>> this is dw news live from berlin. tonight, the coronavirus of vaccine that works, but not necessarily for those that need it most. german public health officials say the astrazeneca vaccine should not be given to people over the age of 65, due to insufficient data. but astrazeneca disagrees and says it is effective for the elderly. also tonight, the strict coronavirus lockdown in lebanon. protests now in their fourth day as anger grows, along with the

economic crisis. and the assassination that shocked germany. a politician shot in the head in cold blood. a neo-nazi pulled the trigger. today the murderer was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole. and the sudden skyrocketing share price in the videogame retailer gamestop. millions of dollars have been lost in a talk of war between wall street hedge funds and amateur daytraders on reddit. ♪ i am brent goff. to our viewers on pbs in the united states, and to all of the around the world, welcome. does astrazeneca's coronavirus vaccine work in people over 65? today, the pharmaceutical and the boers prime minister both johnson said yes, contradict in the message in germany.

health experts here are recommending that the u.k.- swedish company's vaccine not the offered to senior citizens. live xe and at this public health institute said there is insufficient data to assess the drug's effectiveness among the elderly. the vaccine has not yet been licensed for use here in the european union, but that is expected to happen tomorw or in the next few days. let's bring in a science journalist, who specializes in infectious diseases. kai, it is good to see you again. what do you make of this? we have germany saying it will not give the astraneca vaccine to people over 65 in the u.k. you have the pharmaceucal and the prime minister singh it is just fine for thelderly. >> i think this is the kind of situation that you connect that you can expect. we are in a pandemic. we don't have all the data on a lot of questions so a lot of,

people, and politicians are having to make decisions based on a lot of uncertainty, and this is one example. the best data that we can have on whether the vaccine works is the efficacy data from clinical trials. for astrazeneca, we simply don't have enough data on people older than 65 because there were not enough included in the early trials. so you are working with data that shows they have an immune reaction, for instance. but it is not the highest standard of data you want. so the german experts at the institute have made the decision to be very conservative in a way and they, we have the best data that this works on younger people, so let's preserve the vaccine for them. in the u.k., people have made a different decision based on the same data. brent: how long have we had access to this data? i am wondering if germany's

decision could have been made an announced earlier? kai: well, don't forget that these decisions -- the vaccine at the moments no even licensed or approved for the european market. so tomorrow, presumably they will license it, or announce a decision. once it is approved for the market, that is when it plays a role -- when experts normally say now, food we recommend this vaccine for? it is unusual that we have the current situation where you have the recommendation for the vaccine before the vaccine is thatrts do everything faster tn normal in order toe able to use these vaccines as soon as they are approved for the market and shipped. brent: kai, standby. there is widespread the satisfaction about the speed of the vaccine rollout here in germany and across the union. we have this report now.

reporter: accessing this vaccination center in brandenburg in eastern germany is harder than it might look. to get an appointment for a covid-19 jab, you need staying power. only those determined enough to get past the overloaded hotline will get an appointment. like these two. both are over 80 and belonged to germany's number one high risk group. >> our daughter got the appointment for us, but it took her a long time to get through and arrange a time. reporter: as in other vaccination centers in germany, things are moving slowly. many remain empty because there is not enough vaccine. only 70 people a day can be immunized instead of the planned 600. the situation is even worse in other regions. this center in cologne is not even open. appointments are being made for february, but it is not an easy

process. >> i am not just calling them to be kept on hold for hours, and then you don't even get an appointment. my appointment was made online buy my son, right on the first day, in the morning. the hotline in north rhine westphalia is overwhelmed. reporter: other countries are moving faster. israel, for example, has already vaccinated almost half its population, about 4 million people. britain has immunized 10%. the u.s., 7%. germany has vaccinated around 2 million people, 2% of the population, in line with many other countries. germany's social democrats say that is not good enough. >> israel, written, and the u.s. are all making progress -- britain and the u.s. are all making progress, but there are problems in the european union and we need to address them quickly.

