>> this is dw news, live from berlin. sudan cease-fire, already in tatters. heavy fighting was seen in the capital right up until the 24 hour deal took effect. there have been several reports of gunfire since. we will get more from khartoum. also coming up -- a russian court denies bill for a detained u.s. journalists. a wall street journal reporter will remain in custody as he awaits trial on spying charges.

and two wartime leaders, two covert visits to front-line troops in ukraine. why morel needs boosting with the arrival of spring -- morale needs posting with the arrival of spring. and 100 years of disney. as part of its celebration, they honor classic films. that behind the scenes exhibition in munich. ♪ to our viewers watching on pbs, in the united states, and to all of you around the world, welcome. in sudan, a 24 hour cease fire is now supposed to be in effect. but with violations already reported, it seems unlikely rebel forces battling for control of the east african country will lay down their weapons. there was hope a pause in the violence would allow both sides to return to negotiations and

give sevillians a chance -- civilians a chance to seek safety. around 200 people have been killed since fighting began on saturday. reporter: after days of heavy fighting in khartoum, many residents are fleeing the sudanese capital. >> leaving the city on heading for a hometown. where -- we are waiting for the victory statement from the sudanese army. reporter: others have had no choice but to stay put, trapped by the fighting. these university students are sheltering in their college library. the conflict has seen heavy gunfire and several airstrikes in civilian neighborhoods. diplomats have also been targeted. >> i can confirm that yesterday, we had an american diplomatic envoy that was fired on. all of our people are safe and unharmed. but this action was reckless, it

was a responsible, and of course -- not responsible and of course unsafe. >> we are calling for the escalation in general of the violence, this is the first priority of the eu as we speak, and as we said, we are working on assessing the situation when it comes to eu staff. reporter: eu top diplomats, staying in a suite residents in khartoum had been rated by fighters. neighboring egypt has offered to mediate. >>our contact with the sudanese army is not ending. we are constantly reaching out to encourage them to study cease fire and prevent bloodshed, in order to allow negotiations leading the restoration of calm. reporter: the violence has left khartoum's airport, hospitals, and top military buildings badly scarred.

there's a power struggle between sudan's army and the powerful paramilitary forces, rsf. they join forces to oust the former dictator and 2019. -- in 2019. now, they have turned their guns on each other months after reaching a deal to restore civilian rule. with tensions still high, it is hoped a potential cease fire would allow time for the rival factions to reach a lasting agreement to end the violence. nicole: and editor and political analyst based in khartoum a short while ago told me how ordinary people in the city are experiencing this alleged cease fire. reporter: it seems to have gone quiet over the last hour. but whether this is a cease fire or not, the majority of the public are not sure. obviously there are major distrust issues. the public does not usually believe what either party

claims or states. as a result, most people are staying in rather than utilizing the cease fire space. so, yes, that is a situation. even though there is relative calm, people are not sure of it is an actual cease fire and they continue to remain indoors, with fear of again being caught in the crossfire, should something erupt. nicole: this comes after four days of extreme violence and fear, as you point out. what is your personal experience -- has your personal experience been? >> well, is been quite horrific. for me and the friend of mine were actually caught in one of the hotspots of khartoum, close to the battle area. we were shelled on. we were at the epic center of conflict. thankfully, we managed to kind of escape that place.

to somewhere that is relatively calmer. others however have not been as lucky as we have. a lot of people have been caught in the crossfire and a lot of people have died. according to civil society groups, the doctors' union at least 144 people have been killed, many more are injured. people are struggling to get the basics. they are struggling to access food stuffs, electricity is out, water is out. and people cannot get the necessary health care that they need in real time. nicole: that is a horrific picture you're painting there. hospitals have been hit, aid agencies and international agencies have started to pull out, how is this exacerbating an already existing humanitarian crisis in sudan? >> well, i mean, the fact that the u.n. it is also evacuating their staff spells catastrophic

