when so many find themselves worlds apart we choose to look for common ground. vaccine blood clot revealed by european medicines agency yet just 2 weeks ago they didn't see any reason for the country's concerns about the job. former u.s. intelligence analyst faces years in jail for exposing america's drug and assassination program we speak to who is in close contact with him. did it because he was exposing a war crime he's not allowed to see that and so he really doesn't have any chance of the. bricks the price of border checks we discussed the background to the weekend's violent attacks on police.

from moscow thanks for joining us today here at aunty international. welcome to the program. connection between the astra zeneca code vaccine and blood clots exists yet its cause is yet to be identified the research funding from top officials at the european medicines agency and we're going live now to paris to get an update on the latest shot just a small about this. is now facing. well this is today possibly the most damning indictment that astra zeneca has received this comes from one of the top officials of the europeans medicines agency which has said that in his his opinion he believes that there is a link between astra zeneca and some rare types of blood clotting specifically blood clotting in the brain no this isn't mary you cover larry who gave an

interview to an italian newspaper on tuesday where he outlined his beliefs in that and he said that he believed that the mayor would be looking to confirm this. in the next few hours. we're trying to get the precise picture of what is happening to define in detail the syndrome due to the vaccine in my opinion we can now say it is the reason association with the vaccine what causes this reaction however we still do not know now cavaleri did say that the risk benefit ratio we still in the favor of astra zeneca he was suggesting that it could be that the astra zeneca is now only recommended for certain age groups exactly which is the situation here in france where astra zeneca isn't given to younger people because of this possible link of susi 80 the blood clotting now astra zeneca has previously defended its vaccine it hasn't spoken out against these latest claims yet but it has defended it

previously saying that there was. an expected rate of blood clotting than you would see in the general population and we know that the a.m.a. when it really reviewed the data behind astra zeneca just a few weeks ago said that it couldn't creepily say that there was a direct link at that time between blood clotting and astra zeneca but they did say that they would continue to keep an eye on it and continue to investigate astra zeneca the vaccine has been under the caution with accusations ever since it was released we use here in france present my own describe it at 1st as being for see effect in the older age groups it's those older age groups who are now the only age groups in france that can receive astra zeneca and also there have been these questions only. about blood clotting and whether there was this in the specifically to rare types of blood clotting now here in france there are actually cases that

have been brought a complaints from man slaughter particularly one after a 38 year old social worker from the south of france died about 2 weeks off to receiving the 1st. so there are huge concerns already this interview given by a top official who saying in his opinion is that link between this red blood clotting and astra zeneca is bound to occur soon even to vigils and raise fears about this vaccine once again the fee is that have been elevated pretty much from the start there will be people who have had astra zeneca in the last few days the last few weeks who now be wondering could they be impacted by this rare blood clotting that there is this apparent link to there will be those who have appointments in the next few days possibly even today who might now think twice about astra zeneca and having that vaccine and also. possibly put

a question on people's trust in bodies like the. border these medical board these force european countries because these are the bodies that approved this vaccine for use if there really is this confirmation that this definitively a link between this vaccine and this rare type of blood clotting many people will wonder if the trust has been misplaced and the lot of questions that surround such bad timing is one on the back of that 3rd wave. there with the latest update on the astra zeneca vaccine from paris. when i spoke earlier to independent bennett she believes the regulator had to act the moment the 1st dance appeared was human lives at risk. i think it would have been very useful to treat this is very seriously because we're dealing with the lives of people so i think from the moment there was any doubt they should have acted very quickly on that and of people are very worried and they obviously prefer him to go through different type of that's

a nation yet the general feedback that i'm receiving is that people aren't sure what to do because there's so many different conflicts in i didn't even out so it's very difficult for people members of the public to make their mind up definitely need some confirmation of the risk and we need to know how serious and how dangerous is the vaccine if it's dangerous or if it's not what we need. rather than just allowing people to be guinea pigs and just allowed to be given these facts in 1000 without that assurance and reassurance i definitely hope that they learn from this and they start listening to people's back and concerns you know what if they can reassure us entirely then i guess it will be a different thing so i think for me it be wanted to get the assurance from them because recent not long ago they said that there was no connection with black

person and today surprisingly we've been that we've learned that they could be or maybe a connection with. brain. and that's the issue and that's the concern because all we see we just need to get beyond says and be able to make informed decision about which brand of vaccination to use. scandal has erupted in france are pretty much the minister's allegedly a time in secret elite cafes and restaurants in violation of cobra protocols and on the cover report from luxury restaurants probably opening the doors to vo i guess one interviewer even claim to himself illegally dining restaurants with a certain number of ministers yes apparently even the web asks bottles of champagne members of the french government have that i'd say any knowledge of the. gatherings . if ministers have broken the rules they must be punished like anyone else if this restaurateur is so well informed let him name names there are not 2 types of citizens those who have the right to party and those who don't or us trots as

