the news this is the to be a news coming to you live from berlin, transferred back, we'll visit the german towns devastated by floods and promises financial aid. but those left homeless or worried may not be enough. also coming up, governments allegedly spying on journalists, activists, and lawyers and investigation funds up to 50000 phone numbers may have been targeted with malware plus england ditches nearly all remaining credit virus restrictions. welcomed by party goers. the critics say the so called freedom day is

putting lives at risk. ah hello, i'm terry martin. good to have you with us. just so i'm gonna michael has been visiting parts of western germany hit by devastating floods that killed more than 150 people. michael described the damage as surreal and terrifying and said residents will not be alone in dealing with it. she promised financial aid for those who lost their homes, livelihoods, and loved ones. but some worry, it won't be enough to put the crisis behind them. the skies had cleared by the time angle. americans came to meet emergency crews and survivors. in the small southwestern town of shoals, homes were torn apart when the swollen river swept through, leaving the town in ruins. as a 2nd,

it's shocking. the german language hardly has words to describe the devastation that has been roll on. but it is incredibly reassuring to see how people come together and help each other out. the solidarity they have but some residents that angry that the clean up if it was delayed, when parts of shoes were cordoned off for the chancellor visits are off. and we need hope, what good is merkel if she comes here and looks at a few warm words and that's it. with their homes and businesses devastated. other residents are worried, the help they getting now weren't lost. they say they need long term assistance to rebuild. using right now we are overwhelmed with help, but it's not just about now. it's also about later and help to rebuild. that's what's needed, not just hope for the next 2 or 3 weeks. once the garbage is gone,

everything's fine again. that's not how it works on their households that are not sufficiently ensured. and merkle has to see that while they wait for the promised financial hope for now, these families are relying on each other for comfort and reassurance. joined by our correspond julia. so deli, she's in our viola, that's one of the towns worst hit by the flood. julie, some mixed feelings there about the chancellor's trip to the region. tell us, but more about what she said on her visit. as we heard, she expressed her gratitude towards the volunteers and the rescue operators working on trying to clean up these towns and helping local residents doing that. she also address some of the concerns we heard there in the report. she says she is very well aware that this whole operation is going to take weeks. months is not yours until the towns are completely rebuilt and she said she promised that the

government is going to be there throughout to something that the residents really were. were hoping to hear from her its been 5 days now. julia since the flood waters inundated our byler and the surrounding area. how are things looking on the ground there? any news on the dozens of people reported missing? well, as you can see behind me, the devastation is still very, very, very clear. here. there is debris strewn all over the town. the residents have brought a lot of mud and destroyed furniture out of their homes. and just now all laying on the streets with the ground floors here are completely destroyed. and we have heard that the interior minister horse the horse is going to come visit the town of later today. also showing that the situation is severe in terms of casualties. the region of, of i live alone is counting over 116 deaths and authorities,

unfortunately expect the number to keep on rising. the interior minister of the, of the state here and ryan and to latin. it said that they are now starting to pump water out of the sellers and they are unfortunately finding bodies in there. but there is one good piece of news. the police and the neighboring state of north run with failure has said that they were able to reach 700 people that were accounted for. and as the authorities had hoped, a lot of the issues were tied to a bad food signal and they were finally able to reach these people on the telephone . julia, thank you very much, julia. that julia saw billy in by le, let's cross over now to our political correspondent, manual shop who is following the story from berlin and manuel. general elections are only 2 months away here in germany. what impact are these floods likely to have on the election campaigns?

well, you know, with those tragic events, the climate change really took center stage in those elections in the run up for those elections. and also the reactions of candidates to the catastrophe that unfolded is closely watched. and we so the front runner candidate for the conservative. i mean, last, it's in trouble over those past 2 days. you know, he's also stay premier of ryan and no one with family. i'm sorry. the region, one of the regions was effected by the flood and he was seen laughing of the german president. by the time i was giving, extending condolences, he was also, you know, reacting quite impatiently when janet is asked him about his track record in the last one was find out when he comes to environmental question. so not a good look for the conservative candidate and something you know, something that could benefit other candidates. and namely the greens who had warned

for use that climate change would become the center stage in the next year to come . and i thank you so much. c, w m. o. manuel shows there now, governments around the world or targeting the phones of journalists and human rights activists using a spy software called pegasus. that's according to an investigation by more than a dozen news outlets, but the intrusion goes far beyond wiretapping. the haggis is mall, where allows intelligence agencies to secretly activate the microphones and cameras of their targets phones, turning them into 24 hour surveillance devices. his smartphone was the target of a sophisticated spying operation in 2019 the hungarian investigative reporter sandwich. bonnie was spied on for months with peg. it's a software according to a forensic analysis of his device and his own government may have been behind it. they could record as all my emails, my calendars, my for those, my windows,

