hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera the election commission in ghana has the cleared president though the winner of monday's election with more than half the vote but 5 people have been killed in post-election violence police say more than 60 incidents of been reported since the poll all the vote pitted president nunn a coup for i do against the former leader john the hama for the 3rd time the defeated challenger as a ready accuse the incumbent of rigging the vote a meticulous has the latest from across. already a lot of businesses have remained shut since the election hearing that there could be clashes after the declaration of results we will monitor the situation to see how things go on to morrow but for now the members of the opposition who are gathered here early earlier today to protest what they call plan to rig the election have disappeared from the headquarters of the election commission shortly after the announcement was made that none are 11 the presidency in 10 to 20 rich nations stand accused of hoarding coronavirus vaccines as immun

barbara starr at the pentagon. thanks very much. cnn white house correspondent, john harwood, cnn congressional reporter, lauren fox. good to have you both on. john, the president returned early from florida and it's cnn's reporting that this is not connected to iran, it's all about january 6th and this baseless attack on the election. from your understanding, does the president have interest in an attack on iran before he leaves office? >> look, i think that what everyone is wondering is, on the situation with iran, is, who is initiating the activity here? is there a legitimate reason, and as barbara said, the intelligence is mixed, to believe that iran is preparing an attack. or is president trump, who has been very hawkish and people around him have been very hawkish about iran throughout his term, looking to start something. the president has been behaving in ways that aren't particularly rational with respect to the election. you mentioned, he's coming back to encourage this baseless idea that fraud deprived him of victory in t

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hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on the al-jazeera the e.u. and u.k. negotiators of resume talks in a last ditch attempt to cement a breakfast deal it comes after a personal intervention between the european commission president and the british prime minister late on saturday both sides remain divided over $63.00 key issues they are fishing rights fair competition guarantees and how future disputes will be solved but there is now less than a month until they split with no trade agreement and hopes of a deal before a summit of the leaders on thursday are fading that the bubble has more from london . i don't think anyone knows with any great insight to the actual chances of a deal emerging but everyone does agree that time is very limited of course there was a week of talks in london which ended on friday with them being frozen and david frost and michel barnier putting out a statement saying progress had been made but still a significant divergence on the issues of fishing rights what kind of access european union fleets should have in future on fair co

hello i'm barbara starr and this is the al-jazeera news hour live from london thank you for joining us coming up in the next 60 minutes as mass vaccinations begin in the u.s. the number of americans killed by the coronavirus pass is 300000 plus i cast my vote for president joe biden. joe biden takes another step closer to the white house's electoral college voters formally confirm his victory in the presidential election. the u.n. says more than 400000 people have now fled their homes in northern mozambique where i saw linked fighters of seized entire tilings and there's aid arrives in ethiopia region and some communication links are restored more details emerge about the situation after weeks of war. i'm jammin ash with sport as the football world pays tribute to. the former liverpool and france manager has died at the age of 73. it's a tragedy on the scale of events that have to merica and the world for decades coronaviruses now killed more than $300000.00 people in the u.s. the country hardest hit by the pandemic it comes on the day that thousands of people have received their 1st f

bar barbara starr, what do you think? >> i know general austin, and that is probably the most i have ever heard him speak about his own background, his life, his journey in the u.s. military. he was much more fullsome than i6d ever heard him before. i think it's a message that both he and president-elect were sending to congress, that there are reasons that joe biden picked lloyd austin for this. i think there was a subtle shift in language that should be pointed out. initially the president-elect talking about general austin. of course, generals do not run the pentagon. there is civilian control. you saw him try to swift to the word secretary-designee. that's an important signal to congress and to the american people this will maintain civilian control. they were trying to send that message, civilian control, rebuild alliances, rebuild relationships with allying, trying to turn away from the america first policy, if you will. on diversity, i think it was so important some of the things that he talked about, the heritage

hello there i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera the 1st americans and canadians have been vaccinated against the corona virus a new york intensive care nurse was the 1st person to be inoculated in the u.s. with thousands of other caregivers prioritize that to receive the job 1st but this good news comes too late for many with several states still in the grip of a post thanksgiving case surge and the number of american deaths is now teetering around 300000 it didn't seem any different from take in any other factory even where you. would like to thank for the front line workers on the economy who've been doing yeoman's there are hard and they're all over the world. are you. hopeful i feel hopeful but they are really. i feel like the women i met. how does your castro is in washington with the latest this was the big day day one of members of the public these essential health care workers getting the 1st dose is of the kobe vaccine outside of a trial we saw the scene like we just saw in new york with that critical care nurse repeated in hospital settings ac

