i my name ideals, the french republic is long for a claim, but just what ease modern france in a 4 part series. but the picture takes an in depth look. the trouble with france episode one on al jazeera. ah, this is a decisive moment for the europe union. ukraine takes a large step towards e. u membership. a major morale boost as heavy fighting continues. ah, on the ball here. this is al jazeera life from london, also coming up germany steps up it's gas, emergency plan, but refuses to rule out rationing. the search rescue mission is almost complete in

afghanistan. so both quite shots of towns this decision isn't just reckless, it's reprehensible. and the u. s. supreme court overrides a century old law and the class carrying guns in public, the constitutional rights. ah, ukraine has taken a major step towards membership of the european union union with the leaders of member states voting to give the war torn country e u. candidate status. president volota me, zalinski hailed the decision as historic, moldova has been given the same status. it's the 1st step in what can be a long application process. but as natasha butler reports from e headquarters in brussels, it's, it's a strong message to russia. ah, just stays off to russia,

began his invasion of ukraine. keith applied to join the european union. 4 months later, you leaders at a summit in brussels, approved their request, and put ukraine on the path to future membership. were decided to grinned to the through, through you train owned moldova. then you are ready to grant to the suitors to ga. once brodis will be addressed, there can be no better sign of hope for the citizens of ukraine mould of an georgia . in these troubled times, ukraine's president followed him. is lensky called the eas decision, a unique and historical moment and relations. we have just received the european union candidacy. this is a victory. we've been waiting for this 120 days of the war. and even 30 years of our independence. it usually takes years for a country to gain candidate status after applying. some you official said fast tracking the process would prove the block solidarity with ukraine as

a defense itself against russian attacks. a sentiment echoed by the head of ukraine's mission to the e. u. at a gathering in the city. it's important for the whole country for the whole society, and it's important also for the granular army to have a clear reason what we are fighting for. we are fighting for the future. we are fighting for the modern, independent sovereign european country. becoming a candidate country is only a step to be granted. membership is a long and arduous process. the could take many years. some western balkan countries have been waiting for more than a decade for progress on fe. you beds, leaders from the region. we're also in brussels to urge you officials to speed up the process north, macedonia, albania, serbia, and montenegro are all candidate countries the world to achieve full membership. with definitely support the candidacy status for ukraine. we also support the

candidate status for mold over. we are very thrilled at the georgia is also being given the european perspective. but we also ask our european partners not to forget about or leave the western balkans behind the use approval. if keith's candidacy sends a strong message, not only to ukraine but also to russia, but despite moscow's fire, power and efforts, keith is determined to look west. natasha butler al jazeera brussels. well, the conditions that need to be met the country's wishing to join the european union unknown as the copenhagen criteria. each potential new member country must have stable institutions that guaranteed democracy. the rule of law, human rights respect for protection of minorities. they must have a functioning economy able to compete within the year, and they need to take on and implement membership obligations including accepting

european currency, the euro. charl strafford is in the ukranian capital key if he says ukrainians. the hearing mixed messages from russia on the e u decision. in the last few days, we've heard messages from the kremlin the spokesperson for the kremlin, dmitri pess golf a few days ago saying that sir, the russians were very concerned about ukraine's move closer towards europe. specifically, he said because of the deals that are being made in terms of weapons supplies from european and nato members. but then in the last couple of days, we heard from the president vladimir putin who seemed to imply and st. petersburg that he didn't have a problem with with, with this, or possibly a face saving statement made by him. because the fact remains that the fighting now is arguably heavier in the east than it has been since this war started. it's been described as a battle of artillery heavy shelling in multiple locations most focus in and around

that city of civil than it's one of 2 cities that the russians do not yet control in the low guns province. so ukrainians very much up against it in the east. so today's decision in brussels of huge significance and, and moral importance for this country. the united states is ready to send another $450000000.00 worth of military assistance to ukraine, including long range rockets, with an official announcement expected in the next few hours. a russian news agency on thursday release video that appears to show heavy fighting between pro russian and ukrainian forces in east and ukraine. russia is advancing in the don bass region, capturing 2 more villages in their efforts to cut off supply lines and take control of the strategic city of c ever denounced. moscow's news agency says a 30000 ton grain silo was hitting ukrainian. shelling. germany is stepping up its gas emergency plan saying it's facing

