>>judge peter cahill says he does not have the jurisdiction, though he has decided to push ahead on jury selection. the court of appeals is expected to take about three weeks.

finding impartial jurors will be an important task in such a high-profile case. opening arguments in the trial are set to begin at the end of march. george floyd has become an icon of racial justice and his death led to a nationwide reckoning on race. he was declared dead on may 25 last year. chauvi pressed his knee against floyd's neck even after floyd went limp. chauvin and other officers were fired. anchor: our correspondent is at the scene. we will be joining her very shortly. next -- kneeling before armed police and begging them not to shoot. this image from myanmar is going viral. this seems to bring peace to the streets in myanmar. there is news of another

official from aung san suu kyi's league for democracy party dying in custody. reporter: defying authorities' brutal crackdown, protesters erected barricades and fought police in the streets of yangon, where hundreds of activists had been trapped overnight by myanmar's security forces. despite fears for their safety, and he appeared more determined than ever to keep fighting. -- many appeared more determined than ever to keep fighting. >> [speaking another language] >> on monday, some 200 forces were left trapped outside yangon

after forces cordoned off a section of the city. police conducted a door-to-door search of the area overnight and arrested dozens of people, according to witnesses. yet the show of force failed to deter protesters, who were back in force across the country on tuesday to express support for detained activists. in one town, many were holding welcome signs, a reference to the responsibility to protect, and the call on the international community to step up for the citizens of myanmar. the country has been plunged in turmoil since the military seized power last month and arrested aung san suu kyi, the nation's de facto leader. more than 60 people have been killed since, including an official of the league for democracy party w died in police custody on tuesday. anchor: we are watching for all

development in the situation in myanmar. next, and stators kept blocking roadways -- demonstrators kept blocking roadways in a protest over political deadlock. the leader spoke after a security meeting with top officials. beirut as well as the areas in the center of the capital remain blocked with protesters. let's get the analysis. we are joined by the executive director director of the lebanese american university. there were already entrenched issues before the massive explosion at the port of beirut back in august 2020. things are now getting worse. how long do you think ts unrest and this anger can continue? >> it is not a question of unrest and anger. it is a question of how long can the crisis continue.

the unrest and the anger will grow as the crisis becomes deeper. and i think we are just at the beginning of the financial crisis. we have not seen the worst yet in terms of total financial meltdown, which could happen soon if there is no government. if the political process remains blocked, we are facing a much worse situation and we will see a real protest. these are shy protests, relatively, to what we have seen before in 2005, 2019, or 2013. anchor: the word of the president clearly has not been listened to, in terms of calling on people not to protest. people are angry for the reasons you pointed out. is there a fear that the military may step in at some point? >> well, the military -- i mean, there was a speech by the head

of the army, but it was seen as a political speech because the head of the army sees himself sometimes as a candidate for the next presidency. what is happening also is that the president sees the protests as directed against him, and they are increasingly being directed against the president and his allies. it is becoming -- the protesters were very shy of mentioning anything political before. they all thrgh the same slogans, but they each meant something different with it. the same slogan, the main slogan, let's say, says "all means all," meaning all the political class is guilty. it could mean that haslett is

innoce because hezbollah is part of the political class, so it is not the main target. but other people say "all means all" because in 2016 when he was included in the political class, his thugs went downtown and beat of the protesters. they took his picture up. when anti-has below people say " -- when anti-hezbollah people say "all means all," they mean specifically has below. the protesters have -- specifically hezbollah. the protesters have not formed a movement and the system is still blocked. it is still blocked in the same way as it was blocked in 2006, 2009, 2013 through 2016, because of the inability to form a

government because of a veto mainly by hezbollah. when president macron asks the lebanese to form a government, if they were to form a government, they would need him to ask them. the main reason for the meltdown is the paralysis because of the inability to form a government. anchor: and in some way, is that inability all due to the nature of how lebanese politics is organized? people on the street are calling for reform of how politics is, the sectarian nature of these politics. >> yes, so what we are seeing is a lot of self-flagellation, if you like, in the street. the country is in a state of despair, complete defeat.

and they are sort of saying -- they are in a negative outlook. they are saying it was never real, the country, that we never had a real state, that the politicians have always been corrupt. so we are in this sort of self-flagellation mode. there needs to be a proper re-examination by the young generation of the political process and what they want. they need to be divided, i would say, because they are so afraid of being divided that they are not talking politics. this is a political crisis. they need to talk politics. they need to articulate the various visions. and we need to have elections according to the visions. it is a political -- politics is about managing divisions and managing different opinions.

it is not about unity and having strong leadership. anchor: thank you for giving us that analysis. clearly, there is a lot of crowd -- a lot of ground to be covered. we will continue to follow the stories and analysis. the executive director of the lebanese american university. from paris, new french coronavirus cases are steadying out according to the figures. over 23,000. but there are nearly 4000 patients in intensive care. the death toll increasing again, 368 people dying over the last 24 hours, ringing a total of 89,301. france, the ranking seventh higher -- highest in death toll's worldwide. intensive care units up to 3918 people. the paris region at a high.

