the state of the news life in a german court rules that cities are allowed to ban diesel cars to reduce pollution it's a victory for environmentalist but a huge blow for the car industry and for the millions of motorists who may not be allowed to use their vehicles also on the program. a fighting is still raging in the east and despite a temporary truce each side blames the other for the new attacks humanitarian workers say no aid is getting through you'll hear from the world health organization in the syrian capital. and in the. marco gross

a craft an early goal against. i'm phil graham welcome to the program one of germany's top court says ruled that city authorities are allowed to impose driving bans on diesel vehicles environmentalist's have been calling for about four years saying that diesel emissions are killing thousands of people they talk to german cities to court for not doing enough to curb emissions but the cities argued that they didn't have the legal power to impose restrictions now the federal administration of course has ruled that they do. now in a moment we'll hear chancellor angela merkel's reaction to the ruling and we'll hear from the head of the environmental organization who initiated the legal action in the first place first let's take a look at the situation on germany's roads and the huge disruption that car drivers and businesses could not face if those but if the ban is implemented. there are

more than fifteen million diesel vehicles on germany's roads drivers find them reliable and economical and they're popular with businesses transporting freight and goods. but the future of that popularity is in doubt in the face of a possible diesel ban vehicle sales have slowed and the new regulations address concerns over high levels of nitrogen dioxide in the zilla missions. the gas is linked to cardiovascular and lung disease in a study by germany's federal environment agency researchers linked nitrogen dioxide in diesel exhaust to some eight thousand premature deaths from heart related disease. i don't think politicians are serious about the results of these studies because otherwise we'd have to really enforce these driving restrictions.

regardless of any doubt surrounding the findings one thing is certain traffic contribute significantly to nitrogen dioxide pollution and the main culprit is diesel levels are over the limit at nearly half the measuring stations in germany. this applies mainly to main traffic arteries it's a different picture in residential areas and. in those places on average we see levels between twenty and thirty micrograms per cubic meter which is well below the limits access levels are really just an issue on base here. and you have a fine and. the highest levels are found in large cities such as stuttgart cologne and berlin which have the most to lose from the new rules haulage companies and other trade industries warned that a ban could put the delivery of goods to cities at risk. members think that fiction we'd have to shut down immediately we can't transport

our goods by train so we had no other options and weeks under this. initial measures which have been discussed include improved public transportation networks and electric buses that should provide some relief in cities affected by the excessive pollution levels. and germany's chancellor has been reacting to today's ruling i'm going to magically appear to play down by pointing out that the ruling won't affect all of germany's drivers but she said the government would now at. if you can find this new finite the federal government's plans for cleaner air must be enforced. we'll discuss the matter further with all the parties concerned. but what is important today is that it is about the action that individual cities need to take. but it's not really about the whole country and all german car owners . now you're going to rush is managing director of environmental action in germany

one of the nonprofit groups that brought this case to court welcome to day w. what does this verdict mean for people in polluted cities. this means clean air and they'll have better quality from next months on because it'll start about in september or october of this year so for a lot of steel. and not allowed to enter the city is this year and a big group five. eagles will be burnt next year. so that's a huge how destry has no to do to help these people because they sold our us if you aren't it's environmentally friendly it's for climate and it's for activity and it was cheating cowan street was cheating there because the home base

sold about nine million euro five you thinks the. earth was a liberal asian only in the lab situation but not in reality in average when you are six times more poisoning the cities were allowed and this is the reason by the highest court no total stock that he has to be banned and they have to stop now and so what do you say so those bad people who run businesses and perhaps people who own small older things all vehicles who say well we i can't afford to buy a new car and now my business will go out and now i will go out of business. no you have to have these people because they didn't you about the quality of the cheating or the counters and the clot was very intelligent i think compromise if but your five powers have. done more months

most trance. vehicles four of the businesses are either you or five or you or six so we don't have to solve the problem. but congress really has to start immediately . to give me her interrupting you sir the just just so i'm clear you're as far as you are concerned this is the responsibility of the car industry to fix the car industry should should watch and pay pay these people money to buy new cars or to have them upgraded watch they do. both of you know what unity is and look to the united states for. two opportunities to buy back the cheating pass or to root have or and this decision today we all must have a much easier but unity to force industry i've got to retrofit our daughters a little. bit also very intense this discussion now in germany also with our