to sudan, especially its more vulnerable residents. we hear news that it will affect its even worse, much higher casualty numbers, intense fighting going on, we don't have the exact figures, but in a country that is historically kind of struggled -- has historically kind of struggled with for infrastructure -- with poor infrastructure, similar adjacent situations, people are affected really badly. nicole: thank you so much for the update and please stay safe. we can now take a look at some of the other stories making news around the world today -- at least 21 people have been killed in a fire at a hospital in beijing. dozens of others were forced to evacuate. social media videos appear to

show people escaping, using makeshift robes. -- ropes. saudi arabia's foreign minister held talks with the syrian president in damascus. the first trip that a top saudi diplomat has made to the country and more than a decade. is being seen as a significant step towards ending serious regional isolation and further evidence of wider rapprochement in the region. the head of tunisia's main opposition party has been arrested. he has an influential islamist leader and longtime critic of the president. the opposition lead parliament was shut down two years ago. since then-president said has been tightening his grip on power and widens a crackdown on opposition voices. a courts and moscow has rejected an appeal by u.s. journalists -- by the u.s. journalists against his pretrial detention. charged with spying following his arrest late last month.

he and his employer deny any wrongdoing and washington is calling for his immediate release. it is the first time a u.s. journalist has been detained on espionage charges by russia since the end of the cold war. the u.s. ambassador to russia attended the appeal hearing and spoke to the media outside afterwards. >> we will continue to provide our appropriate support to evan and his family, and we expect russian authorities to provide continued access to evan. the charges against evan are baseless and we call on the russian federation to immediately release him. nicole: our former moscow bureau chief knows evan and has been following the story for us. i asked him what we can expect now that his appeal has been denied. >> yes, the court rejected the appeal against his arrest.

officials from the u.s. embassy in moscow, including the ambassador, attended the court. the meeting was behind closed doors. they sent him to jail on charges of espionage. the generalist was the tent at the end of march. they claim he collected sacred information about a large military factory. in connection with the investigations against evan, two russians were also arrested who allegedly contributed to the alleged crime. according to media reports, his lawyers expect in the future that he will be or would be or could be exchanged for one of the russians and prisons abroad. -- and prisons abroad. nicole: one person has been killed and several others injured during a russian strike on the southern ukrainian city of her son. -- of kherson.

russia is expected to launch a spring offensive but it's also bracing for a counteroffensive from ukrainian forces armed with western weapons. a warning, our next report contains images viewers may find distressing. reporter: a mother's shock and brief. her son -- and grief. her son's body lies lifeless after the market was hit by an artillery strike. >> first there was a whistle, then a loud explosion. it was deafening, very strong. i turned around and saw that everything was flying apart. there were a lot of people here after the easter holidays. a lot of people go shopping. a very scary picture. reporter: heavy fighting continues to devastate the region. much of it is concentrated in the eastern town where fierce

battles have been raging for months. to the south is a heavily bombarded city, only about 1800 residents are thought to be left here. president zelenskyy paid a visit to the ukrainian troops defending the city, handing out awards for bravery. and meeting wounded soldiers in a military hospital. >> are you being discharged already? what happens after the hospital? >> i will go back. >> thank you for your service. reporter: the kremlin said putin also visited the kherson and luhansk regions. both sides, trying to keep up morale before ukraine is expected to launch a long-awaited new counteroffensive in the spring. nicole: our correspondent told

us earlier what the russian and ukrainian leaders are trying to communicate with their visits to the frontline. reporter: indeed, two visits that are very significant. first ukrainian president, volodymyr zelenskyy, went to distribute medals to soldiers and visit some artillery units, marines, and he said he was deeply honored to meet his troops. this comes as a message of support at a moment where ukraine of course is greatly affected by this war, which in its full-scale can last for nine years. on the others to, we have put 10 who visited the kherson and luhansk

