from berlin. a second day of chaos in the u.s. congress. republicans failed to break and historic deadlock in electing a house speaker. kevin mccarthy appears to have been defeated in a fifth round of voting. coming up, the european union moves closer to tightening restrictions on travelers coming in from china. most member states paper testing to tackle rising infections.

russia deploys new hypersonic cruise missiles as vladimir putin's armed forces come over growing pressure on setbacks on the battlefield in ukraine. breathtaking pictures from the far reaches of the cosmos. the web space telescope sends back images originating millions of light-years from earth. we will hear from a top astronomer. ♪ i am nicole frolich area to our viewers all around the world, welcome -- i am nicole frolich. to our viewers all around the world, welcome. the u.s. congress lower house remains a deadlock after they failed to elect a speaker of the house of representatives. a fifth round of voting ended in defeat for kevin mccarthy. 20 right-wing members of his own

party continue to block his election, even after former president donald trump appealed to them directly to support mccarthy. our dw correspondant joins me from washington, following all of this closely. they fifth round of voting and still no speaker. what is the latest? what is next? correspondent: it feels a little bit like groundhog day. we have seen five rounds of voting and the numbers have not changed much. it appears that kevin mccarthy, he was running to be the speaker of the house, is losing support. in between the votes, we have seen members of the house of representatives huddling on the floor, trying to make something happen and negotiate among themselves. they could possibly decide to adjourn and vote at a later appointment they feel there is movement on things, but kevin mccarthy says he will keep going and holding votes until he gets

the support he needs. on the other side, a group of hard right republicans is not backing down. it appears to be growing. we are seeing tensions rise in the house among republicans. they want to see kevin mccarthy step aside and see someone else be nominated. we are hearing voices of the media saying we cannot keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. where things stand as there is no consensus among republicans on who they want to be the speaker of the house, and that is why we are in a deadlock. nicole: kevin mccarthy vows to hang on as long as it takes, but how long can this go on? correspondent: that is a good question. this is pretty new territory in modern times. this is not happened in a century, and lawmakers are also trying to figure out what happens next. as we understand, they need to select a speaker, so they will keep voting until they find one.

the last time it happened a century ago, it took them nine rounds of voting. it is looking increasingly unlikely that the person to the next speaker of the house could be kevin mccarthy. there are other candidates whose names are being floated that could break a deadlock but because kevin mccarthy is not on board, that does not seem to be likely as an option right now. they could decide to take a break and let republicans go into their own meetings and try to find a compromise, but right now, the way things stand, we probably will continue to see more rounds of voting until a different result. nicole: so no end in sight at this point. in the meantime, what can the newly gathered house actually accomplish? correspondent: a really cannot accomplish much. this is supposed to be the very first thing they do when they meet in their new session in this vote usually comes and goes quickly and they get back to business like basic functions of

congress, paying bills, and all of that cannot happen yet. we had midterm elections in november with new congressmen and women elected and they cannot be sworn in yet. a lot of people in washington are frustrated. republicans and democrats saying the american people do not vote to see this. they want to see congress take action but instead they are seeing the house paralyzed. there is little action the house can take at this point. the first and they to do is elect a speaker. nicole: keeping an eye on the chaos unfolding in the u.s. house of representatives, thank you. the european union is edging towards tightening the rules on travelers arriving from china. most member states favor introducing testing. there has been a surge in cases since they abandoned their zero covid policy. france and italy where the first eu countries to require negative tests from people arriving from china. spain now requires proof of

fullback's and a torn negative test, while germany has no restrictions at all. beyond the eu, britain, the u.s., australia and japan, those are among those restricting travelers from the chinese mainland. beijing calls the rules discriminatory despite the dramatic rise in infections, and global airlines also opposed stricter measures. correspondent: a shanghai hospital pushed to the brink. doctors working around the clock to save patience after the relaxation of the zero covid policy led to a spike in coronavirus infections. even as hospitals strain, many chinese are heading abroad after years of not being allowed to travel. stoking fears that if a new variant were to emerge, there would be no containing it. in december, half the passengers on two flights to italy were later found to have covid. italy started testing all

