brent: this is "dw news," live from berlin. another stumble on the road to brexit. the european union and britain failed to agree to the next stage of talks, despite hopes an offer on the irish border from theresa may would unlock trade negotiations. we will bring you the latest from brussels and london on today's unexpected negative outcome. also, houthi rebels turn on former president ali abdullah saleh, killing him in a rocket

and then attack. that, as fighting in the country's civil war intensifies. police in malta arrested 10 people in connection to the murder of a journalist. she reported on corruption on the island when she was killed in a car bombing back in october. germany still without a government, but it could be closer than ever to a new one. they are looking to have talks with the conservatives. the question remaining, can they convinced the party to accept another grand coalition. i'm brent goff. it is good to have you with us. one step forward, two steps back.

we are talking about the brexit dance we are familiar with. there were hopes of a breakthrough in brussels today, which were scuttled at the last minute. that, despite reports theresa may had thrashed out a deal with ireland over the border dispute with britain. she has a week if she wants to unlock trade talks with brussels by next year. >> the handshakes were maybe a little premature. teh e.u. and britain saying they are close to reaching an agreement on the border. but it failed to materialize. >> despite our best efforts and significant progress, we and our teams, it was not possible to

reach a complete agreement today. >> on a couple issue some differences do remain which require further negotiation and consultation. those will continue. we will reconvene before the end of the week. i am confident we will conclude this positively. reporter: the border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland is part of the u.k. northern ireland will also leave the e.u., but the republic will stay a member. the theory is the u.k. will replace this border with customs checkpoints. to keep the border free flowing, one solution is to allow northern ireland to stay in the e.u.'s customs union after the u.k. leaves. that is something northern ireland's largest party has rejected. >> we have been very clear. northern ireland must leav the

european union on the same terms as the rest. we will not have divergence, which separates northern ireland economically or politically, from the rest of the u.k. reporter: the republic of ireland believes it has been agreed. >> the irish negotiating team received confirmation from the british government and task force that the united kingdom had agreed at the border they had met our concerns. i am surprised and disappointed the british government now appears to not be in a position to conclude what was agreed to earlier today. reporter: next week, e.u. leaders will decide if enough progress on brexit has been made. britain is under huge pressure to make sure the consensus is yes. brent: for more on this, i am joined by our can -- our correspondent in brussels.

let's start from the beginning of the day. we had our prime minister and jean-claude juncker meeting. when they came out, they were not -- what happened? reporter: everyone had been all joy and optimism in brussels. a lot of premature tweets were put out there. tweets many people will probably take back. what happened was a telephone call from arlene foster from the northern irish group, to theresa may, the british prime minister. there had been disagreements between the two. theresa may, instead of saying, if you do not play with me, you might go somewhere else, theresa may caved in and said, we need further consultations. how and when she wants to consult with arlene foster is unclear.

it is up in the air how these things could possibly continue and be carried on in the next days. brent: it is also amazing what we saw today could even happen. we heard in that report the irish government said it was on the same page with the british government, and that they were on the same page with the european union. all of a sudden, arlene foster says, no, that is not what we want. and britain caves and. -- caves in. does northern ireland have that kind of power? reporter: we are looking at the little party that comes up theresa may's government. she is not ready to stand up against this blackmail. i will have to find another solution.

and maybe face the consequences and say i will stick to this deal. if you try to change it from the outside, i will step down and you will see where you find your brexit. there would be chances and possibilities for theresa may to move and show back on. -- show backbone. but she has left brussels and is probably in talks in london. frustrations in brussels are skyhigh, as we have seen they are in dublin. once again, the british government has shown, it cannot handle its own internal problems. it is not possible to solve them beforehand and then go negotiate with goodwill and trust on both sides. it is a big problem. brent: what about this notion of an exception to brexit? northern ireland is talking about it, scotland, london --

have we opened a pandora's box? reporter: in a way. it is amusing, people are standing up saying, we voted against brexit, we do not want it, we want the special consideration to stay in the customs unit. so brexit uld really follow park, as with the united kingdom. something london does not want, so they are in a difficult position. it is difficult to see how this could be solved and how they could go forward during the course of this week. brent: our correspondent, barbara, in brussels. thank you very much. houthi rebels in yemen have killed the country's former president, ali abdullah saleh. it happened just south of the capital, sanaa. saleh was fleeing after abandoning support for the rebels in the civil war.

