Bennett Jones and his guests consider the safety of this new technology and who should take responsibility when things go wrong.(Photo: Cars driving into a sunset in Johannesburg. Credit: Getty Images)

The battle of Stalingrad was arguably the most important strategic battle of the Second World War. The Germans and their allies were eventually defeated by Russian forces after a long, brutal conflict and siege of the city. Aleppo has been described as Syria’s Stalingrad – the country’s largest city, its commercial and trading powerhouse – with rebel held areas under siege by government forces and much of it reduced to rubble. This week on Newshour Extra we’re devoting the programme to the city of Aleppo and its strategic significance in Syria’s long and bloody civil conflict. Join Owen Bennett Jones and his guests both from inside and outside the city, along with the politicians currently meeting in London to discuss diplomatic solutions to bring the war to an end.Photo: Amid the rubble after an air strike on a rebel-held neighbourhood of Aleppo. Credit: Getty Images

In the UK most payments now made do not involve cash. Rather than handing over notes and coins, most transfers are made electronically. South Korea's central bank has a target of eliminating cash by 2020 and many other countries want to reduce the amount of physical currency in circulation as it is quite costly. So is cash going to be a thing of the past? Owen Bennett Jones and his guests discuss the possibility of a truly cashless society.

There was widespread shock and international condemnation when the Islamic State group destroyed the ancient Syrian site of Palmyra in 2015. But why does preserving heritage matter? Does an exploration of the past always bring unity, or is there a danger that preserving history can fuel divisions? And are we in danger of prioritising culture over human life? Join Owen Bennett Jones for a special edition of Newshour Extra recorded in front of a live audience in Edinburgh, with guests from the Edinburgh International Culture Summit.(Photo: A Syrian soldier inside Palmyra's Temple of Bel. Credit: Getty Images)

This week it was announced that London was getting a new team of specialist police officers to investigate online hate crimes, including abuse on Twitter and Facebook. But how widespread is the problem, and is getting law enforcement involved the best way to tackle it? In this week’s Newshour Extra, join Owen Bennett Jones and his guests as they discuss why the abuse happens, and whether there should be limits to free speech on social media.Image: Woman looking at phone Credit: Thinkstock

Is India’s caste system a discriminatory and divisive anachronism that’s had its day, or does it provide stability and order in a complex society with its roots in ancient traditions? Members of the low-caste Dalit community – once known as ‘untouchables’ – are marching in the state of Gujarat following a spate of recent attacks against them. They say they’ll boycott their designated tasks within the caste system, which include the manual cleaning of sewers and the disposal of dead animals. Join Anu Anand and her guests as they discuss whether positive discrimination on the basis of caste works – or whether it’s time to abolish the caste system altogether.Photo: a protester against attacks on Dalits in Gujarat State, India. Credit: Getty

Zimbabwe’s economy is in severe crisis and President Robert Mugabe’s opponents are growing increasingly bold with widespread public sector strikes and protests on the streets of the capital Harare and other cities. As ever, Mr Mugabe remains defiant, and has recently made it clear he intends to be president of Zimbabwe until he dies. He’s now 92 and has led the country since independence in 1980 so it’s hardly surprising that even his most loyal allies are starting to look to the future. In this week’s programme, Rebecca Kesby and her guests discuss who might take over as Zimbabwe’s next leader and how the country can escape from its latest economic crisis.(Picture credit: Getty Images)

“The important thing in life is not to win but to take part, the essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well”. So said the founder of the modern Olympic movement, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, at the end of the 19th Century. How does his noble ideal fit with the modern phenomena of professionalism, doping, individual financial gain, nationalistic pride, huge corporate sponsorship? Is the Olympic ideal still alive? In this week’s edition of the programme, as the Rio Games approach, join Owen Bennett Jones and his guests as they discuss the present and future of the Olympics.Photo: Athletes at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Credit: Getty Images

This week, Owen Bennett Jones is in Istanbul for a special edition of the programme looking at the aftermath of the failed coup attempt in Turkey. We ask who was really behind the putsch and what will be the impact of President Erdogan’s purge of tens of thousands of people from the armed forces, the judicial system and from academic institutions. With Owen will be a panel of guests from across the political spectrum, as well as a former senior member of the military. They’ll discuss the future of Turkish democracy after the violent upheaval and uncompromising government response.Photo: Pro Erdogan supporters at a rally in Istanbul following the failed military coup attempt of July 15. Credit: Daniel Mihailescu/AFP/Getty Images

