Inside Story

China's Premier arrives in India for his first foreign trip since taking office. It is a sign of improving relations, after decades of disagreements. Together, they account for more than a third of the world's population, and India and China are looking at ways to work together, to boost economic ties and trust.

The Nigerian army is back on the offensive. Its target: the armed group Boko Haram. And this time it is determined to defeat them. Nigerian troops have deployed fighter jets, helicopter gunships and thousands of soldiers to take back territory the group seized in northeastern Nigeria. This week, President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in three states. The offensive has been welcomed by many who have seen Boko Haram's violent campaign kill around 2,000 people since it began in 2009. But rights groups have called for restraint. They say they have documented cases of abuse by Nigerian forces in the past, including summary executions and random shootings. So, just how much of a danger is Boko Haram to Nigeria? And is military action the best answer? To discuss this, Inside Story, with presenter Jane Dutton, is joined by guests: Doyin Okupe, a senior special assistant to President Jonathan on Public Affairs; Vicki Huddleston, former US ambassador to Mali and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for African Affairs; and Lucy Freeman, the deputy director for Africa at Amnesty International and author of the report Nigeria trapped in the cycle of violence.

A major step forward in science can now produce human stem cells by cloning. Some say it advances the search for medical treatments, others call for new laws to prevent cloning for ethical reasons.

A fragile political system, an ailing economy and a burdening EU membership weighs heavy on Bulgarian shoulders. Inside Story, with presenter Shakuntala Santhiran, discusses Bulgaria's quest for political stability and economic prosperity with guests: Ivan Bedrov, a political analyst and journalist; Dimitar Bechev, a senior policy fellow and head of the European Council on Foreign Relations. He is the author of "The Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia" ; and Vladimir Karolev, a Bulgarian economist and investment advisor for the Balkan Advisory Company.

He was deposed in a military coup, sent to jail and forced into exile. But now, former Pakistani leader Nawaz Sharif has made a triumphant election comeback. But can Nawaz Sharif lead the country away from its troubled past? And what does the future hold for Pakistan? To discuss this, Inside Story, with presenter David Foster, is joined by guests: Mosharraf Zaidi, diplomat and adviser to the last Pakistani government; Rasul Baksh Rais, author of the book: State, Society and Democratic Change in Pakistan; and Talat Masood, a retired Pakistani army general.

While the African continent has made great strides economically in the last decade can it sustain its gains & growth? Inside Story, with presenter Hazem Sika, discusses with guests: Oladiran Bello, the head of governance of Africa's Resources Programme at South Africa's Institute of International Studies; Aly Khan Satchu, an economist and CEO at Rich Management; and Gibril Faal, chairman of the African Foundation for Development.

Stephen Hawking has become the latest high-profile figure to support an academic boycott of Israel. The world-renowned physicist has pulled out of a conference hosted by Israeli President Shimon Peres.

After nearly 30 years of fighting and more than 40,000 people killed - Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) fighters begin their withrawal from Turkey to northern Iraq. It is part of the group's recent peace agreement with the Turkish government, so one of the world's longest conflicts may finally be coming to an end. It has taken months of secret negotiations but PKK fighters have begun their withdrawal from Turkey. They are pulling out from the Kurdish heartland in southeastern Turkey and making their way across the border to northern Iraq. This withdrawal is the culmination of a long struggle for PKK.

n the middle of a battle for the very identity of Bangladesh, growing unrest cuts across political, social and religious divides. Security forces are accused of mass killings, as opposition allies turn against the government.

We discuss some of the irregularities being alleged as ruling coalition takes power for a record 13 times. Inside Story with Jane Dutton are guests: Nurul Izzah Anwar, a member of parliament for the opposition People Justice Party and the daughter of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim; Azman Ujang, former editor-in-chief of the government-sponsored Bernama news agency; and Bridget Welsh, a professor of political science from Singapore Management University and author of numerous publications on Malaysian politics.

We look at the political and military impact Israel's attacks in Damascus could spark in the region. Inside Story with Jane Dutton speaks to guests: Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi, a fellow at the Middle East Forum; Salah Mubarak, a member of the Syrian National Conci; Richard Weitz, the director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis at the Hudson Institute; and Gregg Roman, the director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Pittsburgh, and a former political adviser to the Knesset, Israel's parliament.