hello there barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera the u.k. is now facing the threat of to cover 1000 mutations with a new strain reported in 2 people who've recently travelled from south africa the u.k. is also reported the highest increase in cases since the pandemic began with 39237 new infections the government also recorded another 744 deaths on wednesday that's the highest death toll since april we are quarantining cases and close contacts of cases found here in the u.k. 2nd we're placing immediate restrictions on travel from south africa and finally and most importantly anyone in the u.k. who has been in south africa in the past fortnight and anyone who is a close contact of someone who's been in south africa in the last fortnight must quarantine immediately her metastasize in johannesburg with more on the new west strain. clever confessional say they're alert to the u.k. about this new variant last week they say it seems to spread fast and they think it could be responsible for the 2nd wave of this country is currently experiencing the

pentagon correspondent barbara starr has the details on anxiety within the u.s. military. >> reporter: talking to several military officers around the pentagon, the general climate is summed up something like this, we don't know what he might do. with less than 30 days to go in the trump administration, there is anxiety at the pentagon about what plans the president could potentially have to bring the military into his efforts to overturn the election. i mean, first of all, it would have to be a legal order. there is no legal role for the u.s. military in domestic elections in the united states. it simply doesn't exist. if the president were to order something and it wasn't a legal order, the military couldn't follow it. that doesn't mean they're not concerned about some of the president's language coming out from people who are close to him. retired lieutenant general michael flynn, fired national security advisor of course, is speaking out publicly talking about using military capabilities to change election results, to rerun the election in some states. not at

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera one of the world's poorest and most unstable countries is going to press ahead with elections the spite the threat of escalating violence a top court in central african republic says voters will go to the polls for presidential and parliamentary elections on sunday opposition parties wanted the elections postponed and accuse the president of vote rigging rebel fighters of also rejected the legitimacy of the government and they're settling to march on the capital bangui 3 u.n. peacekeepers meanwhile have been killed and rights groups are warning that violence could reach levels last seen in 2013 when thousands of civilians were killed catherine soy is in bungie and says there are concerns that fewer people will show up to cast their ballot. we have spoken to u.n. officials who say that 80 percent of the country if they cannot force people to go to vote they say that all the process of the electoral process is how smoothly in they thought up parts of the country they said that the trouble areas are just few if yo

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera e.u. members are preparing to roll out the fines or biotech corona virus vaccine as early as christmas european regulators are under pressure to approve the jab and they're expected to deliver their decision next week restrictions are being reimposed as infections a surge across the continent where germany entering a national lockdown on wednesday. senior u.k. officials meanwhile are discussing whether to proceed with plans to ease coronavirus restrictions over the christmas period and the current measures 3 households will be allowed to mix over a 5 day festive period but an urgent review was called for after 2 leading medical journals warned that the citizen to relax the rules was rash and would cost many lives and a 2nd coronavirus vaccine could be approved in the u.s. this week regulators say the job produced by the drug for a modern era is safe and highly effective tests show the mother in a job is more than 94 percent affective when 2 shots are taken within $28.00 days of each other.

our cnn pentagon correspondent barbara starr has more on that. >> retired four star general lloyd austinry of defense if confirmed by the senate. joe biden select him and he's known him for years. >> ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor and privilege to introduce to you the vice president of the united states, joe biden. >> reporter: but biden's first commander in chief decision to nominate austin may run into a political buzz saw on capitol hill. austin needs a congressional waiver as required by law because he's been out of the military less than seven years. the top democrat put his marker down in 2017 after waiver was granted to james mattis. >> let me be very, very clear, i will not support a waiver for any future nominees. >> reporter: he says he would like to hear from austin why he should get a waiver. concern from other democrats that civilian democrats remain the norm and there is not an unexpected cozy relationship with generals still on duty. senator richard bloomenthal opposes a waiver and three other democratic senators are uncertain. choosing another recently retired gener