opposed have been close in france since october order to curb the support of the coronavirus we gauge the reaction to the claims on the streets of the capital. it was because of course we all need to relax but such a different attitude to people is simply shocking most french people like streamlet attentive we are asked to be on our guard and so we just surprising that people are treated differently it seems that everything is allowed for them and they have the right to do what others do not have the right to do i think these ministers need to everyone to the restaurants because people have not been to restaurants for a long time they invited us it would be nice. on the one hand they tell us stay at home do not go to restaurants close the restaurants and so on and they spend money there and do not worry about the crown of ours and we the people have no right to go there it's not fair this is an injustice and to go into a restaurant these people men and women are not waiting for the same consequences

that would await for those who were caught doing this it was not from us you're not going to put this if it's true then i think that they're the imposed demons of the state of decisions taken at the state level therefore they should be a role model and if they do not adhere to the rules that they demand from this it isn't then their power loses it so i think it's very bad if it turns out to be true since their ministers need to watch their behavior. as germany struggles to suppress a 3rd wave of the coronavirus the christian democratic union party leader suggests a return to full locked out southern met with skepticism from german politicians. a former u.s. intelligence analyst faces up to 10 years in jail for blowing the whistle on washington's targeted drone assassination program i don't hail could guilty to transmitting and retaining national defense information its case comes about mass disclosure of similar crimes allegedly perpetrated by the united states.

i have to tell you when he called me a few hours ago he was surprisingly upbeat and optimistic and he he remarked about how much press this issue has been getting since he decided to plead guilty so in the end i think that he thinks that this is been worth it that americans know more about the drone program now than 8 they did 6 months ago or a year ago and even though he's likely going to go to prison it was worth it the

u.s. is flying these drones or at least it was until recently that were used ostensibly to kill terrorists or would be terrorists but in reality to kill anybody who might resemble a terrorist and that included women children the elderly and anybody else who happened to be on the ground i believe that we're we're a nation of laws and we have to abide by those laws whether we like them or not if we don't like them we should change them go through the process and change them if congress has not declared war on a country we don't have a right to attack it we just can't decide that we don't like the politics of whoever happens to be in charge in a place like yemen or pakistan or afghanistan and then launch drone strikes against them it's a violation of international law. but information about these and similar cases was given by hail to journalists from online news publication the intercept that was back in 24 tane he later became available to the general public and the analyst was

accused of disclosing classified intelligence information out of hits full of defendant claims such exposures are necessary for a strong society. using the espionage act in this way to prosecute journalists sources as spies chills newsgathering and discourages sources from coming forward with information in the public interest particularly when it relates to national security where government secrecy is at its height these documents detail the secret unaccountable process for targeting and killing people around the world including u.s. citizens through drone strikes there are vital public importance and the related to their disclosure is protected by the 1st amendment. well american government stuck to alternative points of view and therefore 2 years ago hale was arrested and charged with violating the espionage act and other related offenses as biden came to power the public anticipated changes in a drone assassination program but now media reporting aims to boost drone exports

to countries including those with poor human rights records john kiriakou a former cia analyst on whistleblower told us the team's other terms of the espionage act leave hale with little hope. this is the really the worst part of the of the espionage act this is the reason why ed snowden can't come home this is the reason why i couldn't go to trial this is the reason why jeffrey sterling the other cia whistleblower was convicted because there is no affirmative defense we are prohibited by law from going into court and saying i did it but i did it for this reason and in the case of daniel hale this was a war crime he did it because he was exposing a war crime he's not allowed to say that and so he really doesn't have any chance of acquittal the best thing to do for daniel as it was for me as it was for so many others here charged under the espionage act is to take a deal and to hope for the lightest possible sentence the decision that was made

early on even before joe biden was inaugurated to pursue the appeal against julian his son it was that decision that made it clear that joe biden was going to pursue national security leaks just like barack obama did and just like donald trump did after him and you can see the full version of our interview with john kiriakou on what's in the hoax throughout the day here in austin international. overall and has seen several nights of unrest with protesters hurling petrol bombs at police the voice saying a recent post trade rules shot it was that he has more. we've seen numerous police officers injured and as these violent clashes as well as dozens of people being arrested some as young as 13 and 14 years of age and so now it's on the breast as well but it all follows on friday a decision not to prosecute leaders of the irish nationalists the shin fein policy for allegedly breaking coronavirus restrictions for attending a funeral of

