president after the death of john magaw fully the government says he suffered a heart failure. european regulators have ruled astra zeneca has vaccine is safe the european medicines agency found no evidence of a higher risk of blood clots in people who received the job several in u. countries have suspended its use over concerns about side effects well done akins joining us live from berlin this was an anxious lee awaited decision and there are serious potential consequences to this on the. for much of this week the european medicines agency and it's based in amsterdam has found itself if not at the eye of the saw the storm but certainly the focus of growing attention and growing concern about the efficacy but particularly the safety of the astra zeneca vaccine well with a succession of e.u. member states suspending the use of the astra zeneca vaccine temporarily pending a review from the a precisely about whether there was a link between the use of the astra zeneca vaccine and a higher incidence of blood clots well we now know that the e m a does not believe that to be the case this is how the e m e e m a's head broke the news the committee has come to a clear scientific conclusion this is a safe and effective vaccine its benefit in protecting people from covert 19 with the associated risks of death and hospitalized patients outweigh the possible risks the committee also concluded that the vaccine is not associated with an increase in the overall risk of throwing a baloch event our blood clots so what happens now with the astra zeneca vaccine in the new. that's the question that many millions of the residents and citizens will be asking and wondering how each individual member state is going to respond to this given that many member states had all of the temporary suspension of the astra zeneca vaccine being used we know that there are some still who have had persisted with the use of the vaccine and clearly they will see what has happened today as a green light to carry on the question however is for some of the larger member states for example france and germany we know that president emanuel in that car had remitted the decision to the e m a saying we work see what they say before we consider what we do about it the same can be said here in germany alone here in berlin there are 6 mass vaccination centers 2 of which have been closed for the last few days because they were only giving out the astra zeneca vaccine and of course a temporary suspension was put in place we had expected that there might be a steer from the german health ministry this evening as to how they intend to proceed but that possibility seems to have receded a little the one thing to say is that during the temporary suspension of the use of the astra zeneca vaccine several cities and here in germany had said that they would make up the shortfall with other vaccines from the other providers the question for the government going forward and indeed for all the e.u. member state governments who had suspended the use of astra zeneca is what will they do if they don't want to go back to it how will they make up a more permanent shortfall of all those millions of doses we know that the e use plan further down the line is to make use of other vaccines from other manufacturers for example the johnson and johnson one shot vaccine but right here and right now we still wait to see what governments are going to do with a vaccine that their own regulators had serious concerns about but that the european regulator which is period. in e.u. law as it were the european regulators says no carry on it may be linked in some way but if we are we have awareness campaigns then we consider it safe to carry on that is the central question facing many different ministries health ministries across europe this evening donna thanks very much indeed donna came in berlin. britain's warning its vaccine rollout will be slower than hoped in the coming weeks the health secretary says it's still on track but deliveries have been slowed because of supply chain problems with the astra zeneca job 1700000 doses of another vaccine have also been delayed as they need to be retested the government has previously expressed disappointment after the european union threatened to limit exports of covert 1000 vaccines to the u.k. another minister said the slow delivery was down to lumps and bumps in the global supply chain as needed barco reports from london. some months they may be but their wording of a letter that was handed out to health services on wednesday was very different it mentioned significantly constrained supplies and it all refers to a 5000000 doses shortfall from india the original order had been double that 10000000 but because of delays in the manufacturing of those doses and also because of india's own domestic demand it means that those supplies will be delayed there's also a move to retest 1700000 doses of a different vaccine as well and all of that it's fear it will have a knock on effect on whether or not the government will actually meet its target of vaccinating every adult in the country with at least one dose by some of the government says it's still on target these are just temporary glitches for the time being they also believe that nobody over the age of 50 will miss out no appointments will be canceled and people who are being booked in for their 2nd doses or not have to miss out or as well but it's people under the age of 50 that may well see delays of several weeks and of course that does raise some big concerns about whether or not the government can remain on track but it insists that it can do but given the the war of words between brussels and london regarding vaccines coming from europe you know there are big questions about whether this is indeed possible. well in a few hours top diplomats from the u.s. and china will meet in alaska it's a meeting but it's likely to set the tone in relations between the world's 2 largest economies it's going to be their 1st face to face discussions since the biden administration to coffs in january and it comes just after the u.s. sanctioned an additional $24.00 chinese in hong kong officials for what it says is beijing's continuing crackdown on political freedoms in the territory of white house correspondent kelly hawkins joining us now live from washington d.c. i suppose committee the 5 of the meeting is happening the toll is interesting but given the fact that the so much distance between the 2 sides any idea what they're likely to be able to talk about. we know that the united states is going into this meeting with one primary goal and that is to get some of these human rights issues addressed and the list in terms of the concerns on the part of the united states is pretty lengthy not only is there concern about the persecution the treatment of chinese weaker muslims there's also the concern about the crackdown on democracy in hong kong and rising aggression against taiwan so we know that the secretary of state along with his national security adviser they will be going into this meeting really with what they say will be a forthright tellme but also one that will be stern because the idea in this is that the united states is trying to manage what they see is china's problematic behavior and as you point out how this meeting plays out is likely to determine the tone of the relations between the 2 sides throughout the term of the biden of ministration one of the things of course the it was almost a trademark if you like of the trumpet ministrations relations with china was the dispute over