>> this is dw news ally from berlin. rub battering -- battling extreme weather. the european union chief visiting slovenia to see for herself the aftermath of flooding. nine schuurs -- niger accusing france of terrorist elements.

germany arresting a military official suspected of trying to spy for russia. brent: to all of you around the world, welcome. extreme heat, it is tightening its grip on southwestern europe. hundreds of firefighters are battling wildfires in spain and portugal, in the midst of their third heat wave. temperatures in both countries soaring above 40 degrees celsius. >> after five days, this fire in southern portugal is under control. it is already torn through 10,000 hectares of land. the blaze grew so large it was visible from space as it spread towards the tourist region.

20 villages and more than 1400 people threatened by the flames were forced to evacuate. >> it was horrible, there was fire everywhere and we had to fend for ourselves. nobody was there to help us, but luckily our friends came. reporter: across the border in spain, firefighters are dealing with a wildfire in the western region. locals are worried about the loss of ancient woodland. >> we are worried and upset because we have an enormous sum -- mass of forest. reporter: people all across spain have been dealing with punishing conditions. with a five degree celsius heat. -- 45 degrees celsius heat across the country. scientists say limit changes

pushing temperatures to extremes, with july confirmed as the planets hottest month on record. already grappling with record temperatures, increasing wildfires and historic water shortages, unfortunately for portugal and spain, the future does not look much brighter. the whole iberian peninsula is said to be one of the european regions hit hardest by climate change. brent: the climate and energy program at the union of concerned scientists, she told me about the weather conditions that southern europe is experiencing. guest: it is clear that what we are seeing is unprecedented. these waves and waves of high temperatures, extended heat waves, a huge wildfire risk. portugal and spain experiencing it today, we have seen wildfires in greece, italy, and france. accompanied by flooding and parts of europe, in slovenia,

norway. this is a summer that all over the world is shattering records. the people are suffering. this is human caused climate change, it is now happening in an unprecedented way. brent: to what extent can these extreme weather events be linked to climate change? guest: what is happening is the missions from fossil fuels are rising and accumulating in the atmosphere, it creates a trend of rising average temperatures. we are coming off the hottest months on record, 2023 is on track to be one of the hottest years on record. it is a trend that is alarming, but the way it is manifesting this year has caught scientists alarmed and shocked.

this is happening in no way that is unprecedented in europe, the u.s., china, india, south america. and not just on land, we are seeing astronomical sea surface temperatures as well. brent: are you saying by the year 2030 we will look back at the year 2023 and say, it was a pretty normal year? guest: unfortunately this year it is being exacerbated by el niño. but yes, this might end up being in retrospect the coolest summer on record going forward. it is the hottest summer to date, with emissions going up, instead of switching to clean forms of energy, if we continue to pump carbon dioxide into the

atmosphere, we will look back on this moment with regret. we are locking in future generations into a world that is dangerous. it is going to get worse if we do not sharply cut our emissions. brent: we appreciate your time. it is top priority for the european union, the message today when the president ursula von der leyen visited slovenia, which is reeling from its worst flooding ever. our reporter has more. reporter: the force of nature is on full display. homes swelled off by the river. >> it is catastrophic, special pipes have been torn from the bridges that were destroyed, now 20,000 people have no access to running water. reporter: but the force of

slovenian solidarity is on show. volunteers are showing up daily to help with repairs. >> this is what gives you hope, that things can get better. that we can move forward and people can return to their normal lives. reporter: red cross staff are also working overtime, collecting and sending off donations to the worst hit towns. >> we put in some booths for work, a box of gloves, working gloves, we are cleaning. lots of other supplies. >> this is all donated by people who are not from a affected regions. >> yes this is from the generosity of people. reporter: and they keep showing up. with a population of 2 million, almost everyone in slovenia

knows someone in need. >> we like to help each other. i have a lot of friends. i am very emotional about that. reporter: the european union announced flood damage support. >> europe stand by your side. we are with you in the first days, immediately with the material that was needed. it is the mobile bridges, the excavators, the helicopters and the technical team and crews, and of course we will stay as long as it is necessary. reporter: but entire towns remain cut off, and as the scale of damage rose clear, the cost of reconstruction can only climb higher. for now slovenia is in emergency mode. brent: our correspondent is in slovenia and has more now on how

the eu is helping. reporter: ursula von der leyen came with a message of thanks to volunteers, some of them who we saw, who she said brought hope where there was only mud. there was so much mud. i was in people's houses where there was dirt up to the ceiling . i saw neighbors draining each other's houses. she said she was bearing hope with 100 million euros of solidarity funding and a potential 300 million further. she spoke about trying to use existing eu budget for slovenia. it will entail bureaucratic burden. it will mean slovenia will have to apply. she said she was coming to slovenia to say the eu is by its side. brent: we were talking about the

mud, last friday in slovenia, within 24 hours, they had at least a month or more worth of rainfall. the rivers could not handle it. i know you have been around the country today. talk to me about the situation on the ground. reporter: there is desperation both also solidarity on the side of people who are terribly impacted. there are towns that are cut off, in order to reach the places we visited, we had to have a military x -- military escort. when we got there, people's houses were basically destroyed. we spoke to a carpenter, all of his tools and furniture had been destroyed and he does not know and he will work again. the army has been dropping supplies in.

