we shed light on the opaque world who's behind benefits. and why are they a threat to whistle o peak world starts january 5th on d w. ah, ah, this is dw news live from berlin. germany expects. i'm a crown to become the dominant cobra variant within weeks. that's as contact restrictions are set to tighten and officials plead with the public to get vaccinated. also on the program, the world food program sounds the alarm over yemen,

despite millions of people starving from war. un agency says it has to cut food aid in the new year. ah, and in spain, the prize money is flowing in the countries traditional christmas lottery. ah, i'm almeni's if welcome, germany's infectious diseases agency has worn that alma crohn will become the country's dominant variant within weeks. the whole but coff institute says germany is health system and critical infrastructure could be compromised. if the latest wave is not stopped, the german government has responded by stepping up vaccination efforts and tightening restrictions on gatherings. they'll also be limits on social contacts, but not until after christmas. ah, the festive preparations might be continuing across germany. but the country's top

public health body has won people not to let christmas be the spark that lights the omicron fire. there are no official restrictions on festive celebrations, but small gatherings being encouraged a mystics. the most important thing apart from vaccinations is reducing contacts, but less people come together, the smaller we keep our social contacts, the less the virus will spread. everybody's behavior is crucial in this instance. and try on tuesday german chancellor. oh la sholtes said the limits on the number of people who can meet will come into force from december 28th lodge. public events will also be banned, including prohibiting funds at football matches. the new german health minister also said it's likely that a 4th vaccine dogs will eventually be needed and nothing should be ruled out in the

fight against cove. it wanted golden within. i believe that with the measures we agreed on. we can master the pandemic in the coming weeks, but we do not want to categorically exclude anything. we will consider everything if necessary. currently, that is not the case. yes. is that only stevie ah, while protests against mandatory vaccines and cove, it measures continue. many germans support the new restrictions as a, i'll be honest, the numbers are actually going down again a little bit. but i have to say in order to finally end the whole thing. it's actually quite good that we haven't the locked down so that everything just comes to an end so that we can maybe celebrate again afterwards. vaccinations will continue during the festive season as people hope this is the 2nd and last cove at christmas. d, w. political correspondence, simon young told us more about the current situation in germany and just how tight

the restrictions could get. what we could do. our vision politicians have said much tougher measures a needed to even some on the government benches. in fact, nothing's been ruled out. i think the government a very keen to keep schools and businesses open up, but they are in a race against, on the chronic, whether massively ramping up a vaccination in particular, the booster campaign to vaccinations. generally it's going pretty well. again, on tuesday, germany managed more than a 1000000 vaccine doses. so nothing has been rolled out in terms of possible new restrictions. the chancellor has said that he and the state leaders will meet again on the 7th of january, but he didn't rule out bringing that forward because they know that this is a very fast changing situation. and in particular, to keep the pressure of the health care system, they may have to take out more sudden measures. of course,

some states can press ahead by the way, earlier even before christmas. and some of them of an out says, well, they're going to do. the united kingdom has logged 100000 new cases of covered 19 for the 1st time. the new record comes as the countries struggles with its own fight against dom across the fresh wave of infections has also begun affecting the economy. there's no christmas rush in london this year. the number of shoppers and tourists down dramatically on even a few weeks ago. on the crumbs rapid spread, an a record number of infections keeping many people at home. britons newspapers summing up the mood but the u. k. health minister gave weary britons a glimmer of hope by announcing the purchase of millions more anti virus pills to combat alma kron alongside the booster program. these some pharmaceutical defenses you taken together are a huge new way to defend ourselves against covet. there's no need for any further

restrictions or before christmas. we will certainly keep the situation under review . but across the u. k. conditions very well, england has reduced the number of days. people with covert have to isolate from 10 down to 7 wales scotland. a northern ireland are introducing restrictions after christmas. what they do agree on is that vaccine boosters and reducing contacts are the best ways to reduce pressure on a health care system stretched to the brink days. so we know there's lots of cases in the community that actually people are not getting say fake, but there are still people being admitted to hospital and they are still getting very unwell, private pneumonia and, and what's testable for us to be looking after. they think that much better now that we have more keep meant most alpha. another holiday season overshadowed by the coven, 19 pandemic. another new year on the horizon filled with uncertainty. while

