>> live from dw studios in berlin, this is your world news. >> welcome to the show. it's great to have you with us. our headlines -- palestinians bury a government minister who died after a confrontation with israeli troops. we'll go live to the west bank. >> after weeks of protest in hong kong, the police have moved in, and final cleanup operation is under way. >> after archaeologist -- a new drive to prevent stolen antiquities from being sold.

israel has deployed extra forces to the west bank as thousands of palestinians mourn a senior official who died in a confrontation with israeli troops. >> palestinian leadership has blamed israel for the death and are threatening to end a key security agreement with israel as tensions mount. >> an investigation has yet to be released into the findings. what was the cause of the 55-year-old's death? >> he was sent off with full military honors. president address -- abbas blames military troops for his death, saying he was the victim of a barbaric act. he has called for three days of mourning, but the year is that the grief could turn to anger, adding to friction between israel and the palestinians. >> there are major steps to be taking, including maybe to have the israeli government resume

its responsibilities as the full occupying power, which will include suspension of the security corp. -- corporation. >> he died shortly after these scuffles with israeli troops at a demonstration in the west bank. one israeli soldier can be seen holding his throat. he subsequently collapsed to the ground. palestinians say an autopsy shows he died as a direct result of this confrontation. the results of the investigation proved that the israeli operation forces killed him. but israeli doctors say he died after cardiac arrest sparked by the circumstances. >> this type of heart attack is caused by stress. apparently, he had a stressful event just before.

then we found some bruises -- minor bruises -- in the muscle layers and subcutaneous layer of the neck. >> tempers have already boiled over in some parts of the west bank. israel sent reinforcements to the area in case of violence. now all sides are hoping that tensions will not escalate further. >> can the latest tensions be contained? for more, let's bring in tonya cramer and ramallah. what's the mood right now in the west bank? >> we saw today many hundreds of mourners coming out for the funeral. generally, people i talk to today are very angry about what happened but also not very surprised. they say this kind of violence, this kind of confrontation is quite common in the occupied west bank. most of the country has seen reports from the israeli side and palestinian side accusing each other over the death of the

senior palestinian authority. tensions are already high, and people i talk to are also worried about what this will lead to. >> abbas is threatening to end cooperation with israel. what would that mean, and how much cooperation is there right now anyway? >> it's quite a lot of security cooperation. if you listen to officials, it is mainly sharing information, coordinating the mood, for example, a palestinian policeman from one city to another. until now, the president has always said this is something he will not touch because this cooperation is an interest to keep order in the west bank. for israel, our cooperation is seen as vital for their operations. you mentioned why this is so

controversial among palestinians, but i talk to palestinian officials tonight, and they said that no decision has been taken on this issue. leadership will meet again on friday and make their decision. >> how will this affect renewed palestinian push for recognition as an independent state? >> expect the palestinian leadership will follow up now also with unilateral moves. they say they will follow up with a resolution. they want to present to the security council. they've been working on this for months, but they did not bring it in because there was pressure to wait, and they said it could happen as early as next week, as well as they want to see how to push for membership in other international organizations and possibly also the international criminal court. >> tonya cramer with the latest from the west bank for us.

thanks so very much. >> we take things to afghanistan now. kabul has been hit by at least two suicide bombings. one attack hit a french-run high school in the center of the city. >> the french foreign minister says several people were killed when a teenage bomber set off explosives in an auditorium during a music performance. one of the dead was a german national. earlier in the day, a suicide bomber attacked a bus carrying afghan soldiers on the outskirts of the city. six people were killed, 11 wounded in that blast. >> reports are coming in of a double bombing in northern nigeria. officials said 81 people were killed when two explosions hit a market. >> rescue workers are still at the scene. the blasts come a day after two female suicide bombers killed themselves and for others in a market. >> here in germany, parliament