arrivals from china. as more countries joined in, china's foreign ministry pushed back. >> the entry restrictions adopted by some countries targeting china lack scientific basis, and some of these excessive practices are unacceptable. we have firmly opposed our teams to manipulate measures for political purposes and will take countermeasures. correspondent: it is unclear what countermeasures are on the table. but the patchwork of requirements has led to confusion, as well. >> i am waiting for my brother, who has not been allowed to travel for three years. he is coming from china and did not know about the testing. we had to tell him before he boarded to be careful because they were going to do a pcr on arrival. correspondent: it has been three years since the coronavirus started its trip around the world. in the end of the journey -- and the end of the journey is not in

sight. nicole: a professor is an expert on virology and the head of the belgian institute for health. earlier, i asked him about the eu's discussions on travelers from china. steven: it has to do with a lack of transparency and trust. i think that is the issue. we have difficulty in believing the figures from china, and there also is some distress that may we are not fully aware of what variants are circulating over there, and it is really this distressed, which is a public sensitivity and a political sensitivity, and i think this is really what is playing here, and we in belgium propose it would be good, not so much to impose restrictions but specifically when people return from china and they develop symptoms within one week of returning from china, they

always get tested, and we also try to characterize the virus that they have been infected with as a way of doing an independent control to see what kind of limitations are circulating in china and whether this corresponds with the data china is giving us, so that is important with checks and surveillance, but restrictions and vaccination certificates, and investigative requirements, i think they are of relatively limited value. nicole: that was an expert on virology joining us earlier from brussels. to russia now, where president vladimir putin announced the deployment of new hypersonic cruise missiles. he says the armed weapons are on their way to the atlantic. in a show of force, pressure, --

russia has been in a rush to develop hypersonic weapons. correspondent: vladimir putin joined a sending off ceremony for new missiles, but the celebration looks like a distraction tactic after russian troops suffered heavy losses, criticism of the military leadership is mounting. 89 russian soldiers were killed, dozens more than the death toll originally announced. they were killed in a school building in the eastern part of ukraine. military officials say the soldiers themselves are partly to blame. >> a commission is working to investigate the circumstances of the incident, but it is already obvious that the main reason for what happened was the switching on and massive use contrary to the ban of mobile phones by the troops in the zone of enemy weapons. this allowed the enemy to locate

the troops for a missiles strike. correspondent: like here on tuesday, people around russia are mourning the dead. investigations by the military commission are ongoing. meanwhile, some politicians and military commentators are venting their anger at leadership on the unlined service telegram, and calling for revenge. the deputy speaker says housing troops and buildings rather than bunkers is a can to helping the enemy, and while russia step separates attacks on the ukraine civilian infrastructure, it plans to protect itself with a new hypersonic soul system. -- hypersonic missile system. >> i am sure that such powerful weapons will make it possible to protect pressure from potential external threats. correspondent: with that, putin sent off hypersonic cruise

missiles on a training mission. nicole: rdw correspondent joins us. there is a lot of criticism of the military in russia itself. who are the critics and what are they saying? correspondent: well, the larger the disaster, the greater the criticism. what happened not only has a huge dimension for the russian army but society. reportedly, the victims were mainly mobilized soldiers, soldiers who do not go voluntarily. ultimately, their loved ones might be very angry, and because there were so many casualties, the ministry of defense cannot cover the program. -- cover the problem. they are criticizing them for the fact that several hundred soldiers who gathered in one place became easy prey for a mass attack. on top of that, they were allegedly living in a ammunition

dump which may have caused a huge explosion. the minister of defense has blamed the soldiers for using their cell phones when they were not allowed to do so. all of this sounds like finger-pointing and blame shifting. nicole: it is unusual for the russian military to be publicly criticized. it is becoming more frequent in recent weeks and months. why is it being allowed now in this fashion? correspondent: it is important for more direction -- from which direction the criticism is coming from because the slightest is extremely dangerous, and this can be viewed as discrediting the russian armed forces, which can be punished by many years in prison and there are cases in russia where people had to go to jail. but this fate only seems to threaten those who are questioning the so-called special military authorization