a former. leader last year that funeral was in june and allegedly around 2000 people attended so that is one part of the narrative but also receiving rising tensions to post bricks issues as well as a specific part of the withdrawal agreement that's the northern ireland protocol is coming under fire today what we're seeing is that old boils down to the fact that these new trade barriers between northern ireland and the rest of the u.k. essentially creates a defacto border on the irish sea quizes that goods entering the night in from britain will have to go through specific checks a century treaty a completely different to the rest of the united kingdom it's always been a huge sticking point in both reserve may's attempt to correct that deal but also boris johnson signed sealed and delivered bricks it deal that is a huge sticking point officials in brussels dublin and london just on technical terms but actually what we're seeing is a real a motive behind it is an erosion of silver and a t.

for some it's a betrayal by the british government and all acutely rips up the good friday agreement all together and all the promises of peace within it as well it does seem like neither the shin fame for that matter nor the d.p. are in the mood for to taunt anytime soon and when it comes to these violent clashes all to do with that milton art and protocol and his sayings all of this stoked up tensions is accelerating by breck's it seeing the appetite to unify northern ireland an island really increase in the last few weeks if not months to its highest level of around 42 percent not just confined to the wishful not. less either but that appetite is also growing amongst the devolved nations too we know that over in scotland that appetite has been growing for years but nicholas sturgeons reenergized efforts are seeing that trajectory continue as well even though looking at wales which is the 2nd smallest nation of the 4 nations there jumping on the independence bandwagon too with around 25 percent in the polls

saying that they would vote for independence which is double what it was around 6 years ago so it seems like these recent clashes over the last few days in northern ireland really are just real reflect real concerns when it comes to the disunited kingdom post bracks set out and scared america's professor of international history at i don't see believes that deal leaves northern ireland on equal to all parts of the u.k. . the union this. produce. are to. being treated like 2nd class citizens and are beginning to realize and feeling . known protocol. takes the wave. and makes it a kind of provence of the european union so this situation. unlike the rest of all the european union law. applies to.

and they're under the jurisdiction of the european. court of justice in union and the laws of the european union for. being. in the course of doing this. state soon to be with us are to international about with more headlines just after this short break. so what we've got to do is identify the threats that we have it's crazy on sunday shouldn't let it be an arms race off and spearing dramatic development only mostly i'm going to resist i don't see how that strategy will be successful very critical time to sit down and talk.

the world is driven by a dream shaped by our own person. who dares thinks. we dare to ask. the program of the leader of the christian democratic union of germany and russia

it calls for a strict and looked down as the country struggles to contain a 3rd wave of the coronavirus initiative was met with criticism from some lawmakers . we disrupted already i think we need another transitional look we need to build the bridge again to the dates when everyone is vaccinated i know that many a time of the pandemic but many already to take another step now and then move to another fees for many jews and lash it isn't just the chairman of the christian democratic union party he's also the head of the state of north rhine-westphalia and some of his fellow local leaders aren't particularly happy with what he's had to say the leader of the state of terror in jail the mayor of both question the well the sense of having a short term lockdown michael miller who's the mayor of lynn saying he doesn't think mr lasher has thought about the long term implications of putting everybody into a north lock down this is ultimately the one of the big problems with coming up with a unified position here in germany it's not like i'm going to medical can say from

the chancellor's office this is what we're doing everybody get on with it what ends up happening is the leaders of the 16 states listen to what mrs merkel has to say and then go we're not sure if we really want to do that and that has resulted in a lot of problems lot of lack of clarity when it comes to an overarching plan here in germany. now saying we need a 2 to 3 week lockdown this is a change in tune from the leader of the the state of north rhine-westphalia previously he was one of the loudest voices saying we need to open up everything the c.d.u. chairman is still the bookies favorite when it comes to being his party's candidate to run for chancellor in september however going into a short term lockdown may well win him some support based on those that i spoke to on the streets of berlin i am happy they're putting more regulations on place i think things are looking

a bit grim and it seems like it's going back to you know christmas despite we had back in christmas so i'm happy if things go back to. the way they work christmas is full lockdown i think that something mark stream has to happen i don't know if it's going to be a lockdown then they have to be more aggressive and say you can't leave your house you can't see people i think trusting people to do the right thing isn't working as a spin the moment specifically the restrictions must be made stricter because the numbers are going on the restrictions that we have now and not enough to deal with it i think in 2 or 3 weeks or maybe a months we will have a problem there for us do we need more to expand the restrictions and movements in nations than germany was supposed to go into a locked out over the easter weekend in fact it was announced from the chancellor's office by angela merkel herself only for her to turn around just a short while later and say actually they weren't going to do that this would be ultimately a good turn on that u. turn if they were if germany is to follow through on arm and lush its plan not

