♪ >> this is dw news live from berlin. and on the mentoring collision increase comes at least 36 people. police are investigating what caused two trains to crash and burst in flames between athens and thessaloniki. more than 50 people are seriously injured, and the death toll is likely to going. also on the program, nigeria has a new president-elect, ruling

party. it bola tinubu is declared the winner of last weekend's election but opposition parties are demanding a rerun. plus, plus, claims kyiv is using drones to attack its infrastructure, with vladimir putin in accusing the west abusing terrorist cells to attack russia territory. ukraine strips believe in bettel city of back lot are said to be over completely surrounded. ♪ >> welcome to the program. at least 36 people have been killed in a head-on train collision increase and more than 50 others are being treated in hospital serious injuries. the greek transport minister has resigned in the wake of the

accident. police say they have arrested and charged the stationmaster in the nearby city of recep element has been deactivated on the possible technical failure. >> it was just for midnight when the two trains collided. authorities say both were traveling on the same track for several kilometers before hitting each other head-on at high speed. the force of the impact was so strong, that the front two carriages of the passenger train were almost completely destroyed , while several others were derailed and engulfed in flames. emergency teams and rescue crews worked through the night, and in the thick smoke, searching for survivors. scouring each broken a carriage by torchlight for signs of life. the bodies of those killed in the crash, many of whom are

thought to be university students. around 350 people were on board service from athens to the northern city of thessaloniki at the time. those who escaped with their lives described the chaos when the two trains collided. >> we heard their. that list nightmare second. we were thrown around -- it was 10 nightmare is seconds. we were thrown around. cables everywhere. the fire was everywhere. as we were rolling, we were burning. fire was everywhere. as we landed, if i erected right next to us. this man here saw a hole, so we managed to get out through there. reporter: specialist equipment has now been deployed to help clear the debris. the greek prime minister, who

later visited the scene, has vowed to find out what happened. >> what we are experiencing today is very, very cold to country. we are talking about lsp, tragedy thoughts today are fast and foremost with the relatives of the victims. our duty is to treat the wounded, and from there, to identify the bodies. one thing i can guarantee we will find out the causes of this tragedy, and we will do everything in our power to make sure it never happens again. reporter: the government has announced three days of national mourning as the investigation gets underway into what caused this crash that has already been

described as the worst train accident in greek history. gerhard: so are there any warning signs or potential issues under greek train system? we put those questions to our guest, from a think tank in thessaloniki. >> unfortunately one cannot say this was unexpected. the largest part of the relay systems are run electronically. they have room for possible wrongdoings. of train personnel are now working still without electronic systems, without any traffic lights. only 30 kilometers of the overall relay system is using electronic traffic lights. this is also one of the reasons in february, the european commission decided to take into port for filling between --

for failing to fulfill their obligations. the railway system, despite the fact that it was privatized in 2017, the greek national company was sold for 45 million euros. not a lot of major reforms and investments have been made ever since. and today, the railway system is the model for e country, it is a symbol of the country's failures. it is not only failing to carry a large number of passengers with accuracy and safety, but it is also carrying just 1% of the goods that are going to the country each year. so we cannot be talking about a modern relay system, basically. gerhard: in nigeria, the electoral commission has declared bola tinubu

president-elect. he was the candidate from the ruling all-progresses congress party. he won 8.8 million votes. turnout was only 29%, with technical glitches undermining trust in the voting process. now the labor party, led by peter obi, who won just over 6 million votes, says it will mount a legal challenge against the result. reporter: holding the official results are left to a jubilant crowd -- aloft to a jubilant crowd, bola tinubu is declared winner of the presidential election after a highly disputed vote. the man, known as the godfather of lagos, is a longtime political kingmaker. he led a campaign with the slogan "it's my turn." addressing his supporters after the result, he portrayed himself as a unifier. >> we work together to put

broken pieces together. we must work for the unity, happiness, and harmony. reporter: not everyone is convinced. that opposition labor party plans to legally challenge his win. >> it is our position that the purported result do not meet the minimum criteria of a transparent, free and fair election. in addition to the worst condemnable attacks, violence, voter intimidation and suppression, the election was conducted in violation of rules and guidelines. reporter: the uncertainty is also shared by some on the streets. >> i am not in the position to give advice to whoever is at the top or bottom, but i think they should repeat the election.