regions. it cannot be verified that he indeed was there himself. just to give you an idea, and ukraine, some people say maybe it was one of his doppelgängers. regardless, the message is he is supporting his troops at the moment. russia has made no significant advance on the eastern front. nicole: ukraine and poland have today agreed on ukrainian grain being able to transit through poland. remind us what the issue here was. reporter: well, over the weekend, we found out that poland was banning the import of ukrainian goods because poland said it was hurting polish farmers. but the situation is worse for ukrainian farmers, so there is breakthrough today with that decision to allow ukrainian grain to transit through poland

to reach european destinations, through european ports as well, however the import ban on ukrainian goods to the polish market remains in effect, which is obviously something that tfs tried -- something that kyiv is quite dismayed about. nicole: we learned about atrocities committed by russian forces fighting for russia. they say they were ordered to kill "anything in their way." what more can you tell us about their testimonies? reporter: first of all, the testimonies of the first of their kind coming from the other side, so to speak. we have had dozens of testimony from ukrainians talking about how family members and how friends and people in the east have been tortured, raped, murdered brutally, and i can tell you firsthand that i've

seen the results of those acts of torture in moscow -- in the kharkiv region. what is very rare is to have alleged perpetrators of those crimes actually confessing to it. what it shows also is that there is a systemic use of violence toward civilians which constitutes a war crime, and to give you an idea, we are talking according to the general prosecutor here in ukraine, we are talking about over 60,000 cases of war crimes committed in ukraine. so it's quite significant indeed that perpetrators would actually confess to their crimes. nicole: thanks for your reporting. you're watching the doubly news. still to come -- >> i'm not prevented from political bondage. nicole: dw talks to zimbabwans

after gaining -- more than 30 years after gaining independence from britain. fox news and dominion voting systems have settled their defamation case. dominion had filed a lawsuit claiming fox had knowingly aired false claims the company's machines had been used to rig the 2020 u.s. presidential election against ben president donald trump. fox as part of rupert murdoch's media empire. hundreds of classmates of a black teenager who was shot after ringing the wrong doorbell have held to protest march. ralph yarl went to pick up as brothers but went to the wrong address in kansas city and was shot twice. the elderly suspect was not arrested at first but has now been charged. at least two people were killed and several others injured when a landslide hit a highway in pakistan's border region with

afghanistan. it happened near the border post, the busiest and most important crossing between the two countries. several trucks were worried. jewish people around the world have been marking two events commemorating the holocaust. israel was briefly brought to a standstill during its national holocaust remembrance day. and poland, thousands took part in the annual march of the living dedicated to the victims of the tragedy. reporter: young people and those old enough to have witnessed the horrors of the holocaust walked together along the tracks that brought so many to their deaths. the annual commemoration was held at the place which has become a dark symbol of the tragedy. more than a one million people are estimated to have been murdered at the auschwitz extermination camp. to remember them, 42 survivors joined the march.

>> people come from all over the world. and i hope that they will go back. that they will go back to their homes and tell everybody what they have seen. what they have heard and what is important. reporter: as the event in auschwitz wrapped up, participants marched out of the gates in a symbolic gesture suggesting that freedom will eventually prevail. earlier on tuesday, the sound of sirens wailing across israel. bringing life on the streets to a standstill. as citizens took time to remember the jewish people murdered in the holocaust. is really politicians gathered at the memorial in jerusalem to lead the annual ceremony. this here's holocaust commemorations are taking place against the backdrop of regular mass protests in the country

against the government's plans to overhaul the judicial system. in is speech, the israeli president called for an end to the civil unrest and for unity. this year, feelings are rough and shoulders are hunched. as if to attest to the weight of the discord bearing down on us. i appeal to you, citizens of israel, with a simple prayer. let us make the sacred days which begin tonight and end on independence day above all disputes, let us all come together as always in partnership, in grief, in remembrance. reporter: as the words of grief and remembrance were echoed on the stage by religious leaders, holocaust survivors present at

