Ukraine launches drone attacks on Russian bombers
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This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service.

I'm Valerie Sanderson, and in the early hours of Monday, the 2nd of June, these are our main stories. Ukraine launches an audacious drone attack, destroying planes on distant airfields in Russia. Medics in Gaza say they've treated dozens of casualties amid conflicting reports of an Israeli attack near an aid distribution center. U.S. police are investigating reports of a terror attack in Boulder, Colorado. Excerpt from the news.

Exit polls from Poland's presidential election suggest an extremely close race, with the result too close to call. Also in this podcast, we hear from race goers at a prestigious horse racing event in the United States. They're tipping, they're spending, they're having a great day. So money come, money go.

A day ahead of planned peace talks in Istanbul, Ukraine has carried out its most audacious attack yet in the war with Russia, attacking strategic bombers standing on runways as far away as Siberia and the Arctic Circle. Ukraine says it's caused $7 billion worth of damages. In his nightly address, President Zelensky described the military action as absolutely brilliant.

A total of 117 drones were deployed in the operation. The strikes successfully hit 34% of Russia's strategic cruise missile carriers at their home airfields. The operation spanned multiple regions across three Russian time zones. Our personnel operating inside Russian territory were safely extracted ahead of the assault.

Video released by Ukrainian intelligence shows planes catching fire as they're struck by a wave of small drones in what's been called Operation Spiderweb. For its part, Russia's defence ministry confirmed what it called a terror attack using drones on five of its airfields and claimed to have captured some of those who carried out the strikes.

I've been talking to our correspondent in Kiev, Paul Adams. We're still getting information coming in about what appears to be one of the most, if not the most, audacious Ukrainian attack of the war so far. This has spanned the entire width of Russia, with air bases up close to the Arctic and far away in Siberia attacked.

at least four air bases, possibly five, and we understand possibly a submarine base as well. The attack on the airfields seems to have involved small drones smuggled in aboard trucks.

and then launched remotely from locations close to the air bases, where the drones then homed in on a whole series of Russia's strategic bombers and other key aircraft as they sat parked on the tarmac. It is breathtaking in its scope. The Ukrainians say that the targets hit included Russia's large strategic bombers, their long-range bombers, and also some of their early warning and control aircraft.

So I think it is safe to say that we have never seen anything quite so complex and quite so wide-ranging, even though we've now become quite used to accounts of Ukrainian ingenuity over the course of this war. It must have taken a long time to plan. Ukrainians are saying it took a year and a half to plan and that it was personally overseen by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. I spent a lot of time in the Middle East in the last year or two and...

It bears comparison with the Israeli attacks on Hezbollah using pagers stuffed with explosives. It has that degree of complexity and farsightedness about it and suggests that here were a series of key targets that were identified pretty early on and that

meticulous planning has gone on in terms of smuggling truckloads of small drones into Russia and then having them operated remotely, presumably also by personnel based inside Russia. The Ukrainian sources that we have been in touch with say that all those involved in this operation have returned safely to Ukraine.

Of course, it begs the question how Russia will choose to respond. Last night, we saw the largest single drone attack by Russia on Ukraine with something like 470 separate drones involved in targeting cities and targets across the country. So we are already dealing with a situation in which large-scale attacks are taking place in both directions.

Astonishingly, amidst all this, there is supposed to be a round of peace talks in Istanbul tomorrow. Both Russia and Ukraine say their delegations are going. Quite what progress they can make in the wake of events like this, it's hard to see. Paul Adams in Kiev.

It's more than three years since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. In that time, the role of firefighters has changed drastically. They're now much more likely to have to rescue people trapped under rubble because of airstrikes. The BBC's Zhanna Bespiatchuk spent time with rescue workers in Kharkiv, one of the city's worst hit by the war.