that is it. >> i will say that it was not a free and fair process because it was of his sleeve rigged. in every state. reporter: becoming president has been a lifelong ambition for tinubu, but he may now have to wait for the courts to have their say. gerhard: i spoke to a political analyst who has been an advisor to the nigerian government, and now specializes in african democracies, as a fellow at the london school of economics. i asked him on what grounds the opposition wants to legally challenge result. guest: this is very normal in the nigerian elections. we must remember, this is the largest democratic experiment on the african continent, a country of over 200 million people, the registered voters, 93 million people, which is larger than the entire population of the u.k. even though there was a low

voter turnout, you have to understand that running an election in a country like nigerian is a herculean logistical task. while the opposition party, where the contenders are challenging this particular result, why is based on some of the allegations that one, there were incidents of intimidation, ballot card snatching and things of that nature. but i think the most fundamental one was the slowness of the independent national electoral commission, the commission that supervises over elections, in transmitting the results from the police centers to the portal, to be able to prove that nothing had happened in between. that is the point of contention. but at this point, given that bola tinubu has been declared the winner, this will have to be settled in the courts of law. gerhard: what do you reckon, how likely is it that the court will actually overturn this result?

guest: it will have to take it to process. this is normal in nigerian politics. people expect that in the meantime, the president-elect will go ahead and begin to start forming his government, the incumbent president has already called and congratulated him. world leaders have began to call and congratulate him, including the prime minister of the u.k. so he will proceed to set up his government and prepare for in operation. and the contender parties have this period to go to court and challenge, but the challenge depends on the evidence they will bring forward. for now, bola tinubu is the president-elect of nigeria, and he will get on with the business of preparing to govern. gerhard: what does he need to tackle? guest: that is something about

this role of the nigerian president, it is a hotly contested position, but i assure you, it is of the most challenging jobs you could ever have. 200 million people, 2000 different ethnic groups. governing such a diverse polity with history of ethnic and religious rivalry. it is no small challenge. at the top of the list, for the incoming president bola tinubu, will be tackling the economy. nigeria is facing deep economic doldrums and that is affecting the masses. also the issue of security not just in terms of boko haram and the terrorists that have been challenging the leadership of the nation, but also kidnapping and banditry. and also the issue of infrastructure and power. giving the nigerian the environment for them to be able to flourish. it is known across the world that nigerians are very entrepreneurial and industrial people, but without the infrastructure and the electrical power supply, they

cannot do that. but i think at the top of his list is unifying a very divided nation. this was a very unique election because for the first time, we had a major contender from the southeastern part of the country, which had been politically marginalized since independence. in this instance, we had many people who supported that competitor who may feel quite disenchanted. so the challenge before the president-elect, is to reunite the nation. he has already made buttresses, inviting his contenders to join in the joint task of building a more united nation, and i think nigeria can only move forward in being able to address these challenges of the religious and ethnic cleavages that continue to undermine its ability to become truly the giant of africa, as it should.

gerhard: political analyst dapo oweyele really think you very much for that analysis. guest: thank you. gerhard: time now for a look at the other stories making headlines today. the u.s. intelligence report on the mysterious havana syndrome concludes the illness was unlikely to have been caused by a foreign adversary. the name was given to symptoms first reported by u.s. officials in the cuban capital, in 2016. many believed it could have been due to an attack. the turkish president recep tayyip erdogan has confirmed that elections will be held on the 14th of may, as planned, despite the destruction caused by the catastrophic earthquakes in february. it was unclear with organizing the elections would be even possible, in the regions devastated by the quakes. g-20 foreign ministers are gathering in daily for a meeting expected to be dominated by russia's invasion of ukraine and economic problems created by that war.