is reportedly prepared to broaden its mandate on iraq in the fight against islamic state. the move would include sending armed members of the bundeswehr. >> while the soldiers would be armed, the scope of their mandate would be strictly limited to training. soldiers from other allied nations would be responsible for protecting the base with the germans are to be station. >> first, the german government decided to deliver weapons to kurdish fighters in northern iraq. now it plans to beef up the number of german troops. an advance unit is already in place, and about 100 additional soldiers are due to arrive soon. kurdish forces are fighting islamic state militia. lawmakers insisted that the mission go forward only with the bundestag's backing. >> it has become a german

principle that parliament has a say in the army's activities. the government does not deploy forces on its own. any deployment must be backed by an explicit resolution. >> that's not the only legal issue the government is facing. the operation in northern iraq has not been mandated by either nato or the united nations security council, and that raises questions about whether the german deployment meets international law. the foreign minister expressed confidence. >> you can take for granted that when we make a decision, it will, first of all, be sensible. secondly, it will be politically feasible.+ thirdly, it will be legally justifiable. >> some units have already been to germany for training. with its huge majority in parliament, the government expects a clear majority to support the training mission in iraq. a vote is expected before christmas. >> with the possibility of more

german soldiers being sent into harms way and iraq, let's bring in our political correspondent for more. first off, there's a lot of debate surrounding this mission. what are some of the concerns? >> it's not just surrounding this mission. one has to bear in mind that any time there is a possibility of sending german troops abroad, that is nothing less than political dynamite here in germany, and there are various reasons for that. certainly, german history, and for this particular deployment, of course, there's legal issues as much as matters of international law are a key concern for critics. we heard from a former chief of staff of the german armed forces coming forward and also expressing his concern that this might not eat constitutional requirements, meaning that there is no united nations or nato mandate to take this ahead with. at the same time, we hear from nato that the iraqi government has asked for support from nato,

particularly also on matters of training, so that might kind of calm the nerves on that particular side, but there are also a lot of delegates who oppose foreign missions on a matter of principle, and, of course, there's the concern that once you are on the ground, even if it is just with troops training other fighters, you have them -- you have a situation that you can potentially no longer control litter on. >> briefly, just how much pressure is germany under right now to do more in the fight against i.s.? >> we heard from the defense ministry today which said that there was a clear expectation from germany to be more proactive and that this was one way of demonstrating this, of taking responsibility within this alliance. >> germany consider sending more troops to iraq. thanks so much. >> you are welcome.

>> the wars in the middle east and africa come at such a huge cost to human life that it's often difficult to talk about the other cost of global conflicts. >> experts are now gathered in berlin at a conference called cultural heritage in danger, discussing ways to curb a flourishing trade in artifacts looted from archaeological excavations. >> unesco says the illegal trade in plundered antiquities is booming and now especially attractive to criminals. >> a samaria and toy, at least 4500 years old, and it was taken from an illegal dig in iraq. the region historians call the cradle of civilization today looks like a moonscape, a lawless desert where islamic state loot and pillage ancient sites to finance their operations at the cost of destroying irreplaceable treasures. >> the illegal trade in cultural

antiquities that comes from illegal digs is vast. it causes irreparable losses. in the middle east and many other regions in the world, humanity's cultural heritage is being destroyed. >> the berlin conference aims to increase awareness of the problem, but it also hopes to pave the way for tougher laws. germany has become a center in the international trade of looted antiquities. >> i regret that the relatively soft rules on what can be brought to germany has created a general suspicion of the german art market. it should not be that way, but i think it's very important that we protect our country from the import of stolen cultural artifacts. >> one proposal would focus on auction houses. sellers would have to document where each item comes from and how it left its country of origin. experts hope that will reduce

the incentive for illicit excavations. >> in hong kong, police have swept away the protest site where demonstrators have been camped out for more than two months, demanding the right to directly pick their next leader. >> more than 200 people work arrested in that operation, which came after a high court ordered the clearance of many activists, but some of the pro-democracy demonstrators have refused to leave. >> the deadline expired early on thursday, and bailiffs, backed up by thousands of police, quickly moved into hong kong's business district, where a few hundred protesters were taking one last stand. >> in order to assist the execution of the injunction, bailiffs have already requested the assistance of the police. police are baby court order and leave immediately. >> some protesters complied. most of the remaining demonstrators refused to budge, but that did not prevent workers from dismantling the barricades.

