berlin. tonight, the 1.8 trillion euro budget from the european union gets the go-ahead. poland and hungary had been blocking passage of the budget that appears to be history. the new spending plan includes billions in coronavirus relief funds. rmany sets a record for daily coronavirus cases. the head of germany's disease control agency raises the alarm as covid-19 continues to spread

despite a nationwide partial lockdown. u.s. regulators are meeting to consider emergency approval for the pfizer vaccine for the coronavirus as the country sees more than 3000 deaths in a single day. plus, what goes up must come down. a spacex prototype starship made it miles up in the air at the landing did not go quite as well. ♪ i'm brent goff. to viewers on pbs and a the united states and around the world, welcome. we begin with a budget breakthrough. european leaders in brussels say they have come to an agreement on the e.u.'s $1.8 trillion budget, which includes hundreds of billions in coronavirus relief funds. poland and hungary had blocked

approval of the budget over approval -- over plans to tie the money to conditions requiring respect for the rule of law. a compromise brokered by germany helped to end the deadline. >> after a tense few weeks, the jovial atmosphere at today's summit suggested leaders knew what was to come. all eyes were on these two men pair the prime ministers of poland and hungary had threatened to veto the entire budget all over -- budget over plans. >> today, we fear we might be attacked in an unjustified way. we are fighting for the victory of the common stance. >> both felt a lot was at stake and for the e.u., one point $8 trillion, roughly one trillion for the next seven year budget and a 750 billion euro rescue fund to breathe life into the

virus hit economy. a compromise tabled by german chancellor angela merkeleemed to do the trick. all 27 e.u. member states had reached the landmark agreement. the deal was done should but not without controversy. the changes could see really law proceedings delayed by years. but it seems this was a concession that had to be made to unblock desperately needed funds before christmas. brent: let's bring in our correspondent. he is standing by in brussels. we have a deal on this budget. what led to the breakthrough? >> two things are at the heart of this compromise that has now been found. hungary and poland can now seek legal certainty. at the european court of justice, if you want will of law

, contingency mechanism is really legal. secondly, they will get a legal declaration from councilmember states saying this will objectively be applied once the mechanism is in place. if you want a little bit of a political fight, it is coming but it is coming delayed. the member states that are affected can appeal at the european court of justice but what is essential for member states is the text itself. the new tool in the toolbox of the european council has not been touched. that remains fully in place. brent: it also means the problems the european union has, those problems have not gone away. does this mean that the coronavirus relief funds -- are they ready to go where they are needed most to italy and spain? >> that is right.

these are the criteria that money is destined to go to countries that have been hard-hit by the coronavirus. that is italy and spain. it is mainly grants. the smaller part, loans. in order to get that money, there is a conditionality. member states one to unlock that money from this fund and need to come up with a plan how they want to use that money and need to indicate how they want to reform their economies. brent: there is another unresolved issue. that is the post brexit trade deal. boris johnson met with the e.u. commission president to discuss the issue on wednesday. take a listen to how he described their meeting. >> it was put to me this was a bit like twins and the u.k. is one twin and the e.u. is another. if the e.u. decides to have a

haircut, and the u.k. has got to have a haircut or face punishment. the e.u. decides to buy an expensive handbag, then the u.k. has to buy an expensive handbag or else face tariffs. clearly that is not the sensible way to proceed. it is unlike any other free trade deal. brent: let's get beyond the handbags. talk us through the issues that are standing in the way of the trade deal. >> in a sense, we can say a little bit with the handbags because that is the sticking issue apart from fish, remains a problem because french and dutch fishermen are fishing in british waters. britain is selling most of their fish, 70 or more percent to the e.u. market. the key sticking point is a level playing field. a technical term for handbags or whatever item that is produced to the -- produced in the

