>> this is dw news, live from berlin. a national holiday in argentina to celebrate the world cup win. the teammates are given a hero's welcome in the capital of buenos aires. after hundreds of thousands of fans clogged the parade route, they abandoned their bus tour for a helicopter flyover. also coming up is afghanistan's taliban regime banning women

from universities. the liz rollback of women's freedom draws international condemnation. germany calls it long overdue. the foreign minister here, europeans looted the artworks more than a century ago. bring christmas cheer to children in war-torn ukraine. saint nicholas use it -- leaves his sleigh behind this year and get a lift from the national trade service. -- train service. welcome. we start today in argentina where hundreds of thousands are welcoming home there world cup winning football team. buenos aires is flooded with fans wanting to see leo messi

and his teammates. the president has declared a national holiday. argentina is still partying two days after they won sunday's final against france in a penalty shootout. we joined the parade from the beginning. i asked whether the excitement remained at fever pitch. >> after eight hours here they still waiting. maybe there is a possibility they would take a flight from the border.

they will come here to the house of government to greet the people. >> all of those people around to celebrating don't even know if they are going to see their heroes? >> they are coming to the house of government. >> everybody wants to see the big hero of the tournament. lionel messi. is he as much of a football god as diego?

>> with this welcome, he arrives as the saint of buenos aires. >> be safe and talk to you later. >> here are some of the stories making headlines around the world today. this was in the deaths of more than 10,000 people in a nazi concentration camp. she completed paperwork necessary for the presence of function. it is expected to be one of the last trials for holocaust crimes. every politician sacked as the european parliament vice president has allegedly made a partial confession in the corruption case against her. this is one of four people charged with accepting bribes.

special forces in pakistan have retaken a security facility seized by the taliban. 33 militants were killed in the operation. is there the taliban have ordered an immediate and indefinite ban on university education for women. thousands of afghan girls sat in university 8 -- university entrance exams. are you surprised by this move? >> there was talk about

something like this happening for weeks and months. it is one of those things you don't want it to be true. it seemed very odd for people that such an edict was coming out in the middle of the night, not early in the morning. not even in the afternoon. this is legitimately what people have been fearing for the last 1.5 years. it is one of those things that is not surprising. when it happens, it will be a surprise to people no matter

when or how it occurs. >> you say there was discussion about it for months. >> this is the question. as you all said earlier, thousands of girls sat for the university entrance exams. they sat for several different provinces, education officials bragged. they bragged that so many young women were sitting for university entrance exams and the timing, why it was happening, how it was happening, there is no clear answer. there is just a lot of gases and conjecture but amongst the people, it is anger, upset. there whole thing has always been if you're going to be an islamic emirate, why are you not following the rules and teachings of islam? there is nothing in islamic

teachings that would fit bid -- that would forbid anyone, male or female from being educated or go to work and -- they are not allowed in most workplaces talk -- from going to this -- if you claim to be an islamic emirate, why are you doing on islamic things? >> the taliban promise to allow ghost go back to school but now they are banned from schools and universities. is the taliban leadership possibly divided over the treatment of women? >> it is very clear they are divided. if you look at it, you have high-ranking officials who have said things like we need to restart the secondary school for girls in the three to provinces.

they have economic affairs and business affairs and fina entrepreneurs. how will you continue to have these? if you cannot have university education? or even really a high school education. there is this really weird back-and-forth we are on the one hand you have people saying things like we are not keeping women from doing certain things. or we are not as strict as we used to be. where the edict is being misunderstood or we want to create more of a role for women but nothing they have done has ever shown that. >> is the only -- is there any hope for improvement in the future? because the only hope is that if the taliban realizes that as the people say, everything they are doing is not islamic. if they realize they are failing in the same way the former islamic republic failed which is

by not understanding people at all and assuming what they envision is whether people want. unfortunately, it seems as if the islamic emirate is treading the same path. >> germany has formally returned artworks to nigeria. she described the repatriation as long overdue. they are among thousands of trappers -- treasures stolen from africa by colonial powers. >> this is the moment that nigerians have been waiting for. after 125 years, the stolen treasures now return home. the first up to right the wrongs of the colonial past according to germany's foreign minister at

the hand over in the capital of fallujah. >> this is a crucial step toward addressing this chapter. in the way it should be addressed. openly, frankly, without willingness to assess one's activities. crucially, closely to those who are the victims of colonial cruelties. it is a readiness to talk and listen that makes today's returns possible. >> soldiers looted in 1897 from the palace here. there was so to collectors all over europe. now germany has become the first ever colonial power to hand back some of the artworks. more will follow in the coming years.

>> all of the promises and the commitment that have been made are beginning to be fulfilled. >> this is where the bronze statue will be exhibited. the bronze tradition continues to this day. he has only ever known them from the european museum catalogs. >> we are very happy. >> the new museum won't be finished for a few years. nobody, the return of the

treasures is a milestone in the fight to regain it stolen cultural heritage. >> earlier i asked this historian about the significance of the handover. >> i think it is a major step for my cash for nigeria and germany and for european powers, colonial powers in general to actually rested to those objects. i think it is very important because germany was not the luther except for the gains made through colonialism. i think that is a principal which is very important and will become very important in the future. if you profit from colonialism, even if your own soldiers have not committed the violence, you're still responsible and still bound to vesta to make

good for it. >> they will listen to the victims. why hasn't that happened already? >> this falls behind in taking responsibility for taking example for the -- responsibly to further genocide committed against the german troops in namibia. that is when negotiations have failed.

