this is t w news coming to you live from the trip in peace for the hearings hit the world's television screens for the 1st time house democrats are seeking to prove president donald trump of buse his power to discredit a political rival trump himself says they're on a witch hunt that in the case he's too busy to tuning. in an easy call in gaza

the militant islamic jihad group announces a ceasefire after days of heavy fighting israel says it's holding fire for now and will answer quiet with quiet. plus one of europe's cultural jewels underwater the highest tide in top a century in a day's venice the mayor is blaming climate change the prime minister is calling it a blow to the heart of italy. creating a new generation of in motifs we meet the man giving the smartphone symbols a traditional african twist there's one for every day of the eager. fellow i'm terry martin good to have you with us lawmakers in washington have begun public hearings in the impeachment inquiry against president donald trump the 1st in 20. the televised hearings kicked off tuesday with testimony from 2 different

wednesday rather from 2 top u.s. diplomats dealing with ukraine has called the process a witch hunt he says he's too busy doing the people's business to tune in a historic day for the united states hours of testimony played out on television screens across the country we will come to order. morning everyone. the inquiry centers on an alleged pressure campaign aimed at forcing ukraine to investigate the u.s. president's political rival joe biden and on wednesday one of the diplomats who testified linked donald trump more directly to those efforts the acting ambassador to kiev said a member of his staff overheard a conversation in which trump asked e.u. ambassador gordon somnolent if he'd successfully pushed the ukrainians into a night sing the investigation. all when the call with president trump the member

of my staff investor song what president trump thought about ukraine as the song responded the president front cares more about the investigations of biden trump later said he did not remember the conversation. i don't recall not even a little bit. but democrats are hoping to build the case that trump did in fact abuse his power of office to pressure ukraine behavior they say would warrant removing him from office is this what americans should now expect from their president if this is not impeachable conduct. what is the republican say it's not rather than denying the mine have a didn't have a pressure campaign and 9 frankly so not doing that she's not granted 3 impeachment it seems unlikely that fresh evidence will change that strategy when the next round of hearings begin on friday. morning let's bring in our washington correspondent

all over saw it who was at wednesday's hearing on capitol hill all over a historic day there in d.c. the 1st impeachment hearing in more than 2 decades what did we learn from these 2 witnesses well terry the main takeaway here was that these 2 witnesses tied president trump closer to this alleged pressure campaign against ukraine's president selenski and they essentially said that there was a quid pro quo they are lined allegations that were out there already but of course made public into the yesterday's wednesday's public hearing then bill taylor of the acting ambassador to ukraine calling for that there was an invitation for the lenski to the wide tells as well as military aid hundreds of millions of dollars and that those were conditioned to investigations against joe biden the former vice president who of course is a political rival and bill taylor called that alarming the democrats believe that

this will be a betrayal of the present presidential oath of office as well as abuse of power and of course the big question remaining here is how will this impact the public opinion of the american voter so this was a very important launch of these public hearings how are people particularly lawmakers reacting to what they heard. well i was able to follow the hearing today and i have to say that the republicans are under enormous pressure at this point you could really tell this by their strategy of defense they said the president's conduct here might not have been perfect but the that the phone call in fact was not impeachable and they're also trying to question the legitimacy of the investigation they're essentially saying the democrats are trying to undo a democratically held election but at the same time it's really worth pointing out here that there were 2 career diplomats testifying on capitol hill they work for

the government in the case of bill taylor he was actually even children and deployed by the president so he was they were impartial and they have a high level of credibility and the democrats are certainly trying to capitalize on that now this is just the beginning of the public hearings what else can we expect from the inquiry this week right so the hearings are to be continued on friday and we will then hear from vinyl bij who it was the former ambassador to ukraine was removed in spring and she says that rudy giuliani president trump's private lawyer held a campaign against her that rudy giuliani believed she would stand in the way of potential investigations against joe biden and that's of course another damning account against president trump because it highlights the role of president trump's private lawyer doing essentially a government job so all of this is not shedding any good light on president trump