country and sold to the other country. what the e.u. is saying is we need to have some standards we agree on if you want to import your products with zero tariffs or zero barriers. otherwise, you can dump cheaply produced products onto our market and that would destroy the internal market and the e.u. has been clear that is a redline they will not cross and that is a sensible point. brent: the british prime minister said this evening there is a strong possibility these trade talks will collapse. is the european union prepared for that? >> that is what michelle bonnie said yesterday. the e.u. has always been seeking that deal. they have made some compromises but they have also made contingency measures. these include all kind of measures that will smooth the cliff edge we are facing now on

the conditionality the u.k. does the same thing. they would allow british fishermen to enter european borders and vice versa. they would allow british airplanes to cross e.u. territory if european airplanes can cross british territory, but only for half a year. what this will not do is avoid the chaos we are expecting regarding supply chains and transport from the u.k. to europe and vice versa. brent: the latest on the double d's of our dave -- the double bees of our day. thank you. a female television news anchor has been shot dead in eastern afghanistan. she was killed along with her driver as she traveled to work in jalalabad. it is the latest in a series of attacks targeting journalists and politicians. >> priors for a heroine.

hundreds came out to pay their respects, killed in an apparent assassination. for many young women in afghanistan, she was larger-than-life. a tv anchor in a country where two thirds of girls are barred from attending school. she was also an advocate for men's rights and also continued to speak out even after her own mother was killed for doing the same. then, early thursday morning in the street, she and her driver were ambushed by unknown gunmen. she was a brave female journalist and anchor. she was working for local tv. unfortunately, today, she was martyred by thenemies. not only her family but all the women of the province are sad

for her. the perpetrators of the killings remain unknown, but the militant group islamic state has claimed responsibility foreveral recent attacks on civilians in afghanistan. as the u.s. draws down troops and conservative militant groups research, many -- groups research, many worry a life like hers will once again be impossible. brent: here is a look at stories making headlines around the world. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu has welcomed morocco's decisions to normalize relations. president trump broke the news on twitter. under the deal, the u.s. will recognize morocco's claim over the disputed western sahara. morocco is the fourth arab nation to recognize israel in recent months. lebanon's prime minister has been charged with negligence over the beirut port explosion

that killed over 200 people in august. three cabinet members were also charged. the blast was caused by explosive material that had been stored illegally at the port for years. here in germany, deaths from the coronavirus have passed the 20,000 mark. weeks of a partial lockdown have not done enough to bring infection numbers down. chancellor angela merkel has made a passionate plea for people to chuck -- to cut down on socializing should germany's top scientists are warning the country will have to introduced tough restrictions if people do not reduce their contacts voluntarily. >> german scientists are once again sounding the alarm. despite the partial lockdown, coronavirus cases are rising again. and deaths are soaring to record highs. >> the infection activity we are currently seeing can quickly

rise back into the exponential phase again. a few extra cases could be enough to spark that. ladies and gentlemen, this we must avoid. the virus has spread widely across the population. >> germans are being told to drop their christmas travel plans. for now, shops are still open and some stands selling mulled wine have sprung up across cities. the academic advisory panel to the government says this has to stop. it has called for schools to go on their winter break early and for all 90 central shops to close now -- for all non-east central shops to close now. chancellor merkel made a passionate plea for all states to take immediate action. >> i know how much love gets poured into those christmas stands. i am sorry from the bottom of my

heart but if we have to pay the price of 590 people dying every day, that is just not acceptable in my days and we must take action. [applause] >> the question seems to be whether germany's 16 states will impose more restrictions before or right after christmas. either way, people are prepared for a different holiday season this year. >> i have decided not to visit my grandparents. i think it is better to make an effort to keep them safe. it is not about how it feels. it feels terrible for everyone but we have to get this under control somehow. >> our daughter will only come for a short period of time. we have to accept that. i hope this will not be my last christmas. >> i think i go back to italy but i will not see them. or maybe just distant in the

same room. not really hugging or being really close. >> some german states have already introduced their own tougher restrictions. it remains unclear whether merkel will try to get all 16 states to commit to nationwide measures before christmas or whether each state will continue to go its own way. brent: our correspondent is standing by with the latest in berlin. the question that arises after you see that report is, is germany losing the fight against covid-19, especially when we are talking about the most vulnerable group, the elderly ? >> the overall picture is alarming. germany's maine public health institute says the whole picture is worrying. there is a warning we could be returning to exponential growth in infections in germany. as you said, a new record number of new infections today, over