it is no closer to ending, after attackers ambushed saleh's vehicle with a rocket-propelled grenade. reporter: it was a gamble that turned fatal for yemen's longtime strongman. houthi rebels killed their former ally, ex-president ali abdullah saleh, as he tried to fleet -- tried to flee the capital, sanaa. saleh was one of the conflict's issues. they tore up the alliance with the houthi's, for a saudi-led coalition. >> we will turn a new page and start dealing with them in a positive way, because what happened to yemen is enough. those words but the houthi rebels on the defensive and sanaa, with caution spiraling. on sunday, the rebel group claimed they fired a missile to

the nuclear plant at united arab emirates. with the saudis having the upper hand, and talk that support may be waiting, the civil war enters the critical phase. brent: i am joined by an expert here in berlin at the university, with a special focus on yemen. good to have you on the show. let's talk about what happened to ali abdullah saleh. he reportedly changed sides to her three days ago. and abandon the -- abandoned the houthi rebels. is this a revenge killing? reporter: the houthi understand his defection as a coup. but it was not a very confident

alliance, it was very fragile. they entered this alliance in 2014 as a matter of convenience, to join forces against the president in riyadh. but ali abdullah saleh was always flirting with the idea of talking to the saudis to find a way out for himself. it was an opportunity he saw, that backfired, as the underestimated their strength. brent: he resigned five years ago, right? did he still have impact on the country? reporter: he certainly did. he remained general secretary of the congress. and he was pulling strings from behind. he was sanctioned by the u.n., for the transitional process at the time. he also contributed to the houthis taking power in sanaa.

by directing loyal military commanders to let the houthis pass. he was a key player in the conflict. his death is first a sign that him and his support base have weakened in the past years. brent: this proxy we are seeing in yemen, does this mean the saudis have a stronger foothold in yemen? reporter: no, it is the opposite. the saudis were already signaling they would take on in support ali abdullah saleh. they were hoping this could give them away out of the conflict. now there houthis proved they are the stronger ones, i think the saudis will retaliate with much force. they are not going to lift the blockade. brent: retaliate, what does that mean?

you have the blockade there, you have people starving to death. are we looking at a humanitarian crisis going from bad to worse? reporter: absolutely. we will see more airstrikes. i also believe the saudis will try to support ground fighters more. especially now that the saleh supporters are most likely going to the other side. we will see alignment of the friends and violence will escalate further. brent: a negative picture there for the future, unfortunately. thank you very much. here are some of the other stories making headlines around the world. north and south korea have begun their biggest ever combined air force exercises together, involving more than 230 fighter

jets. this has drawn a predictably provocative reaction from north korea. state television describing the exercises as a provocation that can lead to nuclear war. a court in spain wrote -- ordered the release of six catalan members held in custody for their part in the catalonian declaration of independence. the judge upheld the jailing of four other men that had been in prison since november. new york's metropolitan opera has suspended a longtime music director james levine after multiple accusations of sexual misconduct against him. these are the latest in a string of sex accusations against high-profile men in the united states. politics in germany, the country appears to be edging closer to a new government. that is after the social democrats, the leaders, said they are willing to enter exploratory talks with angela merkel's conservatives.

but there is oneondition, the party's rank and file will have to give them their blessing. reporter: the social democrat's hq. monday, they approved the luminary talks, if members get the go-ahead at a congress this week. if -- >>'s party members approved, i will arrange talks with ms. merkel. we will discuss a proposal and see if it makes sense to continue talks. reporter: the party congress will also sign off on the spd's key demands. >> i think we are all clear we need to put forward our key points of negotiations, so we don't end up -- end up with a lazy compromise. reporter: the spd's

parliamentary party group also talked about plans monday. they want to go into the plans with an open mind. >> it is important for all of us we discuss different options with the conservatives. many party members would prefer a minority government. we will need to figure out exactly what options are available to us. if coalition talks lead to an agreement, grassroot members of the spd will have the final say on whether to proceed, and if so, how. brent: you are watching "dw news ." the hunt for the killers of journalist daphne caruana galizia. maltese police arrested 10 suspects in the politically charged case. we will have the latest on that. javier is here now. apple will have to pay a huge tax bill here in europe and they need to fix their software problems, but that is a different story. javier: you have an iphone?

apple will pay 13 billion euros in unpaid taxes. the european commission ruled last year the iphone maker must reimburse irish state for the money. ireland initially did not want to break its agreement with apple by taking the taxes, but the e.u. said tax benefits received by the company were illegal under e.u. rules, because they would allow apple to pay substantially less tax than other businesses. brussels referred ireland to the european court of justice in october for failing to collect the taxes. we stay on the subject of e.u. finances, centeno will take over the role as the head of the group of euro zone finance ministers. he is up to the challenge as he successfully led his home country portugal through the worst of the eurozone crisis. right now, eurozone countries are doing quite well. reporter: europe is expecting big things from mario centeno,

the first elected group from a southern state, and from the bailout economy. >> to generate consensus, to be able to reach across the aisle, if i may. with all my colleagues. reporter: he will try to reintegrate and have crisis fighting tools. he will chair politically sensitive talks. >> he was a finance minister of portugal. he managed the miracle, the one everyone in europe is looking for, to consolidate the budget. and at the same time, don't be too austere. also, spend the money. something all the social democrats and socialists in europe like a lot. it is a recipe for success, the

right backing, the right policy, the right guy. reporter: centeno takes over january 13. they hope he can work his economic magic across the entire e.u. >> to venezuela where maduro introduce their very own cryptocurrency. it is supposed to counter the disastrous other currency, which is plummeted against the dollar in the black market. that if you agree to some make any difference as corruption, political turmoil, and mismanaged finances are bringing venezuela to its knees. reporter: in the fight against his country's economic crisis, president maduro is running out of options. the state is on the verge of bankruptcy. unlike bitcoin, the petro will be backed by a physical asset, oil.