a supply crisis. and its economy minister says dwindling deliveries from russia means rationing can't be rolled out. dominic cane has more from berlin. the german government is effectively saying to the energy sector, but also to its citizens. we can guarantee gas supply for the moment, but there may come a time quite soon where we may not be able to do that. that is the way to perceive this. you measure taken by the german government. it has to be said that at the start of the european summer here now in the northern hemisphere, then people will not be needing gas to heat their homes, particularly in the warm weather there is right now. but in industry there is a real concern because the german industry dust real sector does depend on gas quite considerably for its energy sauce. interestingly, in the energy sector, 2 separate voices, one from the chemical industry association, another from a large energy energy supplier have said that they can,

they see this move by the german government as a logical step. and that it does not change the fundamental status quo for the time being. and those are the operative words here, the decision by the russian government to reduce the amount of gas that it pipes to germany has certainly made ministers here. start to worry which explains why they're trying to find other sources of energy for the moment. the green minister in charge of this particular portfolio is trying to find coal and other things. remember also the climate change goals that this government has are really imperiled by a decision to go to other fossil fuels, which explains the dilemma. the berlin government has right now ah, search and rescue operations in afghanistan have ended in most major regions

following its most devastating earthquake and 20 years efforts. and our focus are remote areas. at least 1500 people are dead. and there are urgent appeals for international help. people impact teak, a province where entire villages were reduced to rubble. a desperate for food sheltering drinking water. aid is trickling in, but it's not enough. given the scale of the disaster, a summer binge of aid has more. ah, even at night, the search for the missing continued in eastern afghanistan. it's a race against time before the rescue operation turns into recovery of the dead. then using bare hands and shovels to free those buried under the rubble in the remote villages of host and buck beka provinces were in bed. been hundreds of homes and buildings were destroyed by the powerful earthquake man as low as for the spirit i was sleeping and i felt a strong tremor. the roof fell on us. i hardly got out of the house. and when i

looked back, i saw my wife and daughter under the rubble in the next room, my nephew, his wife and his daughter, they died. i lost everything in the blink of an eye. ah, as the scale of the devastation becomes clearer, and one is nuns currently does a realizing the challenges in providing relief and shelter for the displaced lords were already in disrepair. and now they are blocked or destroyed by ensuing landslides. after the quake. afghanistan with its various agencies and ministries, launched a joint operation to assist the injured and dispatched a specialized themes by helicopter to provide medical assistance and emergency meeting was held by the prime minister. and it was decided to provide urgent financial aid for compensation. the prime minister appealed to foreign agencies and organizations to assist the of gunny people in these difficult circumstances, i understand is already facing a humanitarian disaster. most international aid,

dried up and foreign, stafford pulled out when the taliban took over last year. the government, which called it says these la cameras, it accuses wold powers of callous behavior for freezing assets and stopping aid from millions of afghans as union. we do not have our teams do not see it yet. miniature take people under the from, under the rubble of these has to live mostly on the efforts of the defacto authorities. at least just a $1000000.00 will be required immediately. international and regional head will be crucial, as it will likely take months and years to recover from the devastation. afghans who feel abandoned and let down by the international community say, all they can do is pray for both the dead and those who survive. come, i've been driving out there, you know, the un security council received a special briefing on the situation in afghanistan. gabriel alexander was following events and has more form united nations headquarters in new york. the humanitarian

situation in afghanistan is grave. that was the key message from top un officials to security council members in what was a regularly scheduled meeting to discuss the overall situation in the country. but given the recent devastating earthquake, the immediate humanitarian conditions obviously were front and center, search and rescue operations remain ongoing. as it is expected that the number of casualties will bothering fees or the coming days along with the number of defective communities. i'm sure you will agree that yes, this earthquake was here and i'm a tragedy in my other me, it dangers the juror facing the people at this time. the un estimates there are about 24000000 people in afghanistan or about half the country that are in need of humanitarian assistance,

