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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: Venezuela's extraordinary prison raid

Documentaries

An armored vehicle drives near the Tocorón prison, Aragua State, Venezuela

29/09/2023 GMT

Venezuela's extraordinary prison raid

BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, Venezuela's extraordinary prison raid

Retaking control of gang-run Tocorón jail, which had a nightclub, pool even a mini-zoo

Venezuela sends 11,000 government troops to retaking control of gang run Tocorón jail, where inmates enjoyed a nightclub, a pool and even a mini-zoo.

Last week Venezuela sent 11,000 troops into the notorious Tocorón jail to retake control.  For years it's been run by inmates, and was headquarters to the international crime organisation, the Aragua Train, although its leader, Héctor Guerrero, escaped. BBC Mundo's Valentina Oropeza shares insights into the story and the prison, which boasted a pool, nightclub and even a mini-zoo. 

Esports at the Asian games
The 19th Asian Games kicked off in the Chinese city of Hangzhou last Saturday. Esports made its debut as a medal winning event, and the high price tickets in the space-age stadium rapidly sold out.  BBC Chinese Zhijie Shao sheds light on esports, and some of the regional geopolitics also on display.   

Lebanon's celebration gun deaths 
An average of eight people a year are killed in Lebanon by stray bullets from celebratory gunfire, and despite widespread calls to end this deadly ritual, many seem unwilling to leave their guns behind for big events. Carine Torbey of BBC Arabic has been looking into the causes and social significance of this problem. 
 
Syrian single mums in Turkey 
Turkey has the world’s largest refugee population with an estimated 3.3 million Syrians living there. Attitudes to them have shifted, and many now face outright hostility from Turks wanting them gone. BBC Turkish journalist Fundanur Öztürk recently reported on the sexual harassment facing Syrian single mothers in this hostile environment.  

Gurkhas in the Indian Army
For decades, Nepal has allowed its Gurkha soldiers to join the Indian army under a special agreement. The tradition has been passed down through the generations, but since India unilaterally changed its contracts to a short four-year term the Nepali government has paused recruitment, as the BBC's Anbarasan Ethirajan explains.  

(Photo: An armored vehicle drives near the Tocorón prison, Aragua State, Venezuela. Credit: Yuri Cortez/AFP)

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