There are situations where we see the bodies of the dead through a small gap in the rubble, but we can't get to their body. We see people that are unconscious, but when I get to them, they're dead. Oleksandr Huzhva is commander of one of Kharkiv's fire and rescue units. The city is just 30 kilometers from the Russian border and has been struck relentlessly.

In 2024 alone, Russia hit the Kharkiv region over 300 times. Russia repeatedly denies hitting civil and residential areas. It's very difficult to see the ruins of your home city when you know how beautiful it was. Love was invested in its construction. Now it's destroyed, scarred and mutilated.

Of all the rescues that Alexander has led, one stands out. It's 10th of January 2024. The Park Hotel has been hit by Russian missiles. Most of the guests and staff have made it out.

But a hotel worker was at the epicenter and is now buried under water. The sounds you are hearing are from footage filmed on Alexander's Gold Road farm. Alexander and his colleagues make their way into the hotel to find the man. They are surrounded by debris.

There are beams blocking their path and bricks covering the floor. Inside, they hear faint cries underneath the rubble. The man is alive, but they need to dig quickly. Finally, they see a bloodied face.

After 20 minutes, unable to breathe under rubble, the man is pulled out to safety. One year on from the attack,

And Alexander is getting a rare opportunity for a rescuer to meet the man whose life he saved. We located Anatoly in a village just outside of Kharkiv. Anatoly underwent several months of physical therapy and had facial reconstructive surgery. Beyond some faint scars,

He looks much the same as before the attack. Testament, Anatoly says, to the speed of the rescuers and their bravery. I believe it's more than just a job. It's a calling, a calling to fight evil, to protect good in every possible way.

A positive outcome among so much destruction. For Alexander and his colleagues, the work continues until peace comes to Ukraine.

Where medical staff in the city of Rafah say at least 31 people have been killed and more than 150 wounded after the Israeli military opened fire near one of the new aid distribution centres backed by Israel and the US. The IDF says it's unaware of injuries caused by military fire at the site.

Thousands of desperate Palestinians had gathered outside the distribution point run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to collect food. Sebastian Usher in Jerusalem told me more about the competing reports. We were getting reports from early in the morning from sources at the scene. Some said that there'd been Israeli tank fire, others that there'd been gunfire. We heard reports

from a field hospital run by the Palestinian Red Crescent, where at least 26 people had been killed just two or three hours after first hearing of this incident. International doctors working in medical facilities where injured people had been taken have told the BBC about large numbers of casualties being brought to them.

One surgeon spoke of a mass casualty incident and another said that many of those that came had wounds that were from bullets or shrapnel. We don't have video confirmation of what these reports say of this moment early in the morning. And we've had since then reports.

from that group itself, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, dismissing these reports as outright lies and fabrications. They've already suggested this group that that had been a similar story in the past two or three days with reports of chaos and injuries, even fatalities at some of these distribution centres.

We had a very short early statement from the Israeli military saying that the incident was under review. And we've now had a much longer statement issued saying in recent hours, false reports have been spread, including serious allegations against the IDF regarding fire toward Gaza residents.

in the area of the humanitarian aid distribution site in the Gaza Strip. It says findings from an initial inquiry indicate that the IDF didn't fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site and the reports to that effect are false. So we are very strongly having conflicting reports of what has happened. But I think what is clear

clear is that there have been a large number of casualties again and fatalities as well. And how bad is the situation now in Gaza regarding food? Again, this group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, it says that in the six days that it's been operating in Gaza, it's managed to distribute around 4.7 million individual meals. So there's definitely been relief that has been provided. But the

You know, this incident today, even if it's been put in question, reflects what seems to have been the case over several past days in which there has been chaos breaking out. And they, to some extent, seem to bear out the warnings that UN aid agencies gave that if the task of getting aid and supplies to the gardens were taken away from them, that this sort of situation might result. Sebastian Usher.

A boat carrying international activists has set sail from southern Italy in an attempt to deliver aid to Gaza. The crew says they aim to break the siege of the territory and draw attention to the deepening humanitarian crisis. Our reporter Carla Conti has the story.

