the next 10 weeks will be the most difficult. and. there will be a 3rd wave the question is how high it will be. and everyone who is dealing with this is war and about how much higher than the current peak it will climb. the number of new infections might last be leveling out to people in mice and what answers from their late is they just come to agree there were no clear rules no one is going outside anymore people are infecting their own families some people are following all the rules and others a coming up with their own theories they say there is no corona virus. but every day there are more coffins in the criminal containing the bodies of covered $9000.00 victims. let's get more now from the terrorists are a bit of the world health organization as we've just heard a coronavirus faith is in germany and many other countries around the world are continuing to rise why are we seeing these numbers just fight stricter lockdown

measures. last week has seen the highest on record number of coded 1000 cases reported to w.h.o. would more than 4600000 newly infected people and over 78000 deaths and your report just reminds us in agreeing way to told you so far as is taking on our society so it is. 'd it is up to us to do everything we can to try to stop this virus to suppress it as much as we can as we are hearing some of the positive news about talk scenes and countries a stocking to to vaccinate people we have to understand that we are still not there it will take time and we need to do everything we can to try really to slow down to the progression of the virus now i understand that the w.h.o.

has been meeting to discuss the new a covert variants that emerged in britain what has been agreed to to counteract. well we are in contact with colleagues from different countries that are doing genetic sequencing and looking into all the mutations of the virus so we have a specific scientific group that is looking over over over time if a virus is changing or i'll change is on normal and expected but what our colleagues from u.k. have reported is there is a mutation that it said quite significant and may result in an increase transmissibility over to virus for the dime being we don't have any evidence that the virus is causing to more severe disease or has a negative impact on marked ality we still have to do many studies to see if the vaccines that are currently being developed and being rolled out to also efficient against that. just this new variant of but it is it is again

something that we are looking at and working with the scientific community around the world to try to find answers not only answers but also solutions which are this is a variance that dates back to september i can you tell us the when the british authorities informs the w.h.o. about it. well information came on december 14th. and and we have been since then in a constant contact. but also with other countries really trying to understand decent new variant as i said mutational virus or courier in any battle journey and this is normal but this time around it seems that it changes on more significant we should also note that south africa has also reported a significant change that is unrelated to do swan from the u.k.

it takes time it takes time to to to to study these the changes it has to be looked at carefully and for death sometimes some of the research takes time but. we have set up as i said to the specific group that is looking into evolution of the virus and we are looking into it to be a just as person a tag as a red ravitch thank you very much. and here's a look now at some of the other developments in the pandemic drug makers a biotech and pfizer are to supply the united states with an extra $100000000.00 doses of their current virus vaccine the u.s. government is hoping to immunize 20000000 people this month france meanwhile has lifted its blockade against truck drivers returning from the united kingdom provided they test negative for cocaine 19 britain says it could take up to 3 days to process the backlog and united arab emirates highest islamic authority has ruled that vaccines are acceptable even if they contain pork gelatin there are fears that

some muslims might have avoided the shot because pigs are considered unclean and covert 1000 has now reached all the way to end arctica says at least a 36 people have been infected at the bernardo o'higgins research station following an outbreak earlier this month an ounce mintz means the pandemic has now reached every continent. antarctica one of the last truly pristine places on earth several nations maintain research centers here chile's been outer higgins bases permanently staffed and run by its military until now research is on the continent thought they had largely escaped the coronavirus pandemic then in chile's military and the 1st cases. of their p.c. artists showed that 36 men tested positive for covert 19 of which 26 were army personnel and 10 were civilians from a contracting company doing shades of maintenance work. army officials

confirmed another 21 people aboard a navy supply ship had been infected and one more case was detected at the nearby research village where the navy ship had docked surrounded by icebergs and oceans the research stations here are some of the most remote on the planet. the arrival of the virus is concerning doctors they fear it could be much more dangerous in such harsh conditions. i mean. we know that exposure to extreme weather affects a person's physiology but when we find solutions to change in seasonal lives with that seasonal sensitivity can also be immunosuppressive we know there are several components that may further affect people and lower their immune systems in extreme conditions especially with the work they do there. but so far none of the infected a said to be experiencing serious complications. and with no other countries having

reported any cases there is hope that the outbreak could be containable. to turkey now where a court has sentenced one of the country's most well known journalists to more than 27 years in jail on espionage and terror related charges in connection with his reporting the charges against john and center on a 2015 article he wrote for the opposition newspaper john kerry at where he was editor in chief he presented compelling evidence that turkey's intelligence service illegally sent a weapons to syria chant and are fled to germany 4 years ago and will likely not serve and if the sentence. let's get more now from date of his adoring and jones in istanbul story and it's in at 27 years in jail a what do you make of the sentence. well it certainly the severity of the

sentence will come as a shock given that the report which is the center of this trial had been widely reported across social media but having said that given the protest president regev type head of the verdict and walnuts and his newspaper will be heavily punished for the reporting it will not come as a surprise and this is also given the fact that he is facing increasing the severe sentences handing out poor reporting by journalists and also freedom of speech the kurdish member of parliament ben this mom was sentenced to $22.00 gasing jail for speech ek but that this latest sentencing is will be a chilling reminder to independent reporting in turkey carries the minimal risk for someone on the line by the committee for protection of journalists which rank turkey is the 2nd worst jail in the world for journalists with 37 reporters in jail now is this the end of the line for the journalist or can his lawyers appeal