despite the rapid spread of the on crown variant, the world health organization says it's still too early to tell if it also makes people sicker than previous variance. like delta, the w h, a warns that rich countries risk making the pandemic last longer by hoarding vaccines for booster shots. while much of the world remains largely unvaccinated blanket wooster programs are likely to prolong the pandemic, rather than ending it by diverting supply to countries that already have high levels of fascination coverage, giving the virus more opportunity to spread and mitigate. here's a round up of some of the other developments in the pandemic. spain is making faith mirth mandatory and outdoor settings to slow searching infections. a new study says south africans diagnosed with alma crohn. the alma crow variant were 80 percent less likely to be hospitalized than those who contracted a different strain. this autumn and

u. s. regulators have authorized the 1st pill to treat code 19. the food and drug administration has approve. the use of pfizer is packs. love it for people age 12 and above. but the wife that white house says it will be months before the pill is widely available. let's take a look now at some of the other stories making headlines around the world. for and 10 african media outlets. i've had to close since the taliban to power. a new survey by reporters without borders reveals thousands of journalists have lost their jobs since august. female journalists have been hit hardest, with nearly 85 percent, no longer working. the island of madagascar is reeling after at least $64.00 people were killed when an overcrowded boat sink. and then helicopter, searching for survivors crashed madagascar, his police minister survived the chopper crashed by swimming for 12 hours to safety to on board, the helicopter remained missing. the european commission says it's taking legal

action against poland for undermining evil law and the independence of its judiciary. the move comes emitted ongoing route between brussels in warsaw over the rule of law which began when poland nationalists and euro skeptic law injustice party took power in 2015 a monument to the victims of the 1989 t n. m. in square massacre. has been dismantled and removed from the university of hong kong. the area around the 8 meter high pillar of shame, as it's called, was boarded up and workers wielded away in sections late on wednesday. city authorities and hong kong haven't cracking down on descent in the chinese territory . the world food program has issued another dire warning to the international community about the ongoing conflict in yemen. they say millions

could be pushed into starvation because the w f. p will have to reduce food ration rations for 8000000 starving people. that's from january onwards. the un agency says donors have failed to fulfill their pledges of assistance. it's meal time to this jamini mother and had 3 daughters. the families village was destroyed by air strikes. now that live in a camp for internally displaced people relying on i'd from the world food program. 7 years of fighting between hootie rebels and sadie back government forces has created what many consider the world's worst humanitarian crisis. food and medical shortages are causing millions to suffer, including many children in the children's ward of the also been hospital in santa, the suffering is plain to say dangerously malnourished. their bodies bay, the marks of war. and this is happening even with the current levels of food

assistance provided by n jose soon, families will start getting barely half of the world trade programs. daily minimum ration you in agencies including the world food program, received only about 2 thirds of nearly $4000000000.00 requested from donors this year and food prices of more than doubled in yemen. currency to valuation and hyperinflation. a driving economy to new collapse. that's as fighting continues to force families to flee their homes. the camps like this one. if donor countries don't step up soon, these people would know where to go. will be left with nothing to eat. did of the news asked the world food programs, annabel simonton, what is food cuts will mean for the already dire situation in yemen? well, by now we're in a really difficult situation whereby we just,

we just simply don't have the funds to be able to maintain assistance at current levels. so what we're doing from january is that we're cutting to 8000000 people last 8000000 out of the touch of 13000000 people that we support. so they will receive about half rations, and then that allows us to maintain full rations for the 5000000 people who are the most acute acutely food insecure. so they're the ones that immediate risk of famine . but really, it's an impossible situation to be in because we are in effect being forced to reduce food assistance to the hungry in order to feed the hungry. asked conservators, in the us state of virginia have opened a time capsule, which was found buried for more than 130 years under the statue of a famous civil war. general 3 water damage books, a cloth envelope, and a silver coin were among things found inside the sealed lead box. it was found embedded under a statue of general robert e. lee,

who commanded the confederate states army of northern virginia. during the u. s. civil war. his statue was removed as it was considered a symbol of racism. as the pandemic health restrictions dampen christmas celebrations for the 2nd year in a row, people in spain are taking heart and at 200 year tradition, the l. gordo laudrie top prize of 4000000 euros is paid out to anyone with this year's winning number. but there are many other smaller prizes to with almost 2 and a half 1000000000 euros paid out each year overall. i. 2 2 think they think me piano but in that yard, so i mean oh. c 86148 bits years winning number and go to the as the top prize is known, was sung by 2 people from madrid. sunny defense, a school as tradition dictates across the city. the celebrations quickie got underway. of madrid's a torture train station,