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barbara starr reported survivors call trump's pardons shocking and disappointing. >> reporter: it is of the darkest episodes of the u.s. war in iraq. 17 unarmed iraqi civilians were shot to death in 2007 in a baghdad traffic circle, including 9 and 11-year-old boys. a team of blackwater private security contractors later convicted in the killing of 14 of them. the group had been notified of a nearby car bomb, as their convoy moved into a traffic circle. witnesses said they then opened fire on men, women and children. president trump last night turning the page by pardoning four of the contractors. >> i was absolutely disgusted to hear about the pardons because the work that we had done in iraq was so important, especially when it came to dealing with the population. >> reporter: the full pardon went to nicholas slatten, who was serving a life sentence for murder, paul slough, evan liberty and dustin heard were serving sentences between 12 and 15 years for manslaughter. >> this is a reprehensible decision that throws the rule out of law out the window. >> reporter: the iraqi war forei

. >> which is precisely what leaders, including, as we heard the report this week from barbara starr,rass at pentagon are all making lists and are worried about. i'm also curious, to the best of your knowledge, is the president still planning on heading to florida next hour? >> reporter: yes. the white house press office just told me a few minutes ago that the president still plans to leave at 4:00 p.m. to head down for the holidays at mar-a-lago. that will come as a relief to people inside the white house and on the hill in the belief that a change of scene, getting him outside the white house, getting him down to florida might reduce some of his exposure to the crazy ideas he's getting from the crazy advisers that he is now increasingly leaning on, rudy giuliani, sidney powell, mike flynn, others who are encouraging him to challenge the election. so we do expect him in the hour to head off to mar-a-lago and try to have a little christmastime. >> john harwood, thank you for the update there. we'll look for the president to leave for mar-a-lago next hour. in the meantime, quick commer

>> barbara starr.ch. >>> joining me adam kenz ger of illinois, air force veteran and lieutenant conditional in the air national guard. what do you make of what we just heard from barbara that pentagon officials are worried about what the president might be to his remaining days in office? >> i think the right to be worried, to be prepared. i agree with barbara, that i don't think it is going to happen. but what i worry about in the bigger term is how the military has been politicized. i actually was thinking about it the other day. every one of the institutions of government have been delegitimatized. the cia now is political. the fbi now is political in people's minds. the supreme court is political. all these institutions. the last one that this is the last straw trying to politicize the military. -- pentagon must be in the pocket of the chinese or the pentagon has been planning this over throw with trump for a long time. and it is really frightening i think in the long-term. >> these are democratic

cnn's barbara starr is live at the pentagon with more. barbara, you know, we heard and read some alarming headlines, but there are senior defense officials who are skeptical that an iran attack is imminent. >> good morning. let's start with what you mentioned, the b-52 bombers flying to the persian gulf on a quick show of force mission over the last couple of days. by all accounts, they are now back, but it was a very visible sign of the u.s. effort to deter iran, a policy of deterrence, showing that the u.s. is ready to go if iran were to attack. the big concern right now is iran really planning something with the militias that it backs in iraq and those militias, perhaps, targeting u.s. troops in iraq. some of the intelligence does show, officials say, that there's been a flow of weapons, and there are indicators, at least, of plotting and planning some kind of complex attack against u.s. troops in iraq, as we come up on this one-year mark of the killing of iranian general, qassem soleimani. you're right, absolutely divided. intelligence

cnn's barbara starr is at the pentagon with more.ean, this really just left a lot of people with their jaws agape. >> good morning, erica. well, with a stroke of his pen, president trump has now set aside one of the darkest moments of the u.s. war in iraq and as you say, it has since 2007, when it happened, it's widely been called a massacre of unarmed iraqi civilians. these four contractors, you see them here, they were convicted in a lengthy trial of a range of charges, murder, manslaughter, and other charges. there had been an initial effort to prosecute them. a federal judge set that aside and it was actually vice president biden at the time that announced the federal government, the justice department, would appeal and retry the case and that's when these convictions happened. the iraqi civilians were shot and killed by blackwater contractors. and blackwater at the time run by eric prince, a supporter of president trump's today brother of education secretary betsy devos. those blackwater contractors were moving through a traffic

