berlin. u.s. health officials approve a controversial new drug for alzheimer's disease. the fit treatment to target the condition's underlying cause rather than symptoms. also on the program, judges in the netherlands here evidence against four men accused of bringing down malaysia airlines flight mh 17. seven years after the civilian passenger plane was shot out of

the skies, families will your testimony about how their loved ones died. germany's vaccination campaign is on a roll. there are concerns supply shortages could get in the way. major indian cities delhi and mumbai ease a lockdown restrictions as the country emerges from a devastating wave of infection. officials say it is time to get the economy back on track. ♪ i'm phil gayle. welcome to the program. u.s. government health officials have approved the first new drug for alzheimer's disease for nearly 20 years. regulators say the drug, which will be marketed -- is the first drug that treats the disease

rather than symptoms. experts are arguing there is not enough firm evidence of real benefits. let's take a closer look with a professor of neurology and psychiatry at the mcgill university in montreal. where are you on this drug? is it a big breakthrough? >> it is an importa step forward because it is the first medication approved for taking out of t brain this buildup of the protein. phil: and what is it about that that makes it so significant? >> it has been shown for a good 10 years it is possible to take out of the brain persons with early alzheimer's, this excessive buildup. what has been difficult to prove. one of the two big studies that led to this approval showed a good stability of ability to

stay home alone safely. phil: where does the controversy come from? >> one of the two studies is very positive and the other one is negative and no benefit. the fda i think wisely said we will give you a conditional approval so you can start your marketing, get more experience in terms of safety and efficacy in the world work -- the real world, we want another randomized study for you to be able to continue using the drug. phil: so it is conditional at this stage because lots of people are going to be listening to this news and thinking, this is great. when can i get my hands on it? >> think carefully whether you want to ha monthly injections for a year. some people may have brain swelling from the medication and this needs to be monitored carefully. but it is manageable risk.

it is going to help some people. we just don't know yet which ones, the younger or the older, earlier stages of the disease, if you have a particular genetic profile possibly. still lots to lea about how best to use the medication. phil: it does seem odd this is the first treatment that targets the causes rather than the symptoms of this condition. why is that? >> it is a complex disease. for a cenry, we know there is a build up in the brain of two proteins. one is the one that can be treated. it is probably not sufficient to get maximum benefit. the other protein has to be targeted. there's possibly inflammatory component as well. small strokes can speed up the process. a stroke we can manage now. phil: thank you so much for explaining that to us.

now to the netherlands where judges have begun to hear evidence from -- evidence against four men suspected to be behind the downing of a malaysian passenger jet. the trial is being held in the amsterdam airport where the flight took off. the suspects are three russians are still at large, meaning they are being tried in their absence. all 298 people aboard the boeing 777 died and it was shot down nearly 7 -- died when it was shot down nearly seven years ago. >> a tree for each of the people who never returned. the memorial site next to the airport has 298 trees in total. three of them are dedicated to a family.

he lost his brother, his sister-in-law and their son aboard flight mh 17. >> they left two daughters who did not go with them on holiday, two young daughters at the time. so yeah, i had to tell the daughters their father and mother and brother died. i had to tell my parents who were in the hospital at the time that -- at the time. that was very shocking. >> he chairs a foundation bringing together next of kin. he says the disaster had a real impact on all of dutch society. >> when the bodies were repatriated, the whole dutch nation was watching it on television. this was also very beautiful

there was so much compassion among the dutch people. >> flight mh 17 took off here and never reached its final destination in malaysia. after years of investigations, a court in the netherlands is determined to find out what happened on that fateful day in 2014 and who is responsible. at the center of ts inquiry are the remnants of the boeing 777x being viewed by the court. a massive jigsaw puzzle that was peach -- that was pieced together at a dutch military base. the crash site seven years ago. all 298 on the plane were killed on it was blown out of the sky over a war zone in eastern ukraine. evidence points to an antiaircraft system, which was moved from russia into rebel territory. these four men will stand trial. they rain at large, allegedly

protected by russia. those representing the victims say this does not make the case any less important. >> can take five, can take 10 years, maybe 15 years. mr. putin and his regime will not always be in power. if there will be a shift in government or policy, there will be a shift in policy in this fight. they will have no rest, these suspects. i am sure of that. >> this man on the other hand says he does not care if the suspects go to jail. he just wants the truth to be spoken. >> what role of the russian federation was, not only who pushed the button but who was responsible for what happened? >> this could take years. >> even seven years after mh 17

crashed, he is determined to see this through until the end. phil: our reporter from dw who was also at court in amsterdam should today -- in amsterdam. >> today marks a very important step in the case. thcourt for the first time be looking at actual evidence. put together by the joint investigation team. this entails social media footage, witness reports and phone taps of rebel leaders but also forensic evidence. for example, regarding the wreckage and the bodies of people who died in the plane crash. this is vital to this case and especially important to determine whether or not mh 17 was taken down by a missile system and from where the set -- from where this missile system would have been fired. the judge made clear in his opening remarks the court would address all options, would

