this is g.w. news live from berlin tonight europe finding a 3rd wave of the corona virus pandemic but minus one major vaccine germany italy france and spain have joined a growing list of countries suspending use of the astra zeneca back scene over blood workers but medical regulators in the w.h.o. insist the vaccine is safe also coming up a punishing defeat and a warning for germany's ruling conservatives say stronger medical c.d.u. suffers big losses into keep regional elections party leaders call it

a wake up call ahead of federal elections this coming september and international condemnation of mean mars military following sunday's violence and young dawn tonight the army has imposed martial law in parts of the city. plus the missing things of syria's revolution. i mean. you heard this from hospice she was kidnapped by armed men 7 years ago and is still visiting u.w. news retraces the steps that she made before she disappeared. i'm off to our viewers on p.b.s. in the united states into all of you around the world welcome to in the race to vaccinate to this is not what europe needs now. now nearly

a dozen countries including germany france italy and spain have suspended use of the astra zeneca corona virus vaccine over fears the shots could cause blood clots however both the european medicines agency and the world health organization say there is no evidence linking the vaccine to clotting problems. another setback in an already troubled vaccination campaign germany france italy and spain became the latest european countries to stop administering the astra zeneca vaccine over fears it causes blood clots fatone in stuff to keep up confidence in this vaccine we now have to give our experts in germany and the european union time to review these recent cases they must also clarify the question of whether the benefits of vaccination continue to outweigh possible risks says that's mukesh or is it and i know it's clickers one thing is clear not vaccinating also has serious health implications and that review process is what

we're waiting on now. french president manuel mccall said his government would await a statement by the european medicines agency due on tuesday before deciding if the vaccine is put back into use. it is you know he ate the piece on the decision that was taken in accordance with our european policy is to suspend the astra zeneca vaccination as a precautionary measure i think in the hope that it will be resumed quickly if the european medicines agency allows it see livy. the e m a only last week declared that there are no indications that people who have received the astra zeneca vaccine are more likely to develop blood clots british prime minister boris johnson who is quick to dismiss concerns over a vaccine that has already been administered to over 11000000 people in the u.k. . we have one of the toughest and most experienced regulators in the world

they see no reason to discontinue the back nation program and they are but if any of the vaccines that we're currently using either of that seems that we are currently using the u.k. vaccination drive is racing ahead of the e.u. efforts to inoculate its population against covert 19 with an increasing number of european countries putting their astra zeneca vaccinations on hold that lead is likely to grow. or is for more now i'm told by our political correspondent so i mean young need to you saw in me the timing of this could not be worse health significant is this decision. well i think the german government's decision to suspend the astra zeneca vaccine potentially really is a major setback for the vaccination program here and could really slow things down and of course germany's vaccination campaign has been criticized for being slow and the government says it's about making sure doing the checks and in that way

potentially increasing public confidence but i think this is another example of germany's cautious approach on vaccination they are being cautious as 1600000 people in germany have been vaccinated with the ask astra zeneca substance and there's just been 7 cases of problems there what they're worried about as you mentioned is blood clots of but it's not clear whether they've got anything to do with the vaccine they might they might not have the government says well look in that case let's just check it but a lot of politicians are saying well you know maybe we could check it and at the same time continue with the vaccination because it's really important that people get vaccinated yeah i mean at the moment germany is down one major vaccine in this fight against the pandemic so how is this going to affect the vaccination program going forward well the vaccination rollout is being done here by the regional

states so they suspended that for now it's not being distributed around the country they say they're hoping for the european medicines agency to carry out these checks and maybe make its results known within the next few days and it's very much hope they do that one problem that arises what about people who've already had one dose of astra zeneca will they get a 2nd dose of a different vaccine that could be a problem because those other vaccines are in short supply of course and also after a story like this it's hard to see people really developing full confidence in astra zeneca and that may be a real problem in the months ahead that's right public trust is definitely a problem now some young workforce in berlin simon thank you. i have more i want to bring in dr who has shown ray she's the deputy director of the institute of viral logy at the charedi hospital here in berlin dr it's good to have you on the program but what do you make of this decision to suspend the use of the astra zeneca vaccine 1st of all as pointed out in the trade.

