>> this is dw news live from berlin. three dad and others injured in a german city, wurzburg, following a knife attack. bystanders confront the attacker, and may have prevented further bloodshed. also on the program, loved ones hope for miracles in florida as the chance of rescuing survivors in a collapsed link near miami fade. officials confirmed for deaths and 160 remain missing. -- 4 deaths and 160 remain

missing. u. preside joe biden meets the afghan president ahead of a full nato troop withdrawal. ♪ phil: five people are dead and hundreds injured after a rare tornado hit the czech republic, the most stating storm they are modern history. i'm phil gayle. welcome to the program. we begin here in germany, three people have been killed and five others seriously injured in a knife attack. police shot and arrested a 24-year-old somali man in the southern city of wurzburg. the state of bavaria interior ministry says the suspect evan -- suspect has a history of mental illness. witnesses say pedestrians try to

hold off the attack. witness say the man attacked people in the city center for no apparent reason. he was confronted by passersby and then arrested. >> we saw him. he had a really big knife and was attacking people. then, people tried to throw chairs or umbrellas at cell phones to stop him. but none of that worked. >> the police approached him and a shot was fired. you could hear that clearly. in any case, they caught him. phil: straight to wurzburg, where we welcome reporter sachse hack. sachse: this is the scene where the thing happened today about 17:30. around this corner, where policemen are placed now and the ambulance is placed, there was

the 24-year-old attacker who tried to injured -- try to injure a woman. witnesses tried to help her. people around tried to help her and then what happened was several fights. you can see that in social media videos from eyewitnesses. those people tried to help and they were injured too. what police said about a half-hour ago is that it is a single attacker, that he might be psychologically in crisis, but there is no information of a terror was something like this and what you can see on these videos was numerous people trying to help everybody who was injured. it was absolutely dramatic and crazy. they tried to overwhelm him, they tried to's job him with his 40-centimeter long knife.

he tried to run away in that little street over there where the police men are standing now, and an eyewitness told us he heard a single shot. and after that, the man was arrested. brent: what is known of the victims? sachse: what we know about the victims is that, five minutes ago, police confirmed there are three dad and there might be several heavily injured, 16 people heavily injured. we hope that the number of dead is not rising in the night. brent: and -- phil: and this attacker, not known to police? sachse he wasn't not -- sachse: he wasn't known to

police. he's 24 years old and might be from somalia. that is all we know. but police are saying he was a single attacker and there were no further people involved in the action, and that he might be in a psychological crisis. phil: wurzburg is a small town, but this is not the first time the city has suffered this type of attack. sachse it is almost -- sachse: it is almost to the day five years ago when we had an attack on a train very close to wurzburg. a man attacked several people in that train with an ax. they were really, seriously injured. these people came from the far east, and they suffer until today under these injuries that they had. phil: thank you so much for joining us, sachse hack wurzburg

in -- and wurzburg. phil: is, former policeman derek chauvin sentenced to 22 and a half years for the murder of george floyd. the court heard victim impact statements from the floyd family and then call for the maximum sentence for shelving. shelving is -- derek chauvin is still facing civil rights charges. dw correspondent stefan simons is in minneapolis in front of the courthouse where sentencing is happening. welcome, stefan. talk us through reactions to the sentence. stefan: right after it was announced derek chauvin will go to prison for 22 years and a half, reactions were subdued. very calm. now, you can see in the background, i will step out of the picture, a small group of

activists or protesters pro george floyd protesters. and there is actually more press there. it looks like a bigger crowd, that is not the case. there is more press than protesters, and they are little bit agitated that has something to do with some people allegedly , white people, are asking questions they don't want to hear. one way or another, 22 .5 years for derek chauvin -- 22.5 years for derek chauvin. 40 years would have been the maximum possible, 12 and a half the minimum possible. the prosecutor wanted 30 years. the prosecutor wanted 30 years and the defense wanted mr. shelving -- derek chauvin to walk free on probation, and walk free with days in prison already counted as a credit for him. jive -- judge cahill came down with 22.5 years, and the reason for this