explore all alleys. and that the russian role in this case would not be central to be the -- central to the case but rather the role of the four suspects. the court aims to find out the entire truth, to find out the background of who provided the missile system. russia denies all responsibility in this case, has been doing so for the last seven years and also, to this day has done its utmost to get in the way of investigators getting to the bottom of this. phil: we will take a look at some of the other stories making news around the world starting with russia where opposition figure alexei navalny has been discharged from a prison hospital and returned to jail. mr. devante was hospitalized in april after going on hunger strike. he is serving two and a half years for embezzlement cases that supporters say are

politically motivated. the leader of a nigerian military islamist group is dead according to a rival group. he killed himself by detonating an explosive device while fleeing fighters of islamic state west afra province. the group says his death could end a violent rivalry between the two groups. a kernel has been sworn in as president after leading his -- this time, he is promising to be a transitional leader. the international community has condemned his power grab. more than 40 people have died after two express trains collided in pakistan. dozens of others have been left injured. police say one of the trains derailed and the others slammed into it it is not clear what caused the crash. pakistan's primeinister has

ordered an investigation. >> the remains of two packed passenger trains just before dawn, one train derailed, falling into the path of anoth. hos after the crash, rescue teams and volunteers are trail -- are still trying to freerapped passengers. >> seven or eight train carriages were destroyed. many passengers are still trapped a rescue work only started three hours after the crash. >> the injured are taken to the local hospital where medical workers rush to save the lives of those polled from the wreckage. but authorities say the remote location of the crash has slowed the rescue effort. >> you can see that the rescue

operation is going on. soldiers from the military, rangers, district administration personnel and health teams are taking part. but the operation will gain momentum after heavy machinery arrives. much of pakistan rail infrastructure is left over from the british colonial era. while the cause of this crash is still unknown, accidents are all too common on these rundown railways. phil: here in germany, chancellor merkel's conservative party is tele-breading after seeing off a challenge from the far right. they won more than a third of the vote. >> the sun shines brightly on the headquarters in berlin. the results from the saxony elections have given the party chancellor candidate a boost in confidence.

even though it was not his own victory, he thinks it will strengthen the conservatives. voters have shown a clear preference for his party to the far right. the cdu is a bulwark against extremism. we will consistently continue this centrists course. that is what i stand for as party chairman and candidate for chancellor. >> the state premier sees the root of the success in his cooperation with the social democrats and greens. >> we are sending a clear signal. we will distance ourselves from the afd and stick to our centrist policies so we can form a government with a clear voter mandate. this is our recipe for success. they failed to make a big leap forward. despite strong pull numbers, they finished second, far behind the conservatives. the right wing party, which is considered an extremist group,

still garnered more than 20% of the vote. >> we are a party of the people. we want to be popular nationwide and build on the election results from 2017. that is our goal for the national elections. >> it is not a good time for the left-leaning parties. the social democrats' popularity dropped even lower. the greens dropped -- a warning signal ahead of the general election. phil: despite starting slowly, germany's vaccination rollout has reached the point where anyone can ask for an appointment after authorities ended the priority group system aimed at getting the most vulnerable thanks needed first. now there are worries vaccine supplies not keep up with demand. >> monday morning in berlin's diverse district, patients outside a local clinic are here

for all sorts of reasons, but 90% want their covid-19 jab. this team deals with up to 450 vaccinations per week. the demand on the clinic has been nonstop since they gave out their first biontech jab in early april. >> it has been a huge onslaught by both our own patients and those who have never been here. they drop by from all over the place. >> germany prioritized certain people at the start of the vaccination drive last december. the idea was to get the jabs into the arms of people who needed them the most including young people with special needs and the elderly. from monday, anyone age 12 or older can get their shots. some are already warning above shortage of the vaccine supplies. here at the clinic, doctors say they have been vaccinating people rather flexibly anyway and they think it is high time

to end the priority system given infection rates are low. >> you have to seize the moment and get a lot of people vaccinated. it is right to lift the prioritization because otherwise we will not get the level of vaccinated people we need them by the end of september. >> after a slow start, the vaccine drive is finally on a roll in germany. almost 50% of germans have received their first shots and one in five is fully vaccinated. a general wlingness seems to be there on the streets of berlin. >> yes, i want my jab because you need your freedom. >> i would like to get vaccinated, but i cannot get an appointment yet. >> i was waiting because i am from chile and all this process was superquick. >> experts are cautioning those

in germany from letting their guard down too soon. many just want to enjoy a relatively carefree summer. phil: the carefree summer is still unthinkable in many parts of the world where coronavirus vaccination rates are much lower. as companies -- as richard countries scramble to gather more doses, others are left behind. one country setting an example is norway. dw's chief international editor has met her way foreign -- has met norway's foreign to find out more. >> if we compare here in europe and north america, roughly a third of people have had windows of the vaccine so far. if you look at asia, it is one in 15. if you look at africa, it is under one in 50. is that acceptable? >> we are key in underlining no