because in every measure but if you look closely at the numbers of these so-called side effects. those. events that have been. then you will realize that there is no i have frequency of those. effects in the vaccinated population in comparison to sos that has not been vaccinated that means says most likely at temporal the link but not causal connection between both busy. events so why suspend use of the vaccine then. it's as i say it's a precautionary measure so there have been reports that 2 of the polish institute

for example interim an e that brought a blood clotting in brain vessels has been observed and so they have to a number i said and say do it very fast shoot it do it very fast because it's not like snape means as you already also have a set that people are dying 19 so it's very important 'd to rate very fast and to receive defects in nation broke from as soon as possible as far as. that if things are about 50 cases of blood clotting has been observed in about 5000000 vets unease and that is not more frequent blood clotting then sefton those tests not receipts of that scene so there is no step just a few moments to support caution will relationship or doctor do you think this is

good public health policy then because regardless of whether or not there is a danger here the fact that the use of the vaccine the fact that it has been suspended that is going to put doubt in the mind of the public they're not going to trust this vaccine like they did yesterday is that good public health policy. that is absolutely true it's not good for the reputation of that scene because anybody just end it at that scene has been disputed before if you remember the discussion about the age group of buff 65 so this t. grew as it would call into to declare that there is not enough data to recommend us as a nigga but it seems for those individuals now there is enough data and this deep rule also recommends. that seems a lot of those older than $65.00 budgets it's a mechanism it's

a mechanism an automatic mechanism that tests to to work once there are reports of 'd the call it from acoustic events serious ciphers since they have to look at that and several they have to pause but i hope as i said that they receive him very soon and that's a nation come pain and that within a few days i will because it's so important that you have respect seeing you know let's hope that that indeed is the case dr with this aren't a hospital here in berlin doctors always we appreciate your time in your insights tonight thank you it's a pleasure let's get some of the other developments on the pandemic now the developers of russia's sputnik the vaccine say that companies in germany france italy and spain have agreed to help manufacture the vaccine i.c.u. doctors here in germany are urging an immediate return to

a partial lockdown because of $1000.00 new taisha and germany have seen a rise in infection since gradually easing measures late last month and half of italy is under a strict lockdown tonight because of a new spike in corona virus infections hospitals say they are overwhelmed by new admissions. as take a look now at some of the other stories that are making headlines around the world the european union has launched legal action against the u.k. over an alleged breach of the northern ireland protocol the protocol is a major part of the bronx it deal which is intended to avoid a hard border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland the vatican has ruled that the catholic church cannot bless same sex unions explaining that god quote cannot bless since the vatican's orthodoxy office was responding to a question about whether catholic clergy have the authority to bless gay unions

pope francis approved the response the official instagram account of kremlin critic alexina valmiki has posted the 1st photo of him since he began his 2 and a half year prison sentence shown with a shaven head nepali writes that he's serving his jail sentence at penal colony number 2 in poco 100 kilometers north of moscow he describes it as a quote real concentration camp. voters here in germany have handed chancellor angela merkel's ruling conservatives a stinging defeat in 2 regional elections on sunday voters in the south and west of the country turned their backs on merkel's c.d.u. party in record numbers. germany's super election year began badly for chancellor merkel's conservatives into regional elections they significantly lost support among voters the c.d.u. is in crisis one day later in berlin the frustration was crystal clear among the

party leadership is going of a clip and we can clearly say that the regional election results are disappointing for the c.d.u. tosha and and i think any election result is always a wake up call anyone who doesn't take note of election results who simply ignores them has simply not understood the meaning of an election. the c.d.u. was probably punished by voters for the painfully slow coronavirus vaccine rollout nationwide. a facemask procurement scandal involving conservative lawmakers only made things worse but one party's loss is another party's gain after winning the election in the wealthy state of botton rittenberg the greens were in triumphant mode on monday in schism overall we see that momentum for the greens continues we're starting the super election year strongly. the trend of recent years is also being borne out in 2021 in cycles and i know it's fun says similarly the social

democrats were eager to highlight their victory in the state of rhineland collapse in 8 does this election result especially in rhineland poll out tonight is giving a goose to the social democratic party as a whole and in all food we want to use the upswing to help ensure that we can lead a future federal government can provide the german chancellor incomes that will miss the big thoughts from stan the 2 original votes are not necessarily a preview of what will happen in september when all germans go to the polls but they do provide clues about what voters throughout the country want what problems they see what parties they like and about what coalitions might be possible at a federal level for the c.d.u. in particular they're also a stark warning they have 6 months to recover before their biggest challenge whether they can hold on to power without on the america. where you're watching news still to come. title race will show you