all over thank you very much that was our washington correspondent oliver stop it there. and as that impeachment hearing was underway in capitol hill on capitol hill president trump was meeting with the turkish president at a typewriter one of the white house trump is facing criticism for hosting out of one after turkey's recent incursion into northern syria but despite strained relations trump declares himself a big fan of the turkish leader. impeachment what impeachment that was the message from the white house while much of washington watch the hearings riveted donald trump was hosting he's took his count of pot it was a chance to reset the agenda for the president towards what he sees as a foreign policy victory and i became president isis was all over the place and we took over 100 percent of the caliphate and last week as you know we killed its leader and its founder trump sees that one is playing a supporting role in the fight against the side of quote islamic state but the 2

latest relationship is also under strain right now because of the battle for terror train syria. thank you. ignoring trumps objections turkey has now moved into the northern syrian border regions taking territory once controlled by the could with american backing and despite be could show opposition everyone is not backing down he says he too is fighting terror. community we don't have problems with the kids we have problems with the terrorists that it is that we're just fighting terrorists period. banker is still worried about the presence of u.s. troops so close to its knees on the northern syrian border even after the pullback they remain kilometers from turkey's battle front with the could in some areas but trump says they have a new mission that we're keeping the well we have the oil the oil is secure we left

troops behind only for the oil this white house meeting was billed as a chance to shore up the u.s. is vital relationship with a key nato ally but trumpeted when didn't make a deal for now u.s. and turkey interest remain too far apart. or earlier i spoke to our correspondent who's in istanbul following the story for us i asked him if there are any signals coming out of that white house meeting that might alter turkish military plans in northern syria i mean this is a major point of contention hill between washington and pro given the fact that u.s. soldiers still all deployed in syria not so close a turkish border further south they off continuing to work with this kurdish militia the white peachy which president won on several occasions in the press conference referred to as a terrorist organization a no to believe president trump sidestepped a question over his ongoing contact with the commander a muslim. organization and that is

a key to modify and should be ended with that man but it's again it's very clear that the u.s. all still cooperated with this militia which will be a point of contention with turkey at the same time turkey has made it clear that it's going to to new fighting what it calls this terrorist organization and it's a great deal of alarm that the cease fire that have been hammered out between u.s. and with russia is being violated according to the pentagon because of ongoing operations by turkey so again another issue on result more points of tension but for the moment of both leaders appear to be saying that everything is fine. there are numerous points of tension including including anchor his purchase of russian military hardware at the end of the day dorian can this meeting between the turkish american leaders do anything really to overcome the major points of contention between the 2 countries briefly if you can. very well what's being said it doesn't appear to anything really has been changed other than they agree to carry on talking about it the key factor is has anything behind

closed doors being agreed has made some concessions to washington has washington given something in exchange to increase at the moment it's unclear whether the has been any progress but we should wait to see what happens in the coming days and weeks ahead but one is expected to speak to the russian president vladimir putin that will be a key point of conversation to this that if anything substantial has happened in washington because of the relations with the u.s. you also have to understand that moscow is in a cult and component in that relationship dorian thank you very much dorian jones there in istanbul. now to some of the other stories making headlines around the world today students from mainland china are leaving hong kong universities as violent protests affect campuses many courses have already been canceled protesters have continued to build barricades and disrupt public life demanding that hong kong remain independent of mainland china. australia's raging bushfires have claimed

another life bringing the death toll to 4 firefighters are struggling to contain dozens of blazes burning across the country's east coast a separate emergency warning has been issued for a fire threatening a city in western australia. new zealand lawmakers have voted in favor of legalizing euthanasia the final decision will now be put to the public in a referendum during the country's general election next year the bill allows for terminally ill patients to request a medically assisted death. palestinian militant group islamic jihad says a cease fire with israel has been reached in 2 days of fighting along the gaza border that killed at least $32.00 palestinians including a family of 6 the flare up and violence was triggered by the targeted killing on tuesday of a senior member of islamic jihad by israeli forces there is doubt over whether the truce has been holding with reports of 2 rockets fired into southern israel shortly

after the announcement for the very latest now let's cross over to our correspondent tanya kramer she's standing by for us in jerusalem tanya islamic jihad says a cease fire has been agreed with the israelis does not appear to be the case well reports have been coming out since to any morning. from east to which has usually taken the lead in a mediation and trying to deescalate in such situations and this cease fire should be in place since 5 30 am local time in the has been just shortly after what's some sporadic rockets fired into southern israel now these are any foreign minister has been quoted as saying that it's both meet quiet with quiet that it's not usual . offices such periods of escalation and we also understand from the