is the aggravating factors that he decided on a month ago. for example, derek chauvin showed specific cruelty when he was, for nine minutes and 45 seconds, on george floyd's neck. and he did it in the presence of minors, children. so there you have it -- 22.5 years. but here's the caveat. is this over? no, it is not. two reasons -- there is an appeal expected paid the defense as three months to file an appeal and appeal this judgment from judge cahill. reason number two is, there is a federal case pending against derek chauvin, and that is a civil rights case from temporal prosecutors -- from federal prosecutors. there is not even a court date for this now. all things considered, chauvin

and how many years he goes to prison is an ongoing story. phil: 22.5 years for the murder of george floyd. you talked to people outside the courthouse, is it too early to have heard from the floyd family or indeed the chauvin league and team? stefan: yeah, it is too early. the floyd family spoke during what is called a victim statement, where victims can make impact statements. and two brothers of george floyd were speaking before the sentence was announced. and that was quite impressive, they had a lot of trouble to stay on point. very emotional, they had to pause several times and wipe away tears. they talked about the impact on the family. and one brother begged or pleaded with the court, saying, i ask you to give him the

maximum possible sentence. whatever is legally possible, please wrote the book at him. that gives the family closure. we are expecting the family to speak out in a little bit, not sure exactly when, but i assume it will happen. and we will know more on this. now, towards the crowd here in minneapolis, there is no riots or anything expected here. there will maybe be shouting here, shouting there, a little march around the street or hennepin government center, but that is about it. phil: stefan simons in minneapolis, thank you so much. derek chauvin is the police officer who killed george floyd, 22.5 years for his murder. we will stay in the u.s., where rescue workers in the state of florida are searching for survivors in the rubble of a partially-collapsed 12-story apartment building. art of it came down early thursday morning.

local officials confirmed at least four deaths. nearly 160 people are missing. heavy machinery, rescue dogs and listening tools are being deployed as rescuers search for signs of life. reporter: it is day two for rescue operations in florida. the sun comes up and the severe damage is visible once again. only debris is left from roughly 55 apartment units in surfside, close to miami. teams working 12-hour shifts. search-and-rescue hasn't stopped since they arrived at the scene. in the parking garage, firefighters try to stabilize the foundation and tunnel into the rubble of what used to be a beachfront high-rise. >> we are going to work as hard as we can to continue our search and rescue effort. that is our priority. that is where we are focused, and protecting our first responders who are on thscene. reporter: but it is not just rescue teams that are at the scene nonstop. residence and neighbors were

there throughout the night to support each other, waiting to hear from loved ones. >> i tried to contact them, but nobody answered. i tried to contact them also on whatsapp. nobody could get any answer. hopefully, they are ok. reporter: in the area where the building is located, many residents have an international background, and residence abroad -- and relatives abroad. >> we are working with constituents to help at their visas processed quickly, so we can get family members over here to ensure they can be standing by to get the critical news they are waiting for. reporter: florida declared a state of emergency to release additional funds and her son l. federal assistance is on the way as well. >> all we can do is try to help people in that situation, and get answers as well for the future, so something like this never happens again. reporter: because it is not just the search for survivors that

keeps this committee on tender hooks. they want that on tenterhooks. -- on tenterhooks. they want answers about how this could happen. phil: in belarus -- an arrest after a flight was intercepted on the way toilnius athens, authorities in belarus forced the plane to land in minsk where he was taken into custody, prompting international outrage. 12 german troops and another u.n. soldier have been wounded in a car bomb attack in mali. it happened outside their base. it is the worst attack since germany became involved in the peacekeeping mission in 2013. eu leaders have ended a two-day in-person summit in brussels. the meeting was full of disagreement over how to advance communication between the block and russia, and what do about a new law in hungary that

restricts discussions of lgbtq issues. reporter: it was a difficult night for eu leaders as they rallied behind one of their own and against one of their own, with hungary's new law targeting the lgbtq community provoking a backlash so intense, some leaders called the experience unprecedented. >> we had a very sincere, sometimes even emotional exchange of views, exchange of arguments, on those topics. but the opportunity for many leaders to reaffirm their very strong commitment in favor of those fundamental values. reporter: hungarian prime minister viktor orban was nearly isolated in his distance that banning homosexuality among young people is in line with hungarian values, while the opium -- while the openly gay luxembourg prime minister passionately appealed to show tolerance. >> the victor i see today's not