what went wrong that's coming up in just a. me and maher security forces have again fired on pro-democracy protesters at least 6 people were reportedly killed it comes a day after dozens of activists were shot dead in the country's largest city young gone the state broadcaster says that the military has now imposed martial law on 6 districts in the city the u.n. says at least 138 people have been killed in the unrest since the military seized power on february 1st was deadly clashes continued into the night as fires burned in the streets and smoke mixed with tear gas. from a monitor groups report that over 40 people died from sunday into monday morning the bloodiest day of protests against the coup so far. on the outskirts of yangon

unidentified attackers set fire to chinese own factories reportedly wounding multiple employees many pro-democracy protesters accuse china of secretly supporting 2 leaders. the chinese embassy in myanmar issued a statement saying china urges me and mark to take further effective measures to stop all acts of violence punish the perpetrators in accordance with the law and ensure the safety of life and property of chinese companies and personnel in myanmar me on mars military shows no signs of easing the crackdowns the military declared martial law and several large districts of yangon and mandalay the country's 2 largest cities but protesters are not relenting in mandalay hundreds return to the streets on monday morning to call for the release of aung sun suu chee and other civilian leaders arrested at the start of the coup de a court hearing was scheduled for sujit today but her lawyer reported it was postponed me and maurice deposed leader is now expecting her next hearing on march

24th. it has been 10 years since the arab spring erupted in syria when hundreds of them. people took to the streets to demand human rights and democracy president bashar al assad responded with a brutal crackdown triggering a war that cost thousands of lives in has still not been resolved the united nations says that more than half of the country's pre-war population is either internally displaced or live as refugees mainly in the middle east and here in europe today in the remaining opposition stronghold of thousands who came out to commemorate the decade of resistance against assad. and as part of our coverage of the 10th anniversary of the start of the syrian protests we are shining a light on one of the most prominent figures of its pro-democracy movement a woman who was kidnapped by armed men in 2013 and whose fate remains unclear the w.'s investigative unit has been retracing her steps my name is as i say from

here as i was from the us this. when protests erupted across syria and mocks 2011 rights activists streisand said to me was on the frontline she was key to revolutionary efforts across the country beside a close friend smiles and now we see. we meet the human rights lawyer in paris. be that even in the home but as for me the most important aspect of president's personality is a rejection of injustice and willingness to do anything to fight injustice be listen how to pulls along. when the s.x. regime responded with a bloody crackdown arresting thousands of activists reza make sure the world witnessed. she became a key source she had this sort of softness almost frailty to her when you met her

at the beginning and you like how she doing this very dangerous job. and then as soon as you spoke to her you immediately discovered the sort of steely courage and principles. in 2013 resin fledge regime had to mask this for duma a town that would later be dominated by the hardline militant group jaish and the slow. present launched women's initiatives for for the rule of law and documented human rights abuses including those committed by armed rebels. all that made her and petted her for jaish al islam to its control to its ideology and its desire to establish an emirate or caliphate. rather than was targeted several times the bullet left at her doorstep and none of this letter obtained by d.w. threatening her life the words i will kill you repeated 5 times

a trusted confidant not even who are asked to leave duma she responded the next day saying i am not going to move we did not do a revolution lose thousands of swords so that such monsters can come and repeat the same in just history. these people need to be held to account just like the regime . on december 9th 20 searchin armed men stormed her office they abducted resign together with her husband and 2 fellow activists after years of investigation human rights lawyer wish and his team are confident that jaish al islam are responsible they gave his exclusive access to their findings. a little additional witness statements we collected in syria and turkey corroborate that reson was held by the islamists before the trail goes cold. we've confronted high ranking members of jaish al islam but they strongly denied any involvement in the attacks however the

judicial investigation is underway by the french war crimes unit here in paris and a former top official of the group has already been arrested in connection with the case martin darwish hopes that the investigation of the finally bring clarity for him presence absence is reminiscent of the pro-democracy movement in syria. the fate of rozanne and her colleagues resembles that of the civil peaceful movement that tried to create a moral eternity for syria with. there were crushed between the regime and these islamist groups in tibet in the end terry and as well as. the. 8 years after iran and her colleagues disappeared their fate remains one of the great mysteries of the revolution but friends and relatives have not given up hope that one day they will know the truth. and will have more on the fate of result

