♪ >> brent: this is dw news, live from berlin. tonight in sudan, and agreements to a cease-fire. the sudanese army and rebel paramilitaries have agreed to peace talks. also coming up, the disinformation of or in ukraine. kerman controlled media are spinning the conflict for russian audiences. and how tur turkiye's

devastating earthquakes are shaking confidence in their president, just ahead of elections. ♪ i am brent goff. to our viewers on pbs and in the united states and to all of you around the world, welcome. we begin in sudan. the foreign ministry saying the warring parties in sudan have agreed in principle to a seven day cease-fire that will begin on thursday. commanders of the sudanese army and of the rss paramilitary group have also agreed to send representatives to peace talks, as part of the deal. the u.n. says more than 100,000 people have fled the fighting. previous attempts to establish a lasting truce. . reporter: is another cease-fire collapsed in war-torn khartoum, asia and her family knew they had to move quickly.

they traded everything they could to rent a car and set off for the egyptian border. >> it was very difficult. we were 28 people. the boys don't have a visa, but we kept them with us. our suffering is unprecedented. we left under fighting, clashes, and artillery. it was real suffering. reporter: she is just one of thousands who have flocked to neighboring egypt since the war broke out two weeks ago. the humanitarian situation in sudan's capital is dire. food and water are scarce, and the health care systems on the brink of collapse. faced with these dangers, the u.n. estimates that over 100,000 people have fled to neighboring countries, but they warn that

number is likely to rise. >> alongside governments and partners, the unhcr, the u.n. refugee agency has determined a figure of more than 800,000 refugees that may flee sudan to neighboring countries. reporter: the u.n. says the scale of the scale of exodus is staggering, and so's neighbors are struggling to accommodate those who have fled their homes. >> the number of displaced people through the last two weeks exceeds, as a result of conflict, exceeds all conflict-related displacements recorded in sudan in 2022, just to give you a sense of the scale of movement since april 15. reporter: aisha and her family managed to escape the fighting that has gripped their homeland, together with thousands of others who have made the journey, they now face an uncertain future.

brent: our guest is the unhcr's principal situation coordinator for dart for, he was evacuated from the region a few days ago and he told us about the situation left behind in dart fur. >> i was fortunate to be evacuated with the french military forces along with other u.n. and humanitarian personnel. my colleagues had to take hazardous journeys overland towards chad and south sudan, many of the same journeys sudanese are having to take in response to the widescale fighting. of the situation is catastrophic in many areas of door four. where i was based, there was a full-blown conflict between the two sides for two or three days before an uneasy truce was put into place by the local authorities. unfortunately that truce has been more or less held, allowing civilians to resume very basic normal lives, but unfortunately,

there has been huge damage done to a critical civilian infrastructure including medical facilities. and it is extraordinarily difficult for any humanitarian organization, including our very courageous national staff, to be carrying out essential military and work in such an environment, in south dodarfur, widescale looting in town which left the u.n. agencies without cars, without offices. nicole: that was toby howard speaking with us earlier. let's look at the other stories making headlines around the world. multiple rockets have been fired d hunger striker.he listingip, israel's military said its air defenses intercepted four rockets, well 16 others landed in open areas.

at least three foreign nationals were injured in a construction site. women in new york state will soon be able to obtain birth control pills from pharmacies without seeing a doctor. the government signed legislation which increases access to abortion medication for university students. this, almost a year after the u.s. supreme court stripped abortion rates from millions of americans -- abortion rates from millions of americans. russian state media played a crucial role in maintaining publix port for russia's war against ukraine, but it lose its grip on this tightly controlled narrative? maria: set looks at how russian tv fashioned an alternate reality out of a deadly missile strike, a strike on the city of umag. reporter: russia says its army uses precision weapons, only aimed at military targets. so how is the propaganda spinning this narrative?