reporter: vaccine manufacturers contracted to supply european member states are delayed. not good news for this facility in brandenburg or others around germany. filling these chairs is likely to take some time. brent: kai, there is a lot of complaining here in germany right now about the rollout of the vaccination, but also about how this pandemic is being managed right now. what is your take on it? kai: well, i think there is a lot of stuff that you can criticize. when we are talking about vaccines in particular, some of these stories of people trying to get an appointment and spending hours on the road, that is unfortunate, and a think hopefully these things can improve over time. but i am surprised that we keep comparing ourselves to countries like israel and the u.s. of course, you can do that in the u.k. but at the same time, we have to

remember this is a global situation and we don't talk a lot in germany about all the countries in the world but don't have access to any vaccine at all. in the continent of africa, i think we have had something like 25 mexican nations done. -- 25 vaccinations done. we are looking at the danger of new variants as well. we are on the safe when everyone is safe. with me to have a conversation about how to roll out the vaccines not just in germany, but how to do it in an equitable way across the globe. these conversations ma to haen at the same time, and i am not seeing that happen at the mome. brent: all right, science journast, kai kupferschmidt joining us tonight. thank yo we have more on the pandemic coming up. a standoff in chicago. schools are set to reopen, but teachers are refusing to return

without a guarantee that they will not catch the coronavirus. that story is coming up in a moment. first, let's have a look at the other stories that are making headlines around the world. after two weeks in quarantine in the chinese city of wuhan, a team of experts from the w.h.o. have begun its investigation into the origins of covid-19. they want to better understand where the virus came from to prevent future outbreaks. it is not clear what chinese authorities will allow them to see. pakistan's supreme court has ordered the release of a british-born man convicted in the killing of american journalist daniel pearl 19 years ago. the panel of judges acquitted him of involvement in pearls kidnapping and beheading. his three co-accused were acquitted last year. european powers have warned that iran is undermining hopes of reviving the 2015 nuclear deal by resuming 20% uranium enrichment.

iran today announced the production was ahead of target, and rejected washington's call to comply with the agreed-upon rbs. tehran says the u.s. must first rejoin the pact which was abandoned by president trump in 2018. protesters clashed with security forces in the lebanese city of tripoli five fourth night. the latest unrest comes after the death of a 30-year-old protester on wednesday. crowds are angry at strict coronavirus lockdown measures, and an economy that is in crisis. situation appears to be spiraling out of control. protests are now spreading to other parts of the country. reporter: protesters out on the streets of tripoli again for the fourth day running. demonstrations appeared to be intensifying in lebanon's second-largest city. many residents have been struggling with extreme economic hardship for some time, with the country in deep recession.

the lockdown impost earlier this month to halt a surge in vid-19, is too much for many to bear. . >> the life i am living is horrible. i came out to die in honor so i don't have to live through this horror. enough poverty and hunger. the lebanese people are living in pain. reporter: thursday's protests came just hours after the funeral of a man who was killed the night before. the 30-year-old reportedly sustainable that went on wednesday when protests -- on wednesday, when protests turned violent at a government building. witnesses and the local media say that police fired live rounds. hundreds of protesters were injured. lebanon is currently struggling with a massive surge in coronavirus cases. hospital intensive care units are reportedly nearly full, and

the country is seeing record-breaking daily fidelity's. nevertheless, many say the around-the-clock curfew is not possible in lebanon. >> you want to close the country, then you have to provide for people. it is not acceptable to lock people up and are houses and leave them hungry. there are day laborers, people who have lost their jobs, people who can't earn a living or even enough for the bare essentials. reporter: the government is providing some financial assistance to 230,000 families, but with half of the population estimated to be living below the poverty line, protests are likely to continue for some time. brent: for more now, we want to go to the zen salmon in beirut. what do protesters want? reporter: protesters have been back on the streets in tripoli for several days now, demanding necessities such as food, water,

and education. the nationwide-implemented covid-19 lockdown has been very harsh on citizens already suffering from economic conditions. 55% of the population falls under the poverty line, and tripoli is known to be one of the poorest areas in lebanon, having the richest and the most fortunate political leaders. some of them were former mps. one of them was a former prime minister, and they were on the list of the top tycoons of the forms 2020 billionaire list. brent: ok. is the government now looking at additional economic support for the people? reporter: well, at the beginning of this recent lockdown, the government approved giving an allowance for families who depend on a daily income, and

families suffering from dire financial conditions. but this allowance now has become insignificant since the country has been witnessing an inflation, an 80% devaluation of its currency. for example, the average rate of a poor citizen in tripoli is less than two u.s. dollars per day. brent: amazing. what about the vaccination rollout? how is that progressing? reporter: well, brent, the caretaker minister of health, and has son, has announced that the next batchf vaccines will arrive in lebanon in mid-february. he also said that all residents including syrian refugees and palestinians and all nationalities residing in lebanon will have access to the vaccine. the plans on getting 80% of the