the ceremony lit the torches in honor of the millions who lost their lives. nicole: and in zimbabwe, events have been held to mark independence day, 43 years since the end of british colonial rule. but for many, the celebrations were muted. a single political party has ruled the country since independence and government critics are often jailed for expressing themselves. zimbabwe's economy meanwhile continues to struggle with massive inflation. as we report from harare, it is leading people to question what independence means in zimbabwe today. reporter: the british colonial flag was brought down at this post on the eve of independence in 1980. and handed over to the prince, now king. that they brought freedom. but since then, independence has come to mean different things

for different generations. while the old cherish the end of colonial bondage, the younger generation are concerned about other freedoms -- economic and human rights issues that they feel the current government is struggling to deal with. on independence, the zimbabwe liberation fighters were praised as he rose. but slowly they themselves became the oppressors. young people have little confidence that things will change anytime soon with the ruling party that's been in power for the past 43 years. >> the skin color is what has changed. but the characteristics, the governance has not changed. >> i'm not independent from political bondage, i can't even freely express how i want to be politically aligned for certain fears. reporter: the economic crisis in the country is also forcing

citizens to question the value of freedom. after decades of mismanagement, inflation in zimbabwe is out of control. people are trying to sell whatever they can just to make ends meet. >> people are struggling. the country is now full of vendors. most vendors are youths who are qualified to work in industries. what it means is this country is not yet independent. >> i am a graduate and i have not yet even found a job. for the past eight years. i graduated eight years ago. reporter: that some people is the price worth paying for the biggest change that independence brought. >> independence is about who was ruling the country. reporter: zimbabwans will vote in general elections later this year, but few are optimistic that they will bring radical

change. nicole: disney turns 100 this year, and the american entertainment conglomerate is putting on its largest ever exhibition of disney artworks, customs, and props in the southern german city of munich. the doors opened today and it will continue until september. reporter: cinderella, winnie, alice, and frozen -- over the past 100 years, disney has left an impressive legacy of globally beloved characters. now, they are opening their largest ever exhibition in the bavarian capital to celebrate their centenary in style. never before seen props, costumes, and archival sketches in the form of interactive displays are on show in the exhibition's 10 galleries. it comes at a crucial time. when first pictures revealed

hallie billy in the form of ariel, some fans voiced their disapproval with the casting choice. the film raises the question -- is it okay to change character'' ethnicities? >> people have to understand, ariel is an imaginary character. she's a mermaid. what does a mermaid look like? i've never seen one in person. so i think a mermaid can be whatever we wanted to be. reporter: the choice to cast halle bailey has come amidst accusations of racial insensitivity and stereotyping at some of the studios older films. movies like the 1970 "aristocrats" flights for racist imagery. -- were flagged for racist imagery. >> we are prone to all things human. that may be sometimes a person

or a character may say something that seems like, i don't agree with that character, well, i hope not, because that character is the villain. reporter: in order to address the cultural stereotypes, the studio now issues warnings before some of their films. but is that enough? whatever lies ahead for the studio in this ever-changing cultural landscape? there is no doubt disney has enchanted audiences across the world over the past 100 years. nicole: finally, a giant tyrannosaurus rex has been a roaring success at auction in switzerland, selling for almost -- almost 4.9 one million euros. the beast is over 11 meters long and almost four meters tall. here's a quick reminder of the

top story we are following for you -- a 24 hour cease-fire is supposed to be in effect in sudan but violations have already been reported. that u.n. says it has no indication rebel forces battling for control over the east african country have stopped fighting. around 200 people have been killed since violence broke out on saturday. don't forget you can always get dw news on the go with our app from google play or the app store, that will give you access to all the latest news around the world as well as push notifications for any breaking news. stay with us now, after a short break, i will be back to take you through "the day." hope to see you there. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

>> thanks for joining us here on "france 24." this is live from paris, and these are the headlines. in sudan, a cease-fire is over almost as soon as it begins as explosions rocked the capital of khartoum. nearly 200 people have been killed since fighting broke out on saturday. civilians caught in the middle. the defamation trial of fox news opens up in the u.s. state of delaware. voting machine maker dominion is suing the network for 1.6 million dollars over false claims during the 2020 election