tonight, her break during friday prayers in afghanistan -- heartbreak during friday prayers in afghanistan, and attack killing dozens, the word since foreign troops left the country. also, defying death threats in search of the truth, two journalists, one from the philippines and one from russia, win this year's nobel peace prize. the lives lost in this pandemic,

brazil's death from covid-19 pushes the 600,000 mark, second in the world only to the united states. plus, he has four legs and knows his way around town, the curious canine of istanbul. our correspondent joins him for a journey will you not soon forget. ♪ i'm brent goff. to all of you, welcome. we begin with another explosion in afghanistan, this one turning friday prayers into a bloodbath. a last at shiite mosque in the north has left dozens dead and more than 140 wounded. in a statement, so-called islamic state k said a suicide bomber detonated an explosive

vest amid shiite worshipers inside, the deadliest attack since foreign forces left the country, and afghanistan's third attack on the house of worship this week. correspondent: a man weeps, so many lies shattered, the mosque is blackened and empty. at the time of the explosion, it was crowded, as usual on a friday, the muslims day of worship. this is the worst attack since u.s.-led international forces left. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: the sound came as the prayers started. i went to look for my relatives in the mosque. i saw people lying all over the floor. correspondent: shock and grief shattered the country.

in the capital, women gathered for prayers, crying together for the dead, wounded, survivors, the families. people ask why and beg for peace. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: we need strict internal security that will make is able to live a normal life, the same as other people in the world. we are also facing economic problems. there are no jobs, and there is no economic system. correspondent: the islamic state group has claimed responsibility for the attack. the militants have a long history of targeting afghanistan's shiite minority and attempting to further destabilize the country in crisis. brent: i am joined now from kabul by a journalist. good evening. what is the latest information you can give us? correspondent: the latest

casualty figures are at least 46 killed and 143 wounded. there are credible reports that the number of fatalities will rise. the explosion was apparently caused by a suicide bomber inside the mosque. the self-declared islamic state's claim identified the attacker as mohammed -- he was likely hailing from china. brent: has there been reaction from the taliban? correspondent: the taliban have condemned the attack and promised to find t person behind it and punish them . this was expected. it isn't anything new. there have been other attacks claimed by the islamic state in other parts of afghanistan and

the taliban have claimed alleged members of the afghanistan islamic state, and credible reports indicate china these taliban operations against alleged terrorist have targeted innocent people, so that is a continuation of what we have seen during the past days. brent: help us understand this, so we have a suicide bomber, possibly coming from china, going into northern afghanistan and blowing himself up inside this mosque. what are we to read into this, pecially with him coming from china? correspondent: so there have been since long islamists in afghanistan, so we can't read into that that this man came from cna into afghanistan and then blew himself up in a

mosque. this man has probably been living in afghanistan for a long time, or that seems to be the most likely explanation. afghanistan since decades, has been home to jihadistsand the islamic state picks foreigner for attacks is also nothing new. also, in eastern afghanistan, the self-declared islamic state advertise that one indian was participating in this. this is likely for propaganda, islamic ste wants t portray itself as not only a local group, but a transnational group that has support from muslims all around the world. such claims, with such claims they can highlight that they are more than just like a local group and they are not confined

to afghanistan, that they have support from people elsewhere, and that they also have plans elsewhere. brent: ok, the latest from kabul. thank you. shedding light where there is darkness, speaking truth to power, and maintaining courage under great pressure, several reasons why two investigative journalist have been awarded the 2020 was nobel peace prize. one from the philippines and one in russia were lauded for their fight for the freedom of expression. one founded the philippine investigative news network. the other is the founder of one of russia's top independent newspaper. the committee says the word is a call to support freedom of the press everywhere. correspondent: it has been 86 years since the nobel peace prize was last awarded to a journalist. this time, it has gone to two.