>> do you think that steps are only taken into that direction and toward former colonies when it is convenient and easy to do so? >> we will have to wait and see. i think the fear has offered itself as an easier way to make good for the sins of the past then genocide and all of these issues which we have to discuss now. >> you argue that even today in western countries like germany negotiating the return of stolen treasures, their views persist.

what do you think needs to happen for these kinds of interactions to happen i die? >> i think we have to have an open discussion and a problem with this sort of restitution is those who pushed for the restitution have not -- it has not been a transparent process. we have to discuss how we want to atone for the sins of the past. 20 out of 130. we don't know how the negotiations took place because there are no independent observers. >> if the return of the spinning

bronzes is a first step, what you think should be the next step? what needs to happen now? >> on the country level, we have 1001 objects in german regimes. we have tens of thousands of stolen objects from all around the world. they need to be restitutive. there are some images that are unique pieces. they could show 500 or 300 in germany and europe. >> a long road ahead. thank you so much for your time. >> thank you.

>> south africa's president has vowed to unite his party. the african national congress a day after being reelected as leader. he has told party members they must step up the fight against corruption. the president has suffered a blow to his credibility. >> only a week ago, the political future hung in the balance. he was facing an impeachment vote and paused to resign as the country's president. both a corruption scandal involving the cover-up of foreign currency stolen from his game firm. now his reelection opens the way to a second term as president. addressing delegates at the conference that gave them a fresh mandate, he promised renewal. >> we realize more clearly that

the failure of basic services in various parts of our country have increased the level of confidence that our people have in the african national congress. >> despite the cheers and the celebrations, they were split over the choice. >> the corruption scandal has tarnished his image but he is still the man they turned to over this economy. that would have gone unnoticed by the millions of south africans struggling to earn a living. >> unemployment is growing in south africa and with it, poverty and crime. making matters worse, the country is experiencing rolling power blackouts which are dealing a further blow to the already ailing economy.

all of this is at an all-time low. >> i do many things, i build, i weld, i don't hate anc, i hate the leaders of anc. they're called their families and friends. we have to stand up with her feet and say enough is enough. >> frustration among voters and loading trends in recent elections as some predicting the party will soon lose its grip on power.

the anc government has failed to transform the economy to make it more inclusive. the anc will not get a majority in the next election. that is 15 months away. the expectation is that the anc will lose a majority. >> this is not the south africa many have imagined they would be living in. with his reelection, the party is pinning its hopes on this candidate to turn their fortunes around.

>> hundreds of travelers are stranded at iceland's international airport. their flights were canceled a second day running due to extreme weather. a jury in los angeles has found harvey weinstein guilty of raping a woman. he is already serving a 23 year sentence for rape and sexual assault. to the were in ukraine now. lome zelensky has paid a visit to frontline troops just days before the war enters a 10th month. it is unknown how many have fallen. >> we thank those who are no longer with us. we will honor the memory of all the fallen heroes with a moment of silence.

the president visited the embattled city to boost the morale of ukrainian troops. a very dangerous trip of the russians nearby and an unfamiliar site. the russians annexed earlier this year. since then, putin's army has repeatedly tried and failed to take the city. soldiers have left a trail of destruction in their wake. the russian president was also busy but nowhere near the front line. vladimir putin how the heads of for illegally annexed regions. he admitted that things were not going according to plan. >> i would like to highlight the

security agencies that have begun to upgrade and the new russian region. it is difficult. the situation is extremely challenging. concerns are met -- concerns are now mounting that putin could have his eyes on expanding the were beyond ukraine. the head of intelligence said russia could launch an attack sometime early in the new year. russian troops already illegally occupied parts of the region known here. putin's were has not lasted 300 days and another sobering number from the yuan. it has recorded more than 700 stripes on ukraine's health care facilities since february. >> away from the fighting, people in ukraine are getting ready to celebrate their first christmas.

a favorite tradition is saint nicholas day. some extra help was needed and thanks to the national rail network and the u.n., st. nick managed to bring some joy to children despite the work. chrissy can't use the sleigh this year. nothing will stop magic that from happening. >> the children must have been obedient. we are not carrying sticks, only happiness into the holiday. since this guy is closed over ukraine, we traveled by train as much as we can. >> railway workers have been doing magic of their own since the beginning of the war. delivering goods and people to safety. >> saint nicholas said air

defense works well but they still can't fly so the railway has become the official carrier of saint nicholas. >> tens of thousands of children will expecting his visit so saint nicholas will travel with some special guests this year. >> we are sisters. >> we bring special gifts children are waiting for. gifts are meaningful. we bring not only gifts but also magic. we give them joy during these festive days. >> unicef is providing over 30,000 gift bags and $100 million in cash handouts for families in need. >> during the holiday, this is a time to dream about having

normalcy, having peace. >> saint nicholas is trying will visit these regions and have some bringing much needed relief and joy. and a bit of a christmas miracle. >> you are watching dw news. i will be back after a short break to take you through the day. we hope to see you there.

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♪ >> volodymyr zelenskyy makes a surprise visit to the ukrainian frontline. artillery fire can be heard as the president tells soldiers they are succeeding in keeping the russians back. a summit on the future of iraq it's underway in jordan. emmanuel macron says the country must choose its own path and not be did hated by foreign powers. millions fill the streets of buenos aire