particularly freshwater. there are thousands without access to running water. volunteers are helping with donations, ordinary citizens showing up with bottled water trying to get into those zones that are most in need. there is no shortage of people showing up to help. ready to dig and help neighbors, and people they don't now, the situation remained dire. brent: the images are disturbing. reporting from the worst flooding in the history of slovenia. let's take a look at the other climate related stories. hundreds of people a vacuum it in southern norway as heavy rains triggered the collapse of a power plant dam. a spokesperson saying automatic catches filled to open and relieve water pressure, why that

happened remains unknown. wildfires are tearing through the hawaiian island of maui. hospitals on the island are struggling to cope. phone services are down across the island, the national guard has been called in. leaders of eight south american countries have agreed to form an alliance to fight the destruction of the amazon rain forest. the leaders released a joint declaration on tackling deforestation. what critics have slammed the final agreement for failing to set i'm doing targets for protecting the amazon. -- to set up binding targets. >> france is rejecting ideas from niger's military rulers. it was approved by their armed forces. there are about 1500 french troops in the west african country helping to fight

islamist militants. that is coming into question after france opposed the military coup. the coup leaders ignored a seven day deadline to reinstate the president set by the 15 member west african group. it has scheduled an emergency summit for thursday to discuss what can be done next. >> the current political unrest is putting them to the test. the economic community of west african states block was formed in 1975 and comprises 15 african countries. it was set up to foster trade but it has also addressed political and military unrest with some success. it set peacekeeping missions into gambia, ivory coast and guinea-bissau. nigeria's president, who is also

the chairman, appeared to be pushing for military intervention. but most say that is unlikely, they would have to provide the bulk of the military resources and is struggling to deal with its own insurgency. also members are split on the use of force. other countries are backing diplomacy and suggesting the extent it's deadline for the reinstatement of the president. but mediation attempts have been rebuffed. the block may now look to expand the economic and travel sanctions it has already imposed. brent: iran's president vowing to crackdown on women who refuse to wear the islamic headscarf. president raisi has criticized women for defying the law.

many women have been avoiding wearing the hijab since last year, when the deed -- when the death of a woman and police custody sparked protests. with a one year at -- anniversary, authorities and iran want to show they are in control. their morality police have stepped up efforts to enforce laws requiring women to wear headscarves in public. >> a video circulating on social media, showing an agent harassing and unveiled woman. then a day later, the police spokesperson announced police patrols would be established across the country. >> these police officers will deal with those who unfortunately ignore the consequences of not wearing the proper hijab and insist on disobeying the norms. and in addition to warning them, if they disobey the orders of

the police force, legal action will be taken and they will be referred to the judicial system. reporter: since 1990, police units and forcing mandatory hijab regulations have patrolled the streets of iran. in 2022, and on precedented women led uprising. it began after the police force are arrested a 22-year-old, allegedly for not wearing headscarf properly. she died in their custody. the uprising did not spark legal changes in the dress code. but many iranian women have since been very visibly following their rules. >> i almost do not by scarves and overcoats anymore. i have not worn hijab for a long time. i have gone without it to places that are considered ordinary,

but not being veiled there hasn't made them feel special. it seems the control over women's hijab has slipped from their hands, and they are doing whatever it takes to gain the power back. reporter: iranian authorities are not only aiming to regain control with street agents, according to a report i a rights group, they are increasingly resorting to surveillance technology. >> i received a warning test message -- text message once after removing my headscarf a while driving. it stated my car would be impounded. when the second message arrived, it was a tara thai -- terrifying thought they could impounded our car. reporter: iranian state media release this video.

