this is news live from berlin a new battle opens in syria as pro-government fighters confront turkey they are helping kurdish fighters defend the region of off against the turkish offensive that began there last month syrian state media say that turkish forces are shelling the pro-government fighters. also coming up germany's armed forces are just not good enough a parliamentary report say that there are too many too few troops and that they lack the equipment that they need to put up

a fight. and florida students mobilize against guns last week when gunmen massacred seventeen people at their school and now the students are taking their demands for tighter gun control to the state capital. plus there were more medals up for grabs of the winter olympics and france is not tom felt hot takes his third gold in the thrilling finish to the mix by off a long relay we will bring you that and a lot more from day eleven n.p.r. . i'm sara kelley welcome to the program thanks for joining us we begin in syria where government backed troops have entered a kurdish enclave in the north of the country raising the specter of deadly confrontation with turkey called. thems of fighters were seen moving into freeing

as turkey prepared to lay siege to the city in the coming days turkey has now confirmed for a port that its military shelled the area immediately in response the turkish president said that those fighters have now been pushed back the region is controlled by kurdish forces turkey considers them to be terrorists. and let's get the latest on these developments the syrian pro-government fighters and touring kurdish held a free and possibly having retreated again as you can see our correspondent dorian jones is standing by now with the latest from istanbul and dorian what are you hearing well yes you're right the turkish president. says the should to very successfully repel these column of syrian government fighters from entering for in to support the syrian kurdish militia the president said in his mind the matter is closed saying that these these militias were only

acting on their own initiative rather than move orders from damascus but despite these claims from our own current images on social media appear to show that some if not all of these fighters have successfully arrived in the main city of for and . joined by syrian kurdish fighters weaver recordings of them shouting we will defeat the turkish autumn and invaders so it does appear at least some of these forces have successfully end to the syrian city of are for and joined up with syrian kurdish fighters and we know the motivation behind the turks they do not want this autonomous kurdish region forming along their border there but what is the strategy behind damascus sending these militia into the area. well i think that's the mask is concerned by this turkish military operation there have been initial hopes from their part that this would be a very small scale operation clearing out the border zone in syria and then possibly creating

a border zone there and that would be the end of it but the message from monk or is that this operation is getting increasingly expanding operation with a message to after they claim that they've taken over this syrian enclave of our friend they will expand it to parts of northern syria so there is a law in damascus but this operation could be far greater than what they expected and also there is awareness that they feel that when turkey does militarily intervene in its neighbors affairs it very seldom leaves certainly not in the short term so this is fear that turkey would have a long term presence in syria which would be a further destabilizing factor and a possible threat to the syrian regime so i think that they do want to stop this operation and push it back if possible. and turkish president rector typepad one we mentioned hitting the airwaves there basically saying that the pro-government convoy has turned back after turkish shelling has the file been closed as he says or was he simply saving face here. well i think that this is an

embarrassment for president heard one because he's been delivering a speech to his parliament ariens earlier on shoes the way he was saying that he's for successful diplomacy in speaking with these russian and iranian counterparts the threat of some damascus back forces entering africa have been removed now he's facing a humiliating prospect that that is not the case and i think other will be very keen to downplay this because it will lead to growing fears that this operation of turkey is involved and is running the risk of expanding to a possible confrontation with damascus we've already seen some heavy falls on the financial markets and there will be concerns within the country that is operation could be getting out of control and he will be aware that it will be facing pressure from moscow in particular because most who is not only supporting the assad regime but also looking to uncross in its efforts in the syrian civil war the prospect of our own crowd and damascus facing off is a nightmare scenario for moscow and they will be doing all they can to diffuse these rising tensions it's a web of alliances and it has the potential to become very complicated very quickly

and dorian jones there in istanbul thank you so much for putting it all into perspective for us. so let's get the view now from moscow which we just heard dorian mentioned our correspondent emily share when is standing by with more on the view from there and emily you know russia we know has backed the syrian regime just generally speaking in the syrian civil war but with a friend in particular they're really treading a difficult line here because they also have close ties with turkey on the other side have they weighed in on the situation yet. yes they absolutely they have and they are really treading a difficult line as you say sara and that was very clear from the statement that the foreign minister sergey lavrov made today he said it was very much a balancing act there in his words he said that russia understands the kurdish expectations but it also understand the turkish worries about its border region and