for to it half months, protesters have been camped out, demanding elections free from beijing's influence, and they are vowing not to give up just yet, even if it does not look likely that hong kong's leadership will back down. >> the movement is not finished yet, and it's just the beginning of another phase of protest. >> the aim is not to be arrested, but to demonstrate that the whole movement is about civil disobedience, which means we will resist until the last moment. we will not cooperate with the government. >> many students have been arrested, but there message was that this is just the beginning. for now, the protest has ended without violence clashes, and leaders of the pro-democracy movement have to consider where to go from here. >> all right, we're about to take a short break, but when we come back, german boardrooms

will be getting a lot more women soon. >> and looking for new markets in india. that and a lot more. stay with us.

>> welcome back to the show. after years of debate about its effectiveness and fairness, chancellor angela merkel hoss cabinet has approved legislation for quotas for women in top corporate positions. >> the social democrat families minister calls the bill in milestone on the way to more in quality. >> if it is passed by parliament, the new law will come into effect in 2016. the law mandates a doubling of women in major boardroom positions. >> she has every reason to smile now that her draft legislation received cabinet approval. the german ministry is ready for the women's affairs ministers plans for a gender quota. >> it's a historic step because for the first time, there will

be concrete legal guidelines to ensure that both men and women are represented in leadership positions. >> in 2011, women held 12% of supervisory board positions at germany's 160 biggest companies. this year, that figure grew to 17%, still far from the 30% compulsory quota set for 2016. midsized companies will be able to set their own quotas, a compromise to the business lobby, but if larger corporations do not make the 30% requirement, vacant seats on their boards must remain so until women are appointed to them. germany's justice minister says that's an unlikely scenario. >> first of all, because there are enough qualified women who can fill these positions as men do today, and second of all, because no company would want to suffer the embarrassment of being unable to adhere to this

law. >> the new legislation now has to be passed by the bundestag before it takes effect. >> all right, russia is teetering on the brink of recession. oil prices are plummeting, and western sanctions are starting to take their toll on the country's economy. vladimir putin is now looking for new markets for russian products. >> that is why he is on a state visit to india. the russian leader is in the country to hold talks with the newly elected prime minister in an attempt to establish much closer business ties. >> russia and india had close ties during the cold war, and the two countries' leaders are seeking to revive that partnership. they signed about 20 deals on strategic cooperation. vladimir putin needs to ease the pain to russia's economy caused by western sanctions. >> we have placed particular emphasis on improving trade and

economic relations between our countries. last year, our bilateral trade amounted to $10 billion. this is clearly not enough. >> moscow needs to drum up trade and find new markets, particularly for its arms industry. the u.s. recently overtook russia as india's largest arms supplier. >> russia will remain our most important defense partner. >> energy supplies were also a key focus. russia agreed to build at least 10 more nuclear reactors in india. russia is already working on one nuclear plant in the countries south. >> some businesses now, and airbus spent years and billions of euros developing its flagship superjumbo liner, but now, it is

hitting real turbulence. >> it's time to be make or break for the a-380 because airbus did not find a single buyer for the plane all year. european company shares are taking a beating this week, falling by over 10% in a single session. >> a plane for the history books, a new generation of passenger flight. there were high hopes for the airbus a-380. capable of carrying 500 passengers, it is as tall as an eight-story building. the euphori when the giant jet rest took to the skies in 2007 has now faded. the plane is just too expensive for more airlines with the trend now to smaller machines. to secure its future, airbus needs to invest millions, but it #away from doing that. it also needs to attract more customers. airbus is very dependent on the dubai-based carrier emirates. the airline has ordered 140 a-38