the victor i knew years ago, who was over and -- who was open and tolerant. it is a shame. reporter: eu president ursula has given hungary until the end of the month to explain itself before launching legal action for discrimination, -- ursula under lockdown -- ursula von der leyen has given hungary until the end of the month to explain itself before launching legal action for discrimination. but hungary wasn't the only hotspot in a long night. a last-minute proposal by eu heavyweights germany and france to hold a summit with russian president vladimir putin was met with wide disapproval by other leaders, dealing a disappointment to the german chancellor in what is likely her last eu cancel -- council meeting. angela merkel was unhappy with suggestions that meeting with putin could be seen as rewarding him. >> that saddens me because it

shows that there is not enough trust among us that we can be self-confident and tear duct regard. and we have to work on that. -- confident in that regard. we have to work on that. reporter: but with merkel leaving office, this work will be left to other leaders. phil: u.s. president joe biden hosts his afghan counterpart at the white house today as afghanistan faces a crisis. taliban militants have been claiming territory since the u.s. troop pullout began in may. all nato troops are due to leave by september. president biden has promised billions of dollars in security assistance, but will it be enough? we go to washington for details in just a moment. first, this report. reporter: searching for anythg they can svage, scrap merchants picked through what is left of a former u.s. airbase,

once the nerve center for operations in afghanistan. this is what remains after america's longest overseas war. in the north, the taliban is on the aance, suddenly gaining territory, taking district after district. the u.n. is sounding the alarm. >> most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn. reporter: it is the calm for the storm in the provincial capital here. residents can only wait as the frontline draws closer. afghan security forces seem powerless to stop the advance. in kabul, former militia man who fought against -- militia men who fought against the taliban

are now bolstering the defense. >> we have gathered here to defend the republic, freedom of speech and the independence of afghanistan. if the taliban want peace, we will make peace with them. but if they want fight, we are ready for them and we will defend our land. reporter: emboldened by the u.s. withdrawal, this taliban commander is confident of victory. >> we have defeated the americans. the afghan government is a slave administration. when the americans leave, it won't last five days. reporter: more than half of all u.s. troops have already left the country. the rest will follow september 11, more work for afghanistan scrap merchants. phil: let's get more from our dw correspondent in washington. welcome, oliver. what can we expect from this meeting between the presidents

of the u.s. and afghanistan? oliver: the afghan president finds himself in a desperate situation, as we have seen in the report. the afghan government losing power, taliban gaining ground, and there are reports of the u.s. telogen -- u.s. intelligence community suggesting the government of afghanistan could collapse six months after the government of the u.s. pulls out its remaining 3500 troops. this is the underlying situation the afghan president finds himself in. there will be a call for help, and the u.s. will be willing to offer some kind of help, $3.3 billion u.s. in security assistance are on the table for weapons for afghanistan. but the message is clear -- the u.s. is out and afghanistan will have to stand on its own feet. phil: that is the plan, the situation on the ground deteriorates, the u.s. takes its troop and sends money and says,

by some weapons and security. that is the plan? oliver: some troops are going to stay. not all the troops are leaving afghanistan. 600 50 troops, to secure the u.s. embassy in afghanistan, the kabul airport, but fail, the future relationship between afghanistan -- but phil, the future relationship between afghanistan and the u.s., the u.s. is looking for bases in the region for future aerial bombings, but the u.s. like to stay clear in the future of afghanistan. phil: tell us what is likely to happen to the many afghans who helped u.s. troops, as interpreters for example. their situation must be quite fragile. oliver: they are in a very dramatic situation, depending on the question if they are still in the country. i met one former interpreter and