exactly what you want to see doesn't give confidence in the leadership when you having this type of planning or lack of planning concerning figure is that 2 thirds of germans don't have any faith in the plan that's been put out in or that says that they should or everybody should be at least offered one vaccination by the end of september that sounded ambitious when it was 1st put forward at the end of last year well it sounded ambitious then it sounds incredibly ambitious right now we've also heard from again spy on the health minister here in germany he's not painted a pretty picture of the state of affairs at all he said that there's been an increase in the number of people going into intensive care with covert 4000 over the weekend he's also you said the vaccination itself won't be able to stop the 3rd wave of covert 19 that's currently gripping germany he says on side with arm in lash its plan and says lockdown is what's needed. hostilities are

flared in eastern ukraine with reports of daily exchanges of fire and shelling on front lines rebels in donetsk region claim the ukrainian drone strike killed a 4 year old boy hear the noise the claims then as the morning evidence that the strike did take place so far it has not possible to corroborate the claims but a team from marty's rightly video agency attended the boy's funeral and spoke to his grandmother about the incident. this is a grief you have to go through it's really hard to get just parents and beside themselves with what really fine especially his mother i don't care who the house was damaged but why did this child have to stop what did he shoot someone dad of something or did he say a bad thing to someone and he was just a child who used to hold you mention in god's eyes do you want to tell mission saw in eastern ukraine officials and military staff in kiev have blamed russia our

senior correspondent what does the of how is this report. this is far or what there was of it is crashing and burning under a sustained carriage from both sides the only see has the numbers more than a 1000 violations most of them artillery exchanges were detected on april 3rd ukraine's propaganda machine is also churning it is now officially calling thousands of its own citizens russian militias who are to blame the party line says for everything corrina ukraine and its partners are taking note of russia's systemic escalation of the security situation and the nats going lugansk regions and in the republic of crimea all of this is happening against the background of the russian federation and willingness to reaffirm its commitment to the ceasefire or the current escalation by the russian federation the systemic and the largest in recent years a common goal is victory in the war against the aggressors and to ensure

a stable peace to restore the territorial integrity of ukraine we will need to consolidate efforts of all the ukrainian people all ukrainian people apart from the ones they now call russian militias in a bid to discredit their beliefs and their grievances probably not the best idea if you want stable peace but there are 2 major takeaways from their recent statements 1st after years of stalling delaying and torpedoing negotiations here of seems to be entertaining the idea of a military solution to the civil war victory by brute force the other takeaway is that ukraine has virtually declared war on russia officially naming it the russian ukrainian conflict russia isn't even a party in this civil war if its military was involved it would be over very very quickly that much is obvious if scouting imputed to the russian army is moving

within long. territory in the directions it deems necessary in the shape and form it sees fit to ensure the security of our country this shouldn't concern anyone in the slightest russia poses no threat to any country in the world and that of course includes ukraine but russia always pays very close attention to its own security cordons ukrainian president probably not helped by dismal ratings his seemingly bet on calm for a day ship his military has issued this statement warning moscow that the u.s. promised it won't leave ukraine alone and it won't let russia's aggressive plans materialize the state department has confirmed this ukraine zoon aggressive plans it seems get a pass. unfortunately the actions and reaction of our western colleagues to ukraine's buildup of military infrastructure as well as transfer of troops to the line of contact in eastern ukraine is disappointing as the truth our western

colleagues still seem to proceed with the support of the ukrainian authorities including in absolutely unacceptable actions and a statement. lot all hope is yet lost there is still a chance that cooler heads will speak out that they'll stop this escalation will cause countless lives and achieve nothing but that's going to take an international effort rather than egging ukraine on with promises of support and righteousness as has been washington's policy so far a former u.n. weapons inspector scott ritter says nato backing for actions is a key factor. the support comes in and 3 things one is the ongoing material support the united states continues to provide big holes arms munitions and other military equipment to the ukrainian military much of this is lethal in nature meaning used in combat then there's the the the training that's taking place that the cross

training between nato forces including americans and ukraine and ukraine believes that this training shows that they're somehow you know brothers in arms and then there's the political rhetoric of the phone call for instance from the secretary of defense it was ukrainian counterpart yes ukraine is being led to believe that there will be support and there will be but the support will be military the support will be diplomatic political you know they they support the right that the ukrainian objectives and they also view the ukrainian russian. tension. supporting an overall western strategy of containing and destabilizing russia so everything bad that you have been ukraine today you know props up a american and nato policy of containing and destabilizing russia next thought he'll come entry follows america's battle against an opioid process that sees 170 deaths every day and that's when i can offer now to join us again

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