From the Sicilian port of Catania in southern Italy, the sailing boat Madeleine is setting off on a week-long journey. Its destination? The shores of Gaza. The vessel is operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a group of activists who are hoping to bring food, medicine and international scrutiny to a territory they say the world is forgetting. Among the 12 activists on board is the climate campaigner Greta Thunberg.

We are doing this because we have to keep our promise to the Palestinians to do everything in our power to protest against the genocide and to try to open up a humanitarian corridor.

Also joining the expedition is a French member of the European Parliament, Rima Hassan, who has been barred from entering Israel due to her criticism of its military offensive in Gaza. This voyage follows a failed attempt earlier in May when another aid ship operated by the same coalition was attacked in international waters of Malta. The group claims it was targeted by Israeli drones.

but Israel did not respond to the accusations. Organisers admit that the Madeline may never reach Gaza, but they say the point is to challenge what they call an illegal siege. For its part, Israel has vehemently rejected allegations of genocide, saying the blockade is a necessary security measure aimed at defeating Hamas, not at starving civilians.

As we record this podcast, exit polls from Poland's presidential election indicate that the result is too close to call. The pro-European mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Czaskowski, and the conservative historian Karol Nawrocki are neck and neck in two separate polls. One of Mr. Rafał Czaskowski's supporters spoke to us from the streets of the Polish capital.

It's very tough to say because it's just exit poll and everything can change. But tonight we see that Rafal Shostakovich is the winner right now. But to be honest, everything can happen this night and we cannot be assured about anything.

Adam Easton is our correspondent in Warsaw. A second late exit poll, which has a smaller margin of error, has reversed the result. It now has the National Conservative historian Carol Nawrocki on 50.7%, ahead of Warsaw's Liberal Mayor Rafał Czarskowski on 49.3%. Again, this is an exit poll. This is not based on official results.

The State Electoral Commission will, as expected, to publish the final result on Monday morning. And tell us more about the differences between these two candidates. Rafał Trzaskowski is a deputy leader of Prime Minister Donald Tusk's Centrist Civic Platform Party.

He's very much pro the European Union. He's a former Europe minister. If he were to become the next president, he would be expected to remove the obstacle to Donald Tusk's plans to cement Poland's position in the European mainstream.

by not wielding the presidential veto, which is something that the current Conservative president, Anje Duda, has used on many occasions to frustrate Donald Tusk and has blocked many of his key campaign promises.

But the major difference between Rafał Trzaskowski is that he favours Poland anchored in the European mainstream with very strong relations with Germany, with France. He would also possibly be more amenable to new EU truities, even if that meant ceding additional powers to Brussels. That is something that...

The conservative historian Karol Nawrocki is very much against, and he would be expected, if he becomes president, to have a much more tricky relationship with Poland's major partners, especially Germany, with the history of the Second World War and the issue of reparations still being a live issue for many people in his political camp. He is, again, very much a traditional Roman Catholic conservative against Poland.

liberalizing abortion laws or against legalizing civil partnerships. Over on Ukraine, they are more similar. They both support continued assistance to Ukraine. But again, there are small differences in that Mr. Navrotsky opposes Ukraine's accession to NATO and the EU because he thinks it's just too dangerous for Poland, whereas Mr. Chaskowski would support Ukraine's entry to the European Union, for example.

Still to come in this podcast... Almost everywhere in the world, beauty is associated with something positive. But some countries seem to have a rather negative association between beauty and success. Why some countries admire beauty, but others take a dim view.

As we record this podcast, reports are coming in from the United States that police are investigating an attack on a demonstration in Boulder in Colorado. Eyewitnesses to the incident say that an incendiary device was thrown at protesters by an unidentified male, setting several people on fire. The FBI director, Kash Patel, has called it a terror attack, but details are still coming in.

