World Service

The veteran United States senator, Lindsey Graham, has died at the age of seventy- one. His office said he'd suffered a brief, sudden illness. Graham was an influential voice on defence and foreign policy, and was a vocal supporter of Ukraine, and of military action against Iran. His death came s US forces launched their third round of strikes on Iran this week in response to Iranian forces hitting a ship in the Strait of Hormuz. Also in the programme: We talk to a woman campaigning in The Gambia to save a ban on female genital mutilation which is seen worldwide as a human rights violation. And we have an interview with the grand daughter of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be executed in Britain about the conditional pardon she has been granted by King Charles. (Picture: A picture taken on July 10, 2026, shows U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) looking on as he speaks to the media after his meeting with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.Credit: Reuters/Valentyn Ogirenk)