he was fearing for the life of his brother who remains in afghanistan. he feels the taliban could kill him if they find out he cooperated with the americans. 18,000 contractors are still in the country, contractors or interpreters of the u.s. army. at the was promised to bring them to the u.s., but that process is very slow. it takes on average 3, 4 years for a so-called special immigrant visao be issued. there are several ideas circulating and they range from bringing them to the pacific island of guam or third countries in the region and have them wait there while their visa applications are being processed. phil: this does not sound as though afghanistan is very high in president biden's list of priorities. oliver: certainly other topics are more important, to put it carefully. but it is still an important topic, especially to end the

deployment there. therefore, the u.s. government under biden is determined to do that. you have to look at the political situation in the usp president biden was elected to deliver on domestic issues, infrastructure, health care, covid, plus the americans are tired of war, so in that sense, he is delivering now by pulling troops out read that as a bipartisan sentiment by the way that is exactly what we are seeing. phil: thank you, oliver, in washington. more stories from around the world starting in gibraltar, which has voted in favor of easing strict abortion laws. the government proposed legal changes to allow termination when a woman's mental or physical health is at risk or when a fetus has a fatal physical abnormality. 62% of residents back the changes. australian authorities have warned residents of four neighborhoods in central city need to stay home to contain an

outbreak of the delta variant of covid-19. several dozen cases have been recorded this week. at least five people have died after houses were raised to the ground in southeast czech republic. hundreds of others were injured and at least 1000 homes were destroyed. austria's of lucky you have sent crews to join the rescue effort. -- austria and slovakia have sent crews to join the rescue effort. reporter: this is what wind speeds of up to 330 kilometers per hour can do. seven small towns in the czech republic's south look like this friday morning. everything -- >> everything is somewhere here. all the windows, it took everything. it flew through here. everything is all over the courtyard. reporter: thousands of homes were destroyed or lost power

when the tornado struck thursday night along with strong thunderstorms. residents reported hailstones size of tennis balls. there were extensive traffic disruptions, with fallen power lines closing a major motorway. >> i can't even describe it. it was like a war zone. everything was spinning and flying. it took our roof away. in one minute, everything changed. reporter: emergency workers spent the morning combing through the wreckage, looking for survivors. they have now onto the painstaking cleanup phase. >> the german ministry of interior has released over 60 million euros to help these communities. there are charity collections that he sprung up overnight and people are sending a lot o money to those. also, major online lewd suppliers in the czech republic have been deliving food as aid to these are. what we are seeing today in the

check public is a stronsense of solidarity. reporter: tornadoes are rare in the czech republic, the last notable one taking back to 2004. phil: to israel, researchers say they have identified a previously unknown type of ancient human that lives in -- lived alongside our species 100,000 years ago. the findings shed w light in the course of human evolution. reporter: remnants of an ancient human form. near this city, researchers discovered remains of this previously unknown lincoln evolution, a partial scotland jaw from an individual who lived between 140000 and 120,000 years ago. >> it belongs to a very old group that lived in the area. we can rewrite the history of the development of nand or charles -- neanderthals. now, we can say that they probably originated in the lv -- in the levant, our

region, rather than europe. reporter: the big uncovered quantities of animal bones as well as stone tools. scientists believe the species most likely interacted with homo sapiens, meaning modern-day israel may have served as a melting pot with different populations mixing with one another before spreading out across several continents. phil: a reminder of our top story -- police in the german city of wurzburg sealed off parts of the city following a knife attack. they confirmed three deaths and suspect has be shot and arrested. there is said to be no further danger to the public. ♪ more world news at the top of the hour on "the day," in just a moment. i will leave you with pictures from tel aviv, where more than 100,000 people took to the streets friday to celebrate sexual and gender diversity

despite a recent increase in coronavirus cases. it was the city's first pride event since the start of the pandemic and members were as colorful and carefree as usual. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪

>> watch events unfold on france 24 and france24.com. paris. are watching live from i'm julia kim. these are our top stories this hour. derek chauvin is sentenced to 22 years and six months in prison for murdering george floyd. the former minneapolis police officer broke his silence at his sentencing, offering condolences to floyd's family. president joe biden hosts afghan leaders at the white house as the u.s. moves forward with its troop drawdown amid escalating taliban violence. and cyclists are gearing up in the region of brittany, the departure point for the world's most's to