Here's the Boulder Police Chief, Steve Redfern. This was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in downtown Boulder on Pearl Street.

And this act is unacceptable. I hope you'll join me this evening as we're working through this investigation. We are working, I just came from the command post. We've got dozens and dozens of people here, our state, local and federal partners working through this to figure out exactly what happened. There was a group of pro-Israel people that were there in a peaceful demonstration. I wouldn't even call it a protest.

I believe that happens frequently down here. They were there in that area. We are looking and actively interviewing victims and witnesses to determine if that group was targeted or others. And we just don't have those answers yet. Those are things we hope to be able to provide you later this evening. We'll have more on this story on a live page at bbcnews.com.

The UK government says it'll build up to 12 new attack submarines as part of its strategic defence review. The Prime Minister says the review, which will be published on Monday, will move the UK's armed forces to war-fighting readiness to deter rising threats. The new attack submarines, which will be nuclear-powered but not nuclear-armed, are expected to come into service in the late 2030s. Our defence correspondent Jonathan Beale reports.

Over the past week, the government has been trailing its defence review with a series of announcements. Billions of pounds to produce more missiles and drones, new technology and better housing for troops. The aim not just to modernise and underfunded armed forces, but to make them ready to meet rising threats. The Prime Minister will today also underline the importance of the defence industry for creating jobs and economic growth.

So far, the government is committed to increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027. But will it be enough? NATO allies are being urged to increase defence spending to 3.5% of GDP. The US President Donald Trump wants more.

The government says Britain will be the leading European nation in NATO, but other allies are going further and faster. Lithuania's defence minister called 2.5% old news. She told the BBC 3.5% should be the bare minimum. Jonathan Beale.

Mexico has set a milestone by allowing voters to choose all of their judges, making it the only country to do so. The first such elections were held on Sunday. The move is as controversial as it is radical. I heard more from Will Grant in Mexico City.

The reform itself is pretty wholesale. I mean, as you mentioned in your introduction, it's literally every judge on every court, from the lowest courts in the land to the nine Supreme Court justices. I'm standing at the monument to the revolution in Mexico City, where the opposition has called a protest. You can probably hear it behind me. And they're calling on voters to boycott the entire election over their opposition to the idea of choosing judges by direct vote.

There will be thousands, more than 7,000 judges and magistrates chosen this way, the first half of them today, now that the polling stations are open, and the second half in two years' time in another vote. So why are people so opposed to this? Well, they feel that there are various dangers in choosing the entire judiciary by direct vote. They feel that it will open up the justice system

to influence and interference from political parties, particularly the ruling party, Moreno, which obviously already controls the executive and the legislature. I think also there have been concerns raised by human rights and transparency NGOs in Mexico.

about the possibility for drug cartels and organised crime to be involved in the choosing of judges by basically ordering entire communities to elect judges who are sympathetic to their cause or who will do their bidding. And ultimately they don't see it as the democratisation of Mexico's justice system, as is being suggested by President Claudia Sheinbaum and her supporters, but rather the undermining of the judiciary in Mexico.

And what else does the Mexican president say? I mean, why are they so keen on this? Well, ultimately, they believe, President Claudia Sheinbaum, her supporters, the Morena Party, and of course it was passed under her predecessor, Andres Manuel López Obrador, that Mexico's justice system is essentially broken. It's corrupt, it's riddled with influence from outside and from nepotism and by nepotism. So ultimately, by choosing judges directly...

the judiciary will be more transparent and more answerable to the electorate.

Will Grant. President Trump's economic policies have rattled markets and sent consumer confidence to record lows, despite his promise to rebalance the economy. Few corners of the American market have been spared, from fast food chains to high-profile horse racing events. The Preakness Stakes in Baltimore is one of three races, along with the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes, that make up America's esteemed Triple Crown. The BBC's Brandon Drennan went to visit.