one is safe until everyone is safe we hao invest in a fair and equitable distribution of vaccines. we are getting there, but it is too slow. we have invested from the norwegian side around 500 million u.s. dollars in this program alone. that has been good, but we also need others to step up. germany is stepping up their efforts. we have with south africa issued a letter asking others to join in. we asked 83 countries to pitch in with more funding. >> if we go back to those numbers, if we have here in europe within 15 times more likely you have been vaccinated then in parts of the continent of africa, we think to the future, that cannot be allowed to happen again. >> that is one of the things we are looking -- we are working together with germany and south africa and others on to make sure if we have a situation again in the future with a

pandemic or epidemic, we are able to respond more quickly. that is why we are investing so much not only in the distribution of vaccines but to make sure we have an architecture politically that can withstand what comes as a big shock to everyone with the pandemic this time. >> the e.u. and switzerland and other countries have been criticized for dragging their feet on this discussion. what is your response? >> peyton's are only one -- patensts are only -- patents component of the situation. we are chairing the council in the wto and working to find a consensus. what has been on the table so far by india and south africa has not been able to reach consensus among the wto members. what we saw from the americans some weeks ago was a

positive step into the right direction. we are working to see if new suggestions and proposals from india and south africa and others can bring some consensus. that would be my hope. >> thank you very much. phil: norway's foreign minister. we will take a look at some of the other stories making news around the world starting in peru where the presidential election is still too close to call. the right wing populist holds a narrow lead appeared the votes are still being -- holds a narrow lead. the votes are still being counted in rural areas. the winner will lead a nation suffering from a recession and the world's worst coronavirus death rate. the last liberator of auschwitz has died. he broke through the fences of the nazi death camp and gave food to emaciated prisoners. he later became an olympic

fencer for the soviet union. >> an unusual funnel cloud has been hovering over the british city of bristol. the british forecast has said a cone-shaped phenomenon is similar to a tornado accept the end of the funnel does not touch the ground. india has faced weeks of crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic, but another country is turning the tide on the number of cases. caseloads dropping slowly. some restrictions are being lifted in the hardest hit regions. people are cautiously optimistic, but many are calling for a faster vaccination rollout to keep people safe. >> after a bitter transition from spring into summer, covid-19 is lifting some of its grip over indian society. with a continuing decline in new cases, some parts of india are lifting protective measures, which is lifting some people

spirits. >> i feel od today because i am getting other the housefter a very long time. meo stations are on. people are following social distancing precautions and not crowding. yet cases remain highh more than 100,000 new infections a day, still the highest rate worldwide. but many areptimistic about the future. >> because people are getting educated. yes, this time it was a disaster. many young people haveost their les. i don'think going forward it will be a problem. >> ind's government says it is preppi for whatever might be next. >> so we are doing all the calculations and preparations for a potential third wave. if we reach this peak, how many beds and i used -- nicus should

be required? how much oxygen should be required? >> many blame the lack of oxygen supply among the key rsons india's death toll skyrocketed in may. on monday, india's prime minister announced plans to up vaccination rates rapidly in hopes of avoiding a third wave of the pandemic. >> until now, millions of citizens have received free vaccines from the central government. now, all of those above 18 will also be included. vaccines will be available free of cost for everyone. >> modi says efforts to increase production and import foreign doses e also underway. as parts of iia re:'s restrictions, some residents are winning their neighbors not to let down their guard. like here in the territory of

kashmir, volunteers are taking to the streets. urging people to still adhere to covid-19 guidelines. phil: as well as causing suffering across the world, the pandemic seems to be having an impact underwater. divers in the philippines are finding a growing number of face masks and personal protective equipment on the seabed, adding to the plastic waste that is already putting marine life at risk. >> it is becoming a tiresome routine. people go diving and bring back plastic trash when they surface. and now the pandemic is adding a new element to sea solution like here in the philippines. >> the marine life has been able to take a break from us personally. however, they are getting inundated from a new source of trash, which is face masks, face shields and the bunny suits people are wearing. >> the masks only add to the

materials that already played local waters. residents say that means something needs to be done. >> i think we will be seeing more of the face masks. i think we will be wearing face mask for a while, for quite some time. even with the effort of the local governments, for establishments to actually segregate the trash for that, meaning we need to provide a separate trash bin for the ppe. >> a new warns about the growing problem of ocean plastic pollution. 4/5 of that comes from asia. the u.n. is singling out the philippines, saying it is responsible for a whopping one third of all ocean plastic. phil: here is a quick reminder

of our top story. u.s. regulators have approved a controversial new drug for alzheimer's disease. officials say the drug will tackle the condition underlying causes. some experts say there is insufficient evidence to back up the claim. more world news at the top of the hour. in just a moment, i will take you through some of the biggest stories of the day in the day. have a good day. ♪

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>> welcome to live in paris, world news -- an analysis from france 24. these are the world news headlines. commander harris takes on migrant taksim latin america -- talks in latin america. peru awaits the result of a divisive face-off in its presidential election. on the left, the daughter of the former president. the middleground seems to be shrinking. the election battle becoming more and more bitter.