of also defended syria he said that it was very important to retain syria's territorial integrity which of course is a veiled criticism at turkey because syria says that turkey had no right to invade its airspace and what hasn't been permitted by the country at all so now it seems russia is trying to balance all three sides in this conflict and in fact you know sergei lavrov one of the other things that he said there he said that situation can best be resolved by talking between ungar and damascus so very clearly not wanting to get in the middle here but ultimately. russia controls the airspace don't they over a friend so can they really avoid this here well i think that you know the lover of call for a dialogue clearly kind of to me seems to indicate that russia will be taking an

active role in that dialogue as well after all they've been kind of keen to present themselves as the mediators in syria and on the international stage they have a certain sway over both syria and turkey particularly over syria a long term ally and they've also presented themselves you know with these peace talks that they've been conducting last year as the mediator they really want to get out of this situation and as durian said an escalation in africa would be a nightmare scenario for moscow families share when with the view from moscow thank you emily. elsewhere in syria the rebel held suburbs of damascus known as the eastern are also under siege government forces have been pounding the area since the weekend independent monitors now say that the shelling has killed more than two hundred fifty people in the last two days and the syrian

civil defense known as the white helmets released this footage comporting to show survivors of shelling carried out earlier today the u.n. is warning that eastern could become a second aleppo. let's turn to some other news now around the world we're going to head to germany where a parliamentary report has said that the nation's armed forces are not good enough the bundeswehr lacks the personnel and equipment needed to meet their responsibilities says the report it follows a spate of media stories about shortfalls and everything from tanks to tents that have raised concerns about whether germany will be ready to take command of a nato rapid response force next year. a rare glimpse of the airbus a four hundred m. it was talented as the german military strand sport plane of the future so far fourteen have been delivered but at times not a single one was cleared to actually fly. and it's not an exception

a new report by the parliamentary commission of for the bundeswehr describes dramatic deficiencies again germany's soldiers are frustrated. like i said it is the much of the conditions of the equipment available to the troops has not gotten better in recent years but worse we welcome declarations that staffing equipment and funding are to be improved but declarations alone don't make anything better. spezza. the report points to problems in practically every area more than twenty thousand personnel positions remain unfilled leaving many soldiers exhausted parts shortages put weapons out of commission for example not one german submarine can put to sea right know and above all there's not enough money a problem is turnaround but the plan budget increase is still not enough. room and

about the moment the rule is hope for the best for the coalition deal says if there's a budget surplus that will be taken advantage of so we're hoping for a surplus. the state of the blondest vale may also worry nato partners the german military lacks tanks and other armaments for plan missions in the coming year. students from the florida high school where a mass shooting claimed seventeen lives are traveling to the state capitol to press lawmakers for gun control about one hundred students are on their way to tallahassee for a rally scheduled for wednesday as part of a new mobilization against gun violence that started since the shooting at the marjory stoneman douglas high school last week survivors of the shooting have started a movement called never again. which wants more rigorous background checks for those buying guns and a ban on assault rifles. for and for more let's bring in our u.s.

correspondent carolina chinmoy and carolina. you know as we have seen there the survivors of the latest school shooting are on their way to florida to ask politicians for gun control i mean we know the situation on the federal level but on the state level what are their chances. well sarah this kind of debate always arises after a tragedy like the one we saw last week in florida the question is if this time the protests and the movements we are seeing on gun control are going to put pressure on politicians to make a major change on gun control laws we know the president on all trump spoke with a republican senator cornyn his name last friday about a billion trick used with senator murphy a democrat and this bill aims to strengthen how state and federal governments could probably be people from buying a gun based on their mental health so this bill targets of background checks as you mentioned but many students are protesting against of possession of guns. and

carolina this is just one of many things that these students have planned and you know just we have to talk about these students generally speaking because they are active they are articulate and they are engaged what do they have planned and does this feel like it could be a turning point in american policy on guns because of these students. well the organizers of this speak movement also called the march for our lives are planning a nationwide march for the twenty fourth of march also on the fourteenth of march that means exactly one month after the school shooting in florida they're calling for students teacher mr rader's and parents to participate in a nationwide school walkout basically what the organizers are asking for is for participants to walk out for seventeen minutes extend i am on this age of protest congress in action to do more than tweet thoughts and prayers and response to the