20,000. what we are seeing is a more complicated picture than in the springnd you had localized hotspots of infection. now we are seeing a coronavirus -- cases across pret much the entire country. it is more difficult to respond to that. the experts are worried the situation could change. they are also worried because of the high number of deaths. we are seeing a record number of deaths. we are seeing in care homes and old people' homes, the number of infections is twice as high as it was in the spring a older people tend to have more serious symptoms and are more likely to die as a result of covid-19. brent: we know the plan has been or had been to ease the lockdown over christmas into the new year. that is being hotly debated. are those plans definitely off the table now?

>> there is still the ambition to have some kind of easing over christmas but at the same time, what is not happening, what the experts are saying is that the contacts are not reducing as much as they need to do in order for the infection numbers to come down and authorities here have been looking closely at the united states what happened over the thanksgiving weekend, which seems to have led to a significant spike in infections. they want to avoid anything like that as a result of the christmas festivities here in germany. that is why the rubber caulk institute and others are saying we cannot afford to have a significant easing of restrictions, even over christmas. brent: simon young with the latest in berlin. u.s. authorities are expected today to authorize the country's first coronavirus vaccine. the food and drug it

administered -- and drug administration advisory panel is meeting to scrutinize the vaccine. many are hoping for emergency authorization as cases sore. the fda panel will consider two reports of allergic reactions to the vaccine in the u.k. this week. for more now, i would like to bring in the founding director of the epidemiology program at the university of delaware. she is a u.s. expert in novel and reemerging diseases. we know that the fda is expected to approve this biontech pfizer vaccine. how big of a turning point will this be for the u.s.? >> this is very important news but i think that too many are mistakenly believing this is going to end the pandemic. while the safety and efficacy

profile of the vaccine look very good, the supply and distribution is going to be a challenge as will hesitancy to be vaccinated among some groups. brent: in your assessment, how long will it take for the pandemic to be under control if we do have vaccinations beginning? how long until we reached something like herd immunity echo -- like herd immunity? >> i think very few in the health care immunity believe there is potential for us to vaccinate by june 2021. we have simultaneously developed the vaccine and the manufacturing capacity but we have not invested in the type of logistics and infrastructure we need for a vaccination campaign. here in the u.s. with our health care system, we have tended -- we have tens of thousands. our health care and public health care workforce is completely burned out. brent: we saw in the u.k. this

week that at the hospitals where the vaccine is being administered, there were pharmacists who had to mix the ingredients in this new vaccine. do you have people able to do that in the u.s. at the pharmacies, at walgreens and cvs? do they have the qualified personnel to do this? >> we do but it is going to make it harder for us to expand the base of people who can provide the vaccine. while we might be able to train emts and nursing students to provide the vaccine, the limitations in terms of storage and delivery are going to make it more difficult and time-consuming to train those additional groups. brent: you have dealt with many outbreaks of a new and reemerging diseases. there was the influenza h1n1, known as swine flu. when you consider what we have learned in the past year about

the coronavirus, how does this pandemic compare? >> i have said that this pandemic has been like a perfect storm for us in the u.s. we have a novel virus that is transmissible and deadly even by asymptomatic people. we have a fractured federal response that has left large segments of our population highly vulnerable and we have taken this isolationist stance that we pretended we could deal with this well withdrawing from the who and other international groups. we are in a very tough spot going into christmas. brent: we appreciate your time and your insights tonight. thank you. the pandemic has hit all economies and around the world, it is the poor who have borne the brunt of the financial pain. in indonesia, one man who does not make much money himself has set an example for community service in this difficult year. >> by day, document works --

committed works a low pay in an office, cleaning and fetching the coffee. but at night, there is no rest. he is out on the streets helping the homeless in jakarta. the covid-19 pandemic has been hard on the city's poor. he spends a quarter of his own ecom -- his own income buying food to give to others. >> because of the pandemic, many people think only of themselves. they are worried their salary will be reduced or losing their job. there are many people who have lost their jobs. sharing food with others is my way of showing i am thankful because i am healthy and have a job and a salary.

