berlin. tonight, a growing humanitarian crisis between armenian and azerbaijan. 7000 reportedly left the region and crossed into armenia, trying to escape. we will have a live report of what is looking more and more to genesis.

this is a step toward national sovereignty. asbestos contamination in toxic debris for this year's earthquakes in turkey. thousands of children are now at risk of developing lung cancer. i am burnt off. to all of you around the world, welcome. tonight armenia says nearly 7000 refugees have crossed the border since azerbaijan took control of the disputed region last week. turkish president said the offensive has perhaps open -- up

in the window to normalized strained relations in that region. they suggested a possible new land that would affect turkey and azerbaijan. 30 say seven people have been killed and more than 200 injured in a blast in a fuel depot. rescuers and medical teams rushed to the scene of the explosion near the capital. it is unclear whether this incident is linked to it is been reported as possible refugee crisis meanwhile, the exodus of civilians continues to gather pace. >> hundreds of ethnic armenians flee their homes. some vehicles bear the scars of

the recent conflict. aid groups are on hand to help as families crossed the border into armenia the mass exodus sparked by fears from the effect of the new azerbaijani rule. >> and i, we left, they told us either you leave or take an azerbaijani passport. >> we took them by force last week. the region sits within its borders but had previously been under the control of ethnic armenian forces. around 120,000 armenians live in the mountainous territory. many fear persecution. that is despite the promises that it was to reintegrate as

equal citizens. families are standing by for their loved ones arrival and they face a nervous wait. >> i'm waiting for my sister to arrive. everything she and her husband have built their she will leave behind. that is very bad. leaving your house and start all over again. this is already the second time. >> russia is providing peacekeepers to help with the evacuation. there are concerns for the tens of thousands of people to leave. with food and fuel supplies running low and fears of possible revenge attacks. " we want to take you to a town near armenians border with azerbaijan. neil joined us from there.

talk us through what is happening here. they have arrived in the town where you are right now. are you at the exit's gate for what is looking like a refugee crisis? >> absolutely. this is the nearest major settlement in armenia. it is about 30 minutes from the border there. it is not a big city. 50,000 people. we have had 7000 people already and things are already getting pretty full here. that is just a fraction of what is to come. >> when you say a fraction of what is to come, you have 7000 being reported. there have also been reports that the entire population, 120 1000 ethnic armenians could possibly try to leave this area.

are you hearing that? >> absolutely. as the advisor to their government said, 99 .9% of people will leave. i think that is absolutely right. azerbaijan has -- he try to exterminate them and drive them out of the territory. but for the last nine months, installed people last week and launched an unprovoked offensive. it is very clear to them they have no if the center. it is either leave now while you have a chance or for something much worse down the road. >> we are talking about a mass exodus of people possibly in the pictures we got show cars lined up, not moving. our people able to cross the

border easily? if not, what are these thousands of people going to do as the air was by? they're going to have to have food and water. is there infrastructure to provide for these people? because that is a great question. the flow has been slow so far. this is why they slow the flow of traffic. there is no infrastructure for these people along the road whatsoever. except for a single delivery by the red cross. the situation will only get

worse and worse. >> if there ethnic armenians, can they go to armenia and make a new home? quickly armenian government says they have places where these people that will cover these 120,000 people. the main issue right now is getting there. there is a massive traffic jam going back 100 kilometers. everyone is trying to leave on that. it is leading to a slow trickle as they come out. >> it is definitely a situation

that is not looking like it will improve anytime soon. thank you, neil. niger's military rulers have welcomed a decision by france to withdraw its troops from the country. the army ousted the elected president in july, and niger's cooperation with france. france used to be the colonial power and niger. president macron says 1500 french soldiers stationed in niger will leave by the end of this year. >> they are the withdrawal of french troops and can celebrate. france does not recognize the leaders as legitimate. crossed the only legitimate

leader of niger is president but who was elected by his people. today he is being held hostage. there is score settling going on. there was a lot of political power there. that is why france has decided to bring its ambassador and several diplomats back to france. we are putting an end to our military cooperation because they don't want to fight terrorism anymore. >> people in the capital welcome the news. >> the french military must leave immediately because we don't need them. they have been saying they would help us for decades but we have not seen any change. we want them to leave our country and go home because we are staying. >> am speaking on behalf of all the people of niger. we are very proud of the