spain's busiest rail hub. the majority of the winning tickets were sold by these lottery center o. e went over, it's a very widely distributed number. i'm pretty sure people from all over spain of board, and i think it's everywhere that i bought the lucito seen to you from the region of kentucky out on the north coast and under lucy, undecided all the way to the canary islands, with the african coast and order those sparked celebrations by the lucky winners. and what does it feel like to win one of the many they prizes. i don't know what he might haven't processed it yet. oh, i was in the mountains with the dogs and i came here because i received a call. my wife didn't believe it. she began to scream, turned the t v on looked to the number and checked that it was correct. we're just not used to winning anything with that one on a sheraton. and i'm really happy and how many people have won a prize?

well, that's almost impossible to know because of the complexity of the girl. but a total of 2400000000 euros was given away in prizes both big and small, in the centuries old and world's richest christmas lot redrum this year. oh, you mean you're watching the w news up next doc film riding the rails across mongolia? don't forget you can always get the latest on our website. that's d w dot com. i'm mommy and he said thanks for joining with take your time for an experiment about time. it can be measured precisely. and yet each person experiences it differently as if there are different forms of time, time phenomena,

a dimension and illusion. about time starts december 31st on d, w i ah, they call me al tundra. with open my ancestors when nomads waiting for 20 years, i have lived with my own family in the staff, hurting our cattle. ah, to be it would be especially our music is about mongolian history and our customs. so these are our never ending sauces. in the phone with mr. paul both sure.

on that on a uh, fax machine, the name is alana jeeter you about addison's? i was a child. i've had visionary abilities day and could sense the spirits have nature ah ah journey through mongolia and it's capital. it was on, but i will start in the mountainous north of the country will follow the tracks of the transmission galion railway self crossed, the vastness of the step and after about 800 kilometers, reach the gobi desert and the buddhist. hum our monastery.

ah, a dozen station 1st stop art from a communist pass merges with contemporary advertisement. planned economy once held sway here to day. it's the free market. dar hon is the 3rd largest city and mongolian. it was built in 1961 with massive support from the former soviet union and its name is no coincidence. dar han means blacksmith and reflects the importance of the city for metal and heavy industry. tourists are rarely seen in this big cities train station. the no frills building

was designed for commuters and traveling merchants in the metropolis with its hundreds of thousands of inhabitants. dar hun is a transport hub that connects regional routes with a trans mongolian railway towards a land barter and further on to the chinese border. anyone taking this train to the capital however, should allow plenty of time. the train takes over 7 hours to cover the almost 250 kilometers because of the many stops along the way. moreover, the railway infrastructure is not up to european standards. oh, for the train attendance where crisp uniforms, they are responsible for checking the tickets directly at the carriage door and they take their jobs extremely seriously. a mongolia, respect and authority are important principles that must be observed.

meanwhile, it's announced over loudspeaker that it is strictly forbidden to take any moments including dead ones on the journey. because the fur of the mongolian delicacy, usually harbours flesh, which are regarded as carriers of the plague. only about 3000000 people live in mongolia, a country more than 4 times the size of germany. it's huge distances and vastness can be sent through the train window. you also physically notice mongolia is altitude, a quarter of the country is between 2003000 meters above sea level travellers should therefore allow themselves a little time for acclimatization. halfway between the hun and the lawn, butter, the foothills of the 20 mountains begin. the mountain range is considered the

birthplace of the greatest mongolian of all times genghis khan abroad. the names angus con is mostly associated with conquests, brutality and virility. but here in mongolia, it mainly stands for political savvy. the founder of the mongolian empire is considered to have been a patron of trade, education, art and culture. freedom of religion is one of his most important legacies, even to day christians, buddhists, muslims, and adherence to mongolian shamanism practice their religions peacefully side by side. shamanism is the oldest religion in mongolia.

