brent: this is dw news, live from berlin. tonight, a pandemic plea from the german chancellor as the virus spreads like never before. >> the situation is extremely dramatic, and it is important now that we act fast and act appropriately, that we have better checks. brent: new coronavirus cases are at an all-time high. tougher coronavirus restrictions are on the way and lockdowns are

no longer out of the question. also coming up tonight, leaving belarus and going back to baghdad read migrants return home after we are on europe's doorstep -- weeks on europe's doorstep. and they were wrongly convicted of the murder of civil rights leader malcolm x back in 1965. now they have been exonerated after an investigation revealed that authorities whheld evidence that proved they were not guilty. ♪ i'm brent goff. to our viewers watching on pbs in the united states and to all around the world, welcome. we begin with the pandemic emergency here in germany. lawmakers approved stricter covid restrictions to slow the devastating fourth wave of coronavirus infections.

in the past weeks, the number of new cases has jumped more than 60%. in the last 24 hours, record 65,000 new infections were reported. >> workers at this factory are having their vaccinations and test certificates check, and seimens has employed tests that could be employed across germany. this was submitted by the three parties who were likely to form germany's next government. after weeks of inaction from politicians, they say it is high time to act. >> nobody, not the doctors in intensive care wards nor the unvaccinated patients on ventilators, numb of them -- none of them care who is practicing their new role of

opposition and who is preparing for government. we are in a period of political transition. we have to take the responsibility, and that is what i expect from all of you now. [applause] >> other measures include a nationwide rule allowing access to public transport and those who have recently recovered from the virus. infection rates in germany are going through the roof. more and more germans want to see tougher measures. >> i think too little is being done. i tnk t city waited too long to impose any restrictions. >> a general vaccine mandates, more tests, and testing those who have been vaccinated as well, i think things will get better. >> i think we have to introduce compulsory absent -- vaccinations now. >> this social democrats health expert believes the law will

make a difference. >> they will work if they are used appropriately and if we really use them to the fullest extent. >> the bill still has to pass in the upper house on friday. the rules could then come into force as early as next week. brent: this afternoon, germany's chancellor angela merkel held a crisis meeting with state leaders, paving the way for a vaccine mandate for hospitals and nursing home staff, as well as more social restrictions for the unvaccinated. the chancellor pleaded for everyone to get vaccinated and for immediate action to slow the spread of the virus. >> the situation is extremely dramatic. it's important now that we act fast, that we act appropriately. that we have better checks. then we will have to see if we can stop or reduce the current momentum. with the current momentum, we

are running into a very difficult situation. especially for people who work in hospitals and particularly in intensive care. we have always said we don't want to overburden our health system. we know we can't prevent that across the board right now, but fortunately we still have the capacity to help in many places. but it is high time to act. brent: let's go to our political correspondent simon young, following this story in berlin. walk us through what the chancellor and the state leaders agreed to tonight. simon: as you heard, the chancellor saying that she is extremely concerned about the picture with the pandemic and the tough action is needed. what the chancellor and the state leaders, the regional leaders have, with is a sort of

scale, a set of thresholds which will trigger tougher measures. they are thresholds of hospitalization. that is to say, when hospitalizations for covid-19, reach a certain level, the unvaccinated will face tougher restrictions, they won't be able to go to restaurants, sports events, public events, gatherings and so on. as the hospitalization rates increase, i suppose the idea is that people will be able to see, in particular, the unvaccinated will be able to see that the relationship between hospitalizations and the measures that they are facing, and of worse they will concentrate their minds to go and get vaccinated. at the same time, what is being announced is a real push on getting people to get the

booster jabs. they said everyone over 18 who has had their second regular vaccine at least five months in the past should come forward and start getting a booster jab. the chancellor says it will be a real challenge to get those 27 million jabs into the arms, but she says the authorities around the country are ready to do that. brent: simony, germany has one of the lowest vaccination rates in western europe. there has been talk now for weeks that lockdowns would be out of the question. is that still the case, considering the calls for drastic action? simon: yeah, what we have also seen today as this new legislative framework passing through parliament, and the incoming government, which is still being formed, of course, but it has put some emphasis on

not having huge lockdowns, not nationwide or regionwide lockdowns, and in particular, not closing schools and businesses on a large-scale. they say targeted measures are more effective, so that's one of the things they want to do. they've introduced a whole to put -- toolkiof measures in particular where people can show they are either vaccinated, recovered, or tested, and the same regime will be imposed on public transport. across the board, there is a toughening, if you like, in the general stance. brent: dw's simon young with the latest tonight in berlin. thank you. we have mornow o developments in this pandemic. the czech republic, slovakia, and greece have brought in new restrictions for the unvaccinated, restricting access to many public places following a surgeon infections. south korea has reported its