departure of the french army and invested because they have provided nothing here in niger. terrorism is only getting worse. chris niger was a key security partner for western countries including france and the united states. the departure of french forces is likely to heighten concern about russia's growing influence in africa. the wagner mercenary group is already active in mali. where they are allies of the hunter there. there are resident concerns that islamist groups will make gains in the region. >> we are now to the non-ukrainian to have answered the call to help in the countries were. the international lesion is made up of foreign troops who are fighting alongside ukrainian

soldiers. he met legionnaires who just returned from the frontline. >> target practice. keeping skills sharp well away from the frontline. rest, resupply and a bit of relaxation. the international lesion has been part of the ukrainian army since the full-scale invasion. >> they have two years of experience in the german army. he came to ukraine just weeks after the war started. >> and ever thought there would be a war in europe again. i didn't really have better things to do back home. it is a boring job. i wanted to help people. >> three days into the work, the ukrainian president called for

friends of peace and democracy to help this country. it was a message that hit home for this finish volunteer. >> it kind of stuck with me that europe did not do enough. i remember we had volunteers. i was like at least i can do that. >> he was referring to the soviet were of the 1930's. many bring their nation's historical experience with them. volunteers from more than 60 countries have taken up arms on behalf of ukraine. some only stayed for a few weeks or months. they fight side-by-side with ukrainians but international fighters can leave and go home if they want to. that makes a difference. >> we got ukraine, you notice

the hopeless is clean. they have people who cook and just set up and it is nice. the place is nice, it is spotless. the lesion is new. people leave and come back. maybe make a lot of the mistakes. it is not as well organized. request caleb is from australia. he had no military experience when he joined up a year ago. he is now the platoon commander. he says he was about to join the french foreign legion when russia invaded ukraine. so he changed plans. >> i wanted to test myself. i wanted to push myself to the extreme. i came here the same motivation and i had basically done that

and now i just do this because it is the only thing i am really good at. >> here, away from the front, things are a bit more relaxed. the legion has been fighting although hobbit has his own only half joking description of his contribution to the war. >> they die or get wounded every couple of months. we don't intend to do it. this is the biggest impact we can have.

>> assuming they don't make that kind of impact, all three men say they have no plans to return to normal civilian life. >> he says most overseas fighters end up as cannon fodder. he told me about people's motivations for joining foreign legions. >> we think about people who are going to fight, they often see themselves as heroes and the people your profile are the -- are the ones that come in with considerable military experience. some come in with none whatsoever. many are they who have no experience and only fight for a short time. in past compex they are often thrust into the breach and as a result they end up dying in large numbers. what we see now in ukraine is clicked different.

those who remain are skilled fighters where they have a lot of experience and are able to find what effectively. the initial russian volunteers often involve a lot of casualties. a lot of fighters tend to be more experienced and skilled. >> you get the impression that many are lost souls when they do go to battle. you have cautioned against the reliance on foreign fighters. critics foreign fighters often come with a lot of automation. they don't have a lot to do with the day-to-day struggle for the ukrainians or others involved. when the fighting dies down, they still want to fight. sometimes their own views are more extreme than those of local fighters and as a result, they

will do atrocities or otherwise be more violent. the key is really integrating them in a disciplined way into the armed forces of the country. ukrainians have done that with a considerable degree of success, here are some of the worst predictions people have had about foreign fighters that have not come true. >> we know there are russian citizens and ukrainian foreign legion. what we know about these people? >> this is often referred to as the russian volunteer group. some of the russians fighting there are see themselves as dissident from the russian system but some have far-right tendencies. some are white supremacist or neo-nazis. it is a mix of individuals and many of these people have actually been quiet effective in doing cross-border operations into russia itself for obvious

reasons, they can blend in very effectively. at the same time, there is a tarnishing of ukraine's cause. these ideologies of at least some of these people that are quiet extreme and it lends credence to the russian propaganda that ukrainian government is controlled by nazis and even though that is patently false, they contribute to that perception. across the school of foreign services at georgetown university, we appreciate your time and analysis. thank you. more than 45,000 people were killed in earthquakes in turkey earlier this year, an investigation by the turkish environment services have revealed a looming health crisis could now lead to many more deaths. many of the hundreds of thousands of buildings that were destroyed in the quakes contained asbestos.

