Hegseth: US 'closer than ever' to defeating Iran
Global News Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 8.3K Ratings
🗓️ 31 March 2026
⏱️ 25 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
US Defence Secretary says President Trump is willing to make a deal to end the fighting, but if Iran doesn't accept the terms, the war will continue. Also: Israel's defence minister says his country's forces will destroy all homes in Lebanese villages adjacent to the Israeli border. The medical charity MSF says rape and sexual violence remain part of everyday life in parts of Sudan. Eurovision - the world's longest-running international music competition - is heading to Asia. And the organisers of a Barbie-themed festival in Florida agree to issue refunds after customers complained that the event was not as advertised.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, radio, podcasts. |
| 0:05.5 | This is the Global News Podcasts from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:11.5 | I'm Charlotte Gallagher, and at 16 hours GMT on Tuesday, the 31st of March, these are our main stories. |
| 0:19.3 | The US Defence Secretary has claimed that America is |
| 0:22.3 | closer than ever to winning the war against Iran, and the Iranians would be wise to make a deal |
| 0:27.9 | with President Trump. We're in Lebanon at a displacement center for refugees, as Israel says |
| 0:34.1 | 600,000 people won't be able to return to their homes for the foreseeable future. |
| 0:39.7 | And we look at the horrific toll of Sudan's civil war on women and girls. |
| 0:47.1 | Also in this podcast, I hope people leave feeling empowered, excited, and that their love for Barbie was reaffirmed. |
| 0:56.4 | The Barbie experience that definitely wasn't a dream house. |
| 1:05.2 | The war in Iran grinds on. |
| 1:08.0 | And with conflicting and shifting messages from President Trump on his aims, |
| 1:12.7 | many are keen to get clarity about what the U.S. wants to achieve and when the conflict will be over. |
| 1:18.3 | For the first time in 12 days, the U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegesith has been giving a briefing to journalists. |
| 1:24.6 | He said talks with Iran are very real, active and gaining strength. |
| 1:28.3 | If Iran is wise, they will cut a deal. President Trump doesn't bluff and he does not back down. |
| 1:35.3 | You can ask Khomeini about that. The new Iranian regime should know that by now. |
| 1:41.3 | This new regime, because regime change has occurred, should be |
| 1:47.2 | wiser than the last. President Trump will make a deal he is willing. And the terms of the deal |
| 1:54.0 | are known to them. If Iran is not willing, then the United States War Department will |
| 1:59.0 | continue with even more intensity. |
| 2:03.0 | And just before the U.S. Secretary of Defense spoke at the Pentagon, President Trump said Iran had essentially been decimated. |
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