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and barbara starr, let me just begin with you. you know, why -- why did president-elect biden select general austin? can you take us back? how did they first meet? >> well, as jeff said, we know that they have met since they both served in the obama administration. general austin. very well-known, during those days, when he served in iraq and afghanistan. closed out the iraq war, essentially, in 2011. and went on to lead central command. so, a lot of his experience that president-elect biden is familiar with really does center around the middle east. but, that is a point of interest, in itself, because, look. those days of war genagainst is war against al qaeda. the trump administration, urgently, trying to wrap that up and move on. austin, if confirmed, will come into office with different, middle east concerns. and i would think, that the question of iran and iran getting nuclear weapon might be one of the very first, major concerns that austin will have to deal with. from a very high level, working with others in a biden admini

that's it for me adrian sullivan thanks to barbara starr i have to take your next trial to 0 i'll seeyou again i think. jumped into the story and julian on global community bio diversity is bio security is that essential for our species to survive be part of the debate i know you have ideas and you can be part of this conversation when no topic is off the table the police are not neutral and all of these cases here is to terrorize and here's the other part of this there's no consequence this stream on out is the. covert 19 is grounded global travel for countries dependent on tourism like kenya the effects of devastating. effect on here who have not been pulled well my full somebody was livelihoods vanish people in power reveals the hardships facing affected communities and the efforts being made to protect wildlife from the threats of increased poaching in the wake of the pandemic kenya the unfathomable virus on al-jazeera the world food program will receive the nobel peace prize for fighting against hunger and the use of starvation as a weapon of war we ask executive do. to david bea

hello i'm barbara starr and this is the al-jazeera news hour live from london thank you for joining us coming up in the next 60 minutes back to the negotiating table and u.k. team returns to brussels for more breakfast at talks but key issues are on resolved and time is running out as the u.k. gets ready to roll out a corona virus vaccine u.s. officials say there is a plan to vaccinate millions of people in the next months. fed as well as food for a new congress an election that's been boycotted by the opposition and referred to as a sham and building cities to prevent another outbreak the architects designing spaces with social distancing and touch free living in mind i'm german and should score says sergio perez windsor dramatic sack ground in bahrain and mix the son of michael has won the formula to title ahead of its back to asian one next season. the u.k. and europe need a breakthrough in their talks on a trade deal and to prevent the prospect of a no deal breck's it talks have resumed in brussels after a personal intervention by the e.u. commission president and the u.k. prime mi

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on i'll just 01 of the world's poorest and most unstable countries is going to press ahead with elections the spite the threats of escalating violence a top court in central african republic says voters it will go to the polls for presidential and parliamentary elections on sunday opposition parties wanted the elections postponed and accuse the president of vote rigging rebel fighters of also rejected the legitimacy of the government and they're settling to march on the capital bangui 3 u.n. peacekeepers meanwhile have been killed and rights groups are warning that violence could reach.

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on the al-jazeera the e.u. and u.k. negotiators of resume talks in a last ditch attempt to cement a breakfast deal it comes after a personal intervention between the european commission president and the british prime minister late on saturday both sides remain divided over 3 key issues they are fishing rights fair competition guarantees and how future disputes will be sold but there is now less than a month until they split with no trade agreement and hopes of a deal before a summit of the readers on thursday are fading that the bubble has more from london .

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera european nations are facing tough choices in their fight against the corona virus cases are surging across the continent and regulators are on the pressure to approve a vaccine before christmas now reports from brussels in brussels they're dreaming of a p.c. christmas shops reopened in belgium on tuesday despite a recent rise in covered 19 cases but bars and restaurants have to stay closed shop keepers here in belgium are hoping to make the most of the reopening but with daily coverage 19 infections roys and the reproduction rates.

barbara starr you're watching al-jazeera live from london also coming up a mask ovid immunization program starts across the european union as cases of a new grown a virus variant increase in desperate times for millions of americans as their jobless benefits expire joe biden accuses donald trump of an abdication of responsibility and an emotional homecoming for guatemala deportees from the u.s. who find conditions in the country are even worse than they left. hello thank you for joining us one of the world's poorest than most unstable countries is going to press ahead with elections despite the threat of escalating violence a top court in central african republic says voters will go to the polls for presidential and parliamentary elections on sunday opposition parties wanted it postponed and the queues the president of vote rigging rebel fighters have also rejected the legitimacy of the government and are threatening to march on the capital bangui 3 un peacekeepers meanwhile have been killed in rights groups are warning that violence could reach levels last seen in 2013 when thousands of