home from c'mon that they have lifted most of the restrictions on the areas surrounding the gaza strip it's just a few. hard since very close to gaza so that schools can be reopened and life can go back to normal that but having said that obviously. the coming out is a critical to see whether this will hold ok well this cease fire or at least a lawless the fighting follows 2 days of heavy fighting more about what's been going on there. well it all had been started in early tuesday morning. in a targeted killing i talked to. the heart and senior military commander now it's i mean how does a smaller very hard line militant group in gaza they vote immediately revenge

launching hours of rockets into many southern israel. further up north and it's also carried out many strikes in the gaza strip now what has been a bit different and this time is that it's about. a set that they're holding it islamic jihad responsible usually you know in statements you read that it's hamas to hold him responsible for anything coming out of gaza hamas is ruling the gaza strip this time to talk it was clearly the islamic jihad hamas had showed support of the group and showed solidarity but the reading here was that they really didn't join into the fighting and that obviously gave. egypt more leverage now for these mediation efforts so as to say that there was probably not really an interest within hamas but also not within this well to a further escalate the situation but of course it always remains very. truce or

cease fire tanya thank you very much for bringing us up to date w's tanya kramer in jerusalem. germany has narrowly avoided entering a technical recession the economy grew by 0 point one percent in the last quarter surprising a list suit expected stagnation the data just came through a short while ago there were fears that europe's economic engine was headed for a recession after roast slowed in the previous quarter exports reliant germany has struggled as a result of the u.s. china trade war and slowing global demand. chelsea villany is tracking the data from germany's financial center frankford for chelsea is is this reason to celebrate it's certainly relief that germany doesn't fall into a technical recession but this report really illustrates the sort of to me of

a mixed picture and the german economy in some aspects where it work could exports rose consumption was a big driver of growth in this quarter but they also mentioned a slowdown and manufacturing machinery and equipment investment and 0 point one percent growth is still quite low so i think there's been a lot of hope over the past couple of weeks that the german economy has been of tao and growth will can will rebound from sara but the prospects are mean quite low for a sustained a long. recovery and growth so germany has escaped recession by a whisker 0 point one percent growth really isn't much will the trade war that's going on particular between the u.s. and china continue to drag down europe's biggest economy. it's certainly arrest as we've seen over the past couple of days the u.s. and china continue to be sort of deadlocked in these trade negotiations and this is

been really harmful for germany's export sector but they're also dealing with other problems and the auto sector a global slowdown there and big investments in electric vehicles and this is it's going to remain a big drag on german growth if the u.s. and china are able to find common ground on these issues chelsea thank you very much that was chelsea lately there in frankfurt. some of the other stories making headlines day supporters of bet as well as opposition leader one occupied the country's embassy in brazil on wednesday the standoff ended after some 11 hours gado is recognized by the u.s. and brazil as venezuela's legitimate leader outside the embassy the risk of holes between his supporters and those of venezuelan president nicolas maduro. and at least a dozen people have been killed in a bus crash in the central european nation of slovakia 4 of the dead are reportedly

children the accident happened during rainy weather on a winding 2 lane road is prime minister has described it as a grave tragedy. around the planet climate change is having a huge impact not just on the environment but on human health according to a major new study released by the world health organization children are likely to suffer the worst effects d.w. science reporter derek williams explains. rising temperatures will have a major impact on agriculture and global yield potential for staple crops like maize and rice is already in decline if the downward trend continues while populations rise food prices will be driven up leading to more malnutrition among the world's poorest and in children that can affect development dramatically causing lifelong health problems. and climate change is closely tied to another

a key factor in child development air quality children born today will on average be breathing in more toxic air than their parents that will cause rates of respiratory diseases like asthma to rise and increase their long term risk of heart attack and stroke. the current generation will also experience more extreme weather related events than their parents the health of hundreds of millions of people worldwide has already affected by flooding heat waves droughts and wildfires if we aren't able to keep temperatures from rising under 2 degrees celsius tomorrow's children will be exposed to the hazards of extreme weather throughout their lifetimes. and as temperatures warm the conditions improve for diseases like dengue fever cholera and diarrheal infections the range from mosquitoes that carry viral pathogens is expanding and as their young immune systems haven't developed fully