The Preakness Steaks shows off all things Americana. There are hot dogs, hamburgers, french fries, big hats, shiny shoes. They're tipping, they're spending, they're having a great day. So money come, money go. Punchers have been coming to Preakness Steaks since 1873. Over the years, it has become a hub for indulgence, a place where testing the boundaries is part of the tradition.

Whether it's testing the limits of how much color a single outfit can display, or how much money can be won or lost in a matter of seconds, or how many cocktails one can have without tipping over, it's wild, it's glamorous, and it's expensive. Go, two! Go, two! Go, two!

Ticket costs this year range from roughly $100 to over $4,000. There are multiple races on the day, but the main event is the Battle of the Thoroughbreds racing to win the Preakness title. In recent years, average attendance at horse racing events has been shrinking. Roughly 60,000 attended this year's Preakness Stakes, down from the 131,000 that attended in 2019.

It's a trend seen at most major horse race events this year. Multiple times today I've seen large wads of cash pulled out of people's pockets as they thumb through the stack of 20s, determining how much to bet on the next race. Attendance may be lower, but wagering at these races has been record-breaking. It's something that might seem surprising since millions of Americans have had their financial stability cast into deep uncertainty this year.

This is the one everybody came for right here. Trainers, horses, owners, and fans. It's the one everybody came for, that's for sure. It should be a good one. Off the charts, every race here was top quality. Who are you betting on? I think I'm going to go with American Promise, D. Wayne Lucas. Yes. All right. I bet it across the board, so that's normally how I bet. So I got second and third place, so I got some of my money back. There you go. There you go.

Professor Justin Balthrop from the University of Kansas studies human behavior in gambling. He says the uptake in betting reflects the market instability. People are looking for shortcuts to be able to increase their wealth or the money that they make.

And, you know, sports betting is really an interesting avenue for them to at least potentially do that. It's very hard to find a traditional stock market type investment where you can even have any remote chance of doubling or tripling your money in a single day, which is what many sports bets are seeking to do.

Like the alcohol, money at this year's Preakness Stakes seemed to be free-flowing. Brandon Drennan. It's said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but a study has found that some nations value good looks more than others. Scientists in Germany used AI to analyse nearly 70 languages to find out how much value beauty was given in each tongue and whether it was positive or negative. Richard Hamilton reports.

Scientists have long known that being attractive brings what's called a beauty premium, which confers social and economic advantages on good-looking people. But while this phenomenon was well known in many Western and English-speaking nations, it wasn't clear how widely it appeared across the globe.

By looking at 68 different languages and seeing how words like pretty and beautiful were used alongside other words such as successful, the researchers from the University of Mannheim found that while people in Somalia, Albania and the Maldives linked beauty with success, affluence and trustworthiness...

Those in Vietnam and Romania seem to have more negative views on beauty, even associating it with traits such as incompetence, distrust and failure. The author of the study is Professor Vladislav Mill. What is new about our research is first we establish a linguistic beauty premium. So we establish that in the spoken word, in the way we use language, beauty is more associated with something positive than something negative.

Second, we established that almost everywhere in the world, beauty is associated with something positive than something negative. And third, we find surprisingly that some countries seem to have a rather negative association between beauty and success.

but we need much more future research to establish whether and how that is really true. He says the reason why beauty and success don't turn up together so often in, say, Vietnamese or Romanian may be because there's simply less writing material available on the internet in these languages.

and exactly why some cultures seem to value attractiveness more than others remains unclear. But Dr Mill believes beauty is associated with some evolutionary advantages in those cultures that make it of particular value. Richard Hamilton.

And that's it from us for now, but there'll be a new edition of the Global News Podcast later. If you want to comment on this podcast or the topics covered in it, send us an email. The address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. You can also find us on X at BBC World Service. Use the hashtag Global News Pod. This edition was mixed by Kai Perry. The producers were Peter Hyatt and Stephanie Tillotson. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Valerie Sanderson. Until next time, bye-bye.

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