particularly when the economy is suffering so badly from the effects of the current of ours in barbara starr but what's going on behind closed doors the reports surrounding the european union negotiated today they were not very promising i mean hell gloomy is the mood among the e.u. negotiate. the mood is some more depressive it is gloomy indeed and above all they are tired exhausted and absolutely and totally fed up patients on the european side is really running out at this point in time because negotiators feel that they have now $600.00 pages of legal text on the table and 99 percent of that are agreed and the remaining battle now is about those crucial issues that the u.k. side describes as sovereignty now trade experts will tell you. that of course that's the nature of the trade deal that you give up some sovereignty in order to get access to somebody else's market but that seems something that the europeans think will be can be hammered into british heads now they have turned every aspect and every detail of the herring in the scottish sea every aspect of fair trade and say essentiall

hello i'm barbara starr you're watching al-jazeera life from london also coming up . the electoral college. vote top republican senator mitch mcconnell congratulates joe biden and his running mate camelot harris on their election victory an anxious wait for the families of hundreds of school boys abducted in northwest nigeria and scientists track a rogue antarctic iceberg that's on a collision course with the island of south georgia. hello thank you for joining us we begin here in europe or several nations are facing tough choices in their fight against the coronavirus cases are surging ahead of the christmas period with fears that increased travel could accelerate the spread while new restrictions could hit businesses when they least need it but the past day is also brought new hope that vaccines could be administered in several countries as soon as next week that the reports from brussels. in brussels they're dreaming of a busy christmas shops reopened in belgium on tuesday despite a recent rise in coffee 1000 cases but bars and restaurants have to stay closed shop

particularly when the economy is suffering so badly from the effects of the current of ours in barbara starr but what's going on behind closed doors the reports surrounding the european union negotiated today they were not very promising i mean how gloomy is the mood among the e.u. negotiate. the mood is some want depressive it is gloomy indeed and above all they are tired exhausted and absolutely totally fed up patients on the european side is really running out at this point in time because negotiators feel that they have now $600.00 pages of legal text on the table and 99 percent of that are agreed and the remaining battle now is about those crucial issues that the u.k. side describes as sovereignty now trade experts will tell you. that off course that's the nature of the trade deal that you give up some sovereignty in order to get access to somebody else's market but that seems something that the europeans think will be can't be hammered into british heads now they have turned every aspect and every detail of the herring in the scottish sea every aspect of fair trade and say essentially

hello i'm barbara starr and you're watching al-jazeera live from london also coming up rich countries are accused of hoarding covert 1000 vaccines leaving poor countries able to vaccinate only one in 10 people next year boris johnson in brussels for dinner with the e.u. leaders he says there is still a break sit trade deal to be done but the e use the lands are acceptable and the day after they walked off the pitch over alleged racism by a match official sorry son just man in istanbul to be shed cheer resumed their champions league match. thank you for joining us we begin the program in ghana with the election commission has just declared president hu far though the winner of monday's election with 51 percent of the vote this after at least 5 people were shot dead as tension grew over a delay in the release of the results or police say more than 60 incidents of violence have been reported since the presidential and parliamentary vote for either steve had already released unofficial results suggesting that he was leading the race but his main opposition challenger former president and

clear if they've all been abducted some of those who escaped been speaking about their ordeal as barbara starr reports. this summer is one of the boys rescued after gunmen stormed his school and abducted hundreds of children he says he was falling asleep when the attack started. up. i started hearing gunshots then when i came out there were many people already outside we were asked to go back to our hostel then they said the gunmen were already in the school we climbed the school fence but they asked us to return back we thought they were soldiers were trying to protect us but unfortunately they were not. the sama used all his wits to try and survive. when i decided to run they brought a knife to slaughter me but i ran away quickly and i ran into the crowd but they couldn't get me then i put my clothes upside down so they could not see me from there they said they would kill whoever is trying to escape i then began to run in climbing one rock to another through a forest. 2 days after the attack more than $300.00 boys still missing their parents said desperate. our last prose to see that our ch

in our barbara starr you're watching al-jazeera life from london also coming up venezuelans vote for a new congress an election that's been boycotted by the opposition and referred to as a shot by an influx of refugees and migrants to spain's canary islands are reports on how authorities are dealing with the crisis and building cities to prevent another outbreak the architects designing spaces with social distancing and country living in. the u.k. and europe need a breakthrough in their talks on a trade deal and soon to prevent the prospect of a no deal breck's it talks have resumed in brussels after a personal intervention by the e.u. commission president and the u.k. prime minister late on saturday they go see if yours are struggling to agree on 3 key issues they are fishing rights fair competition guarantees and how future disputes will be resolved or sort of on their lane and boss john sun will speak again on monday to see if there has been progress but hopes of a deal before a summit of e.u. leaders on thursday are fading but the all important deadline is in 25 days time. the tr