largest ever jump in case numbers after social distancing rules were eased at the start of this month, and the pharmaceutical giant astrazeneca says a new preventative shot designed for people who do not respond well to vaccines is effective for at least six months. let's take a look now at some of the other stories making headlines around the world. u.s. president joe biden says he's considering a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming winter olympics in beijing. it would mean that neither president biden nor any u.s. government officials would attend the games. this is in protest of china's human rights abuses, but a boycott by all u.s. athletes is not expected. a chinese journalist jailed at the start othe pandemic for reporting in wuhan has been

given an award. after being imprisoned, she went on a hunger strike. her family says she is now being force-fed and they fear for her life. in the united states, there has been a big twist in the case of one of the most notorious murders of the civil-rights era. two men convicted of assassinating malcolm x in 1965 have been exalt -- exonerated. each man spent more than two decades behind bars. a lengthy investigation found that crucial evidence was withheld during their trial. they describe the men's convictions as a historic miscarriage of justice. for more now, we want to bring in an attorney in washington, d.c. he previously worked for the

u.s. justice department. it's good to have you on the program. the fbi and the new york lease department all withheld key evidence that may have led to the acquittal of these two men. do we know how they were able to do that and why did they do that? gene: it's very simple. this trial occurred in 1966 and the supreme court at that time had not really issued many opinions othe duty of a prosecutor to disclose timely evidence that points towards innocence. they have one case called brady, but it was not part of the prosecutor's culture to disclose evence thapointed towards in ms. since -- innocence, even though they were required to. in 1966, this is a classic example of law-enforcement engaging and confirmation bias. they had three targets, three subjects -- . halim, mr.

aziz, and mr. islam. they focused on them like a laser beam, and they named a third conspirator, another conspirator named william bradley. it was a comedy of errors that resulted from the lack of culture to provide exculpatory evidence, evidence that points towards innocence to the other side. that's how it happened here. brent: will anyone be held accountable or punished for this? >> i don't think -- gene: i don't think anyone will be held accountable,ecause most of the purchase offense at the federal level, the state level, the fbi and the new york city police department have either passed away or retired. i don't think at this stage, it happened so many years ago, that anyone will be punished. however, there will be a strong learning lesson from this travesty of justice, that two

innocent men were sent away, imprisoned for 20 years. dly, o of them paed away but mr. aziz is 83. he has some vindication, but it is too little, too late. brent: i am wondering, how does this fit into the reckoning we are seeing in the united states right now with the history of racism, especially within the justice system? gene: it reinforces the view of many, that the criminal justice system is systematically weighted against minorities, including african-americans. if you took the total number of people in federal and state prisons in america, at least a majority are african-american, especially for drug cases. so this feeds the view of many that this system has not changed

even today. in 1966, it was probably five times worse. it is getting better. it is getting better. but there is no perfect justice system. you can only strive for perfection. you can only strive for perfection, you will never achieve it, sadly. that is the nature of a human being. we make mistakes. brent: gene, if these men did not kill malcolm x, do we know who did? gene: according to the articles and information i have read, there is an individual named willm bradley. he was a member of the new jersey nation of islam chapter with mr. halim. mr. halim at the trial to -testified twice, and he said mr. aziz and mr. islam were not part of the shooting, they

were not even conspirators, and they did not even look at mr. bradley, who mr. halim said was part of it. they have blinders on. i call it confirmation bias. they focused on two targets and they could not get away from that. brent: fascinating. it is, a major twist in what people were not expecting today. gene, thank you. we appreciate your time and your insights. for weeks now, the situation along the border between belarus and poland seems hopeless. people flying into belarus and looking to enter the european union kept arriving, many were pushed around by security forces and remained in inhumane conditions. but now, the tense situation along european union's easter frontier, we are seeing possibly

a turning point. belarus says authorities have evacuated hundreds of people from a makeshift camp on the border. the first repatriation flights carrying migrants from barus arrived in iraq. >> it is the last stop on a long journeyor these passengers, who had campe out at the eu-belarus border for weeks. the iraqi government chartered a repast creation flight from minced -- a repatriation flight from minsk airport. but many want to stay. the west is pushing hard for a solution to the crisis. now, alexander lukashenko has proposed a response. >> the mechanism proposed by president lukashenko during the first conversation with angela merkel was the following. the european union would create a humanitarian corridor for 2000

migrants in the camp. we would commit ourselves to help another 5000 migrants to return home. >> aerial footage shows belarus has already broken up the large migrant camps along the border with poland. people have been moved to a large heated warehouse. conditions here are extremely crowded, and many are worried what will happen to them next. >> no one is taking responsibility for us. we all spent a lot of money and don't want to go back to iraq. no one has taken a step forward to move us to another european country or provide us with a better camp. >> some migrants continue to camp at the border, still hoping that somehow they will make it

across and enter a new future in the eu. brent: it is those hopes are what made thousands vulnerable to people smugglers all over the middle east. many were promise a safe and easy journey into the european union, but when they entered belarus, they found chaos and complication. we met a man who made it there and back, forced to put his european dreams on hold for now. >> this man is the -- back in the city he planned to leave forever. this looks like an oasis of stability in the midst of a war-torn region, but a ppearances can be deceptive. prices have been spiraling out of control for months. jobs are rare and badly paid.