the director of public health is not considering a lockdown. they are instead calling for parisians to be vigilant and respect precautions to slow the spread of covid-19. a reporter has this. reporter: in the paris region, the number of people in intensive care with covid-19 is the highest since november. at one hospital in the capital, staff are worried. >> [speaking french] reporter: paris medical authorities have ordered hospitals to cancel 40% of their regular appointments to make space for covid-19 patients in critical condition. but on the eve of another health defense counsel, the government said lockdown would only be considered as a last resort if hospitals showed they could not hold out. france is so far in a less severe curfew, but cases have continued to rise to an average

of 23,000 today. after coming under criticism for a slow vaccine rollout, france stepped up inoculations over the weekend. the head doctor at the hospital says this alone may not be enough to help hospitals. >> [speaking french] reporter: france has so far delivered 3.9 million first-round shots, promising 10 million. anchor: the european parliament has voted to waive the immunity of the former head of catalonia's regional government and two other separatist

lawmakers, cabinet members, key figures in catalonia's unilateral declaration of independence in 2017. the euro decision takes that a step closer to possible extradition to spain, where they willace charges of sedition. >> [speaking french] anchor: carles puigdemont with a little smile, saying he is confident he will not be extradited. but clearly the waiver of his status changes things on a legal basis. we'll get more reaction to come on that. let's remind you of the main world news from paris.

trying to find impartial jury members. the tough task. the trial of the man accused of killing george floyd. the court house surrounded by barbed wire as jurors are dismissed this tuesday. kneeling before police in myanmar, begging them not to shoot protesters. but myanm's troubles continue. another member of the deposed government has died in custody. covid patients in intensive care units in france are at their highest for the past three months, but no paris lockdown is yet four-seam. people will -- is yet foreseen. safety measures putting a strain on hospitals. time now for business. analyst: hi, mark. anchor: the wto is debating the production and distribution of

covid-19 vaccines, kate. analyst: especially an issue in the developing world. the newly appointed director general has urged the private and public sectors to devote more resources to the development and distribution of the covid-19 vaccine. manufacturing facilities could be converted to produce vaccines within six to seven months. that is half the time frame that had initially beenargeted. mber stateshould drop or reduceestrictions on expting vaccine and tackle problems in the supply chains. there have bee growing calls for pharmaceutical giant to share their research in an effort to ramp up vaccine output. the double eto is foreseeing -- the wto is overseeing discussions on whether to suspend intellectual property rules. solutions on that issue.for a warning that every additional day of vaccine shortage meant that people would pay with their lives. the u.s. house of representatives is planning its

second vote on the 1.9 trillion dollar stimulus plan. it is a slightly adjusted version which was approved by the senate a few days ago. the democratic majority of the house went through the final draft of the legislation, which includes an extension of more generous unemployment benefits that are set to expire this weekend. it also outlines $1400 stimulus checks for families as well as more funding for schools and vaccines. resident joe biden is expected to sign that bill into law as soon as it reaches his desk. it does not specifically include more funding for the payment protection program for small businesses, but the american president said he would make sure that companies with fewer than 20 employees get access to financial aid if they needed. pres. biden: we need to keep focused. there are a lot of minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses. as well as getting people going back.

it is hard to know how to get in line. kate: joe biden spoke in washgton, d.c. earlier. all street has closed sharply higher. the dow jones hit a new high earlier in the session, ending up about 260 points on the final closing bell. nasdaq wrecked up its best day since november. it closed up over 3.5%. tesla shares soaring around 20% after a five-day losing streak. apple, facebook, and amazon jumping 4% each. modest days for the european indexes. stocks in the loan up just a little bit more on the close. -- stocks in milan up a little bit more on the close. a raised outlook for the global economy. the oecd expects global gb -- gdp to expand 5.6% this year, a 1.4 percent boost from its previous output. the u.s. is expected to grow 6.5

percent, with china and india on track to be the fastest growing economies in the world. strong fiscal stimulus around the world has helped the outlook, as has the rollout of vaccines. the oecd morning that vaccination programs need to speed up to ensure a strong recovery. the broader outlook may be brightening slightly. millions of families around the world are still facing severe economic difficulty as a direct result of the pandemic. in italy, a million people or plunged into poverty last year. reporter: these are some of the thousands of people who have been queuing up for food parcels at the daily bread charity. despite being the center of italy's industrial north and one of the richest cities in europe, milan has seen poverty source since the arrival of covid-19 a year ago. >> [speaking italian]