series coming up on the day after this broadcast or let's take a look now at some of the other stories that are making headlines around the world the nigerian authorities have confirmed that no schoolchildren are missing in the northwestern region of following fears that they have been kidnapped however 3 of their teachers. are still yet to be located armed men also attempted to have ducked college students in the same region over the weekend opposition activists and musician bobby wine has a restaurant was arrested monday during a protest in the ugandan capital kampala wind was leading a rally against the detention of his supporters when he was seized by the authorities he's now reported to be under guard at his home. the images are almost apocalyptic the skyline of beijing engulfed in seemingly a race to win the worst sandstorm in a decade collided with a near record levels of air pollution in the city now blowing in from the gobi

desert the storm choked every day life in the city hundreds of flights were canceled and commuters made their way to work through what some describe as the landscape at the end of the world. thick clouds of sand and yellows small get enveloping downtown beijing. the land buck headquarters of the state broadcast to c.c.t.v. shrouded in the gloom residence of the chinese capital one hoping that sandstorms were a thing of the past thanks to extensive planting of protective trees and pushes but atmospheric pollution from the biggest sand clouds in 10 years has not reached has a displeasure. right now it looks like the end of the world in this weather i don't really want to be outside. there it feels like a science fiction movie. about. that this is nature in the face

of nature human beings are truly tiny and powerless that we must do what we can to protect the environment. the sand has blown in from remote areas of china's neighbor mongolia where several people have been killed by the storm china has managed to cut some pollution levels and the government says it aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 but greenpeace says an upsurge in industrial production as the pandemic subsides is adding to the fallout from the sandstorm. are 2 german bonus league soccer now where whites it is the only club with a chance denying byron munich a 9th consecutive title win likes it was hoping for a win at home against frankfurt but they only managed to draw what was their 2nd set back in recent days. after they were dumped out of the champions league by

liverpool in midweek leipzig were hoping to avoid the dreaded european hangover and rack up yet another been does legal win to keep their title challenge on track after a goalless 1st half the hosts got off to a flyer in the 2nd annual forsberg meeting one mil. the swedes 6th of the season made him the club's joint top scorer of a strangely modest campaign in front of goal. plate 6 title push has been built on defense that ship the fewest goals of any been to sleep a say going into this one but frankfurt phoned away through. japanese international daiichi come out of meeting $11.00 just after the hour mark. might sit down had the best chance to win the match on 67 minutes but evelyn and dickau showed that frankfurt olsen with tickets to the defending the use of cool seems dismayed. when one it finished like 6 winning run is over coach. will hope that their championship chances haven't disappeared with it. so well in sunday's late game stuttgart gave

their european ambitions a boost with a win over a visiting team whole thing high the host took the lead after 15 minutes as the unfortunate cutscene adams turned the ball into his own net and sasha colleague it's a scary teed stuttgart victory in the 2nd half scoring for his 7th game in a row to equal the club record should gartner now just 4 points away from the european qualification places. are some big news from bucks for boxing fans anthony joshua and tyson fury are to clash for the title of undisputed heavyweight world champion after they signed a 2 fight deal that's according to joshua's promoter joshua's 3 titles the w b a i b.f. and w b o n fury's w.b.c. will be on the line in the fights which are set to make the 2 british boxers nearly $140000000.00 each joshua's camp set

a venue is likely to be confirmed within the next march. you're watching e.w. news after a short break i'll be back to take you through the day tonight europe fighting the pandemic minus one major vaccine and what 10 years of war have done to syria and its people will be right back.

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how will climate change affect us and our children die. and e.w. dot com slash water. more than 1000 years ago europe witnesses a huge construction boom. with christianity firmly established there is a greater demand for houses of worship. and both religious and secular leaders are eager to display their power so churches become palaces. race begins who can create the tallest biggest most beautiful structure. stone masons builders and architects compete with each other to different projects . this is home massive churches it's

towers that pierce the clouds like skyscrapers or create a. contest of the cathedrals starts people 12th d.w. . one year ago italy became the 1st european country to impose a coronavirus walked out today italy's started shutting down yet again new cases are climbing hospitals are filling up a 3rd wave is hitting europe and the timing could not be worse with vaccination roll well it's across europe already stubbornly slow today more in you country suspended use of the astra zeneca vaccine over blood clot worries europeans have an abundance of caution tonight what they need more an abundance of shots in the arms .