live from berlin. pakistan's cable car drama ends happily. commanders plus children and adults to safety from a gondola. also on the program, economists together for three days of talks in south africa. the block of five nations wants to expand a counterweight to dominated groupings like the g7.

and the head of russia's wagner mercenary group appears to be in africa where he says he is making russia even greater. ♪ welcome to the program. in operation to rescue people stranded in a cable car in pakistan has ended in success. commanders and civilians helped get the six children and two adults to safety using helicopters and a makeshift chairlift. the group is -- the group was on its way to school when one of the support cables snapped, leaving it hanging 300 meters above a roofing. -- above a ravine. a happy ending to a 15 hour operation. reporter: absolutely. after several hours of the

ordeal in a remote, mountainous part of pakistan, the schoolchildren were hanging hundreds of feet above the ground. it took several hours for the first rescue operation to begin. there were several attempts made by the helicopter operation. only one of the students was saved. as darkness fell, there was lack of visibility. the winds were really strong. so the air operation was suspended. with the help of the local population, a local indigenous solution was taken. with the local people, a zip line was formed and rescuers went towards the cable car, and then one by one, all passengers

were rescued. >> i guess the locals are pretty happy about this. reporter: yes. but it also has raised concerns in the country. i have ordered that all lifts operating in the region should be -- they have ordered that all lifts operating in the region should be inspected. i think the people of the village, the remote village of 30,000 people, people were rattled, the parents and villagers were watching their loved ones, hoping and rooting for the operation to be successful. in this area, i've been to this region, it's one of the most beautiful places in pakistan. it's very green, it's

mountainous, but unfortunately, people of that area do not have enough facilities and this was also the area in 2005 where pakistan was hit by an earthquake and it lost a lot of people. one of the residents spoke to the new york times. i really like this quote. i would like to share it. it said, as beautiful as this valley is, it holds as many times more head and sorrows. -- more hidden sorrows. >> these cable cars are normal part of getting around there in the mountainous region. are they safe? >> of course the safety is not really high, there have been accidents in the past, but not enough attention is given. there are usually very small accidents. so they don't make big headlines. these cable cars are a lifeline for many of these people.

when there were no cable cars, students had to work for hours to reach their school. people had to carry patients for hours to go to the hospital. they were able to use these cable cars, it is normal in many part of the country, but because they are usually privately run, authorities don't give much attention to it so accidents also happen. >> thank you for that. leaders of the bricks group of emerging economist have been in talks in johannesburg, the blog is home to 40% of the world's population, keen to expand and become a counterweight counter to groups like the g7. reporter: the summit kicked off with the leaders of south africa, brazil and india calling for a shakeup of the international economic system. >> we require a fundamental

reform of the global financial institutions so that they can be more agile and responsive to the challenges facing developing economies. reporter: ahead of the summit, host country south africa welcome to china's president, xi jinping -- welcomed china's president, xi jinping. china has invested massively in africa's infrastructure. >> we appreciate what they have done. there is a lot we have seen right now in kenya. a lot of development. we like it. reporter: the alliance's goal is a multipolar world that is not dominated by the west. experts say western industrialized countries will have to change. >> realizing the colonial

power is inferior. reporter: vladimir putin took part only via video link. expanding the block to let new countries join is high on the agenda but members do not agree on how to do that and what criteria they should use. western countries may have to prepare for change. >> the codirector of the brics research group was asked about the most pressing issues at the summit. >> certainly, the biggest question is, will the brics agreed to expand to add new members, and if so, how many and on what terms? there are no 18 more -- now 18 more countries that have said we want to join the brics, but not

one of them meets the core criteria of the existing five of being a big emerging economy that represents an important region of the world. they are not even really close to south africa, by far the smallest member of the club. so whether or not they can come to a consensus and make a choice that will satisfy all the claimants from the so-called global south, and then also make the brics more effective over the broader membership is the biggest and most open question that they face. >> expansion, much has been talked about expansion and brics therefore becoming a challenge to the west.

i'm not clear what that means, what would a challenge to the west in this forum look like? >> well, certainly, you can write it down on paper, and it will resemble the recipe for the so-called beijing consensus. we don't believe in the free market. we believe in state owned or state led growth. we want more money from the rich countries of the so-called global north. we want more power and influence and money from the major multilateral institutions for finance. for development. beginning with those created by the vector powers -- victor powers in the second world war.