just to survive. the un already has the afghanistan humanitarian response plan. they're asking for about $4400000000.00 in an annual budget, but they've only received about one 3rd of that. meaning that they are on pace to potentially run out of money by the end of the year at a time when this money is needed, the most. we face a $3000000000.00 funding for loss response this year. i think probably i've got to start is as difficult situation in terms of funding needs is anywhere in the world . in a country where an earthquake is exacerbated already dire humanitarian conditions calls from united nations headquarters to rally the world's attention. still to come this half hour, heavy rain m flash floods leave people desperately seeking safety. an indian administered kashmir and caught between climate change and conflicts. 8 agencies battled to help millions in desperate need in ethiopia.

ah, the hello welcome to another look at the international forecast. its sloshy set fair across australia. lots of pleasant winter sunshine coming through. we have got a cold front is a weak one, just rolling through the bike, but with high pressure in charge, it will continue to weaken further. so some sherry range is clipping victoria using across tasmania, pushing over towards new zealand. up towards the south west. they're largely dry, clear skies coming back in $800.00 celsius in per but as you can see, good deal of sunshine for the most part. and that's the case as we go on for he sat, stay brightening up down towards a se one or 2 shower, still a possibility for victoria wet weather. the answer windy weather streaming across tasmania, heading towards new zealand,

which by sunday should be largely dry. if little on the cloudy side, have you got a fair amount of cloud making its way towards japan and very wet weather easing out to the east china sea, across yellow sea, this sharp line of cloud, and very heavy rainfall, making its way in here. then dry weather up towards sir northern parts of china, still getting up into the mid 30 c. and i'm pleased to say it is much dry now across southern parts of china, and that will remain the cases we go one through the next couple of days. we'll have a chance, a one or 2 showers here by saturday. ah, the sun, sand and sir. a winds postcard image hides the piece of battle over the past and future of these island parents. when an 8th meet the locals determined to keep for why, for why on al jazeera, how did states control information? how does the narrative inform public opinion?

how is citizen journalism refraining the story? be it online on an o in point. the listening post dissects the media on al jazeera. ah ah, a reminder of the top stories here, one out to a 0. the european union has voted to give war 2 and ukraine, e u. candidate status president below to me as a lensky. welcome the move, calling it a unique and historic moment on search and rescue. operations have ended in most major regions of afghanistan, of the countries worst, earthquake in 20 years. at least 1500 people have been killed. the taliban governments made an urgent appeal for international health. the gun lobby in the

united states has won a significant court victory just weeks after a string of my shootings. the u. s. supreme court has ruled that the century old gun laws in new york state violate the 2nd amendment right to bear arms, a must be relaxed. kristin salumi has moved from new york arrest for gun crimes in new york already 28 year high, originally motivated shooting in the city of buffalo. recently left 10 people dead . and now gun control activists say the violence is only going to get worse. the supreme court has ruled new york's law requiring anyone who wants to carry a concealed handgun show what's known as proper cause is unconstitutional. justice clarence thomas wrote the 63 page decision. he says the constitution protects an individual's right to carry a handgun for self defense outside the home. the decision was based on a case brought by the new york state rifle and pistol association. criminals are

the ones that are causing the crimes in the cities, not, not legal, gun owners, not lawful people. it's a decision. new york selected officials were bracing for and they didn't hold back their criticism at the court's decision. this decision isn't just reckless. it's reprehensible. it's not what new yorkers want. this keeps me up at night. new york's mayor says it will set back efforts to rain in gun crime and gun deaths. former police officer, kirk burke halter agrees with the impact of the more guns on the streets of new york. and i am of the opinion that does not make a city this populace safer. and here is why are even trained that law enforcement officers training military personnel quite often don't hit what they aim at. and we see this all the time throughout the country. right? innocent bystanders, children the elderly and so for that is struck by stray bullets who are unintended