the world health organization says exposure to even though levels of this can cause lung cancer. authorities downplayed the dangers. >> beneath a cloud of dust that covers the earthquake city in southern turkey, it lies another danger. asbestos. dw reported an environmental engineer to help them collected dust samples for asbestos analysis. >> anyone who has come into contact is at risk of being exposed to asbestos. >> the journey starts 200 kilometers away because the local airport was damaged in the earthquake. seven months afterwards, the city still resembles a war zone, the people are trying their best to live a normal life but the

dust worries them. >> it feels our lungs when we are training. our lungs already heard. we constantly feel dirty. it affects our physical and mental health. >> we took dust samples near the tents where people lived. we also into an area for asbestos analysis. questions like the residence, the work is clearing the rubble don't use any protection from the dust either. >> asbestos can cause severely,, lung and trochanter over decades by constant exposure to contaminated dust can quickly lead to acute illnesses. >> my brother got sick from the dust. they give him oxygen at the hospital but then we come back here and the dust hurts him. sometimes he sleeps the whole

week -- >> thousands of children in the region are at risk of developing lung cancer by the time they get to their 20's or 30's. this is 50 meters away from containers where people live. next to it as a high school with some 5000 students. the crew takes samples. and from the leaves come the vegetation nearby, olives and parsley are grown here. after harvesting the local produce, it is transferred all over turkey. >> asbestos material has been removed before the builders were demolished. the dangers could have been minimized. >> locals said the government

prioritized quick reconstruction over public health. >> after two days of reporting on the ground, the team is taking one last dust sample from the roof of their car. the next day, the lab result shows the asbestos travel hundreds of kilometers with them on top of the vehicle. it is a clear indication of the extent of the danger, possibly affecting millions of people. >> the results we received are really serious. that is why the statements made by the authorities do not reflect reality from the ground. >> a public health scientist also examines the lab report. >> we made -- we may face the death of tens of thousands of people do cancer. official statements only result in more problems. >> the process of removing asbestos is costly and slow.

the turkish experience shows how much more destructive asbestos can be if it isn't done. when disaster comes, it will be too late. >> i am joined now at the university college of london. she is from turkey. it is good to have you with us. let me get your reaction to to what we found in our report. asbestos in 16 of 45 samples that were taken. are you alarmed? >> absolutely. but i am not surprised at all. we were on site in june last time for observations. these practices aren't done carefully, we have seen that water is used only very

occasionally and the amount of water is actually insufficient to keep particle intensity down. from all of the exercise being done, there is an incredible amount of dust. the chemicals are inhaled by the residence. in turkey, the asbestos use in buildings started to be regulated only in 2010. we are really looking into something both in the past 10 years that we don't expect asbestos from but the rest is going to have some asbestos inevitably. >> 2010 is very late compared to other countries. when you're talking about the amount of dust that has been created by all of these buildings that have been damaged

-- is it impossible to rule out the possibility of contamination? there is just so much dust. so many buildings. are you going to have some level of contact with asbestos? >> totally. that is what i mean. this is about the asbestos being in circulation right now. we have also monitored quick carefully the whole management operation when we had spoken to the truck drivers. we had gone with them to the debris disposal areas. the holdout and whole chain of events taking place along those lines are actually inducing a lot of dust into the air. we have spoken of people who live very close to the debris disposal areas. they were very angry about the

whole thing. they cannot use their gardens anymore. they were trying to keep the young ones at home at all times. >> unfortunately, we are out of time. but we are going to stay on the story. please come back and talk with us again. it is obvious that the precautionary measures that could have been taken have not been taken. >> the structural engineer from university. thank you. you election dw news. after a short break i will come back and take you through the day.

anchor: welcome to live from paris. over 6000 armenians have fled nagorno-karabakh. the turkish president discussing a land corridor across armenia to link their states. ukraine claims they killed 34 russian officers including the admiral of the black sea fleet.