As funerals for the more than 400 garment workers killed in a building collapse last week continue, the European Union has threatened Bangladesh's garment industry with trade sanctions to encourage improvements in safety for the 3.6m people employed in the still growing industry. Worth an annual $20b, Bangladesh's garment industry is the world's second-largest clothing exporter after China. But 80 percent of the more than three million people employed as garment workers are women working six days a week for up to 12 hours per day. In some cases, children have been known to be employed by the companies that provide the global supply of cheaply-made clothes. Many of the factories pay as little as $38 per month. Recent events have brought the dangers inherent in the working conditions in the 4,000 factories across the country - where overcrowding and locked fire doors are common sites - to the fore. In November, a factory fire on the outskirts of the Bangaldeshi capital, Dhaka, killed scores of garment workers. The 112 people who died in the nine-storey factory operated by Tazreen Fashions represented the country's worst factory fire. A building collapse near Dhaka killed more than 400 last week. In the days following the collapse, it was revealed that factory bosses forced 3,000 workers to continue working despite police orders to evacuate the building because of cracks found in the structure the day before the collapse. Thousands of Bangladeshi workers demonstrated in May Day rallies to demand the death penalty for the owner of the factory, who is under arrest. Now, the European Union, the country's largest export market, is considering a review of its trade policies with Dhaka to encourage improvements in safety. "The EU is presently considering appropriate action, including through the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) - through which Bangladesh currently receives duty-free and quota-free access to the EU market under the 'Everything But Arms' scheme - in order to incentivise responsible management of supply chains involving developing countries," read a statement issued by the office of Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign affairs chief. Exports to the EU bring in more than $11.4bn annually, but are the threat of sanctions enough to make the garment industry change its ways? Will customers of outlets like Mango and Wal-Mart, both known to utilise Bangaldeshi factories for their wares, accept potential price increases if multinationals have to look elsewhere for manufacturing? Joining Mike Hanna on this Inside Story, to discuss the possibilities for reform of a $20b industry are : Dipu Moni, minister of foreign affairs; Ben Vanpeperstraete, international policy officer for Clean Clothes Campaign; and Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin, Bangladesh garment manufacturers and exporters assocation president.

Since 1939, indigineous groups in the United States have protested the name of Washington's National Football League team, the Redskins, saying it is offensive to native groups. Although there are scores of sports teams across the US using indigenous names and mascots, the term "redskin" - coupled with the team's prominence - is considered particularly offensive to Native Americans. For years, the team's owners have firmly refused any possibility of a name change, and current Redskins owner Dan Snyder, is no different.

The closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention centre was a top priority for Barack Obama during his first term as the US president, but since he began his second term, Obama has barely spoken of Guantanamo. The prison in Cuba was also left largely out of the public discourse in the United States. But a now three-month-long hunger strike by more than 100 detainees has changed that. As the strike by detainees protesting their indefinite detention continues, the Pentagon has cleared the force feeding of 20 detainees, a move supported by Obama. But the American Medical Association, the largest association of US physicians, has sent a letter to Chuck Hagel, US secretary of defense, protesting against the force feedings, saying they violate medical ethics. "We urge you to ensure that this matter receives prompt and thorough attention to address any situation in which a physician may be asked to violate the ethical standards of his or her profession," read the AMA letter. But one Pentagon spokesman told Carol Rosenberg, Miami Herald reporter, that it is "un-American" to let a detainee starve and that it "violates the very code of civilised peoples everywhere". So, has the strike finally tipped the scales so that it is finally time for justice to be done? Inside Story Americas, with presenter Shihab Rattansi, discusses with guests Vincent Iacopino, senior medical advisor for Physicians for Human Rights; John Knefel, independent journalist and Vincent Warren, Center for Constitutional Rights executive director.

Saying it has "real friends in the region", Hassan Nasrallah, secretary general of the Lebanese-Shia group Hezbollah, has promised not to let the government of neighbouring Syria fall. Nasrallah's televised address on Wednesday angered the Syrian opposition who have accused his group of supplying assistance to the forces of Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president. In his speech, which came after two bomb attacks in the Syrian capital, Nasrallah called the armed opposition too weak to succeed in its two-year-long fight against Assad. In an already volatile region, what does the admission of Hezbollah - Lebanon's most powerful political and military organisation - assistance to Assad's forces mean for the neighbouring nations? As the conflict in Syria rages past its second year, how important is Hezbollah's involvement? Joining Stephen Cole on this Inside Story, to discuss the report are guests: Kamel Waznee, founder and director of the Centre for American Strategic Studies in Beirut; Louay Safee, from the political office of the Syrian National Coalition; and Nicholas Noe, Mid-EastWire.com founder.