population vaccinated by the end of 2021. the priority is definitely for the frontline health workers, the older people, and the citizens suffering from underlying health conditions. but hospitals have told the human rights watch that they have not yet received any instructions on how the plan will be implemented. brent: all right, dw's rosan sa lman reporting from the root of the dire situation in lebanon. thank you. to the u.s. now, president biden has pledged to reopen all schools closed due to the pandemic was in his first 100 days in office. but in chicago, the teachers union is putting the brakes on that. the school hoped to have teachers back in the classrooms this week, but teachers did not show up. reporter: for some chicago teachers, the winter air feels safer than the classroom.

teachers in the u.s.'s third-largest school district refused to shop took classes this week, instead continuing to teach online in defiance of the city's plan for a phased reopening. [cars honking] [shouting] teaching remotely since last spring, educators want a say in when schools reopen. they are asking for a nursing every school, and a chance to get vaccinated before they go back. >> no one who is actually advocating for distance learning is doing it because they like distance learning, or because it is easier. the reason why is because -- bottom line, it is not safe yet. reporter: the chicago teachers union posted photos to its twitter account showing failed attempts at hygiene in chicago schools, molded sanitary wipes and poorly placed social distancing stickers. the city of chicago caved and postponed the reopening to allow for negotiations. mayor lightfoot said schools

were following federal guidelines for safety. >> we cannot, and i cannot as mayor, in good conscience, as an mayor, as a mother, and a proud resident of the city, leave these students behind who are failing. failing. when a safe solution is absolutely possible. reporter: when asked about the standoff in chicago president joe biden echoed the teachers concerns, stopping just short of endorsing their protest. pres. biden: we need the capacity to know that in fact the circumstance in the school is safe and secure for everyone. reporter: chicago's teachers were exhilarated to get a nod from the u.s. president. >> the president of the united states knows that he should be on the side of the teachers and not the mayor on this one. reporter: biden has pledged to reopen most of these schoo in his fit hundred days in office. but for the chicago teachers, it

depends on howhe pandemic continues to proceed. >> first of all, reinstate our locked out teachers. may want to teach. reporter: our correspondent is here with me right now. he has been talking to chicago teachers. they say they do not feel safe going back just yet. what evidence do they have that their health is at risk? reporter: chicago teachers union posted some photos shared to them by teachers on their social media. let's have a look at that. they have a photo of some socially distanced stickers that say you have to stand six feet apart. but if you notice, these are 1x1 tiles. not exactly six feet. they have also posted photos showing facemasks. it is said there is a warning on the box saying these are not medical facemasks, they haven't been tested against the virus. so these are obviously a money saver. and this was kind of the pride and joy of the city. it is an isolation pod,

meant for students who are showing symptoms. they would be there until they are sent home. obviously the teachers saw something, and they said if a long child gets put in something like this, it could be traumatizing. they are saying, why would you send students back to school if you need something like this? especially since virtually none of the teachers and students have been vaccinated at this point. reporter: there is usually a doctor at school too because kids get sick at school, so there is an interesting argument there. why is the city pushing for schools to reopen now? reporter: the city is making the argument that they tested it, that it is safe, they are following centers for disease control guidelines. but the reason they are pushing to do it as soon as possible is they say a lot of students are suffering with remote learning. a lot of students who don't have the resources, the computer, the laptop, but time and energy it takes to do remote learning -- they don't have that and they are suffering.

there is also the issue of mental health. some anecdotal evidence says mental hlth of students around the country is suffering because they don't get to go to school. the union said that if you look at the polls, most parents and students don't want to go back to school. so that argument kind of falls through. there is certainly a number of students who are desperate to go back to school. brent: we all agree it would be better if they were in school. it is a difficult situation. chicago is not the only city where we are seeing this, right? reporter: that's right there are couple of other places where you have seen teachers unions push back against the city's plans to go back to school -- a suburb in new york city --, the city in washington state, but also around the world. this is a class that happens when schools are trying to get back in session. in the u.k., a similar thing occurred, and the government said we will postpone. i think a lot of teachers also