ancient symbols such as the swastika or sun wheel ornaments are supposed to pay the way for the sharmen to reach the spirits. this religious decoration, which was hijacked germany as a symbol of the nazis, can be found in its original sense as a spiritual symbol of luck everywhere. mongolia on that, that the winning day of della down through my transfers. i made contact with the spirits of the mountains and the water to get that. they found my ways to be good. i'm just here last year had who's have that with their husband, that therefore they do me the honor of showing me the right path. looked like ethan donald engel, who cleared good jackson barbara mongolian shamanism, combines medicine and the worship of nature. and ancestors is sharmen is responsible

for the welfare of their tribe through contacting the spirits and speaking with the voice of the deceased. while in trans they try to show their community the right path for the future. ah. okay, let me, let me little little, little prue where the incest is really speak through the shellman remains the question of faith with her, like with every religion. so that the bus home but on the bus for were not every one can be a sharmen out of entity. if you do not appoint yourself as a sharman and just do something for all this would send people on a wrong path and detach the soul from the body. we are all false. shamanism is therefore even harmful and ligan's alto are wrong. but unfortunately, it happens quite often that they will beg july genius. they said to him to him that in sequin. sacrificial rituals

such as the milk sacrifice are men to appease the gods. for shamanism balance between man and nature must be preserved and the growing economic interests in mongolia are a dangerous aberrations. monarch, poor have not been at present people are digging in the earth all over at the shallow, but they don't even care about sacrificial mounds. borderline, they're not respected, and they're not even being rebuilt, warranting days and people are drilling, digging, and destroying things. it's very difficult everywhere. a while ago i traveled through western mongolia and saw that many creeks and rivers there have disappeared . they've dried up the hill. this is because people do not respect the earth that which is probably why we shermans are also there to save nature, so that in at least that's my belief that thou got to see what thorny hood kim,

it is, what the tim bomb ah, we followed the line further towards allan batter, the train is usually the faster and more comfortable choice and mongolia roads here are not comparable with asphalt streets and europe. vast areas of the country have not yet been developed at all. on the other hand, there is a very good chance of meeting herds of free range cattle over distances of several kilometers. the animals often alone, without their nomadic owners search for the best grazing grounds in the barren landscape,

they have to build up their body weight as much as possible during the few summer months. the hard mongolian winter often begins in august already when the 1st snow frequently falls. ah, travel times the mongolia are very long, even on the train. the railway infrastructure and many of the vehicles are decades old. despite the beautiful landscape, after a good 7 hours ride from dar horn to the capital land, but our passengers tend to be pleased to finally arrive the big city, lackluster concrete buildings. welcome the guests. even local say, you can't help but love mongolia, but you can only endure will on bus r o will. and barto central station is the

largest railway station in the country and was opened in 1938 to this day. it remains an important hub for national and international traffic in the heart of mongolia. the train is the most important means of transport in the country. not only for tourists and commuters, local retailers also use the affordable rel connections to neighboring countries, such as russia and china custody thomas jeff guy, with after very long shopping trips, hundreds of them arrived with new goods in alon, but are every day. from here they transport their purchases to the shops and t asks in the capitol where they will sell them. almost half

mongolian population. about 1500000 people lives in orland bato. the economic center of this land rich and natural resources is currently experiencing an enormous boom. the metropolis is considered as symbol of a wealthy growth oriented mongolia. even in recent years, hundreds of thousands of people have come here to try their luck. few have become successful. and yet, mongolia is experiencing the greatest rural exodus it has ever seen. young people in particular don't want to be inferior to the west,

but they also don't want to be inferior to their asian neighbors. she is considered traditional nomadic life as a viable future. food to her own petition started about bitter, tend to renew john good. that we have a song that deals with rapid technological progress. and in particular, reflects the moment when too much technological optimization has occurred. if you do it here, baptist church in that group, at this point, what humans look for a place to slow down and return to nature and the origins of life. mr. chic. this is an important message that we want to give to the people he says, and especially to the mongolian youth, nasa, or is talking to joe bellanca, most of cemetery in the middle of lombardo, for the ban down on it's a backdrop that symbolizes an entire generations fears for the future

there is some deal with environmental protection, unemployment, and also the dangers of runaway technologies ation. however, they find their musical muse in the old legends, traditions, and characteristic sounds of a mongolian culture. ah, some beautiful. the name john on his closely connected with a history of the horse, had fiddle, far mongolian national instrument, and he told me this with a fine know the mongolians have always said that there was a very kind hearted man who owned a black hawk.