well the lawyers can appeal this but it's unclear what they will do they in fact boycotted the the verdict hearing saying that the trial was a sham they said that they had already been reached before the cases even started but that the appeal option is open but it will open the door to possible tensions between on crumble and hunger will likely press for the extradition. of spatially is doing is running a media operation into turkey with newspaper internet radio and a web page and turkey will accept people like that have been very critical of germany they say are harboring people who are accused of being convicted of terrorists offenses they touched on this but how will this sentencing a fact turkey's relations with its allies. well it's certainly likely to give a tension between turkey and the european union yesterday the european court of human rights called for the immediate release of the former leader of turkey's main

kurdish party selatan democrats saying that he should be released from jail without delay president one dismissed that saying that they are not bound by the rulings of the european court and accuse them of always siding with what he said are terrorists attacking turkey but beyond that this will lead to further demands within the european union for tougher action to be taken to take against turkey it is growing concern over the judiciary and what they are opponents and critics said is being used to silence opponents of the government and on top of that there is possible further pressure from the incoming president joseph biden of the united states has been very critical of turkey's human rights record so turkey faces a an envelope visitation going forward in the next year both for the european union and washington going up against turkey and calling for of reforms right i am joined in istanbul thank you very much for your reporting. and let's take a look now at some of the other stories making headlines

a huge fire has broken out in a migrant center housing around that's housing around 1200 people in a bosnia local media reports say the fire began in the section of the lipa camp near the croatian border where oil and generators are also stored it's not yet known whether there are any casualties. u.s. president donald trump has announced a wave of pardons including for 4 former government contractors convicted of killing unarmed iraqi civilians trying to also pardoned former republican congressman a found guilty of corruption and if former campaign aide convicted of lying under oath during the investigation into russian meddling in 2016 election. french authorities say 3 police officers were shot to death and a 4th of whom did which in the central created job region man opened fire at officers who are responding to a domestic violence. the suspect was later found dead. now to

a diplomatic route between germany and china after germany's ambassador to the united nations openly criticized beijing for human let me have my turn here and the security council by appealing to my chinese colleagues tries to drink for the release of my getting my kids favor christmas is the right moment to jester and that was the german ambassador and here is how china as a security council representative replied. should know by now wish to say something from the bottom of my heart good riddance ambassador hudson or should i say farewell i hope without you the council will be in a better position to maintain international peace and security next year so. for more let's bring in and ask nick from a chancellor angela merkel's a c.d.u. party he is a member of the german parliament foreign affairs committee welcome what is your reaction to that good of the radiance comments well i have 1st have to say we are

very proud of. the horse ringback and. the. mission in new york for the accomplishments of 2 years in the u.n. security council i think we are not in this up in the council to make also popular autocrats 'd and human rights violators 'd around the world it is our road to be outspoken when it comes to. compliance with international rule of law and with human rights and i think that is what we have done what we've been doing and because the host said it is they that we will continue to call a spade a spade alright and is this just a diplomatic spat or is this going to have a serious impact on relations between china and germany. i think we see a more aggressive behavior by 'd russia and china 'd if you look at the willingness of the chinese government to leverage economic relationship with regard to

disagreements on policy issues with a country like australia most recently i think we should be prepared for some. more difficult environment in this regard but i think this is also a preparation by russia and china for the upcoming return of the united states as a meaningful act in the context of the u.n. and the u.n. security council this is more going into. we call politics because in a 19th century style even more so important that middle powers like germany or european partners like partners in the alliance for multilateralism ensure that the rule of law and basic principles are upheld in the united nations and around the world as this institution would otherwise lose its legitimacy they have to say that some critics have said that germany's economic ties to china have meant that it treads a lightly on human rights what was it about this particular moment that led the

german ambassador to speak up at the un security council. i think we have been outspoken on a number of issues over the 2 years. it was the. message of christopher. was that of of the security council as our church and now we reapply for $2728.00. i think we will we will be seeing that ringback especially redefining the u.s. china relationship is one of the core issues for international relations in the next 20 years and we will see some realignment in this regard i always argue against coupling 'd economies that is realistic doesn't work for so those were for europe doesn't work for the united states but that we will have to be more vigilant. and resilient in terms of the leverage of

economic and. other means of power in this relationship that's that's a phrase that i think that's what we are all i right thank you very much andrea snake a member of the german parliament fine affairs committee. the u.n. is urging the central african republic to hold elections as plans this weekend despite an upsurge in violence armed groups linked to a former president are suspected of trying to stage a coup authorities insist the situation is now under control but some opposition parties want the poll to be postponed. these people will not be deterred. they come to register and are determined to vote on sunday their hope is that this will at last and the violence and bring change to that country. sriracha of the rebel i'm sure that i will vote. i know the vote will take place and that's a good thing for me. and a good thing for the country. over. the frontrunner in the poll is