and who are attacking the general course of the kremlin. it allows them to criticize without attacking putin's general line and without personally attacking the russian president. that is the key difference. nicole: without attacking putin and the line, specifically, what is the political dimension in all of this? can the criticism change putin' strategy in the war or is he not affected basically? correspondent: i do not think this criticism is really dangerous for vladimir putin at the moment. there was a little criticism of him personally, more of his general course. what could happen is that some high-ranking military officials are exchanged again. we have seen that happen many times. it is unclear whether the defense minister will be

dismissed, but he is considered putin's closest friend, and they have spent vacations together. and what putin is not doing his dismissing him now at the height of the scandal. if anything that could happen later, one of the topics is a little less hot. nicole: thank you. more stories making headlines today. president emmanuel macron says france will deliver light tanks to ukraine. it came after a phone call with volodymyr zelenskyy. some other countries have been reluctant to send similar risks to avoid escalating the conflict . iranian authorities released a premier actor from prison on bail. images on twitter showed her celebrating the release. the oscar award winner was arrested nearly three weeks ago after criticizing a crackdown on antigovernment protests.

she posted three messages in support of the protest on instagram before her account was disabled. pope francis has used his weekly audience to praise his red assessor benedict as a great communicator of the catholic faith. he is preparing to conduct benedict's funeral at the vatican. dozens of mourners are paying their respects. pope benedict is remembered for his work in africa. one third of the population of cameroon is catholic and gave the former pontiff a warm welcome in the early years of his pappas c, but it wasn't without controversy, as we report. correspondent: he was part of the site for pope benedict in 2009 and remembers it well. >> when i met him in the basilica from a distance, i

could see the humility of a great pastor, someone who is at the helm of the church but the humility of a pastor and walking down the aisle and greeting pilgrims. correspondent: it was benedict's first visit to africa as pope. he was welcomed in a warm reception. but then there were comments he had made on the flight. >> i would add that the aids problem cannot be solved by many alone, even if necessary. it cannot be solved with condom distribution. condom distribution only makes matters worse. correspondent: his remarks sparked outrage from health

organizations trying to save lives. at a time, about 3 million to 2 million africans were living with hiv and aids. but the father supports the pope's message that the best way to stop the spread is fidelity and marriage. >> i do agree with the stance of pope benedict. contraceptives increases promiscuity, and they are not 100% efficient because of synthetic lapses, it gives the illusion of propagating safe sex. correspondent: although the views are widely echoed across the african continent, it is fair to say that pope benedict will mostly be remembered here for the impact he had on the african people. benedict spoke about women's

rights, and he criticized the views on power in cameroon. at a time when many african leaders were focusing on staying in office. ♪ one community worker thinks the pope understood the struggles of young africans. >> pope benedict is for us, not just a father but he stands as a symbol of hope and justice for all the young people. someone who was there for us. correspondent: as well as controversies, he left hope and renewal. the growing number of catholics on the continent will remember him for it. nicole: human-induced global warming is being blamed for a poor start to the winter sports season, and many of europe's

famous ski resorts. lack of snow means some may not have opened at all and others have had to close or rely on human made snow to keep skiers and snowboarders on the slopes. correspondent: it looks like a summer trip up the mountain, but this is january in europe. green grass blankets hills that should be covered in snow right now, and ski slopes have been confined to a narrow lane. >> it is really weird, everything is green left and right of the slope. correspondent: temperatures of up to 10 degrees celsius have caused the last snow to melt, and what little snow you see here did not fall from the sky. >> we had fresh natural snow about 40 centimeters. this will be far too little, so we fill it out with artificial snow and because of that, we have coped well. correspondent: the last

significant snowfall in the area was at the start of december. ski slope operators are feeling the pinch. >> it is the main season. we should be hosting up to 4000 guests, but now there are half of the usual guests. correspondent: switzerland and france have also been feeling the heat. numerous slopes remain closed over the festive season, forcing holidaymakers to consider taking alternative sporting activities. >> we hear the news about global warming. i don't know, but the fact is we cannot deny it. correspondent: fog and rain instead of snow. while by no means comparable to the monetary and disasters caused by global warming around the world, the current state of european ski slopes is another sign that the climate emergency affect all of us.