>> [speaki italian] reporter: according to figures released by italy's national statistics agency on thursday, the number of people in absolute poverty jumped by one million in 2020, to 5.6 million, a 15-year high. castlesí@ cannot afford basic living necessities. as for the state of the italian economy, gdp shrunk by nearly 9%. many hope the outlo will improve following the appointment of mario draghi as prime minister. 2020 also saw unemployment rise, the 450,000 people losing their jobs -- mainly women, younger workers, and the self-employed. mark: our thanks to you, kate

moody, for the business roundup. time for focus now. this one might interest you. there is a business angle to it. how syrians who fled the war 10 years ago are integrating into the war -- workforce in jordan. an influx of hard-working people trying to feed their families and remake their homes has provided a boost to the local workforce and opportunities for entrepreneurs. a shared language and family links have helped turn the refugee crisis into a business boom. reporter: jordan has long been knownor its sprawling dert refugee camps, similar to open-air prisons. around 120,000 syrians still live in these conditions. but the majority, over a million, now live in cities. in northern jordan, just 20 kilometers from the syrian rder, one city has doubled in size since war broke out in syria 10 years ago.

around 280,000 refugees live here. some still sleep in tents, but most have built houses or rented apartments. 124-year-old saw this neighborhood rise from the ground. this syrian was barely an adolescent when his family fled aleppo in 2013. >> nine years ago, there were not all these people and all these buildings. now the street is lively. there are supermarkets, hardware stores, restaurants, pharmacies. it has almost turned into a syrian neighborhood. reporter: he currently lives off on jobs. every month, he needs to earn at least 400 euros to feed his family. although he could not get a formal education, an ngo provided him with training to become an electrician, and his own toolbox. >> when you rent equipment, you

pay for it out of your own pocket and there is not much left for your work. reporter: today, he is visiting a jordanian client to inspect the electric system he designed. >> how are you? >> hello. welcome. reporter: unlike other countries in the region, syrians have integrated here without much trouble. that is largely down to the shared language and tribal links that straddle the two countries. >> families are split over the two sides of the border. we have the same blood, so there are no conflicts. reporter: to practice his new profession, he has obtained a work permit. til recently, jordan forbade syrian refugees from working legally. under pressure from the international community, the kingdom changed its laws in 2017 to allow syrians to be employed in agriculture, construction, hospitality, and industry.

this ngo helps them with administrative issues. >> as you know, the insurance policy allows you to be covered. reporter: -- >> this document allows me to work legally. without it, i could get into trouble with my employer. >> the government has begun tracking down those without permits. the risk of being arrested by police or being sent back to the camps has risen. >> we had better make sure everything is in order. reporter: as a result of this policy, industrial zones near to the border now employ many syrians. refugees are now a large part of jordan's factory workforce, especially in textiles. classic fashion employs around 350 syrians. this indian-founded company

sends all its production to the united states. >> i'm here to help my family. it is difficult to find work as a refugee, and even more so if you are a woman. >> i employed syrians because i could see that they need the job and at the same time they are committed to their work. it is a win-win for them to have a job and for us to have a workforce to support our operation. reporter: this radical change in policy toward the syrians is the result of long negotiations between the jordanian monarchy and western countries wanting to limit the arrival of refugees to europe. for one investigative journalist, integration has been traded for significant investment. >> in return for allowing syrians to work, international donors have financed infrastructure, education, and more, up to $8.1 million.

we still don't know how the money was spent. reporter: jordan is poor in natural resources, so in order to attract rich foreigners, authorities are now offering passports. since 2018, over 200 entrepreneurs, mostly syrians, could claim jordanian nationality. they must invest at least 620,000 euros. one person from damascus saw it as an opportunity. he relocated his detergent company from the syrian capital to the suburbs here. >> these go to 18 different countries. the factory started with 15,000 square murders and now it -- square meters, and now we have more than 50,000. we started from scratch and made a very good investment here. reporter: thanks to his new passport, he can travel and do business more easily. all his family have also been naturalized. >> i feel a lot more at peace, of course, now we are part of jordanian society. reporter: according to the

authorities, this passport for investment policy has created 7000 jobs and brought in more than one billion euros to the kingdom's economy. this revenue is welcome in the country, which has slipped into recession due to the coronavirus pandemic. mark: a syrian migrant success story there in jordan. stay with us. more to come. life in paris. >> bahrain, where shiites and sunnis live side-by-side, is becoming the latest hotspot for finance and technology. tensions are easing and changes on the way. easing and changes on the way. while the government boasts of harmonious social relations, gaping inequalities and deep social scars and a different picture.

>> it is really difficult to find a job. it is like a nightmare. >> can bahrain come together and stay together? >> the forgotten revúú ■ñ■ñ■ñ?ñ

03/09/21 03/09/21 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> the officers took a great man, a great father, a great brother. he loved his daughter. she meant the world to him. and we will never get that back. amy: black lives matte