targets throwing kind of in the wake of high profile. now, shootings at a time when the whole show, the majority of americans prefer stricter gun control laws. the decision will impact not only new york, but other states with similar restriction, including connecticut, shoes and california. the ruling is a set back for gun control. advocates who've advanced legislation to tighten gun laws at the state and federal level. states need to be able to make laws that protect their communities. new york is not like montana new york officials are promising to pass new legislation to restrict guns insensitive locations that will satisfy the courts and keep their citizens safe. kristin salumi al jazeera new york . the u. s. house select committee has held its 5th hearing into last year's storming of the capital building and whether then president donald trump attempted to overturn the 2020 presidential election reformer. acting deputy attorney general

robert donahue described how he responded during the near daily discussions between trump, a members of the justice department about allegations of votes of fraud. felt in that conversation that was incumbent on, on me to make it very clear to the president what our investigations had revealed. and that we had concluded based on actual investigations, actual witness interviews, actual reviews of documents that these allegations simply had no mirror. and i want to try to cut through the noise because it was clear to us that there are a lot of people whispering in his ear, feeding him these conspiracy theories and allegations. and i felt that being very blunt in that conversation might help make it clear to the president at these allegations were simply not true. why to check our shows be monitoring things closely on capitol hill holiday. tell us more about this pressure campaign trumpet towards the department of justice shawnee. the witnesses that we heard from today

made it clear that trump was still with relentless in his effort to cling to power after losing the presidential election to joe biden. that he made daily phone calls or meetings with top department of justice officials to try to pressure them into promoting his unfounded conspiracy theories that the election had been stolen. and that all culminated in an incredible meeting in the oval office. 3 days before the violent insurrection that gripped the capital on january 6th, and in that white house meeting, president trump nearly replaced the attorney general. jeff rosen, who was the leader of the department of justice for his refusal to go along with trumps election lies. the description of the conversations in that meeting are so vivid just describing how trump essentially pitted the 2 men against each other, arguing for their jobs. rose in the afternoon attorney general and the man that

trump wanted to replace him with jeffrey clark, a little known environmental lawyer who also was employed by the justice department who was the only one. apparently the trump could find who wanted to go along with his conspiracy theories. and we're told by the witnesses that trump ultimately decided not to promote clark and fire rosen. because the department of justice officials, they're threatened to resign in mass telling that then president that not only would they quit their jaws, but possibly hundreds of department of justice employees in washington and across the nation that ultimately made an impact with summer president trump, according to the witnesses and he pulled back on the plan, but as the committee then laid out, that was not the end of trump's attempts to remain in power because of course, 3 days later later is when he would get on stage. and as his, his last impeachment alleged, try to incite the insurrection that did take lives here in the capitol hill,

heidi j. castro. thank you. bel 24 democratic senators have written to you as president joe biden, telling him to get washington directly involved in the investigation in the murder of al jazeera journalist, sharina barkley. sure he was shot dead by us railey forces on the 11th of may. all on assignment and janine the occupied westbank, a white house correspondent, kimberly how could as more there is a big reason why these democratic senators are looking for the white house and, and the united states to get directly involved in the investigation into the death of sri and ever i claim that is in large part because of the mistrust that exists between the israelis and the palestinians. we know that there have been investigations that have been conducted on both sides, but given the fact that there is such a deep distrust and given the fact that also the there have been conclusions and investigations that have been conducted by the media that really call into question

the conclusions of the israeli investigations, in other words, that the in really have concluded that in fact it was not there and is really bullet that killed sharon ever i play. and in fact media investigations as well as the palsied investigations. conclude just the opposite, that there is in fact, some deep distrust with these conclusions. and that is the reason that these democratic centers say the united states must get directly involved in order to get the transparency and the full accountability that the secretary of state antony blinking has promised that the united states will seek to try and achieve indigenous groups in ecuador have rallied against the government for a 12th day. the protest is in kito angry at rising fuel and food prices. there is