this apartment block was struck by a russian missile had it hit at around 4:00 in the morning, when most people were in bed. the strike killed 23 people, including six children. so how did muslim response? russian state tv eased images of the destroyed building, claiming that this devastation was actually ukraine's fault, caused by kyiv's shelling of the donbas region, even though this region is hundreds of kilometers away from the actual scene of the tragedy. [crying] guest: this video recorded by one of the victims was exploited by one of russia's top propagandists. he shared edited video on his telegram channel saying that it was ukrainians. their own people. and while russian propaganda outlets tried to shift the

blame, the country's ministry of defense tried to embrace it. this photo reading "right on target," on the telegram channel hours later. many russians believe the propaganda. but of course, this does not apply to everyone. after the strike on this apartment building, people all over russia not flowers spring tunis memorials. this show of solidarity was not come to buy russian authorities, and they were able to remove the flowers and messages apologizing for their attack. brent: for more on russia's propaganda campaign, i am joined by an author on the book "russia's war on everybody." he is a senior consultant fellow of that russia and eurasia program at chatham house. good to have you with us. you wrote that russia's propaganda success is the result of long-term investments, and the skillful use of t.v. and social media, how far back does

this go? guest: yes, it is important to bear in mind that europe correspondent just describe the treatment of one incident, but that wouldn't succeed if it weren't for this long background, this long preparation russia has been building. this alternate reality has been constructed over more than a decade. in fact, if you go far back into russia's portrayal of the outside world, it's hard to find a time when there was an honest account of what was happening in the world around russia. the narratives that we hear coming from russia about what ukraine is, trying to convince its own population, and the rest of the world about why russia is waging this war, actually have roots more than 10 years old. they have made down the foundations for this alternative reality that you heard mentioned, where everything is done through 180 degrees. that has its tragic consequences for the people in ukraine. if russia tells people that you can it's will believe in the

existence of their own country are nazis, and that excuses the atrocities we have seen perpetrated on ukraine. brent: we know that the russian media machine is controlled by the state, we know about the control that the state has on its domestic audience. i wonder, is moscow managing to sway decision-makers abroad -- i am thinking of leaders in america, and africa, southeast asia? guest: absolutely. there are different campaigns for different audiences. what russia says to its people is different to what they will try to portray to africa and latin america, and also different to what russia says to europe and america. need to look at the long-term, how the terms of conversations have changed over time. one of the biggest successes russia's long-term disinformation influence campaigns have had is convincing europe and america that you cannot offend or impede russia or you will risk nuclear war.

that has been a phenomenally successful campaign that has changed the terms of everything that people talk about in terms of escalation with russia. it has been one of the key breaks on germany, the united states and other countries providing what ukraine needs in order to win this war. brent: in germany, russia has been accused of trying to engineer, if you will, political opinion, by putting a coalition together of the far-right and the far-left. how is that going? guest: it's true that russia has more choices now in terms of who it can incorporate with in order to destabilize its societies, the countries he points to subvert democratic processes in. formerly under the ussr, ideologically, they had to only deal with the far-left, but now, they can work with anybody who will further their aims. he mentioned television and social media, it's also working through humans to deliver on influence. useful idiots, the agents of

influence the people who false start russian state interests to the deficit of their own countries, are easily found by russia and easily exploited across the political spectrum brent: you warned back in 2015 that nato and the european union cannot compete with russia's highly developed information warfare arsenal. in 2023, is that still the case? guest: it wasn't so much that they couldn't compete, it is that they weren't competing. this was not seen as a contest in which the european union and nato were engaging. but all the time since then, we have found both of those organizations, and national organizations looking for ways in which they can safeguard their societies against russian information attacks. now, nobody is talking about reaching back into russia with the same disinformation and sliding propaganda russia is this, because that is basically compatible with how societies work, but there are still

safeguard that can be put in place to reduce the damaging impact on our democracies and our societies, of what russia does, and those are still not being taken. brent: keir giles, we appreciate your time and valuable insights. fascinating. thank you. guest: thank you. brent: in just under two weeks, turkiye's president will face arguably his biggest electoral test ever as the country takes to the polls. president erdogan has been in power now for two decades, but recently his popularity has taken a hit because of turkiye's ongoing economic crisis and, his handling of february's devastating earthquake. president erdogan is also facing opposition parties who have united around a single candidate. reporter: vucevic tayyip ardoin likes to win. in the past 20 years, his grip on power has only strengthened. with the help of his ak party,

he has transformed turkiye's the country, from the economy to the military. he has also successfully sentenced a number of critics, including political rivals like this one, who has been in jail since 2016. outside turkiye, erdogan has increased his influence on international estate. -- international stage. ♪ it was his final approval that allowed finland to join nato this year, but he continues to hold up sweden's membership bid. erdogan has made no secret of his friendship with vladimir putin, nato's biggest threats. he has already purchased an air defense system from moscow.