hello i'm barbara starr you're watching al-jazeera live from london also coming up as the u.k. gets ready to roll out of her on a virus vaccine u.s. officials say there is a plan to vaccinate millions of people in the next month. venezuelans vote for a new congress an election that's been boycotted by the opposition and referred to as a sham and building cities to prevent another outbreak the architects designing spaces and social distancing and the tree living in. paris. and the thank you for joining us the u.k. and europe need a breakthrough in their talks on a trade deal and to prevent the prospect of a no deal breaks it talks have resumed in brussels but negotiators are struggling to agree on 3 key issues and there's no the in baba reports there are only 25 days left to find common ground. back in brussels for another go at striking a trade deal with his european union counterparts we're going to be working very hard to try and get a deal we're going to see what happens in a good game today and that will we will be looking forward to meeting our european colleagues later on

hello, i'm barbara starr, you're watching al-jazeera life from london also coming up on the program. iranian lawmakers back a motion to boost uranium enrichment just days after the killing of a top nuclear scientist, driven from their homes now living hand to mouth, ethiopian refugees fighting hunger and uncertainty in sudanese refugee camps. and big oil on trial voile dutch shell is accused of not doing enough to protect people and the planet from climate change. welcome to the program, we begin with the race to roll out a coronavirus vaccine and the u.s. drug from pfizer plus its german partner by your own take say that they hope their vaccine could be launched in europe this month. if it gets the sign off from regulators, they've asked the european union's medicines agency for emergency approval and the review could be completed by december 29th. that could mean at least 2 vaccines approved in europe and the united states by the end of the year. meanwhile, the u.s. centers for disease control is holding an emergency meeting to decide who will get 1st access to a vaccine. an indepe

guests, thank you to business leaders grasp with every hello, i'm barbara starr in london. these are the top stories on al-jazeera to drug firms have applied for european approval for their corona virus vaccine. the american firm, pfizer and its german partner by own take, have joined them up there enough to ask for emergency consent. the european union's medicines agency says it aims to make a decision by the end of the months. similar approval has been requested in the u.s. with experts, the citing who will get the job 1st. this can be how could explains now from the white house. not only has emerged to see use authorization been requested by both mcgurn and pfizer. but now the.

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera the election commission in ghana has declared president nana a coup for our though the winner of monday's election with more than half the vote but 5 people have been killed in post-election violence police say more than 60 incidents of been reported since the poll or the vote pitted president than a coup for i do against the former leader john muhammad for the 3rd time the defeated challenger as a ready accuse the incumbent of rigging the vote and that interest has the latest from across already a lot of businesses have remained sharp since the election.

hello there barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera the u.k. is now facing the threat to covert 1000 mutations with a new strain reported in 2 people who've recently traveled from south africa the u.k. is also reported the highest increase in cases since the pandemic began with 39237 new infections the government also recorded another 744 deaths on wednesday that's the highest death toll since april we are quarantining cases and close contacts of cases found here in the u k.

hello there i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera the 1st americans and canadians have been vaccinated against the coronavirus a new york intensive care nurse was the 1st person to be inoculated in the u.s. with thousands of other caregivers prioritize that to receive the job 1st but this good news comes too late for many with several states still in the grip of a post thanksgiving case surge in the number of american deaths is now teetering around 300000 it didn't seem any different from any other. thing where i would like.

hello i'm barbara starr you're watching al-jazeera live from london also coming up. anger in iraq after president trump pardons for military contractors jailed for shooting dead 14 civilians in baghdad shops close and people hurried home fearing more violence ahead of central african republic selection. the u.k. is now facing the threat of to covert $1000.00 variants after the tech thing a new and potentially more infectious strain in 2 people who traveled from south africa this comes as the u.k. reports its highest increase in cases since the pandemic began with 39237 new infections the government also recorded another another 744 deaths on wednesday that's the highest death toll since april and it announced that another $6000000.00 people will be put under the highest level of coronavirus restrictions from the same but $26.00 we are quarantining cases and close contacts of cases found here in the u.k. 2nd we're placing immediate restrictions on travel from south africa and finally and most importantly anyone in the u.k. who has been in south africa in the past fort