venezuela's reserves are the largest in the world, but the need to squeeze more money out of them has led to a surprising idea. maduro says the cryptocurrency will help the nation to advance monetary sovereignty, to make financial transactions, to overcome the financial blockade. the so-called financial blockade is comprised of u.s. sanctions and e.u. restrictions against venezuela. they were imposed after majuro's increasingly brutal treatment toward his own people. the value of the paper currency has plummeted. venezuelans are suffering under hyperinflation of 1400%. the once prosperous country has taken a nosedive. imported food and medicine are running out. maduro's cryptocurrency is a sign they are moving away from banks and regulation in a

desperate attempt to stay afloat. >> on the subject we spoke to a specialist in latin american affairs from warwick university, and asked him what impact the petro could have on the venezuelan economy. >> i think its effects will be limited. right now we do not have a lot of details about exactly how majuro -- maduro and the venezuelan government envisioned this country. it is backed by the national resources, novel compared to bitcoin. but in a sense, venezuelans currency has always been backed by its resources. and its debt is exclusively backed by resources. to a large extent, those resources are already committed elsewhere. i suspect that there is a hope this will help venezuela get around some of the u.s. sanctions.

of course, dealing in u.s. dollars means venezuela is subject to restrictions that are imposed on global banks, particularly u.s. banks. that does limit venezuela's freedom to maneuver. this would require those banks and other investors to really take a leap of faith that venezuela is going to stand behind this cryptocurrency in a way that it has not stood behind the solidity of its normal currency. >> we will see what venezuela does with that currency. back to you. brent: police in malta have arrested 10 people in connection with the car bomb that killed a journalistn the island in october. focusing heavily on corruption, daphne caruana galizia was one of the country's leading investigative journalists. the suspects are described as maltese nationals, most of whom have criminal records. investigators now have 48 hours to question them and decide whether or not to seek charges.

i am joined now by a journalist at the times of malta, based in the maltese capital. good to have you on the show. what more do we know about these suspects. doing out anything about their potential motives? >> so far, the authorities have been quiet about the motives, they have declined to discuss if the masterminds where the executors. but out of the 10 suspects rounded up, two brothers in particular with a criminal record are mentioned. the investigations are focusing around them. this evening, the sons of daphne caruana galizia have complained, that this was more of a pr

exercise than an investigation. they only learned what was going on from the media. they complained that they should have been kept in the loop about what was going on. they are practically accusing the prime minister. it is damage control to make up for [indiscernible] these events are rather extraordinary. the police were believed [indiscernible] we hear about 10 arrests. the police have released dramatic footage of the arrest of a number of suspects in the harbor. it was in operation with the drones. it is quite rare for the maltese islands to see something like this. brent: the justice minister for malta spoke to was here at dw.

he seemed to be convinced the killing of daphne caruana galizia, that the criminals she had been investigating and reporting on, they were the people responsible for her death. the family does not believe that. what do you think is the truth? >> i repeat, there was a lot of skepticism from the family's side. apart from corruption, she seemed to always focus on politicians, shady dealings involving politicians. and the timing of the arrests have been questioned. only two good days ago, there was a critical evaluation of the state. they declared they were more worried than ever before. the timing especially has been questioned. brent: keith, with the times in

malta, joining us, thank you. 'tis the season to be jolly. that was the case at the sunday river key resort in the u.s. state of maine as santa sunday hit the ski slopes. they were decked out in santa claus costumes. they raise money for local charities. with so much joy and skills on display, it does raise the question, does santa need a sleigh and reindeer? who knows? maybe hire a robot? santa has been on a diet. top stories we are following, the e.u. says it has not reach an agreement with britain on its divorce from brussels.

discussions of the border between ireland and the u.k. theresa may had hoped to unlock talks on the future of a trade deal with europe. houthi rebels in yemen have killed the country's former president, ali abdullah saleh, in a rocket attack, following the breakdown of an alliance between saleh and the houthi's to fight in a civil war. after a break i will be back to take you through the day. stick around for that. ♪

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elaine reyes: did the royal bloodlines of the inca empire end with the last inca king? a quest for descendants is taking place in peru to find out. i'm elaine reyes in washington, d.c. and this is "americas now." first up, the ruins of machu picchu are one of the americas' most remarkable historic sites and peru's top tourist attraction. they're also a striking symbol of the long-lost inca empire. man: we have 14,000 years of history that is not recorded by--in writing, but is recorded in our dna. dan collyns: one can't help but be impressed... reyes: correspondent dan collyns reports on an investigation to identify royal descendants from the ancient inca civilization. next, a woman with a genetic