official of course has diplomatic immunity and so could not be arrested and what we do know is that the italian 4 minutes. to my has said that 2 officials at the russian embassy have now been expelled and the russian ambassador as you mentioned summoned to the talent foreign ministry here it broke as a result of what has happened the scene is there any indication what kind of documents were exchanged here well what we do know is what we're seeing in be tallied media reports and sun news agency saying that the documents related to military telecommunication whereas another news outlet korea dela said. their website saying that according to searches of papers that were found at the italian able offices for his flacks it appears that those documents could have been related to need to was secret so we don't have anything definitive as yet but that's what

we're hearing those documents could have been that were exchange for money in this meeting here in rome last night now the kremlin saying it doesn't have any information on the circumstances of the detention of that russian official and about reciprocal action what more can you tell us about that. well what we do know is that the russian embassy here has involvement of the military attack but they say they can't see very much else and we're also hearing reports that the kremlin has hope that this will not have any impact on ties between the 2 countries but they have to act in a recipe roekel manner so we still have to see what exactly that this mean when you expel 2 of officials from the embassy i'll be going to reciprocate the same way with your talent of the sea in moscow on top of that the italian foreign minister who you did my speaking in senate in the senate today essentially saying that this was an extremely serious hostile act and so it's he had no choice but to act

immediately to what they saw as a very as it's act of of espionage journalist seem a good speaking to us there from rome thank you so much. now germany is halting the use of astra zeneca corona virus vaccine for people under the age of 60 there is still the option to decide to take the shot but only after a medical consultation new concerns over unusual blood clots in a small number of patients led to the suspension. more bad news for germany's troubled vaccine rollout the government says it has made a tough but necessary decision. i believe that everything into account this is the path we need to follow in order to provide confidence in astra zeneca. earlier

berlin's shockey take a hospital decided as a precaution to halt vaccination of its staff members with astra zeneca a decision is expected in april over how to proceed with those who have already received their 1st dose. citizens can rely on the fact that substances permitted in germany are meticulously monitored the results are transparent and openly discussed. only those aged over 60 can now get the s. resent it has shot for people in berlin the decision has further erode its trust in the vaccine. as resent occur i'm not convinced at all there's been so much negative news. i don't know about astra zeneca i would consider it although there's been a back and forth now those over 60 can take it doesn't mean. i don't want that vaccine i have an issue with my lungs and i don't want that when i am waiting

until may 14th that's when i have my appointment for the biotech shot all i want to make any other vaccine is. this latest blow to germany's sluggish inoculation campaign follows new guidelines from the national vaccine commission. will learn from regulatory authorities that younger women but also men are suffering from severe cerebral varying thrombosis. have died from a constant. and the number exceeds what we would normally expect i thought age. we conclude that it has to be related to the vaccine therefore we have to act. without and most. has arguments that almost $4000000.00 those is a vast resent it will arrive in germany next month but another dent to public

confidence in the vaccine means using them up could prove difficult. let's bring in our chief political correspondent melinda crane for the latest on the story hi melinda what does this decision on astra zeneca mean for germany's efforts to get people vaccinated. it's another very disappointing turd in a vaccine rollout that was already lagging significantly behind other countries like great britain or the us up until the now only 11 percent of people here in germany have received even a 1st shot and in fact astra zeneca is a major linchpin of the german vaccination strategy because of ongoing shortages of other vaccines like biotech pfizer and low down s. so for example for the coming weeks tens of thousands of the point mets have been scheduled for astra zeneca vaccines for younger people teachers people with

preexisting conditions who are at real risk if they contract kuroda and presumably those appointments most likely won't go forward meaning that a number of people will remain at risk so it's a very real blow what about the effect this has on the public how does it influence people's trust in other vaccines as well. certainly likely to reduce trust in the as preventative vaccine and we have seen that in the past a few weeks ago germany and other european countries also suspended use of the ask the senate vaccine after the 1st reports. from those dissonant that a time trust here in germany plummeted when it came to ask presented about 55 percent of germans saying after that decision that they would not trust this vaccine that did not seem to have a spillover effect on other vaccines however and the chancellor pointed out in

making yesterday's decision that in fact the only way to ensure trust in vaccines overall. is to investigate every report of possible danger so clearly the authorities are hoping that this step will hope to maintain trust overall what about the option of stocking up for example other vaccines and how likely is it that you might then give approval to russia sputnik vaccine well certainly that has been under consideration the chancellor had a video conference yesterday with french president micro and russian president putin in which they talked about sputnik but the chancellor has made it clear that from her point of view a german order a sputnik be it could only go forward if the european medicines agency approves the vaccine they are currently reviewing it they're supposed to send observers to russia to look at production processes within the next month or so but it's going to take time to get that approval there are also plans to produce the back scene in