a president guillermo losses. economic reforms are hurting the country's most vulnerable communities. the demonstrations are growing increasingly violent. at least 2 protests would have been killed in recent days. heavy rainfall in indian administered kashmir is triggering landslides and flash flooding. the regions largest river has breached its danger. mark and flood warnings have been issued for the regions. largest cities in aga, catchy lopez, haughty and has more with threats and homes partially submerged. this community in, in, in administered kashmir is trying to stop things from getting worse. c heavy rainfall come with a canal and boot camp to strip to burst this man. now this neighbourhood is bearing the brunt. is there to wishing to wally up but we were sleeping and hurt people's cries. flood water started coming in. many houses are damaged, uneven potty fields are under water. damaged crops will meet a huge loss for us. robina says she feels helpless. all her belongings

are damaged. i'm going to bite. you took my girl of love, love love with you. nothing much is left now my nephew had a close call but he was somehow see from the flood waters. it's so high. you can't even take out items from inside the house. heavy rain and snowfall has triggered flash floods and landslide and recent, these roads are blocked and cars stranded rescue teams have started moving people from below lying areas to safer locations. yeah, the garage has told me that one of the landslides covered in area of about a 100 meters. if it doesn't rain in the next few days, it will take at least 2 days to clear the debris. until that happens, families are doing what they can. stacking, sand bags and putting of barriers to china save what's left pattillo earlier, which is here. billions of people in ethiopia and urgent need of food aid because

of climate change and conflict. the country is facing its worst drought and for 2 years and the conflict to the northern to cry region is affecting a delivery humanitarian organizations say they are running out of money to provide relief. hipaa morgan has more this classroom in a day. my had my day school in ethiopia, northern take ry region. now hosts people displaced by conflicts. testify is a farmer who was forced to flee his home when his village was attacked during the start of the war. in november 2020. he and his family members now live here, along with other families and rely on food aid to survive. oh, we fled our homes and came here because the militia started killing and destroying idler, even in our land. they started killing people and looting homes. as we witnessed this happening, we were shot out, but luckily we escaped. let take great conflict has displaced millions of people

and left many more in need of aid aid organizations have been able to access to gray in recent weeks, say hundreds of thousands are facing famine. and more than 20 percent of children under 5 are malnourished. the conflict has spread beyond take wry into neighboring m. herrera and a far regions. hundreds of thousands there have been forced from their homes and are now facing food shortages. and climate change in the horn of africa has worth in the humanitarian crisis. in parts uh with european floods last year in on dated most of the grazing lands in southern if u. p. m, an insufficient train fall this year, has resulted in drought, killing livestock, and displacing thousands of pastoralists who relied on them for living the world food program. says it doesn't have enough money to provide sufficient help and it's food and nutritional supplies may run out by next month. the agency says it's already reduced some of its assistance programs to focus on those most in need. people have been severely affected by the conflict. people have been displaced,

they've lost everything. people are trying to go back. and this is a very, very crucial moment because people are at spectrum. and if people and not be in the field, if they cannot, did kids the time, energy resources to, to get shipped though we are headed towards another disaster with those in conflict areas unable to go back home and farm. and those displays by drought losing their livelihoods. millions more could be at greater risk. heber morgan archers, iraq. several regions of italy have declared a state of emergency caused by the countries, worst trout and 70 years. large sections of the longest river, the po, have dried up or to levels are so low, the wreckage of a boat that sank during the 2nd world war has surfaced. her affairs, northern italy could lose half of its agricultural produce because of drought.

italy like much of europe, is experiencing unusually high temperatures. the world's largest container ship has been put into service in china, designed and built in shanghai, the evergreen vessel known as the ever. busy alt can carry nearly 24000 containers as about 4000 more than the average given which was stuck in the suez canal for several days last year. ever a lot of deck area is about the size of 3 and a half football fields. it will service roots between asia and europe. chinese media says 8 more of the mega ships are under construction. ah, reminder at the top stories here when al jazeera ukraine has taken a major step towards membership of the european union with the council of e. u. leaders agreeing to give the war torn country each candidate status. european council president char michelle described the decision.