incumbent president to our dara he to say the vote must go ahead on sunday and that any disagreements between opposing groups should be resolved by peaceful means. keep that seat must we take up arms to resolve problems must we take up arms to get into power i don't think so we have institutions of the republic that are in place we have institutions born out of the bondi forum which operational today. if you should. only of this week the president asked russia and rwanda to send troops to help the existing u.n. force the more than 12000 soldiers to put down what looked like an armed rebellion in the run up to the pole foster it is accuse former president francois of orchestrating the rebellion after he was barred from standing in the sunday's election because he's a him self ousted in 2013 denies the allegations. but for the people in the central

african republic this is just the latest chapter in a tit for tat ethnic and religious violence that has been flaring sporadically for nearly 2 decades one most view as a vicious circle. is going to the more good will can you really develop a country through war. in my opinion you know if there are problems let's sit around a table and discuss it well it was and in the negotiations of course each party agrees to win and also to lose it was a divide. the hope among the majority here and the international community is that such reason will prevail this weekend. and west africa as a whole region has been has by heavy rains and floods in recent months resulting in damage highlights the impacts of climate change but the downpours did offer some rest fight for herders in senegal they have suffered for years as temperatures increase and food and water become more difficult to find. life is

hard for her to such as far a sound senegal. his existence and that of his life stuck under increasing threat from drought. over the last 6 years the dry season has become longer and harder. but this year there was an exception that changed the situation. man on oregon and last year during the same period grass was already drawn by and there was not a lot of it now the grass is still green the last train was only a month ago which means this year it's much better than you were. warned. large parts of west africa have been hit by heavy rains in the last few months in some places they cause catastrophic flooding and a fuel to fears about extreme weather and climate change. but one upside for senegal's herders has been the growth of the fittest education in years. the direct one runs in the north sea the heavy rains of allowed certain plants to start

flourishing again. and that the cattle and sheep are at their fattest in recent memory. you see the good body mass due to the high volume of grazing. but most believe the good fortune will be short lived this year's rains were unusual and the unpredictability of the weather makes it impossible to plan and it's even causing some to rethink their lives as herders. in the arctic or god is making human beings face an existential crisis. we don't know what tomorrow will be made of the fears are real we have not experienced such heavy rainfall in more than 30 years. the more years he has rainy seasons lasted for 2 months which is too short for wintering but god decides. so while this year may have offered a brief response for her days the future of this traditional activity remains

uncertain. in the u.s. a capitol the washington national cathedral is all aflutter with a flock of 2000 origami dogs and jobs are a common motif around christmas time but this installation is more than just a holiday decoration. white dogs a symbol of peace and freedom the dog is also the messenger the dean of washington national cathedral hopes the message here can be one of transformation. it's a thing of beauty and a thing of hope the thing that points to a future that's coming when we're no longer dominated by this pandemic this place is a place of beauty anyway but. during this difficult time is just a wonderful addition to the installation may be timely but the fluck created by

german artist michel pandering has already appeared in cathedrals across the world over the past 6 years it's called long meaning the dogs. it's been to jerusalem it's been to munich it's been to new york it's been to san francisco it's been to london souls because. in and so these stars literally come from all over the world from all different countries from different people different religions that idea behind it so another meaning like the 3 largest growing. look around is a multisensory exhibition that explores the white birds as an ongoing symbol of the spirit how that changed and what it means for us today the concept of the exhibition is one if unity. and i started to involve people and unfolding dollars all of this space and in bars and restaurants where when we were falling does that this is a really none of those dollars are the same they're all individual differences even though they. look from you have a look the same but they will. go currently closed but will remain

a feature of the washington cathedral till my. behind me you can see a last minute gift idea that my posts into this coronavirus christmas a goldsmith in turkey is selling a facemask plated in and goals as you might expect they aren't cheap the 82 carat gold model costs more than 2000 euros for a cheaper option you can also go for a silver mask that costs only 200 euros but the craftsman behind the classy face coverings it says of the coming of coke in 1000 vaccine is more precious than his silver and gold masks. it seems that they have this hour coming up next is our business magazine it made in germany i'm claire richardson in berlin for me thanks so much for watching.

it's taking lives in more areas of society. artificial intelligence. gaps and. worse health. even eternal life to start to be possible. tech change a gigantic future markets but what are the limits. in germany. where the real power resides. when i come from there are lots of people in fact more than a 1000000000 if you but the largest democracy give me that's one reason why i'm passionate about people and aspirations and it concerns. the television reporters

tried to influence onto the floor of the sun in one i remember thinking at that time because of bali unbroken for what anything can happen if people come together and unite for a pool. but i do the news that often confronted difficult situations more conflict between design still i see despite my job to confront a good leader as on policies and development to put the spotlight on issues that matter most hunger food security oppression martian isolation. or not has been achieved so much more needs to be done and i think people have to be accountable solutions my name is on the chief and i work at g.w. .

how much do you like your job and what does a computer could do the work for you and learn as it goes along so that it improves while on the job what impact will that have on your working and your private life artificial intelligence opportunity or threat that's our topic this week i'm bad i'm chris colfer welcome.