india says it hopes climate change end date in developing countries will not be overlooked. germany's chancellor scholz has promised to ramp up in relation production to support ukraine. he made the statement after meeting with the latvian prime minister for bilateral talks with berlin. he also reaffirmed nato's commitment to protect its territory in the event of an attack. now the latest on the war in ukraine, moscow claims kyiv has been using drones to attack its infrastructure, with president vladimir putin even accusing the rest of using terrorist cells to attack its territory. in the battle city of bakhmut, ukrainian forces are said to be almost completely surrounded, but some experts say you. could be less than one month away from it large contract offensive -- counteroffensive. reporter: drones over russia.

the kremlin ukraine has tried to use them to attack civilian infrastructure. like what happened here, 30 kilometers from the ukrainian border. russia says a ukrainian drone also crashed hundreds of clematis from the border, in the moscow region. russian state media also reported would be exported over this storage facility, before it went up in flames. russian president vladimir putin has called on his intelligence service to stamp out threat to russian soil from ukraine on the -- and the west. >> it has to do with the west's attempts to revive extremist and terrorist cells in our territory they. have never shied away from using radicals and extremists in their interest. they will use any means available to fight us. reporter: meanwhile, the war of attrition in eastern ukraine drags on. heavy fighting along the front here and in southern ukraine has seen attempts by both sides to

move the line, sometimes by just a few meters. military experts say ukraine could start a counteroffensive in the south in about one month's time. >> then they could split the russian front in two and bring their artillery closer to crimea. then, it would be in position to cut off or knockout just regrets to crimea with rockets at a range of 80 kilometers. then, they could bring the war to crimea, without having to march in with conventional troops. reporter: support has come from nato's chief, once again pledged military aid to ukraine. >> other allies have agreed ukraine will become a member of our alliance. but at the same time, that is a long-term perspective. what is the issue now is to ensure that ukraine prevails as a sovereign nation, and

therefore we need to support ukraine. reporter: in bakhmut, ukrainian troops need all the support they can get. their position in this strategically important eastern city, is almost completely surrounded by russian mercenaries. only one road out remains open, if the time comes to retreat. gerhard: now let's bring in dw's moscow bureau chief for more on this, he is reporting from latvia because dw has been banned from operating in russia. let's start with the russian point of view here. how worrying is increase intranet tax? guest: it is worrying when you consider the drones were deep inside russia. the question, of course, is where the drones came from. the advisor of the ukrainian president zelenskiy said that ukrainian forces would not strike targets in russia, but

experts say that the photos and videos from the crash site show the wreckage of the so be it-made, unmanned, aerial drone which was reportedly used by the ukrainian armed forces in december last year to strike russian airbases, i think i've ukrainian-made drones. experts say such large devices, 14 meters long, and they need a special installation. so it is doubtful that they could have been launched from the russian territory by partisans. if the drones were launched from ukrainian territory and russian air defense only detected them deep in russia, or did not detect them at all, it is still not clear whether they weren shut down or crashed due to technical problems. gerhard: these crafts having any effect on the mood of ordinary russians? guest: i think people, at least in the european part of the country are worrying that war is

coming close to russia, and no matter who is behind the drones and despite the russian media downplaying these attacks -- in primetime on the news yesterday, they said that of course, the russian media can't hide the news. interestingly, though there is no fear or concern in their reports. for example in yesterday's propaganda show, there was a edition that russia had not retaliated hard enough for these alleged ukrainian strikes. the ukrainian attack on the premium bridge last year, russian security forces launched immediately, massive missile strike throughout ukraine. gerhard: hearing -- do you think these drone strikes will have an effect on vladimir putin strategy in ukraine? guest: i think these strikes, no

