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The Fifth Floor

Factual: Life Stories

Global stories from the BBC’s 40 Language Services, with Faranak Amidi

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services.

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services

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The Fifth Floor: I left Gaza, but Gaza did not leave me

Documentaries

Looking down at a destroyed house in Jabaliya refugee camp northern Gaza Strip on 20 May 2021. People inspect the wreckage.

21/05/2021 GMT

I left Gaza, but Gaza did not leave me

BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, I left Gaza, but Gaza did not leave me

Your family is there, your colleagues are there: watching conflict at home from abroad

Your family is there, your colleagues are there: BBC Arabic’s Shahdi Alkashif explains what it was like to be watching conflict at home in Gaza from the safety of Turkey.

The flare-up of violence in Gaza and Israel brought back difficult memories for Shahdi Alkashif. He was BBC Arabic’s Gaza correspondent during the 2014 conflict. Now based in Turkey, he tells us what it was like to be an observer of the recent hostilities.

Uzbek salute shambles 
An Uzbek mayor and four military men found themselves the butt of social media jokes after they were filmed at Remembrance Day commemorations, clearly uncertain whether to salute, wave or put their hands on their hearts . BBC Uzbek's Ibrat Safo was amused, but many back home weren't.  

The cleric taking on kidnappers in Nigeria 
A Muslim cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has risen to prominence for his intervention in Nigeria's growing kidnap-for-ransom crisis.  Beverly Ochieng of BBC Monitoring has been looking into his controversial attempts to create dialogue with some bandit groups. 

Why is Cali the epicentre of the Colombian protests? 
The protests in Colombia started in opposition to proposed tax rises, but now encompass much broader demands. Cali is the epicentre, with road blockades and petrol shortages bringing everyday life to a standstill. Luis Fajardo of BBC Monitoring, who's from Cali, explains why the city is so affected.

Cape Town library fire 
It's a month since wildfires on Table Mountain destroyed the University of Cape Town’s Jagger Reading Room, and much of its unique African Studies collection. BBC Africa's Mohammed Allie was a student at the university in the 1980s, and shares his memories of the library.  

Image: Destroyed house in Jabaliya refugee camp northern Gaza Strip, 20 May 2021
Credit: EPA/HAITHAM IMAD

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