this one is tricky -- we would like to reform the united nations security council, two brics members, russia and china, are permanent members, they would veto india, brazil, south africa in, since the brics summit started in 2009, its leaders have not come to a consensus on that one for well understood reasons. russia and china just don't want to give up their privileged position. >> is very clear. very interesting. thank you so much for outlining that for us. thank you. let's look at more headlinesfrom around the world . we will start with ethiopia, which is to launch a joint investigation with saudi arabia

into allegations that saudi border guards killed hundreds of ethiopian migrants at the border with yemen. the claims were made in reports by the human rights watch. the block of 55 nations says niger will not be allowed to rejoin until the ruling junta restores the civilian government . cool leaders have are forced to stand down despite sanctions and threats of military intervention from neighboring countries. in the occupied west bank, a funeral has been held for a 17-year-old palestinian killed in a raid by israeli security forces. jihad militant group claimed the teenager as one of its writers. the forces arrested suspects in several towns as part of the operation. russia says it has brought down two ukrainian drones near moscow. the drums were shut down near towns on the capital's western outskirts. two other drones crashed in

the border region. no injuries have been reported. the head of russia's wagner military group has posted his first recruitment video since his failed armed rebellion against the kremlin in june. dw has not been able to verify the footage independently but he claims he is in africa and making russia even greater on all continents. >> we are working. the temperatures above -- the temperature is above 50 degrees celsius just how we like it. the wagner group is making russia even greater on all continents and africa even for your. >> the video indicates it is business as usual for wagner. i asked brian whitmore, what has changed for him since leaving the failed coup? >> i would preface my remarks about this by saying that

we all need to have a little bit of modesty about what's going on in russia right now because even russia experts don't have the kind of visibility into the inner workings of the kremlin right now. what this seems to suggest right now is the reports were greatly exaggerated. the question is, why is that? i can come up with a couple of hypotheses about the. -- about that. i tend to look at the putin regime and its behavior by looking at it like a crime syndicate. putin is the godfather. when a capo comes after the godfather, you expect his days, numbered, but in this case, they aren't. there's a couple of reasons why that might be the case. he might be given a second chance to make himself useful. africa's very important to russia. it is stressed by the brics summit going on right now. wagner has long-standing

activities in africa and the central african republic, libya, mali, sudan, the recent coup initiator taking a distinctively -- in niger taking a distinctively [indiscernible] russia would like to exploit. he is given another chance to make himself useful. another reason is he has sufficient support within the russian elite to make going after him very dangerous. both of these things could be simultaneously true. >> when he says he's making russia greater on all continents, is that him talking to putin, saying, what i'm doing for you? >> that's the way i'm interpreting it, he is saying to putin, look how useful i am, you still need me. the global south is very important to russia right now. it's lost all support in

the west. the only allies and has left other than belarus tend to to be in the global south. africa is extremely important right now and he is showing the boss he is useful in this important part of the world for russia. >> what do we think the plans for wagner in africa are? >> i think they are going to continue to be what they always has been. securing natural resources for russia and advancing russia's natural security interests and geopolitical aims in africa. i'm keep an eye on the aftermath of the coup initiator which has taken on a distinctively anti-western flavor. i'm expecting wagner to possibly get involved in that but we don't see that yet. we do see wagner being historically active in the central african republic. there are also reports this week of wagner fighters leaving belarus in the hundreds. where might they be going?

i think the answer to that question is pretty clear. >> fascinating analysis. thank you for sharing it with us. brian whitmore from the atlantic council. zimbabwe heads to the polls next week to choose a new president and parliament. a dozen candidates are vying for the top job at the -- the top job the main contest is between the president and the opposition, coalition of citizens for change. our correspondent in zimbabwe has this report on the front runners. reporter: the day is cast for the polls. the air is thick with promises for a better future. the incumbent president is pro-business and says his government has created stability

and economic opportunities. >> for production, for peace, for unity. reporter: his intent, a pledgeto grow the economy , reduce corruption, and build an inclusive zimbabwe. >> jobs, opportunities, freedom for all. reporter: the election has been described as a divide between the old and young generations. for the electorate, it is a a choice between maintaining the status quo or embracing the change in the opposition which they are not sure yet. many would want to see a government that would turn around the economy, and create jobs, good health, and inclusivity.

he is 80 years old. he came to power after in -- after 2017, a military coup. he is accused of oppressing opponents. on the international stage, he is known for his close relationship with russian president vladimir putin. he recently attended putin's africa summit and accepted gifts including a new presidential helicopter. the opponent is just 45 years old. he is a lawyer and a pastor, but has been politically active since his youth. he is credited with reviving zimbabwe's opposition in the past few years. internationally, he is considered more western-leaning. analysts say the election is in favor of the incumbent.