it shows women with uncovered hair being intimidated read but the video claims authorities gathered biographical information on offenders by using face recognition technology. officials have also said they have shut down forest detections -- tourist attractions, hotels, and shopping districts for not enforcing the hijab. >> some young people may continue to resist, but older people who rely on their salaries will be coerced into wearing headscarves again. reporter: with the one-year anniversary of her death approaching in september, observers say iranian women will likely be finding more ways to make their voices heard and to make sure they are seen. brent: the german arrhenius journalist tony more about the current situation for women iran. reporter: we received a good

overview of what is going on. the government is doubling down and doing anything to get women to wear the headscarf and follow the islamic rules. they have been trying for a long time, four months they have been doing things, tightening the rules and enforcing the rules. and still women have been resisting. and they have not subsided to what the regime wants. what we are seeing now is an overall attempt to get women to wear the headscarf, it is still not working the way they want the women to behave. brent: they are changing their approach to enforcing these laws? video surveillance, facial identification technology is being used. what do we know about that, how are people reacting?

reporter: we have reports that even german companies have been involved, they are using german cameras to do their human rights violations. i talked to a friend, she said they heard they are big -- affected in cars. they scanned the license plates and the women get text messages that they will have to give up their cars. since april, 2000 cars have been impounded. 2000 women, at least, have had to give up their cars. my friend told me she received a text message and is ignoring it and hopes that she can keep her car. it seems like it -- more and more women are starting to wear the headscarves in the car, without a car, it's difficult to get by.

in the streets, just as many women as before are not wearing the headscarf. it remains to be seen what will happen. is this tactic of fear and pressure of the regime going to work? are more women going to stop not wearing hijab? brent: where do you see this headed? we have the first anniversary of the death of that woman. we have had a people in the country for almost a year. it seems that the women in iran have a choice, he could stay home, state out -- stay out of the public sphere, or where the hijab or face a police force that can act with impunity. is that how you see it? reporter: yes, it seems like it

that is what my friends have been telling me in iran. the controls and pressure we have now is the same there was before the death. for me of that is a sign the regime, ahead of the anniversary in september, they want to make sure they are back to the old ways. and women are defining this, they go out. they have jobs, they go to university, and they have to do it, they cannot stay home. it is hard to say what is going to happen. but the government wants to stop this by the anniversary because they are afraid there will be protests again. i think it is likely there will be protests because there is a lot of anger. brent: we will continue our reporting on this. we appreciate you sharing your reporting.

let's take a look at the other stories. italian authorities say 41 migrants died after their boat overturned in the mediterranean according to for survivors. it capsized on friday after setting off from tunisia. the survivors drifted for days before being rescued. they have been transferred to the italian island of lamedusa. an explosion has ripped through a factory outside of moscow, injuring more than 40 people it sits on the grounds of the factory that produces nightvision goggles and other optical equipment. officials say the warehouse is being used to store fireworks when it exploded. the u.s. senior and subject of the oscar-winning documentary searching for sugarman has died at the age of 81. he lived most of his life in obscurity, unaware he had become a star within south africa's anti-apartheid movement.

his music career was reignited after loyal friends tracked him down. -- loyal fans tracked him down. eight member of the german military has been arrested on being suspect of russian spine. he him to pass on secret information to russian intelligence. our political correspondent told me more about this case. reporter: the federal prosecutor has given details, saying this man identified only as thomas h. was arrested on wednesday. and he was an employee of the federal office of equipment

information technology and in-service support. it is part of the german defense ministry, the procurement agency tasked with sourcing and evaluating military equipment. so it is possible the employee could have a lot of technical information. the federal prosecutor says this man, starting in may, approached the russian diplomatic representations, offering to work with russian services. and on one occasion he passed on information he had obtained in his work, expecting and intending it would be passed to russian intelligence. he was arrested on a warrant that was issued two weeks ago. that suggests this investigation has been ongoing for a while.

brent: that was our political correspondent simon young. we have good news for those of you who may be couch potatoes. you may not have to feel so guilty for skipping the gym. a u.k. tech company has come up with wearable technology that they say will trick your brain and your muscles into thinking that you are really lifting weights. the catch is you have to be inside the metaverse first. can you work out in virtual reality and still feel like you have been to the gym? a u.k. based tech firm believes you can with their wearable technology. the company says they can make your brain think you are actually lifting weights, resulting in giving you a workout. >> we use elect drove muscular stimulation which creates an

electrical impulse that your brain perceives when you are holding something. we are delivering the -- that artificially. the feeling you get out of these is resistance, load, fatigue and weight. reporter: actively combining electro muscular stimulation in a virtual simulation is a new concept. the company says they are not looking to replace the gym, but at least add value to it. brent: stay with us, i will be back to take you through the day. we will be right back.

♪ anchor: in niger, military leaders who took control of the drug -- government two weeks ago seek to consolidate their power. the u.s. is warning americans in niger to -- in place. and 41 migrants are dead after a boat capsized almost a week ago,