Is Bangladesh losing control to violent fundamentalists? That’s the question Razia Iqbal and her guests are discussing on this week’s Newshour Extra. In early July Islamist gunmen took hostages in a Dhaka cafe, leaving 20 dead. That’s part of an upsurge of deadly violence across the country that has included the brutal murders of many bloggers, atheists and secular intellectuals. Who is to blame? How much of the violence can be pinned on international groups like so-called Islamic State and al-Qaeda? And what should be done to bring stability back to Bangladesh?(Picture shows secular activists holding a torch-lit protest against the killing of blogger Niloy Chakrabarti. Credit: Getty Images)

British politics is in turmoil following the EU referendum result, and the American political establishment has been turned upside down by the rise of populist candidates. Is this a sign that democratic institutions are being successfully wrested from the grip of established elites, or that democracy itself is in crisis? Join Owen Bennett Jones and his panel of experts as they discuss whether there's a better way of doing democracy - and whether we should still be promoting it worldwide as the best form of government.(Picture shows ballot boxes in the United States. Credit: Getty Images)

Google famously said "don't be evil" in its mission statement. But what does this actually mean in practice? The giants of the internet such as Google, Facebook and Amazon have transformed our world by creating a virtual space within which we express our personal thoughts and satisfy our consumer demands. But in using them, we also reveal huge amounts of information about ourselves. This week, Owen Bennett Jones and his guests consider the duty of large technology companies such as these to act responsibly and use this power wisely. Join Owen and his guests for this edition of the programme recorded in front of a live audience at the ‘How the Light Gets In’ Festival in Hay-on-Wye, Wales.(Photo credit: AP)

What does the UK leaving the EU say about the strength of the organisation going forward? Can it perhaps accomplish more with a reluctant partner gone? Or is the ambition of ever-closer political and economic union doomed? Owen Bennett Jones is in Brussels with a panel of European politicians and experts to reflect on the implications of the UK voting to leave the European Union.On the panel: journalist Tom Nuttall, Lithuanian MEP Antanas Guoga and Rosa Balfour, senior fellow in the European Programme at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, and German MEP Hans-Olaf Henkel. With contributions from former Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt, Italian MEP Laura Ferrara, German MEP Beatrix von Storch,

This week Owen Bennett Jones and his guests on Newshour Extra explore the reasons behind the shocking level of fan violence at the Euro 2016 football championships in France. English and Russian supporters clashed both on the streets and inside the stadium, there were serious injuries, and tear gas was used by the police the break up the riots. We ask what motivates groups of young men to participate in group acts of violence, and to what extent they are organised by political groupings intent on fomenting unrest and confrontation with the police.(Photo: a tear gas canister explodes as England fans clash with police in Marseille. Credit: Getty Images)

What might foreign policy look like under the next president of the United States? This week, Ritula Shah presents the programmes from Washington, asking how President Trump or President Clinton might face up to the big global challenges: multi-dimensional war in Syria; Putin flexing his muscles in Russia; Beijing's territorial claims in the South China. These headaches and more await the next occupant of the White House, but how much do we know about how they’ll tackle them?Photo Credit: Getty Images

Will future wars be fought online? Just how much damage can be done by cyber terrorists hacking into to top secret military sites, secure government networks, or perhaps vital public utilities running our power and water supplies? And when does a hack become true cyber-warfare, requiring a military response? Join Owen Bennett Jones in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, as he talks to some of the world’s leading experts gathering for a conference on cyber conflict, discussing what measures can be taken to minimize these risks, and how much we really know about the secretive world of cyber-attacks.(Photo: Composite image of technology interface. Credit: Thinkstock)

How has a country so rich in natural resources ended up so poor? That’s the question Owen Bennett Jones and his guests are discussing in this week’s Newshour Extra. Venezuela’s economy is in freefall, the shops are empty of even the most basic commodities, and its people are desperate. For a nation blessed with vast oil wealth, the descent into chaos has been spectacular. President Maduro’s government is widely blamed for the mess, but how much does the fault lie with the policies of former president Hugo Chavez, and, more recently, the low price of oil? Join Owen and his panel as they analyse these issues, and ask - what possible hope is there for a recovery in Venezuela? (A child stands in front of graffiti in the 23 de Enero neighbourhood in Caracas, where the remains of late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez are kept. Photo credit: Getty Images)