children are much more likely to suffer later health issues or die if they contract those illnesses climate change is already having an effect on child health the report concludes and it will only get worse if the planet continues to warm up. you're watching still to come we meet the man creating a new generation of women logies for africa there's one for every day of the e.u. . the italian cabinet is set to declare a state of emergency in venice much of that historic city is under water after being swamped by the highest tide in half a century the mayor is blaming climate change prime minister just conte is called the flooding a blow to the heart of italy. alarm sounds throughout venice's historic center warning people to find higher ground to

escape one of the worst floods in decades high winds and rain caused the water level to surge to almost $0.19 a meters with waves crashing into buildings. mayor luigi berg nardo filmed himself at the famous scent marks square and blamed climate change for the extreme weather. some applies to all but after thousands of political forces we just can't wait unfortunately. we have reached a new negative record join the community we have to stand together against the effects of climate change and reform tide accusing ocean of that industry to the community. now it's all hands on deck to push stranded boats back into the water. larger vessels require more than manpower. tourists are taking raised

walkways to reach the city's famous sites including st mark's basilica. the basilica itself was flooded for only the 6th time and its 1200 year old history . workers are assessing the damage. there is plenty of anger here the more a system designed to protect venice from high water has faced constant delays on this sort of did she added for the movie they've been on it for 10 years but they've done nothing it's in total neglect it doesn't work and it's only $6000000.00 euros in italy unfortunately that's the way it is our politicians are all thieves we should all be in jail that i've been a bit peeved if god. has locals take in the aftermath city officials say the damage totals hundreds of millions of euros this as people prepare for yet more days of flooding. in moji these have changed the way we communicate sometimes an image without words is enough to get the message across

they're supposed to make up a universal language but emerges don't work for everyone let's meet the man who is giving the smartphone symbols a traditional african twist. i'm 22 years old and i'm studying computer graphic design i created the project the african image is. the idea came about because i wanted to design masks. nowadays we live in a modern way. and we tend to neglect the traditional aspects of our african culture masks languages and dance. from the beginning i wanted to promote mass because even if we evolve and we develop we shouldn't forget our traditional african culture it's part of us.

and. i take my inspiration from everyday life from what i know personally. and i research on google about african countries where i've never been. like gaba it's a dish that you find on the streets of abidjan. it's made from. cassava grains with fish and. eat it on the street and people love it because it suits you quickly it's cheap and it tastes good too. but i prefer food it's a dish that fills you up a bit more it's based on plan time bananas with arctic. design $365.00 emerges one for each day of the year. tennis now and stuff honest says he has secured a place in the final 4 of the a.t.p.

finals in london after a straight sets victory over german opponent alexander it's fair to have the 21 year old debutant is the 1st greek player ever to compete at the elite tournaments he took the 1st set $63.00 against better who is the defending champion 22 year olds fed up still has a chance to claim the group's final qualifying place on friday while suppose says next play is in saturday's semifinals after completing his 6362 victory. and just reminder the top stories we're following for you here today on the news the u.s. house of representatives has begun public hearings in the impeachment case against president lawmakers are considering whether trials of use his office by pressuring ukraine to investigate the family of his political rival. mayor bennis says the city is on its knees after the highest tide in more than 50 years brought heavy

flooding the prime minister has called it a blow to the heart of italy. and gaza's militant islamic jihad group has announced a cease fire after days of heavy fighting that killed at least $32.00 palestinians israel says it's holding fire for now and will answer quiet with quiet. coming up next focus on europe the stories on turkey france lithuania and britain and you can get all this news on our web site it d w dot com thanks for watching. it

. could. be. this republic is a digital lab lithuania and its 1000 sector. genius is a house for exciting new startups. young talents flocked to the capital of fallen festers fact new firms in the digital economy is flourishing. but will the

boom last. next on d w. n 2 conflicts with sebastian quick time running out cold brussels a muslim to get oppressive feel for you is planning to keep the flame on the britain before we go she ations fire my guest this week here in prague is the czech for melissa tomas petrusha he has surprisingly clear differences with the government too so so why doesn't he resign so far in 60 minutes d w. d t you know that 77 percent of black economy are younger than 6 o'clock. that's me and me and you. think you know what it's time all voices i

want to talk to the 77 percent talk about. my. front parlor t.v. 2 flashes from causing people to talk big is what. welcome to the 77 percent. this weekend d.w. . hello and a warm welcome to focus on europe i will are about below glad you could join us french cuisine is famous the world over so you may be surprised to hear that it's at the heart of a cultural war.