they could even turn on my, my microphone and camera. pegasus can be installed without the victim, doing anything, usually by an invisible message. one upon your colleagues was also under surveillance, according to an investigation by an international team of journalists. coordinated by the nonprofit group forbid, in stories. several media organizations in germany took part. they analyze records that included more than 50000 phone numbers, possible spying targets, apparently entered by customers of the israeli software developer. and so they included human rights activists, government critics, and journalists we thought, find some people that some human rights activists, one day decided to go in district and mexico to protest. and then the next day they were on the lease pegasus apparently also played a role in the killing of saudi journalist jim aka shop g turkeys. chief investigator was on the list of potential targets. the spiral was also linked to

cash or cheese to be on same. these rarely firm and i so, and says pegasus was only deployed against terrace and criminals and says it would end collaboration if the spyware was misused. the company denies any connection took a showcase murder, subtle japan. you doesn't know the extent of the damage to his sources. when asked about it, surveillance, the hungarian government said it followed all laws. earlier we spoke and pub and ago he's the chairman of the international commission on cybersecurity law at supreme court of india. we asked him why government would want to use this particular software. the purpose of god once clearly is to continue to concentrate in the hands of nation states. and therefore, the go ahead and use these kinds of technology tools which help them to surveil and their own will to intercept and their own convenience and to potentially target all those people, which the government believes would potentially be having an impact upon the

government like duties so initially, the stool, the peg, this is often was meant only to be used in the context of the fight against terrorism and cyber crime. but today's become the de facto of kind of a method or software that's used by government put what idea of boxes of surveillance during sort of meeting all potential political, journalistic and business targets. and let's take a look at some other stories making headlines around the world today. the latest right? the piece talks between the afghan government and the taliban and doha have ended without a breakthrough. earlier tell about negotiators said they are committed to a political settlement and decades of war and afghan. a stamped both sides agreed to continue talk. next week. a tokyo court has sentenced to us special forces better into 2 years in prison and his son to 20 months for helping the former

renewed nissan mitsubishi chairman carlos, don't flee japan. gunn, was facing charges of financial misconduct, remains of fugitive in lebanon. 12000000 people in australia is 2 largest cities are set to stay under covert 19 restrictions for at least the next 5 days. melbourne extended its locked down despite only 16 new cases being reported on monday. the 8th, no cases were recorded and sydney, which has entered its 4th week of lockdown and bella, ruth, is opposition leaders, but found that you cannot sky has arrived in washington, d. c. to meet with us government officials and members of the ocean. the asper style was forced to flee below ruth, after the country's 2020 presidential elections, which were rightly widely regarded as re what england tells, lifted nearly all of its remaining correct virus restrictions. as part of what's

being dubbed freedom day. ha, like close country, have ward been delight for the 1st time in 17 months. indoor been used to now run at full capacity and face masks will no longer be legally mandated, but not everyone is happy about relaxing the rules, especially with co 19 cases searching on time to quite depressing actually. and i think most people in my situation, due to some today's freedom day to very doesn't freedom, couldn't feel further away. breezy is considered clinically extremely vulnerable, heightening her risk if she catches curve at 19. she says she feels abandoned by the decision flipped restrictions in england. like a very angry, actually very angry after everything that we bring through. it's not freedom day for us. it's fear day. how can it be freedom 1st, for those of us who've been shooting, if we have to go back to square one and become home,

it's again worthy isn't alone in viewing today with alarm. cases are already at the highest level since january, and by the government's own estimates. lifting the rules could see the rocket to a record 100000 to day. the prime minister bars johnson's backing, his decision to repeat the rules pointing in part to the you case, high vaccination rate. johnson who's spending freedom day in isolation after his health minister tested positive, said the public needs to be cautious, but asked if not now, then when, if we don't do it now, then we'll be up in the office in the winter months when the virus has the advantage of the, of the cold weather lose the precious fall break that we get with the school holidays. we do not go ask yourself when will we ever do it? so this is the right moment. this is about ending government in place restrictions and allowing the public to make during choices. for the 1st time. since the start of the pandemic,

people will be able to decide how many others they want to meet. whether they follow social distance in guidelines or whether they choose to wear mosque cases rising sharply, there are many to see this as a gamble. earlier this month, over $1200.00 scientists and medic find the letter branding freedom day dangerous and premature. they fear climbing hospitalization. the risk to there is not yet double vaccinated and of exposing a population to long cove. it. i can't even express how it more than unethical. i think this is leading author that let us talk to dp good. a sony is the risks could also extend beyond the okay, maybe the strategy that just the way it has been warned, even by all incentive advisors may very well lead to a new emerging that is more likely to escape vaccines, which would not only put our own response back by 7 months that have huge global impacts. dangerous experiments. well, calculated risk. either way, it's

a risk. rosie says she can't afford. she's cancelled precious visits to see family . as she in the world wait to see whether the gamble pays off. you are watching d. w. news from berlin, coming up next world stories the week in reports. i'm terry martin. thanks for watching the news. so, oh, when i come from, we have to fly for wordpress. i was born and raised in a military dictatorship with just one tv channel and a few newspapers with official information as a journey. i have work on this report from any cancer and there was.