lastly, the two leaders gently unveiled turkiye's first nuclear power plant being built by russia's state nuclear company. but behind-the-scenes at home, things have not been going his way. inflation is still stubbornly high. even official figures put it at around 50%. that has created a cost-of-living crisis that is hurting even the president's most loyal supporters. erdogan is also trying to deal with the fallout from an earthquake that killed tens of thousands of people. many blame him personally for responding to slowly to the disaster, event for the country being ill prepared for such a crisis. on top of that, erdogan is facing an opposition that has managed to unite behind one candidate in order to get him out of power.

>> i know all of turkiye's problems. we know them and we will solve them all. we have the knowledge, the experience, and the strength to strength is you, no one else, that powers the people. it is you! reporter: erdogan spend the campaign trying to hit back, blaming everyone and everything for turkiye's problems. >> we are here to open the door of turkiye's century. together with our nation against co plotters, global internists, politicalu and social engineering projectsp-. reporter: while erdogan still has a huge support, this time around, it may not be enough to secure him another term. brent: next guest is a visiting fellow with the brookings institution. i asked her if high inflation and debauched earthquake

response will be decisive factors in the election. guest: i think your reporter touched upon one of the key issues, the slow response to the earthquake. but voters are also reacting to turkiye's terrible economic situation. sometime last year, turkiye had triple digit inflation. inflation around 50%. unofficially, by independent watchdogs, it is measured in triple digits. so -- and then you also have the erdogan has been in power for 20 years. he could no longer connect with young people. he is offering a particular vision, make turkiye great again, very much focused on turkiye's homegrown defense industry, tanks, new aircraft carrier and the terry might, but you have a segment of the

population that has seen a disconnect between what president erdogan's imperial vision, and their daily lives. this affects young people. this affects secularists, but increasingly the urban middle-class from more ideological backgrounds, including urban conservatives who are disgruntled, unhappy about the direction of the country. so whatever happens in this election, president erdogan, whether he wins or not, he is facing an anti- erdogan majority, an important point. brent: the person who would like to replace him, described him for our people who do not follow turkish politics? guest: so i used to be a journalist and i had the opportunity to get to know both men, and no two men could be further apart. his rival is a soft-spoken

former civil servant who used to work as head of the social security division, 74 years old. a thoughtful social democrat, not a man who is known for his machismo or his tough tactics when it comes to politics. but he is not positioning himself as the next erdogan and i think that is also very important. he is basically saying look, i am a transitional figure, a uniter. this is a big tent and a coalition and i can guide this country until we return to the rule of law and democracy. the big sales pitch of the opposition is democracy and the rule of law. brent: sounds like you are describing him as turkiye's version of joe biden, who promised to take the united states out of the trump-era. is that what he is doing, "i am

going to take you out of the erdogan eva?" guest: that is exactly what he is. he is leading a coalition that has different political parties, six parties, and is externally backed by the pro-kurdish party. so you have people who come from different ideological streams. he is basically saying, "i am a uniter. this is a big tent." this is turkiye's joe biden moment. or we will see whether turkiye is ready for its joe biden moment. on a different level, opposition parties have agreed to bring the country back to the rule of law and parliamentary system, and as such kemal kilicdaroglu it's a transitional figure. brent: before we run out of time, if president erdogan news 8's, will he accept defeat?

guest: i think he will. some analysts or generalists might tell you that he will never accept defeat. i happen to disagree although i don't have a crystal ball. obviously, if it is very close, neck and neck, there might be a contested election, and president erdogan might ask for a recount in the way bolsonaro and donald trump have. but if it is a significant enough lead, 1% or 2% or even bigger for the opposition, president erdogan will accept it because he is a man who has built his entire legitimacy on elections, on the ballot. i think he wouldn't be able to mobilize a bureaucratic response to define the balance. brent: we will definitely be following to see what happens with those results. asli aydintasbas, we appreciate your time and your insights tonight.

