battle ahead could take many more months. plus, just hours from now secretary of state antony blinken and homeland security secretary alejandro mayorkas are set to meet with mexican president just as thousands of central american migrants make their way to the united states southern border. we ll break down what this means and the key issues up for discussion. and also ahead the detroit pistons made nba history but for all the wrong reasons. the record they just broke that has everyone talking. good morning and welcome to way too early on this wednesday, december 27th. i m jonathan lemire. thanks for starting your day with us. we get right to the news and the israeli military has expanded its ground offensive into urban refugee camps in central gaza. the idf is also focusing on southern gaza s largest city as part of its stated mission to destroy hamas. officials say progress has been made in the north and that troops will continue to, quote, preserve and intensify t
the us and south korea have carried outjoint military exercises over the waters around the korean peninsula. now on bbc news, it s hardtalk. welcome to hardtalk. i m stephen sackur. taliban rule was re established in afghanistan almost a year ago. for afghans, it s meant the return of repressive religious authoritarianism and new levels of economic impoverishment. the mullahs seem ready to absorb indefinite isolation to reimpose their orthodoxy. but is that a sustainable strategy? my guest is fawzia koofi, former deputy speaker of the afghan parliament, now a democracy activist in exile. is there any glimmer of light in afghanistan s darkness? fawzia koofi, welcome to hardtalk. thank you. it s good to be with you. well, it s great to have you in this studio. i m sure you wish you were speaking to me from kabul, from afghanistan, but you have been in exile since the taliban returned to power. how difficult for you is that separation from your country? extremely difficult. i ne
to absorb indefinite isolation to re impose their orthodoxy. but is that a sustainable strategy? my guest is fawzia koofi, former deputy speaker of the afghan parliament, now a democracy activist in exile. is there any glimmer of light in afghanistan s darkness? fawzia koofi, welcome to hardtalk. thank you. it s good to be with you. well, it s great to have you in this studio. i m sure you wish you were speaking to me from kabul, from afghanistan, but you have been in exile since the taliban returned to power. how difficult for you is that separation from your country? extremely difficult. i never actually wished, i never hoped, to leave the country that gave me the identity, a country that i did not only invest my time, but i invested my blood to make it a better country for everyone. it has been a very difficult decision for me to leave afghanistan. i actually was in kabulfor a few weeks after the taliban takeover with the hope that things will get to a situation where we c