the committee honored their courageous fight for freedom of expression. >> they are representatives of all journalists who stand up for this idea in the world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasing adverse conditions. correspondent: maria is the first woman to be awarded this year. she has long set herself apart in her field as an investigative reporter and media enter vader, but due to her critical reporting, she and her news website have often been subjected to government attacks. >> this relentless campan of harassnt and intimidation against me and my fellow jonalist in thehilippines is a stark example of a global trend that journalists and freedom of the press are facing increasingly adverse conditions. i hope today's prize will remind

authorities in the philippines, russia, around the world of the need to respect journalist and jonalism. independent journalism holding power to account has never been as important as is today. correspondent: sharing the award is dmitry muratov, editor in chief of a russian investigative newspaper, which has defied the kremlin under president vladimir putin with probes into wrongdoing and corruption. he is the first russian to win the nobel peace prize since soviet leader mikhail gorbachev, who himself helped set up the paper with the money he received from winning the award in 1990. dmitry muratov has dedicated his award to six journalists who have been murdered for their work exposing human rights violations and corruption. he says he plans to use his share of the prize money to support russian journalism at a

time when it is under threat like never before. brent: i am joined tonight by rebecca, the director of international campaigns of reporters without borders. it is good to have you on the program. what did you think when you heard today's news that the nobel peace prize laureates were to journalist? >> it has been a good day for press freedom. i have to say i was thrilled to hear the news, as were all my coeagues throughout our international network. i think it is a very important decision taken by the nobel committee and a strateg one to really show the importance of not just highlighting the work of these courageous journalists themselves, but everything they stand for. and really endless trading the important role free expression place, which is a view we share. brent: the nobel commission said maria ressa is receiving the award because "she uses freedom of expression to expose abuse of

power, use of violence, and growing authoritarianism in her native country, the philippines." what can you tell us about freedom of the press in the philippines? >> it is a very difficult situation. the philippines is ranked 138th in the world press freedom index. maria is facing pressure, but not the only one. journalist are killed with impunity. we have seen journalist imprisoned in connection with her work, but i want to underscore the situation maria is in, because there is a very real risk of decades possibly in prison if she is convicted on the ludicrous charges against her that remain. she has a libel charge she was convicted on last summer, if that is not overturned on appeal, that is six years i prison, and a cluster of tax-related cases as well, and the administration is doing

everything in their power to silence her and rattler. this prize can offer her some vital protection on the ground as well. brent: that is true. she said two charges have been dropped, but seven are pending. let's talk about the russian recipient, dmitry muratov, the editor-in-chief of investigative newspaper. he said he is dedicating the price to six colleagues of his newspaper who were murdered. what more can you tell us about the newspaper? >> it is known to be fiercely independt and one of the most consistently critical publications in russia. again, this is a country with a difficult press freedom situation. russia is 150th on the world press freedom index. yesterday, we marked the 15th anniversary of a journalist from the newspaper, and there has been no justice for her or many other russian journalists killed

or otherwise targeted in connection with her work, so i think this was again, a strategic decision by the nobel committee to highlight the situation there, to offer these courageous journalists some protection,opefully, d also, to make sure the world knows more about what is happening there and ensure that journalists everywhere that work in such conditions the, that face such risks, get more international support and solidarity. brent: their stories are very extreme, but unfortunately, they are not the exceptions. we all work in a very hostile environment when we are trying to report the truth. does today's decision have the potential to strengthen freedom of the press worldwide? >> i hope so, because i think it is important to commit me -- committee showed how integral press freedom is to democracy itself, and to the respecte piece. we need independent reporting around the world. we need courageous people to take these risks. ultimately, it is the public

that is impacted when journalists are targeted. the impact is always the public in every country and inteationally gets less information when journalists are targeted, so it is our right to access this information and hold our governments to account and insured peace and stability around the world, so i think it is very important. an i hope it puts those on notice, not just russia in the philippines, but everywhere, those who wish to try to silence critical reporting, i hope they now will think twice about it, and they know that international attention will follow that, in courageous journalists everywhere have our support in the national community. brent: and we share your support tonight. rebecca, reporters without borders in london, thank you. let's turn now to some other stories making headlines around the world. croatian police have suspended three officers pending proceedings after footage of masked police beating migrants on the border with bosnia.