gun violence in schools and tomorrow president trump is planning to hold a meeting with high school students in the white house we don't know much more yet about this meeting but we are expecting a small protest in front of the white house and we've got to be there of course and well regarding your last question this is going to change something in america. gun laws well it's the first time that a student movement has been organized insects and i mentioned so this really seems to have struck a chord but the question is how effective it's going to be we all know that the gun and the weapon lobby here in washington is quite strong and that therefore many politicians are not really interested in a major change in gun laws ok so at the very least they have been pretty effective in getting their message out let's see if it trickles down into policy carolina chinmoy standing by with leaders from washington d.c. thank you carolina. down of the

berlin international film festival d w is my is fater and david levitz are standing by to tell us a little bit more about today's big film and the red carpet action i do you guys. so we are here at the screening of the new york in phoenix film don't worry he won't get far on flights which is about an american cartoonist and not only a cartoonist a quadriplegic cartoonist it's about his battles with paralysis and with alcoholism some pretty brilliant performances both from joaquin phoenix and from the supporting cast a little bit earlier we saw joaquin phoenix roll up on the red carpet he was in a slightly better mood than he was at the press conference where he actually turned away from journalists and his new torricelli media shy so we were we were good after that showing that he parked up a little bit for his red carpet appearance. and of course walking feel like

a big hollywood star and he wasn't the only one showing his face in berlin today right that's right willem defoe is also here to collect his honorary lifetime achievement award what a career you may know him from such films as the spiderman films in the early two thousand to the last temptation of christ but his career has actually span many different films and many different types of roles and he's actually up for an oscar this year so now let's take a look at his storied career. i got a videotape of the kids illegally entering the utility room through the atmosphere and you're right here in his most recent movie the florida project wonderful place motel manager bobby. the money is the rear of the performance could win him an oscar this year it's a third oscar nomination after the war movie platoon and the nosferatu amash shadow

of the vampire. terror in fact my dear friend plays the character max shrek an actor who takes his role as vampire a bit too seriously. gives us time and love you look at it down to what is about what i would see any great expense he will not damage this production. or what i'm to feel its biggest blockbuster success came in two thousand to a scientist turned villain green goblin and the marvel movies spider-man. why are you saying that i'm down to. be in that camp fire man i do too we're in this together it's just so has proved more than once that he's a master of many roles. what a career he has had and you know he's assured to get a bear but what else might have when or who else might when. well

that's what we've all been trying to figure out and we've been going to one screening after another i have to say one of the strongest movies i've seen so far it was the world premiere of wes anderson's new movie aisle of dogs the first animated feature ever to open the ballina inspired by japanese animation great voices from jeff goldblum all the way to tilda swinton beautiful film and a great story very hard folds and now if i were a betting man i would put my bet on the field. this is a movie featuring three strong female characters it's directed by a female director and this is of course the first probably not a since me too so i think it might be a woman's or what do you think i love feel the emea and i think that it was a wonderful family should not rule out transit which is a wonderful story also dealing with refugees always a very important political topic here in europe. miles fader david leavitt's thank

you so much. fall from the worlds of film to the world of business now fanny charice standing by for us thank you sara authorities in the you are getting ready to slap high tariffs on american products like whiskey orange juice and motorcycles if donald trump carries out his threats to hit imported steel it punitive measures the u.s. secretary of commerce with ross has suggested the likelihood of putting a twenty four percent tariff on all steel imports or introducing a quote here is more. emotions are running hot in the steel sector it could be the next flashpoint for trade between the e.u. and the us washington is considering imposing tariffs on foreign made metals imported into the country the u.s. made it clear it will take that kind of move lying down. we stand ready to react swiftly and appropriately in case our explorers are affected by any.

strictly straight measures for the united states that could hit iconic brands like harley davidson its motorcycles are reportedly on a retaliatory list that u. has drawn up to punish if steel quotas are introduced as well as american made bourbon whiskey those products were apparently chosen because they're made in the home states of influential legislators no one is talking about a trade war but there's little question that the pressure is mounting the e.u.'s also worried by the new u.s. decision to radically sink corporate taxes a mission from god to avoid firms moving their headquarters from europe to the us and we'd like to avoid any slowdown of investment those are things we'll discuss that's important because what it comes down to is keeping jobs in europe. germany's acting finance minister said he hopes for support from people in the us that continue to want a good relationship with brussels. corruption is