and many expect another disputed result. >> of contest -- >> the contest now is likely going to be disputed. to prove that they did not lose the election. reporter: if the opposition win but failed to prove it, that will mean more of the same for zimbabwe's people. and many of them are struggling to survive in a battered economy. >> a new scientific studies as climate change caused by humans has fueled canada's worst wildfire season since records began. the world whether attribution group found global warming made the blazes seven times more likely to occur. the fires may now be using. but the destruction is already in men's -- already immense. reporter: homes, and businesses,

and the memories that once lived in the small community of enterprise, all wiped away in an instant. nearby in west kelowna, residence flee as the flames close and. many had a few hours to leave all they had behind. >> we were told to get out, evacuation orders. quickly packed up our stuff, went to my parents' which is in the safe zone. very worried. luckily the winds died down. our house for now is still standing. the neighborhood's still standing. we are just thankful for that. reporter: more than 1000 wild are burning across canada. -- wildfires are burning across canada. half of them, out of control. british columbia and the northwest territories northwest of toronto are some of the hardest hit areas. some 27,000 people are under orders to evacuate.

wildfires are not unusual in canada. but this is the most destructive fire season on record. around 15 million hectares of land have been torched this year. has more than three times as much as in 2021. drought conditions that brought little rain this summer are one factor. another? rising temperatures. at least in parts of canada. that is according to scientists with the world whether attribution. in a new study, preachers or's -- researchers measured wildfires that reached in québec between january and july. >> the intensity we have seen is twice as likely to occur in the current climate as it would've been without global warming, without human induced global warming. reporter: the study did not include this week's fires. but the authors say there's a general trend. >> we can expect to keep seeing these conditions that

promote wildfires to keep on increasing, becoming more frequent, and more severe. reporter: government authorities, warning people to stay indoors in some areas as hazardous smoke blankets the country. traveling as far as the u.s. for many evacuees, it is news of when they can return home that they are desperate for. >> for more on this, we have louise, dw's climate reported. the fires are twice as likely to occur. talk us through what that means. >> what they are talking about is fire whether, the dry, hot, windy conditions that lead to the worsening of these kinds of fires. we are not talking about the way that they started but the way that they have spread. his conditions have been made twice as likely by climate change. so the burning of fossil fuels.

15 million hectares as we have just heard. twice as much as previous records that's been burnt already this year. that is absolutely shocking. they said these are conservative estimates they've made about this being twice as likely. the climate impact could have been more. >> is this also the case for the wildfires we've seen elsewhere in hawaii for example? >> scientists are usually not very keen to attribute climate change to events they have not already studied. because it is so difficult to know for sure without having done that analysis. one of the founders of world whether attribution which conducted this study said it is very likely climate change has had an impact. in the recent spring, for example, we have seen really high temperatures this summer and these big fires taking place. interestingly, she said

she couldn't say the same about hawaii. just because the data doesn't really exist for the silent -- this island and the models make it more difficult to look at hawaii as a case. >> now we know governments are being sued for their roles in fueling climate change. could this report have legal policy implications? > it is hard to know until -- >> it is hard to know until later on. these kinds of studies have played a role, in the case we saw in the u.s. montana, thank you. it is quite possible in the future that could be something that would come up. the real reason for the study is to highlight the problem of climate change and how that is impacting the wildfires we are seeing. the kinds of extreme weather we are seeing so governments can look at making policy changes or

looking at the way they deal with fire management in the future. but it's also a case of just connecting people to the issue of climate change and the impact it's having. it's quite an abstract thing unless you have concrete examples. >> thank you for that, louise osborne. some more headlines from around the world -- in greece, firefighters have found the bodies of 18 people killed in a forest fire near the border with turkey. local media say they were probably migrants. the region is a busy crossing point. fire crews are battling blazes across greece. days of heavy rain in chile have left two people dead and thousands homeless. many were cut off by flooding and landslides in central and southern regions. more rain is forecast in the coming days. the first international

commercial flight to leave north korea and three years has landed in beijing. incoming flights have also resumed. north korea close its borders at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. spain's victorious world cup squad has spent the night celebrating with thousands of delighted fans in madrid. there triumph over england -- their triumph over england delivered the country's first ever world cup victory. they received a hero's welcome. shikari richardson has claimed old in budapest in the 100 meters. a championship record time of 10.65 seconds to claim victory over a stark cast of finalists. she completes an inspiring redemption, she was banned in 2021 after testing positive for

marijuana which she said she had smoked following the death of her mother. this is dw news, live from berlin. rescuers have rescued children and adults stranded in a cable car in pakistan. it was left handing 300 meters above a mountain ravine when one of the support cables snapped. i will be back in just a moment with an in-depth review of today's top stories, taking a closer look at the brics conference in udonis berg -- in johannesburg. have a good day. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

>> vladimir putin addresses the bricks summit by video call. pressure's president could not attend because he is wanted -- pressure's president could not attend because he is wanted. ukraine's deputy minister says kyiv's troops are making progress against russian invaders. meanwhile, 11 united nations states have signed the pledge of for