>> two years ago, he bought a stove with h first paycheck. and he started using it to cook food for the poor. now, during the pandemic, he works even harder, preparing simple meals to feed people in need. >> a long time ago when my parents were sick, i wento a relative to borrowoney. he said,ut you are poor. how are you going to pay back that money? it was then he decided to pay the good deed forward. together with a group of

friends, he now prepares dozens of mailboxes every day. -- of meal boxes everyday. >> i am not afraid of not having enough money. d has promised that when we share what we have, he will give us more. >> he and his friends make sure to follow all pandemic precautions when they handout their meals. they have seen an increase in donations as the word spreads about jakarta's good samaritans. brent: here is a look at some of the other stories making headlines around the world. the head of the world food program has received the nobel peace prize on behalf of the u.n. agency. he described the award as a call to action with 270 million people worldwide at risk of starvation.

he said failure to address their needs could cause a hunger pandemic that would dwarf the impact of covid-19. azerbaijan has staged a military parade to mark its recent victory over armenia in their conflict over the disputed -- president erdogan joined the celebrations after backing iser by jean in the six-week war. turkish made hardware was credited with giving azerbaijan the upper hand in the event. in the united states, regulators and prosecutors from almost every state have filed an antitrust lawsuit against facebook. they allege the company used its dominant position to crush or by smaller rivals. the lawsuit would force the company to divest its major acquisitions of instagram and whatsapp. the legal action follows a similar suit against google and comes amid growing bipartisan

calls in the u.s. for more oversight of tech. >> facebook's growing dominance has long been a thorn in the side of the u.s. government. now, citing breaches of antitrust law, washington once the company to be forced to sell off instagram and whatsapp. >> by using its vast troves of data and money, facebook has squashed or hindered what the company perceived as potential threats. they have reduced choices for consumers. they stifled innovation. they degraded privacy protections for millions of americans. >> facebook acquired photo sharing platform insgram in 2012 and purchased messaging serve whatsapp in 2014. both are now technically so closely linked to facebook that divesting would pose some serious challenges. brent: a spacex test lunch on

wednesday completed the highest and most elaborate flight for its prototype, starship rocket. the spacecraft nearly reached its goal altitude of 12 kilometers but engineers still have a few kinks to work out. take a look. >> 3, 2, 1, zero. >> a picture-perfect start for starship number eight. the rocket is the most ambitious spacex test yet and the company -- test yet in the company's most audacious quest to make travel to mars possible. it climbed several kilometers before leveling off. after four minutes and 45 seconds of flight, the starship switched off its engines and began its descent to just as a flawless journey seemed within reach, the ship was engulfed in a ball of flames. despite this dramatic finale,

the test is consider a success by spacex. the company believes the data collected will help to develop a spaceship capable of carrying crew and cargo to the moon, mars and beyond. spacex founder elon musk was enthusiastic tweeting, mars, here we come. there will be more tests soon here in the texan desert. construction of starship number nine is also -- is almost complete. brent: after a short break, i will be back to take you through the day. stick around. we will be right back. ♪

host: you are watching live from paris on france 24. these are the headlines. another significant turnaround in the stance of a major arab state in relations with israel. he has told palestinians he still stands behind a two state solution in the middle east. france will be under an 8:00 p.m. curfew from december 15. it will be lifted for christmas. new year's eve is set to be a quiet one. covid cases continue to rise in