the european union has cold for an investigation into media reports. greece has also promised to probe allegations of similar actions by its officials. protesters in austria are calling for the chancellor to resign amid a corruption investigation. the leader of the conservative party is now facing a vote of no-confidence in parliament. his junior coalition partners, the greens, say they are open to government with other political parties. brazil's covid-19 death toll is on the verge tonight that topping 600,000 fatalities. many blame the president for the scale of the tragedy, as he has consistently downplayed the danger caused by the virus. activists in rio de janeiro have been commemorating victims with a ceremony on copacabana beach. one ngo displayed white handkerchiefs to symbolize the many people who have died, each white, square cloth represents

1000 people who have died. brazil is only second to the united states in lives lost to the pandemic. all right, let us go straight to our correspondent in rio de janeiro. good evening to you. what do you see as the main contribute in factor 2 brazil's hi covid-19 that's great? correspondent: we are still waiting for official figures, but we have reached 600,000 corona deaths here, and the role of the president is important. he was in dispute with the regional governors and local mayors since march 2020, so he did not take actions early, so the health care system collapsed. another important issue, last

year, the brazilian president was not able to purchase enough vaccination doses on time. so these are failures of his government. brent: protesters in brazil are calling for the impeachment of president bolsonaro, many citing his handling or lack thereof of the pandemic as their main reason. do you think there will be any real political impact, blowback in brazil? correspondent: i think this year it is not likely to happen. and impeachment is not likely because his political coalition is still firm, the center-right coalition still stands behind him, but there is a parliamentary commission of inquiry going on, and this could result in the next month proceedings against the president, but he is still in a comfortable position and might go for elections next year. brent: we understand that more

than 200 municipalities have defied bolsonaro by requiring vaccination for certain activities, even releasing a statement defying the president's rhetoric against vaccines. is this having an impact on vaccination rates? correspondent: i think the system, the health system is working on the limit and is doing a great job up to 3 million people have been vaccinated per day, but the purchase of vaccinations did not happen on time, and it will take until the end of the year. that percent of the population will be vaccinated, but we see the skepticism towards vaccination is not common, as in some european countries, so we will have a high vaccination rate next year in brazil. brent: we can only hope so. thank you.

you are watching "dw news." still to come, we meet a stray dog who travels istanbul using public transportation, and he has become a social media star in the process. you will meet him in just a moment. back here in europe, to the czech republic, where parliamentary elections kicked off friday afternoon until 2:00 p.m. saturday. two opposition figures are hoping to unseat a billionaire prime minister. they criticize his handling of the pandemic and new allegations of using hidden offshore holdings to buy real estate in france. our dw correspondent traveled to prague to speak to voters and find out if the groundswell of those hoping for changes enough to overcome the loyal supporters of the politician known as the czech republic's donald trump. correspondent: they set up their

stalls in prague, competing for voters, using all the tricks in the book. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: my dog would definitely vote communist, if you could. correspondent: next to the leafless, potatoes and pumpkins. what is this person expecting from the elections? >> [speaking foreign language] translator: [indiscernible] [indiscernible] nothing much. [speaking foreign language] translator: it will stay as it is or get worse. who i will vote for? i don't know yet. correspondent: others have made up their minds. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: i am expecting democratic party's to win in the political climate in the country will change. correspondent: eva and her fellow actors need to bring together opposition parties across the political spectrum. together, they can defeat the men in power, hopes andriy, the candidate from one party. >> he is a billionaire who owns a huge company, which actually employs a lot of people in this

country, but he also seems to think that he also owns the country. correspondent: the family of opposition forces is united by the fight against the prime minister. the billionaire has been mired in allegations of this using funds, conflicts of interest between politics and business, and other shady financial deals. he is at the core of the czech republic's problems with correction, says transparency international, an ngo. just this week, he appeared in the pandora papers. >> i am not surprised at all, because there were similar cases in the past that he is trying to avoid paying taxes. i think for his supporters or voters, this case is too complicated to understand, and it will not change the elections , i think, or very, very little. correspondent: a hotel on the