bavaria but again that wouldn't be until june or july the earliest our chief political correspondent linda crane thank you so much let's check in on some other developments in the pandemic china says there is no basis to accusations it did not share data with researchers looking into the origins of the virus the world health organization is accused of not giving its scientists full access to available information brazil has recorded another daily record in covert 90 deaths with 3780 people dying in 24 hours brazil currently accounts for around a quarter of all deaths worldwide on any given day and australia as a vaccine rollout has gotten off to a slow start authorities say the country is falling well short of its march targets only 16 percent of the target was met. massive protests wept garia last summer with thousands of people of all ages taking to the streets demanding the

resignation of conservative prime minister barak a body soft over corruption allegations but over a half a year since that body stuff remains in power and looks likely to win a 4th term in office our correspondent funny french are reports from sofia as fog area gears up for parliamentary elections this coming sunday april 4th this figure is turning heads in bulgaria's capital sofia a new opposition party called rise up out ridiculing prime minister self many here consider him in corrie gibli corrupt as does dimiter dimitroff an activist in his twenty's we meet him in front of bulgaria's problem in building which used to be the house of the communist party that iran is long gone but autocratic rule is still present he says fortunately is a cop heard state institutions and the people working inside them do not serve the interest of the citizens but the interests of. the oligarchs are all in this

demented joint thousands of others in nationwide and to government protests last year they took to the streets to express their frustration over politicians when rich themselves disregard the rule of law and protect the powerful tycoons at the center of the corruption allegations of head of the ruling party who survived the protests. and the protesters the protests then there are g. died of both the protest short europe and the world the real face of our prime minister who sleeves next to a pile of gold for hundreds of euro. on his bet now bulgaria is gearing up for an unprecedented election with new parties and alliances . but according to the polls all of them fall short of a parliamentary majority and then there is voter apathy only 45 percent of all

bulgarians who are eligible to vote have indicated their willingness to do so whom to vote for a debate over a cup of tea and a thomas they too called for the resignation of body and his cabinet last year they too dream change but there was no their act. it's like saying the whole lake for change is there but lake nothing immediate how. disappointing. and also people from the political parties go to. try to take a venture. off and his party get reelected they say they've considered leaving bulgaria for good the country has already seen many of its educated youth leave in the past and the method he says he wants to stay he decided to turn his anger into

politics and he's now running as a candidate for an opposition alliance called democratic area hoping to reenergize the protesters that no longer come to this square. let's check in on some other headlines now the european commission is referring poland to the e.u.'s top court over concerns about the rule of law and an alleged lack of judicial independence the case is part of a longstanding dispute between brussels and warsaw over democratic standards poland's government says the case has no legal or factual justification. divers in indonesia have recovered the cockpit voice recorder of a passenger plane that crashed into the sea in january all 62 people on board the air boeing jet were killed shortly after takeoff from jakarta a preliminary report found that the plane had problems with engine thrust. an international conference on aid for syrians facing extreme poverty has missed its target the virtual talk's raised 5 and

a half 1000000000 euro it was that is 3000000000 euros short of its goal the united nations says the coronavirus is making the situation in syria even worse. and in the us the minneapolis firefighter has testified on the 2nd day of the trial against eric shaaban the white former police officer accused of murdering george floyd the witness who was a bystander to shaaban kneeling on floyd's neck said she had been prevented from using her emergency medical training to help him personally. now to a woman who has placed a trail for people in germany's armed forces on a stasi of be fun was the 1st transgender commander in the german army the despair on the international transgender day of visibility her story shows how much has changed for gay entranced people pursuing a career in the military but it was a long and challenging road to acceptance. putting on makeup has become a part of her every day routine anastasio of the following is a lieutenant colonel in the german army and

a transgender woman. i am transgender and i decided 40 to actually leave my male life behind that doesn't realize that i was a woman it's just that was the point of my life or decided to actually move into that direction was consequently coming out as a transgender woman came after 20 years of military service to anastasio own surprise it wasn't a stumbling block in her career shortly after her sex change surgery she became a commander in charge of 700 soldiers sergeant major deep musher to met anastasio be following after her gender reassignment for him honest as he is just another fellow soldier. are the people who i just accept that people are the way they are and that goes beyond transgenderism i feel the same way about other more mundane things like what party they vote for what to make of car they like you just have to accept people the way they are the disease. that would be fun lived as

a man she led a seemingly ordinary life but says she felt tremendous emotional pain because she didn't feel comfortable in her body as a male. look for flight into into the world her probably helped. to perform to male standards my inner self was always. crying after that almost 20 years. i was at a point of my life where my emotional stability my motional well being well being. that i don't want to live this way anymore after 3 years as a commander honest career has taken off she is now the head of a division in the boom disappears cyber and information domain service. she is also making it her mission to stand up for transgender people in the german armed forces promoting diversity and tolerance. what

i know from my experience is what is definitely certain if you are true to yourself and live the way you are probably open you will have a better life i think my mom once said that she seems to be finally happy. let's get more on the story now with jessica stern she's the executive director at outright action international that is one of the oldest l.g.b. t.q. organizations fighting for equality around the world just got thank you for joining us we just saw a report that suggests some progress here in the german military but you've spoken about a growing backlash against france people even in countries that appear to have progressive policies for the trans community so can you tell us more about these developments. thank you for having me well the truth is there are more than 13 countries around the world that still have bans on so-called cross-dressing which basically makes it

impossible for transgender people to do everything in simple as go to work go to school without being deprived of truth they are in the past year where the whole world has been gripped by the pandemic there's actually been a concerted and series of attacks on transgender people in many countries around the world so for example in hungary and 2020 the government tried to pass a ban on legal gender recognition to stop trans people for from filing out locations to be seen before the law thankfully in march of this year the constitutional court ruled the ban unconstitutional but you can only imagine the kind of pressure that transgender people in hungary reading web right now in the united states there's been more than 8 states that have introduced bills seek interest to restrict trans related treatment for transgender youth there's been a constant attack on youth athletes who happen to be transgender and in the u.k.

