US downplays suggestions it could commit war crimes in Iran
Global News Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 8.3K Ratings
🗓️ 31 March 2026
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The White House has downplayed concerns that Donald Trump's threat to hit Iran's civilian infrastructure could lead to the US potentially carrying out war crimes. President Trump said the US military would destroy Iran's electricity plants, Kharg island and desalination plants if Iran did not make a deal. Also: The United Nations Security Council is holding an emergency meeting after two more UN peackeepers were killed in southern Lebanon. Australia's internet regulator is investigating tech giants over suspected breaches of its new under-16s social media ban. And Celine Dion has announced her long-awaited return to the stage with a ten night residency in Paris.
The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:05.4 | This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:12.1 | I'm Alex Ritson, and in the early hours of Tuesday the 31st of March, these are our main stories. |
| 0:19.6 | President Donald Trump threatens to destroy Iran's |
| 0:22.6 | energy infrastructure and desalination plants unless Tehran makes a deal. The United Nations |
| 0:28.9 | Security Council will hold an emergency meeting later today after two more UN peacekeepers |
| 0:34.9 | were killed in southern Lebanon, and Israel's parliament passes a new |
| 0:38.9 | law imposing the death penalty on Palestinians convicted of fatal attacks on Israel. |
| 0:44.7 | Also in this podcast, months later, we heard in the news that premature infants had died |
| 0:53.0 | in El Shifa hospital. I would look at the |
| 0:55.5 | photos trying to feel as a mother whether this could be my child or not. |
| 1:00.8 | Premature Palestinian babies evacuated from Gaza finally return home. |
| 1:09.6 | President Trump has been reading Iran the riot Act since the start of the war, issuing threats to the Islamic Republic on an almost daily basis. |
| 1:19.0 | Mr Trump's latest warning to Tehran was to make a deal to end the conflict or he would order the U.S. military to destroy all of Iran's oil wells, electricity-generating plants, |
| 1:29.8 | and Khag Island, the country's critical hub for exporting its oil. |
| 1:34.8 | He went further, raising the possibility of making water a weapon of war |
| 1:39.6 | by including desalination plants on his list, which a journalist read out during a press conference |
| 1:45.4 | at the White House. Caroline Levitt, Mr. Trump's press secretary, was asked why her boss was |
| 1:51.4 | threatening Iranian civilian infrastructure, which, if attacked, could constitute a war crime. |
| 1:57.7 | The president has made it quite clear to the Iranian regime at this moment in time, |
| 2:01.6 | as evidenced by the statement that you just read, that their best move is to make a deal, |
| 2:06.9 | or else the United States armed forces has capabilities beyond their wildest imagination, |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.