barbara starr, you're watching al-jazeera live from london, also coming up the race to roll out a coronavirus vaccine finds or seeks european approval in the u.s. officials decide who will be the 1st of to be immunized. you raney and lawmakers back a motion to boost their brain human richmond, just days after the killing of a top nuclear scientist driven from their homes and now living hand to mouth. ethiopian refugees, fight, hunger and uncertainty in sudanese refugee camps. donald trump's bid to overturn the u.s. presidential election result has suffered another major blow with the attorney general saying there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud. bill barr told the associated press that the justice department investigation has in his words not seen fraud on a scale that could have affected a different outcome. where president elect joe biden be trumped 53062232 votes in the electoral college. and more than 6000000 in the popular vote. well, alan fisher is following events from the white house considering what a big supporter of the president bill barr always has been. what has the res

cnn's barbara starr is reporting there is growing anxiety in the military ranks about what trump might do in his final days in office. what are your biggest concerns as it relates to what his role is as commander in chief? >> you know, it's not a secret that he has spend the last few weeks installing -- in positions of -- and that is sending shock waves across -- work -- in the department of defense. the last few days with his comments about wanting to appoint a social council himself for the investigation -- election fraud. that is a perfect example how trump will stop at nothing to demand what he wants, and the system doesn't comply with telling the truth, the unlawful of unconstitutional efforts, they are quickly dispatched and fired. i can tell you. i'm sure those are all the things that -- greatly concerned -- no limit to what he can ask for. >> that has to be the last word, and i know you are probably nodding your head, thinking, we have 29 days left. so a lot can be done. good to have you back. thank you both for being a part of the show. >>> you know, hospitalizations breaking

cnn's barbara starr reports that anxiety is felt among senior ranks of the military. almost a dozen current military officers describe concerns from senior commanders about actions the president might take. one officer at the pentagon saying we don't know what he might do. cnn is reporting senior military leaders are avoiding the white house at this point in hopes that they won't be drawn into the president's orbit, and what he is focused on. joining me, lieutenant general mark hurtling, military analyst. good to see you again. what's your level of concern what the next 30 days could mean after what you have seen playing out? >> good to see you too, kate. what i would say is right now during any transition, that's what we're in now, the military commanders across the board are very concerned about preparing for the new commander in chief. president-elect biden is going to have quite a few questions for them. at the same time, they're concerned about as you said being pulled into the further lunacy of what's going on in the trump administration because they've seen it

joining me, jeremy diamond and barbara starr. welcome to you both. barbara, begin with you and the new reporting. you're hearing officials uncertain how to navigate the president's final few weeks. tell us more. >> i think what you said is exactly right, how to navigate it all. look, if the president were to issue some order to the military, it has to be legal or they will not do it. there are only legal orders to the united states military. that said, they are watching so many of them this conversation, michael flynn, the retired general, fired national security adviser, talking about using military capabilities to change election results in swing states. the military has been adamant from the beginning they have no role in the elections. we are even now seeing the head of the army, civilian head and four star general chief of staff of the army putting out a statement that the military has no role in election outcomes. they are adamant about making this point. are they concerned? absolutely. i think the undercurrent here at the pentagon is they want

we have new reporting out moments ago, myself along with my colleagues brian brown and barbara starr.isagreement over the potential of an imminent attack by iran on u.s. force in the gulf specifically in iraq. there is efforts of flying b-52 bombers and deterrence and however i am told that there is no corroborating intelligence to indicate that an attack is imminent here. i wonder what your level of concern is about escalation to some sort of military confrontation with iran and the winning days of the trump administration? >> jim, i am worried about it. president trump has had us to the brink of war with iran twice during his administration. after he unilaterally cancelled the diplomatic deal with iran, the u.s. and allies working hard to achieve in 2015, when president trump backed out of it. he put us on a dangerous path of escalation, the u.s. against iran and vice versa. i am worried he'll do the same in his last few weeks in office. we should be doinot be doing it with a lame duck president. i worry that this president may try to rush us into one on his way out the door that we