matter who is behind them, are unlikely to make vladimir putin back down. we just saw him in the report standing up in front of the fsb officers. he has made it absolutely clear that nothing will stop them from continuing the war. he seems to be obsessed with what he calls a special military operation . gerhard: in finland, the permit has voted overwhelmingly in favor of the country joining the western military alliance. the decision to end but it's of neutrality came after russia's invasion of ukraine. but finland still has a few hurdles to clear before its membership can come into effect. dw correspondent chancellor scholz -- our two correspondent

explains. reporter: the finnish parliament has given support, at 184 votes in favor. then it needs to be deposited washington after which time, the finnish flag could go up in nato headquarters if another two things happen first. two to take place. the only allies that have not approved finnish and swedish membership. hungarians have not said much about why they have been lagging behind, but the turkish government has been very explicit, saying the nordic countries are too soft on kurdish troops, the president oregano considers enemies, especially the pkk, which is considered a terrorist organization in all european countries, of course, finland and sweden included. but insulated, the group is visible -- in sweden, the group is very visible.

president carter than is not trying to let -- president erdogan is not willing to let finland joined nato wild as well as they do not stop this. this is what we are likely to see possibly the next few. gerhard: dw teri schultz reporting there. we go to the u.s. now. thousands have gathered outside washington, as the conservative political action conference is underway. nikki haley you speak there. reporter: only days after november's u.s. midterm elections, the 2024 to the white house was off and running. >> in order to make america great and glorious again, i am

tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the united states. [applause] reporter: former president donald trump announced his intentions to try to take back the ct lost in 2020. -- the seat he lost in 2020. but many hopefuls could stand in the way of triumph, the 47th president of the u.s. >> i am running for president of the united states of america! [applause] reporter: the former u.s. ambassador to the u.n., nikki haley, is the first to challenge her past boss. she not only gained experience during her years at the u.n., she also showed a willingness to take a tough stance against russia, despite the wishes of president trump. the daughter of indian immigrants is also called for a new generation of leadership. that is seen as a veiled swipe at the advanced ages of trump and president biden. >> we are ready. ready to move past the stale ideas and faded names of the past. reporter: many others are

expected to join the race, like trump's, mike pompeo, and ex-vice president mike pence. both have shown signs of having residential ambitions. so has florida governor ron desantis. he is the person most likely to beat trump. he has made a name for himself by reaching conservative culture wars, and has appeared on right-wing media criticizing president biden for being weak on china, and spending tax dollars on ukraine. >> they have effectively a blank check policy with nuclear strategic objective identified. the sentence once a close trump reporter: -- desantis, once a close trump ally, is now his rival. 2024 is still little time away, but it is already shaping up to be a contentious race. gerhard: we stay in the u.s., where nba superstar kobe bryant's's window is due to receive nearly 29 million u.s.

dollars, from the county of los angeles. the payout comes after police shared graphic images of the helicopter crash in which kobe bryant and his daughter died in 2020. vanessa bryant claims the pictures were taken and shared for four "no reason other than morbid gossip." california has since passed a state law prohibiting first responders from taking another's pictures of people who die at the scene of an accident. some sports news, france is mourning the loss of one of its football greats. fontaine. in the 1958 world cup, he scored 13 goals for france, a record that still stands today. he was instrumental in helping the french squad reached the semifinals of the tournament in sweden. a prolific striker, he was once named as one of pele's greatest footballers.

with his help, paris centerburg gained promotion. here is a member of the top story for you. police arrested someone after a head-on train collision killed 30 people. dozens more were injured when trains collided between athens and thessaloniki late on tuesday. that is it for me and the new steam for now. do not go away, i will be back after a short break, to take you through "the day." thanks for watching. ♪

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>> welcome to live from paris. world news and analysis from france 24. these are the headlines. macron in gabon. the french president to redefine france's relationship with africa and its former colonies. this against the context of growing disillusionment stoped by internet subversion suspected to be sourced inussia. arrests as the knesset holds. a per luminary vote on changes to israel's justice system. prime minister fin