0's to date, almost half of all orders. developing the giant plane has swallowed more than 20 billion euros. it will take decades before the a-380 gets anywhere near profit, but for airbus, ending the project would be an enormous financial setback, not to mention a huge blow to its image. >> consumers in germany will be happy to hear that inflation is staying down in europe's biggest economy, in part, driven by falling oil prices. inflation dropped to 0.6% in november, the lowest rates to its 2010. >> that is causing real concern about deflation at the european central bank. other financial experts, though, see this as a positive trend. >> for people heating their

houses with oil, it's good news. november heating oil prices in germany were 10% beneath their level he year ago. prices have also been falling at the pump. since they are paying less for fuel, consumers have had more money in their pockets. the positive effect of lower oil prices spread through many areas of the economy. in the chemical industry, for example, production costs have nosedived. that has positive effects on growth. researchers at munich's if oh institute have revised their estimates of 4 -- researchers at munich's ifo institute have revised their estimates upward. exporters are also feeling the benefits. this year, the euro shed about 10% of its value against the u.s. dollar, meaning german-made products can be sold more cheaply on international markets.

>> let's find out how those inflation figures influenced investors on thursday with our correspondent in frankfurt. >> here at the stock market, the low inflation rate is seen as a clear signal to the ecb to take action and start to buy bonds at the beginning of next year. investors hope that these measures will give a boost to shares, that inflation will be lifted, but in general, money will stay cheap and easy, and this is what lifted markets here today. shares also got a boost from new numbers coming from the u.s. the u.s. job market is still improving, and consumer spending went up. >> let's look at the market numbers in full now, starting in frankfurt with the dax, which had a strong day, rising about .6%. the pan-european index also climbed about .25% to 31 59.

in new york city, they are still trading. the dow was also up strongly, a little less than 1% up. at the moment, though, the euro is a bit down against the dollar. all right, here in berlin, an era has come to an end. the mayor has stepped down after more than a decade in power. >> he cut a very colorful image on the public stage and was long beloved by many berliners until he wasn't. the public soured on him, most of all over his ability to get the capital's international airport online and his failure to come to grips with a surge in asylum-seekers. >> after 13 years as the mayor of berlin, he has left the political stage. he governed during a time when germany's capital emerged as one of europe's great cities, a

cosmopolitan magnet for tourists, artists, and entrepreneurs. his own coming out he came part of berlin's coming-of-age. >> for anyone who doesn't know it, i'm gay, and that's ok. >> he was one of the first top german politicians to come out of the closet. as mayor, he fought against discrimination and homophobia. today, the city's vibrant lgbt community considers him a hero for helping establish berlin's reputation for tolerance and diversity. berlin is also famous for its nightlife. at times, he seemed as likely to carry a bottle of champagne in stiletto as a briefcase, but his unfailing red carpet promotion of berlin's charms paid off, attracting tourists and investors. but he also suffered setbacks. under his administration, the city's new international airport became an embarrassment, mired in cost overruns and bad

planning. as he leaves office, it's still not clear when the new airport will open. he once famously referred to berlin as poor but sexy. will it remain so after he leaves? >> he did not make a sexy. >> i think berlin's hit list does not have much to do with its mayor -- berlin's hipness does not have much to do with its mayor. >> if living in a hip berlin means living in a city that is a little shabby, i'm all for a new mayor. >> what's next for berlin will be partly up to his successor who is less charismatic, but perhaps, that is hitting for a city that after reinventing itself is slowly reaching adulthood. >> to another major european metropolis now -- madrid. its zoo is getting ready for christmas with one of the spanish capital's more unusual holiday traditions. >> get this -- divers at the zoo

aquarium have set up an underwater nativity scene under the watchful eye of tank inhabitants, including a bull shark. staff say that the festive display, which has been a tradition for nearly 20 years, helps break up the monotony of the fishes' everyday life. >> that's one of the most interesting nativity scenes i've ever seen. a lot easier than caroling underwater as well. that's all we have time for. thanks so much for joining us. >> thanks for watching dw. i was going to make a joke about baby jesus with a scuba mask. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

on this week's "wealthtrack," building financial security for women. two award winning financial advisers, maura griffin and debra taylor give us the essential building blocks to construct a plan to last a lifetime next on "consuelo mack wealthtrack". ♪ new york life, along with mainstay family of mutual funds offers investment and retirement solutions so you can help your clients keep good going. additional funding provided