a huge problem in many parts of the world often it's the poorest communities who suffer most fighting back is often risky today to mark world just to stay view of bringing a story from peril where farmers in the area have been speaking out against business deals they say are causing their forestation and destroying their livelihoods in that region right there in the village of santa clara think the chinese locals are taking legal action to try to stop international companies from turning tens of thousands of factors all of the rain forest into piles oil plantations. we've come to an area inside peru's amazon rain forest that's been badly hit by deforestation. rice is on his way to visit an indigenous community they can only be reached by boat give our eyes head's up the federation of native communities in this part of peru he grew up in

a village here but he doesn't come back often it's become too dangerous. or just i mean i think we're at the high received a lot of terror threats they left a message in my house saying if i opposed their activities again they'd better not see me in the village. but i believe i'm in great danger. but i suppose is the large scale deforestation and has a region and that has earned him some powerful enemies he never comes here alone now this time he's with staff from the organisation pro-e take up the proving an arm of transparency international they visit santa clara. residents here have come under pressure from companies looking to set up cocoa and palm oil plantations the village chief calls everyone to a meeting to discuss the latest developments they're taking legal action to try to stop new palm oil plantations opening near their village. with ben so we never

thought that we would have such problems with trans national companies. no the village wants to have twenty thousand hectares turned into legally protected and territory the initiators have received threats and the danger is very real just a few months ago six farmers were found shot to death so far no one has been held accountable for their murders. but how do these large corporations get their hands on thousands of hectares of land seemingly overnight. has examined the land deals and documented their findings. from the ngo have come to inform local residents. we wanted to highlight one thing namely the connection between deforestation the illegal trade in land and corruption amongst local officials. there have long been rumors about this but there wasn't enough evidence to be able to say definitively yes it's true.

gathered available documentation and carried out numerous interviews many of the deals reached in this region are linked to check entrepreneur dennis medica is now being investigated by state prosecutors moca group companies have stripped thirteen thousand hectares of rain forest to make way for plantations they were helped by corrupt local politicians who invalidated existing land rights ignoring those with legal claims and handing the land over to companies. is here for us now from the sports desk with the latest action from the p.r. tang winter olympics and pablo we have to start with this nail biting finish that we had in the mix by a fellow that's right i mean it was you see these images here absolutely fantastic now it was a big day for francis because it gave them it basically was an incredible display

from him from france a big disappointment for germany because germany was in fact leading it but what happened was that in the end france picked them to the post as did norway who took silver and then it really actually took bronze so it was very very disappointing for him but great day for france is my. team france because of course this is an event which combines skiing and shooting which is a bit of a kind of mix for some people have some of the and we have to say that every day seems to be a good day for god because he basically you know switched at this. disappointment for germany but it wasn't all bad news on day eleven when oh not at all and in fact germany are doing remarkably well they've won twenty three medals eleven goals and it was a clean sweep in the nordic combined to now the nordic combined combined ski jumping and a cross-country race and germany won first second and. third so a great day for germany and france and like i said you know they're picking up

medals left right and center twenty three in total eleven of course of the gold and the winner there was your highness riddick and then in second there was. and eric sense so great result for them and of course you know you don't often see one country when first second and third so i see that that's a little bit what a great story of their meantime though we have to turn to some of the not so great things that happened at the olympics and of course there was another failed up and starts roy unfortunately this time it was first levine in hockey player he was expelled and sent home and that is ego yell if he tested positive for an author all which is an awesome a drug which has been banned but in reality the big news today is actually related to a new story from day ten which was the russian courier alexander crucial russian sports official has said that they're starting a criminal investigation into the fact that he tested positive in both tests that

were carried out on him for this substance called mold only him which was made famous by the russian tennis star maria sharapova she received a one year bond for now. alexander crucial. taking mel dony him and it's going to be a long long story i think we're not going to hear the last of business for sure. us with the latest from the olympics thanks so much i'm sorry and with that you are up to date now on news i'm sarah kelly in berlin don't forget you can follow us on social media to see if you can see.

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adventure of china the trip by airplane seventeen thousand kilometers in six weeks breathtaking landscape. for getting close. touch. symmetry. first through china starting february twenty seventh. is really. the scars on. the brain still tangible. the suffering for going. through cities and. they have survived the they don't have a future. i really understand people who say they don't want to stay here.

but i also admire people who want to stay here and who decided to create something new in peace time and what needs to happen if tolerance and reconciliation are to stand a chance darkness cities after more starting march tenth on g.w. . a new faceoff in syria pro version forces arrived in the northern kurdish enclave of offering with one goal push back the turkish invasion as shots fired the specter of direct conflict between damascus and gross i'm sara kelly in berlin this is the day. you are. either going through.