he helps out at a kiosk owned by a friend for the equivalent of 13 euros a day. that's not enough to make ends meet. >> i've worked on my life, but i can't support my family. i have five children, so we are a family of seven, in eating my wif -- including my wife. that's why i want to emigrate. >> a people smuggler promised him a safe passage, a flight to minsk, and said he would be in germany within 24 hours. >> i sold my car and all my furniture. i got 2.5 thousand euros for them -- 2500 euros for them. >> they flew to minsk via a -- sta -- istanbul.

there, the belarus military took charge of them. >> we were driven on gravel roads to the polish border. there, they said they would cut through the border fence. three soldiers were standing around us, to behind us and one in front. he is the one who cut through the fence. >> they trudged through the border zone, eventually losing their way. they barely had anything to eat or drink. >> there were a lot of people at the border and the children were in a very bad way. i tried to take care of them best i could, lighting a fire because it was so cold, but the children got sick. >> exhausted, they decided to go back. using the last of their savings, they took a plane back, broke and bitterly disappointed. but he says he will make another

attempt to leave, because he says there is no longer anything to keep him here. brent: here is a look at some of the other stories making headlines. the trial in greece for rescuing migrants at sea has been adjourned and referred to another court. the suspect could fachefty prison sentences if convicted. rights groups have described the trials as absurd and politically motivated. and -- were charged with photographing the turkish presidents home from istanbul's tallest building. israel has denied that the couple are foreign agents. in 2012, woman disappeared from a hotel bar in central kenya after meeting two british soldiers stationed in the east african country.

months later, she was discovered murdered. nine years later, her family and friends are still seeking justice, as dw correspondent mariel mueller reports. mariel: she cannot -- can remember the last time she saw her sister, agnes. it was nine years ago. even now, the loss still pains her. >> the day she went, she never came back. that's when we spoke for the last time and i never saw her again. when i found her, she was dead. mariel: agnes was just 21 years old when she vanished. an inquest concluded that she was killed by one or more british soldiers at a nearby hotel. it took two months to find agnes' body here at the hotel,

in a septic tank, and less than three miles away as the british army training camp in kenya. soldiers would come here to party, drink, and have sex with local women. a pathologist says she was probably still alive when she was dumped in the tank. florida -- flora was the last person to see her friend alive. she said she saw them at the hotel bar with two men, trying to exchange sex for money to buy food to feed her five-month-old baby. this allows 3000 brish troops to train nearby. that could have been an incentive to not investigate. british soldiers are alleged to have committed ongoing abuse in recent decades

in 2013, amnesty international said 650 women had been raped by british soldiers since the 1960's, but today, the troops are still abusing their position and strenength. >> her -- harassing us. they take advantage of kenyan girls. mariel: only now, following the media reports, have the kenyan police reopened investigations into the killing. britain's minister for the arms forces -- armed forces said britain is willing to extradite the suspects to face justice in kenya. >> we need this now to be investigated and brought the courts here in kenya as quickly as possible. mariel: rose has now instructed

a british law firm to challenge the ministry of defense's failure to investigate her sisters killing -- sister's killing. her hope is that she will receive financial compensation to provide a good life for agnes' daughter. she was only a baby when her mother was killed. brent: alexander zverev is coming off olympic gold in tokyo and is hoping to finish a year on the court with his second atp final title. zverev never looked to be in any danger. he will face novak djokovic, who won three of four grand slams this year the semi's on saturday. and in the women's game, spain's garbine muguruza pate estonian

anett kontaveit, giving spain wta's first-ever finals title. thanks to her when, she -- her win, she will end the season at world ranking title number three. chinese star peng shui has not been seen in weeks. she appears to deny her claimant an email -- claim in any mail that she had been sexually assaulted by a chinese official, and said she was simply resting. tennis star serena has expressed her shock, and has called for an

investigation into peng's disappearance. australia's christmas islands -- take a look at this -- has turned a fiery shade of red as the annual crab migration gets underway. thousands of crustaceans crawled to the western coast to mate and spohn. that's what they all do. afterwards, the male crabs head inland while the female crabs to stay with the eggs for two weeks. they can each produce up to 100,000 eggs. after a short break, i will take you through the day. we will be right back. ♪

♪ >> germany's lower house of parliament approves mandatory health passes in the workplace. this as daily infections hit another record high. meanwhile, poland signals the dismantling of makeshift migrant camps on the belarus side of the border. france's president