outskirts of prague built by him in 2015 has been the first example in a string of cases. it has put him on a collision course with eu and czech prosecutors, because he used money meant for small farmers to create this luxury spot. but despite the scandals and allegations, he retains a stronghold in poorer parts of the country. in his constituent -- constituency in one town, pensioners are among his strongest supporters. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: he has done a lot for us, never mind what he is. we are voting for him. you need to do this again, because he has increased our pensions. i am voting for him because he is sympathetic. i really like him. correspondent: back in prague, these kids are enjoying a bouncy counsel put up by the leftist pirate party, part of the new coalition fighting for better

education, environment, and pushing the prime minister from his throne. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: we want to get rid of corruption and oligarchs stealing the state in the doing everything for their own interests. correspondent: the pirates used to be hide in the polls, but have lost their lead, but still hope to win the political battle of the czech opposition. brent: finally, if you have a dog, you have probably proved that your pet possesses exceptional intelligence. we have heard of dogs that can sing, add two plus two but what about a stray dog who knows the bus schedule and who knows when to run to catch the next ferry? tonight, our correspondent reports from istanbul, turkey, as she tags along with a curious canine who may just win the contest of man's most inteigent bestriend. correspondent: people on their way to work, and a completely

normal day on public transport in istanbul. he is a stray dog, but he loves traveling around the city. today, we meet him on the european side in an historic district. even if he does not make that impression now, he has become a real celebrity in istanbul. people run into him everywhere, on the ferry, bus, subway, or like here on the tram, and that is why many city residents have a story to tell about him. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: he loves istanbul. he sees more of the city then we do, and he does not have to buy tickets. that is a bit unfair. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: you meet him in the metro, on the bus, he is always relaxed and in a good mood. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: i saw him for the first time today, but of course, i knew him before. >> [speaking foreign language]

translator: stray animals are part of istanbul. we share our streets and parks with them, so why not our trams too? ♪ brent: correspondent: no one really knows how long he has been making his way around istanbul. about three months ago, more and more people began posting photos of their encounters with him. the dog now even has his own social media accounts, and tens of thousands of followers. ♪ city workers are now taking him for regular health checks. they also gave him a color with a gps tracker -- collar with the gps tracker. >> [speaking foreign language] translator: we are tracking his route, a always know where he is, even at night. he travels 30 to 40 kilometers every day, but he also takes breaks. one station is one of his favorite another

destination and watches the sea for a while. correspondent: so it is easy to find out where he is running to catch a ferry, but to this day, no one can really say why he is on the go so much. he does not seem to be looking for anything specific, never has a clear destination. he wanders through istanbul like a tourist. and, if he just barely misses a train, he patiently waits for the next one. brent: as they say, it is a dog's life. you are watching "dw news." here is a reminder of the top stories. a suicide bombing at a shiite mosque in the northern afghan city has left dozens dead, scores wounded. the blast occurred during friday prayers of the worst attacks since foreign troops left the country. so-called islamic state k has

claimed responsibility. this year's nobel peace prize has been given to two independent journalists, one from the philippines, and one from russia. both run news outlets that hold their governments to account. the norwegian nobel committee said that prizes a statement of support for free speech everywhere. this "dw news." after a short break, i would take you through the "the day." tonight, the power of the pen versus the bullies on their swords. we will be right back. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪

anchor: it is 10:00 p.m. in the french capital. our top stories this hour. islamic state claim sponsor ability for a suicide, attack at a mosque in conduce -- kunduz. it was the deadliest assault since the departure of u.s. troops. the africa-france summit wra up with president macron promising a reckoning with colonialism. it took place without any heads of state for the first time. 136 countries agreed t a vast overhaul of global corporate xation