cnn's barbara starr is reporting there's growing anxiety in the military ranks about what trump might do in his final days in office. what are your biggest concerns tonight as it relates to what his role is as the commander in chief? , it's not a secret that he has spent the last few weeks installing people in positions at the pentagon. that is sending shock waves across the people who work in the department of defense. in the last few days with his comments about wanting to appoint a special counsel himse himself for the nonsense of election fraud. that's a perfect example of how trump will stop at nothing to demand what he wants. the system doesn't comply. resisting unlawful or unconstitutional efforts. i'm sure those are all the things that the pentagon is greatly concerned about and i see no limit. >> that will have to be the last word. i know, kirsten, you're nodding your head thinking we have 29 days left so a lot can be done. thank you both for being a part of the show. i appreciate it. >>> you know, hospitalizations breaking another record as researchers say that a new covid s

entry hello, i'm barbara starr in london. these are the top stories on al-jazeera 2 drug firms have applied for european approval for their coronavirus fax, eans, the american firm pfizer and its german partner biotech, have joined them up there enough to ask for emergency consent. the european union's medicines agency says it aims to make a decision by the end of the months. similar approval has been requested in the u.s. with experts, the citing who will get the job 1st. this company how could explains now from the white house. not only has emerged to see use authorization been requested by both mcgurn and pfizer, but now the c.d.c. is meeting to discuss the distribution of vaccines that are still in the final stages of that approval. so what we do know is that the meetings from the f.d.a. da, those hearings will take place, will be december 10th and 17th for her and modernity, respectively. but what we're hearing from mike pence, the vice president, as he held a call with governors on monday, is that he expects these vacci

cnn's barbara starr joined me. i read this tweet and this to re-read it. have you ever seen strategic command make light of this? >> reporter: this started when african command put out a press release earlier today. the press release dated december 10th. december 10th, about a mission they conducted on december 24th, today. what it spells out is a strike they conducted in somalia against a target of the al shabaab terrorist network in that country. that's a terror network that has caused devastation and tragedy for years to the people of somalia. they go on and talk about it. we all make typos, right? but they go on and compound the problem. they says the initial assessment said that the strike damaged the compound and several fighters fled. damaged the compound? you can read that to mean they actually missed destroying the target, which is the only reason u.s. aircraft launch strikes. they go for destruction. and thwarting nefarious activity. to the best of my knowledge in covering the pentagon, i've never heard that's a stated u.s. military mission. let

cnn pentagon correspondent barbara starr is with us. with intelligence there's always questions, debates. tell us the meaning of this flyover and what else you're hearing. >> you're right. the flyover is a show of force, a show of deterrence against iran to try to convince them not to take any attack against u.s. troops across the way in iraq and the carrier has been sent home as an advertised deescalatory move by the department of defense. but the intelligence right now, according to officials we're talking to, shows that iran has been planning, and has completed planning, essentially, to use its forces inside iraq to attack u.s. troops. is the intelligence perfect? absolutely not. do they know if iran would carry out an attack? they don't know. you never know until it happens. so there's lots of interpretation about the intelligence. what worries some military officials the most they say is that it's essentially zero time between making the decision to attack and then launching an attack. that much planning, that much weaponry, that m

barbara starr broke the story and she's here now.you're hearing. >> reporter: kate, think of it as a low murmur just under the surface. if you talk to people around the pentagon this is what you begin to hear consistently, concern, anxiety, what could the president do to potentially draw the military into his efforts to overturn election results. hard to see how it would be legal, maybe it's just talk of some kind of stunt from the white house but here at the pant gone there is concern about it and genuine concern. i think one of the reasons is they have seen the one-time lieutenant general michael flynn fired as president trump's national security advisor now openly talking about using what he calls military capabilities to put into the swing states to change the election results somehow. nobody knows what he really means. but it takes that kind of talk right into the oval office, because flynn, of course, now meeting with the president, discussions of martial law, call it what you will. what this has led to is at least some retired

barbara starr joins us on what is a historic pick. >> reporter: good morning.is really president-elect joe biden's first commander in chief level decision picking lloyd austin to be his secretary of defense. if confirmed, yes, the first black pentagon chief in the nation's history. the president-elect by all accounts very devoted to putting diversity into his cabinet. he has extensive experience in the middle east when he served as head of the u.s. central command serving in both iraq and afghanistan. one question is what kind of political buzz saw he may run into in the confirmation process because he will need a congressional waiver. he's been out of the military less than seven years. and for the ranks it's an important point, the law requires a seven-year waiting period, if you will, because the idea has always been in this country that there is strong si civilian leadership in the u.s. military. they didn't want recently retired generals in the top positions. always a risk if you will being too cozy with those who you might have recently served with, not b