want to go back to school. the union says they don't want to do it until they feel safe so they are in negotiations with the city in chicago to figure out when safe is safe. brent: exactly. when everyone is vaccinated, maybe. thank you. all right,, a look now at some of the other developments in the pandemic. biontech and pfizer say that their vaccine is effective against the british and south african coronavirus variants. meanwhile, the u.s. has reported the first two cases of the south african variant in the southern state of south carolina. portugal will introduce controls along its border with spain to control is surge in infections and deaths. it was the first assassination of a politician in germany by the far right since 1945. two years ago, a neo-nazi murdered a regional politician who had attracted attention and controversy for his pro-refugee

stands. waterloo the was a member of the conservative party -- walter did luttke. he was shot in his head. today, his assassin was sentenced to prison. reporter: it was a trial that brought the specter of far-right berm is in germany into focus once again. defendant, stephon ernest was charged with murdering a politician, walter lutke. >> this sends a signal that the state can defend itself and will aggressively pursue a prosecution of an assassination of this kind. reporter:he politician was a local leader who defended angela merkel's policies on immigration. it turned him into a target for extremists. the assassin recorded this meeting where the politician faced far-right hecklers. >> you have to stand up for certain values. anyone who does not agreeith ese values is freeo leave the country, and freedom every gean enjoys.

[shouting] reporter: four years later, the politician was assassinated in his home in june of 2019, his body discovered by his son. two weeks afterwards, authorities arrested ernst. during the trial, he confessed, then retracted, later confessed again. this was the first time in postwar germany history that a representative of the state had been killed by a right-wing extremist. >> the court determined that the accused had acted in principle out of right-wing extremist and racist motivation, and had also done so previously. reporter: however, the court did not find the other defendant guilty of assisting in the murder. one of the lutke's family lawyers said it was disappointed, but added the family founder the trial important for a different reason. >> as a plaintiff, the family

wanted to set an example against hate and violence, and hate eech in our society whose words then lead to deeds. that was very, very important for them. they wanted to advocate the values that walter advocated in his entire life, which are also the family's values. reporter: the politicians killing is one of several attacks linked to the extremist far-right in germany in recent years, casting a spotlight on the dangers extremists opposed to democracy. brent: dw correspondent peter hiller was at the courtroom in frankfurt today. reporter: many consider the verdict handed down in frankfurt as a signal that authorities will not grant leniency towards those who are trying to destroy germany's core values. but now that the trial is over, questions remain. was ernst part of the right-wing terrorist network, and have

others radicalize just as he did? authorities say there are 13,000 right-wing extremists in the country that are potentially willing to take valid action. and there are high concerns that amongst those numbers, there are some who might just be as dangerous as ernst. brent: peter hiller their reporting from frankfurt. well, who is really in charge on wall street? the video game retailer gamestop is where you should probably look for an answer. individual investors on the website reddit coordinated stock-buying and inflicted huge losses on hedge funds. the frenzied trading resulted in soaring highs and crashing lows, which today, the videogame company to take share price hit highs almost 30x its stock pce at the beginning of the year. reporter: a, group of smalltime speculators not professional traders, have been coordinating the purchase of gamestop stocks

in online forums, even though the videogame retailer is virtually broke, causing share prices to skyrocket. since the start of the year, the price per share has ren nearly 2000%. >> it played out that those who were pushing the share prices higher are othe winninside, but those hedge funds that are short the stock, but believe the price will be going down are getting squeezed. so the concern is that maybe we end up with some hedge funds that have financial difficulties. reporter: gamestop charity raising share prices already cause problems for some short sellers who said stocks would drop in value. now every penny they increase means a loss for short sellers. the scramble to buy only as upward pressure to the share prices. brent: a masterpiece by the italian renaissance painter to botticeeli just fetched a

rep. price: in new york. $92 million with commissions and fees. a young man with a -- is thought to depict a young noble man showing of a decorative mendelian bearing the image of a saint. it is considered one of botticel li;s finest portraits and probably dates around to the 1740's or 1780's. you are watching dw news. after a short break, i will be back to take you through the day. stick around. we will be right back. ♪ c ♪

>ú■ogfvfvfvfvfvfvfvfvfvfvfv=súso

james: you're watching live from paris. i'm james creedon. paris and two other regions in france have suspended coronavirus vaccines due to ongoing shortages in supply. this as the country inches closer to a third lockdown. more on that coming up. protests take place in warsaw for a second night after a near total abortion ban takes effect in the country. we will hear more from our correspondence in warsaw. his appeal. the kremlin critic faces three and a half year prison sentence. more on that coming up. ♪