thank you. guest: thank you. brent: thousands of hollywood film and television writers have gone on strike, that, after talks between the major studios and the writers guild of america. to reach agreement. writers are picketing major studios in both los angeles and new york. the strike has shut down the recordings of most late-night shows, that it could delay the release of tv series and movies in the fall. writers say that their incomes have been significantly reduced, thanks to online streaming services. for more on this, we want to go to our very own entertainment journalist, k.j. matthews, in los angeles. it's good to see you. i mentioned online streaming services, what exactly do the writers want? you know that they want more money, practical to detail and little bit with this. k.j. just so everybody knows, the writers guild always

renegotiate their contracts every several years anyway, so this is not really anything new. what is new is that this time when they came to the table with the alliance of motion picture television and producers, they were at a standstill. they couldn't come to a contract deal because the two sides are too par apart. on the one side you have writers saying that in the last couple of years, especially since you have seen the streaming platforms really do well and they are seeing executives' pay skyrocketed, they have noticed that over all their pay has gone down, they are saying, 20% and they are not being factored into this equation. what they're asking for is a greater percentage of those residuals when it comes to streaming. but also, they want to increase the number of writers when it comes to certain network shows. overall, they want their package to be just a little bit better. brent: we have seen on social

media, this is a fight that users of streaming services or viewers have to take seriously. take a look at this tweet -- "hit them where it hurts. pay your writers or we will spoil "succession." people don't want the show to be stopped. guest: most people love that show. it is on hbo. at every single weekend we are saying, at least here, what is going to happen next? they want you to understand how important every single thing you see on television, especially these shows that you love, have to do with them, and take it more serious. you can always bring people into your argument and be more persuasive when you make it relatable to them, and i think that is what that tweet was attempting to do. brent: where is this headed from here? i assume there will be attempts at more talks with the writers guild? guest: yes, they will continue

to talk. but right now, most immediate impact you are going to see soap uprise and late-night talk shows, because they write their scripts the day before. so if writers will not go across the picket line, then you are not going to see the shows. in the long run when it comes to movies, motion pictures, a lot of those films that were going to be released this year, 2023, they have already been shot. it is next year that you have to worry about. television shows, a lot of the sitcoms have alrady had their scripts written two or three months in advance. but around the fall -- when we start getting more reruns, unfortunately. brent: new new episodes of "the young and the restless" "and the bold and the beautiful," my mother will not be happy to hear that. [laughter] guest: trust me.

brent: k.j. matthews in los angeles, thank you. kj: thank you. brent: some of the biggest stars in fashion and entertainment gathered in new york for the met gala. this year it honored the late fashion icon karl lagerfeld. attendees spotted looks that reflected his aesthetic. actor jared leto dressed as the designer's cat. retired tennis star serena williams used her moment on the red carpet to announce her second pregnancy -- see? wondered what she had been doing lately. the annual ball is a fundraiser for the new york metropolitan museum of art. rihanna was late getting there. tennis now, at the madrid open, defending champion carlos alcaraz has cruised past german 13th street alexander zverev in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals. two breaks of serve in both sets saw the top seed of current sprint to a 6-1, 6-2 victory in

a repeat of last year's final in which he won with similar dominance. he will now face current khachanov for the semifinals. a reminder of the top story we are following at this hour, south sudan's foreign ministry says that warring parties in sudan have agreed in principle to a seven-day cease-fire beginning may 4. the u.n. says the violence has caused more than 100,000 people to flee the country. you're watching dw news. after a short break, i will be back to take you through "the day." we will be right back. ♪

>> welcome to "france 24." these are the headlines. the fighting continuing despite several declared cease-fires in sudan. a longer truce has been negotiated by sudan's neighbor, south sudan. if they make it work remains unclear. rockets have been fired from the gaza strip at israel this tuesday after the death in prison of a palestinian hunger striker. an expert quits google so we can warn us all of the dangers of artificial intelligence.