association urging industry to repair what they are but have they have done it's part of three hours of their own and you have to replace the. shuttle is eight hour and. it's it's technically possible and they can pay i hope but the politician i got a map of the earth this moment. she is also one of those that read ok she has got it here an industry friend the politic and has to fight for the people who are suffering and dying because of the poisoned arrow of these are visions ok you're going to ration from environmental action germany thank you so much for joining daintily care of. now they've been fresh reports of violence including airstrikes in syria's rebel stronghold of eastern ghouta and this despite

russia's introduction of a daily five hour truce the u.n. says renewed fighting has made delivering aid impossible russia's military says shelling from rebel groups mean civilians can leave eastern ghouta however rebel factions there deny bombing the evacuation routes and deny preventing civilians from leaving more than five hundred civilians have been reported killed since the sit syrian government and its russian allies stepped up their offensive against eastern ghouta last week. elizabeth hoff has the world health organization says syria representative she joins us from damascus welcome to d.w. what are you hearing from people in eastern guta. now do you think that the situation is going to be increasing and it was. great for humanity for. that. matter. if. i was

a very told you about the moment when the guns were supposed to fall silent but didn't. hear from damascus that's going to be believed. we can hear that this small minority they. say is not the cause. of this cease fire was supposed to offer a five hour window of opportunity what can i say the organizations do in five hours . we cannot believe that many can make inside the empire was the little sadness that did this is going to make a court order for people to exit. so those who would like to leave hand leave. during the hours that it's open tonight not that you do not know if you know the big house for some make an accusation this is probably going to have nothing at all because that ok so it didn't exist so the whole point of this

this five hour window was to get people out rather than to help people there that this is what. was that like. now do people trust the assurances that have been given about these five hour pause is given what we know has happened. unfortunately i have not had a chance to talk to people inside does what they can see a record is that some people don't want to. use you make a quote of yours but this is one of the other side of the coin that. many good night to be the girls are not given the punishment. so this is just the latest of a number of cease fires that appeared not to have worked what is your wish to happen next might be this this is going to receive gerken that we can have another ceasefire when you have that the ceasefire thirty

basis for sleep even his security council so the next oh i would like to see that this is fine and the observers so that we can deliver this one hundred ton that we have here back then and then the tank because you know that this is a sign to believe you know the hand owning up to getting screwed up we'll tell you for joining us elizabeth off from the world health organization in syria thank you. for some of the other stories making news around the world a check court has ordered the release of syrian kurdish leader salah muslim refusing turkey's request for his extradition checco thoughts has detained him over the weekend and chris request asylum muslim denies turkey's claim that he was involved in attacks carried out on its territory. and prosecutors in south korea are demanding a thirty year jail term for former president park geun hay and a lot marc corruption case was part was impeached for corruption last march and is

facing more than a dozen criminal charges she's been held in custody for almost a year. freezing weather is gripping much of central and eastern europe with temperatures plummeting to minus twenty degrees celsius in some places leading to several deaths the cold spell is expected to last through the week. in football dortmund host an outspoken monday night to cap off much day twenty four in the bundesliga is by the host getting off to an early scoring start out spoke were determined to earn a point and avoid their thirty feet in a row. means marco royce fresh off a goal with his last time out back in front of home thing and they were cheering him on the black and yellow tasted honey in the first half hundred surely with both his it cut by my hip regular chipped in by royce marco royce the second goal in three games for the drop in favorite. the trio of mario goodson sure

in roy's on the same page gave don't mean really one meal be. out nearly equalise before the break but roman burkey prevented going to teach me it's free kick from levelling the score. the second half out berke want to keep ruin berky's lead sheet of the season. and first if you don't succeed kevin did so finishing off that cliche they had are blocked but the follow what was it. out spurred endorsements three game win streak and start an unbeaten streak of their own one one the final school. now just days after the close of this year's winter games in south korea a ceremony in the next winter olympic location has already been held beijing bought the stuff of the tour of the olympic flag in style it was carried to the state on a stage at the great wall of china the country has seen a recent through winter sports position has pledged to get three hundred million

chinese on skis and skates before twenty twenty two days. or that was just four years ago. a situation.