there's been a political and or tour series of attacks on transgender people so yes a backlash is very much real people we mentioned the u.s. what about the new biden and ministration putting l g q rights high on the foreign policy agenda what does that mean in countries where trans people are facing that discrimination. i think that we need countries to show readership in affirming transgender rights and the messaging and the follow through from the biden administration has been very positive but we also know that the issue of transgender rights in the u.s. is being hotly debated and so we look to countries that have a longer history of cultural acceptance for transgender rights like in tunisia like pakistan and countries that have more formal legal equality for transgender people like argentina or mouth. or pakistan for example as kind years in

this area and countries that we should own up to and be as fired i just i want to ask you about a piece information that surprised me when i read it namely last year germany joined just 3 other countries worldwide to ban the practice of conversion therapy more countries are coming on board but how much progress do you see there i'm so glad you mentioned that example you know unfortunately at this point there are now only 5 countries in the whole world that an conversion therapy and conversion therapy is neither conversion nor therapy but torture. and so we really need to see progress from every country in the world on this issue so long as they're practices that are sanctioned by the state and by the medical community and that say it's ok to force people to undergo electroshock therapy you know forced prayer or starvation institutionalization because of who they are because of their gender

identity or expression no one can be free to be themselves so we need to see legal progress but we also need to see leadership from religious leaders saying we condemn these practices just very quickly jessica you know the pandemic has risk putting the cause of trance people on the backburner what is your organization doing to make sure that they're not being forgotten. i'm so glad you asked that one thing is for celebrating today the international day of transgender visibility we're also documented in the ways that there have been a series of backlashes against transportable in the context of the pandemic truly in every country in the world and we're also running in emergency firms to support l g b t i q organizations that really serve as essential workers and front line workers ensuring that transgender people don't slip through the cracks of the crisis and why is that so important well the truth is that a lot of the traditional public health measures used to respond to the pandemic

they've screwed up people so we think that funding in supporting grassroots elegy b.t.i. to organizations translate organizations is the way we're going to make everybody safer. jessica stern executive director at outright action international joining us thank you so much. my pleasure. that to a man who was taken on an unusual task to help those who are less fortunate british great grandfather john wilcock was inspired by the achievements of war veteran captain tom moore and football star marcus rushford the 89 year old recently put on his roller skates for the 1st time since he was a teenager to raise money for charity. it's been 70 years since the last skaters but john will talk has decided it's time to get his skates out once again. walking through the boring you're going to go and i saw this boy and his father's great growth great thing and i thought well that's the

thing to do along. with a stroller and i thought yes with more wives. i'll be able to skate. inspired by the fund raising efforts of r e f a veteran so tom moore an english football and marcus rushford john will cut plans to skate 90 laps of his courtyard by his 90th birthday next year. if i do through the really. annoying. despite describing his court yard route as a bit hairy due to its slopes he has already completed 8 laps the great grandfather is doing it all to raise money for the charity fair share which helps feed hungry children and their families it's really quite endearing and a bit humbling in a way i only women have to feel a bit like a real grown. up with them both and the people who go and they are the real heroes

. i mean what i was doing using his wife's roller frame john wilcox has already smashed his initial fundraising target with 9 months to go. let's get a reminder now of our top stories on g.w. italy has expelled 2 russian diplomats after an italian navy captain was allegedly caught red handed selling secret documents to a russian official the kremlin says it hopes bilateral ties will not be damaged if there. and germany is holding the use of astra zeneca corona virus vaccine for people under the age of 60 that's after new concerns over unusual blood clots in a small number of patients. coming up next on news asia on international transgender day we had to pop a stop to see the country's 1st school for muslim transgender worshippers. and we meet a woman breaking boundaries in bangladesh by becoming the country's 1st ever transgender

news a. list of channels those stories and more coming right up on d w news asia state.

listen carefully. to suit your needs to get. better. discover the. above.

subscribe to the documentary on you tube. 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 cullison. the race begins who can create the tallest biggest most. obscure masons builders and architects compete with each other to listen to carjack subsists

is how massive churches with towers that pierced the close like skyscrapers are created the be. calm. most of the coffee drinkers. people 12 d w. you're watching t w news coming up today the global transgender community comes together in solidarity and support on this international transgender date of the civility we started pakistan and in special school for muslim transgender worshippers unlike anything else in the country. plus we need a transgender news anchor in bangladesh who has helped to redefine.