nicole: and another quick look at more headlines. israel's new government plans to overhaul the judicial system and weaken the powers of the supreme court. it would mean the country parliament could override some supreme court decisions with a simple majority. critics say the plan will upend israel's system of checks and balances and undermine democratic institutions. irish regulators ruled facebook's parent company metta must play 390 million euros in fines for violating european online privacy laws. you leaders also banned them from forcing european users to agree to personalized ads based on their online activity. meta plans to appeal the ruling. marvel actor jeremy renner posted on social media from his hospital in nevada. he thanked fans for his concern. he was ran over by his own

snowplow as he tried to climb into the driver seat during a blizzard. just over one year since the web space telescope was launched and the detailed images it has delivered have been among the most breathtaking. although the telescope was 14 years behind schedule and over budget for scientists and stargazers, it has been proving to be worth the wait. correspondent: the james webb space telescope is 100 times more sensitive than its 30-year-old predecessor, the hubble space telescope. in all, it's mirror is around 25 meters square, made out of 18 hexagonal segments, coated with a thin layer of a brace gold that reflects infrared light especially well. the mirror's body is made of beryllium, a lightweight metal that holds its form, even in extreme cold. hard to believe, but took only 48 grams of gold to coat all of its segments.

remote controlled are mounted on the back of each segment. the strong motors can pivot and turn them in six directions. the main mirror collects light, reflects it onto a smaller mirror. it in turn focuses the light of the telescope's measuring instruments, probing the universe's mysteries with sharpness and clarity, and recording stunning images like this shot of a vast stellar nursery called the torrential nebula, packed with young stars -- tarantula nebula, packed with young stars. or this one dubbed cosmic cliffs. there are razor-sharp images of galaxies far beyond our own milky way, like the cartwheel, 500 million light wheels away. but also magnificent shots from

the solar system. among them, jupiter, in exquisite detail, and neptune, seemingly close enough to touch. for months, the james webb space telescope has been revealing the wonders of the universe and i unpredented ws, and thiis just the beginning. ♪ nicole: sarah is an astronomer working on the telescope in baltimore, and i asked her whether it was worth the effort. guest: yes, webb was worth the effort. it was a long road, but the data we are seeing from the telescope, we are only one year into the mission. everything that comes back is fantastic and quality, depth and detail, and we are already seeing so many new things in all different areas of the universe,

so we are really excited about the rest of the mission i'm pleased. -- of the mission and we are pleased. you don't work in the lab like a biologist with, so for us to learn about universe, we have to look all around us. the universe is our lab, so what we try to do is observe and record life and as many ways as we can and in different wavelengths, all the way from the radio to the x-ray, so what we are seeing with webb in the infrared is a huge technological step forward, so, it is kind of opening avenue space in terms of how deep we can see, and the level of detail we can see in the images. in that sense, it is a near window into the universe, showing us the universe in new and exciting ways, and giving us

new pieces of the puzzle of understanding physics of everything we see around us. nicole: here is a reminder of the top story today. the u.s. house of representatives is still trying to elect a speaker and break historic deadlock in congress. the house is moving towards a sixth about as public and white uighurs lock -- white wingers lack support for kevin mccarthy. i will be back after a short break to take you through the day. hope to see you then.

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>> 10:00 in the french capital and here are the stories making headlines. chaos in the u.s. congress as a republican lawmakers fail to elect a speaker of the house. kevin mccarthy fails to get the votes he needs to clinch the top post. facing a revolt from a hard right action of his party. our watching -- washington correspondent is standing by. is planning a new majorns russia offensive against his country. his comments llow a new year's attack that killed 89