Plus: How a model turned a prosthetic leg into a cultural symbol ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
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| Hello. After US President Donald Trump said a "massive Armada" was moving towards Iran, defence correspondent Jonathan Beale looks at whether the US is preparing to hit the country. In Ghana, reporter Mark Wilberforce speaks to a model who is challenging the perception of disabled people. And finally, watch how a storm left a town in Sicily on a cliff edge. | |
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TOP OF THE AGENDA | Trump warns Iran 'time is running out' |
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|  | Trump's warning follows his promise that the US would intervene to help anti-regime demonstrators. Credit: Handout via Reuters | President Trump has warned Iran that "time is running out" to negotiate a deal on its nuclear programme, following a steady build-up of US military forces in the Gulf. The US president said a "massive Armada" was heading to Iran and - like in Venezuela, where the US seized then-President Nicolás Maduro - it was "able to rapidly fulfil its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary". In response, Iran's mission to the UN said Tehran "stands ready for dialogue based on mutual respect and interests", but if pushed, it would defend itself and "respond like never before". Jonathan Beale explains what we know about the US military deployment to the area, and what might the US target, if Trump gives the order. |
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| Ecuador says ICE agent tried to enter its consulate | Ecuador's foreign ministry said that it had handed an official letter of protest to the US embassy in Quito. | Watch the footage > |
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| Indian politician killed in plane crash | Ajit Pawar, deputy chief minister of Maharashtra state, was killed in a plane crash in the west of the country. | What to know > |
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| Fed holds interest rates despite Trump's pressure | The US central bank has held interest rates steady, despite pressure from Trump to cut borrowing costs. | Read more > |
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| A model for disability representation |  | Abena first visited Ghana in 2021 and then decided to move there from the US. Credit: Vino Studio/Nineteen57 Events | Ghanaian-American Abena Christine Jon'el took part in a fashion show in December hoping to make a statement about the perception of disabled people and, at the same time, pay homage to the country that she has made her home. |
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| | Mark Wilberforce, BBC World Service |
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| | It was hard to miss 33-year-old model and writer Abena Christine Jon'el's appearance at a recent major fashion show in Ghana. Walking the runway with her prosthetic leg wrapped in a colourful African print, [it became] as much a cultural symbol as it is a mobility aid. "It always has been, and always will be, kente," she says. "It represents my love for this country, its heritage, its pride."
Living with a disability in Ghana has brought a new mission into her life, one that goes far beyond personal expression. "In Ghana, disabled people have not been widely showcased in a positive light," she says. "So stigma thrives. Negativity thrives. People do not see us in powerful or beautiful or joyful positions, they see us only in struggle." |
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