trade how is that going to factor into these negotiations. well we know that china is going into the talks looking to roll back a lot of the tariffs that were put in place under donald trump in that sort of escalating tit for tat trade war and you have to remember things got pretty hot between the 2 sides another that has really been rolled back and that's the leverage that the united states is going into this meeting with made hopes to use that leverage and the desire by china to see some of these policies rolled back and reset in order to achieve these human rights goals so this is a place where the 2 sides are pretty far apart but the united states again hoping that they can use some of the muscle to try to achieve these goals but at the same time don't expect that there are going to be significant concessions and again this is just the 1st set of taksin we expect that there could be many more as the united states tries to work out these issues and differences with china kimberly thanks very much indeed that's kimberly holcomb a reuters correspondent in washington d.c. well more now on not upcoming meeting and how china might approach it from katrina you in beijing. looking ahead to the alaskan meeting beijing had noted that the u.s. had been particularly negative about china in the lead up to china's foreign ministry spokesperson said that beijing would use the meeting to make clear all its positions hong kong engine junkie says are on the table for discussion but there will be nor compromise from china when it comes to any issues of sovereignty or security that being said beijing definitely wants to use this meeting to reset ties with washington which have deteriorated in the last few years beijing is reportedly looking to request the rollback of some policies implemented during the trumpet ministration including visa and technology restrictions and possibly the reopening of the houston consulate but at the same time time as officials have made clear in recent days that they don't expect any unrealistic expectations and that not all problems will be solved in one dialogue certainly this promises to be a frosty encounter and beijing had one warning for the u.s. it said that it should avoid mega foreign diplomacy and stop creating what it described as anti china clicks a letter after u.s. president joe biden likened his russian counterpart to a killer not to be a putin has responded on thursday the russian leaders said it takes one to know one exchange began when biden accused putin of ordering the poisoning of opposition leader. they also said will pay a price for election meddling on behalf of former president donald trump russia has recalled its ambassador from washington. senior members of the taliban and afghanistan's government are meeting in moscow in an effort to restart the stalled peace negotiations russia the us china and pakistan have called on those taking part in the talks to discuss an immediate cease fire u.s. peace envoy. is also in the russian capital american troops to withdraw from afghanistan on may 1st but president joe biden says it won't be easy to meet that deadline or is a research associate at the school of oriental and african studies she says the meeting is a necessary step to help end the conflict in afghanistan. well this that's that they would lessen that because afghanistan has been in this war for 40 years almost 40 years the people who are in are all mainly people who have been involved throughout beer gardens and killing people in common things they've unions in assassinations from aid to say they have to be made responsible for rape as the grounds for instance. as regional and global economics all. anything he's a means to end this conflict and for that reason the moscow. bens some think that it's to bring them together but i think they should from moscow is to really listen to their voice of the afghan people who are trying they can. forget that the war has never been and exult far and mind you the 3 countries plus former united states russia and china. are not the only players at there is saudi there is there are other countries and then closer or broader regions that have a stake and they have people in afghanistan they have proxies and those processes are responsible for this and never and they are so the complexity of the afghan conflict is like this that never ends and in reality it is thoughts by afghans that this is not owned by afghans. still ahead in al-jazeera a state where morial is held for south africa's zulu king after his death last week . no relief in sight while lebanon's economic crisis is getting worse and it's pushing more people into poverty. it's time for the perfect jenny. sponsored plan qatar airways how i once again it's been fired into warm and sunny across much of the middle east even biassed than disable see temperatures well above the seasonal average going up to $33.00 here would go on friday but we've touched 38 for the last couple of days losing the influence of the warm southerly wind further north in toowoomba told we've had race sleet and snow across a good parts of turkey and that's a wintry mix that will continue to drive this way further east which as we go through sas day around the caucasus you could see some snow there coming into georgia maybe into armenia possibilities rain sleet and snow to into afghanistan took many stand pushing up towards as but stan as well down across southern parts of the finnish overstays fine enjoy them 32 celsius in doha as you go on into the weekend not too bad a told a not too bad too across central parts of africa we have got the usual showers now just around the equator but today's off the economics of course the point when the sun crosses the equator so you'd expect to see the showers across this area and they are there bang on time so looking good here the showers extend up towards the gulf of guinea right the way across to northern parts of the mozambique channel not too bad into south africa at the moment though some showers just sketching with the southern cape making the way further east. qatar airways. afghans with ties to international organizations. this rate has never been greater. left exposed by the withdrawal of foreign troops . may be the only path to 15. in the nation makes home feel ever further away. part of the viewfinder asia series on al-jazeera. or jordan syria a reminder of our top stories this hour here appearing regulators have ruled astra zeneca is vaccine is safe the european medicines agency found no evidence of a higher risk of blood clots in people who received the job several in new countries have suspended its use over concerns about side effects. but a few hours u.s. and chinese officials will meet in alaska for the 1st face to face talks since joe biden became president it comes just after the u.s. sanctions an additional $24.00 chinese and hong kong officials. senior members of the taliban and afghanistan's government are meeting in moscow russia the u.s. china and pakistan of called on them to discuss an immediate cease fire. guns in his opposition is calling for a quick succession of power after the death of president and go fully official say the 61 year old suffered heart failure but opposition leaders suspect he was sick with covert 19 wives president's son. is set to become tanzania's 1st female leader reports. thank you for the word go the last time john pomfret magath would be was seen in public he was carrying out official duties and not wearing a mask not long into his 2nd term in office he suddenly vanished from public sight after 3 weeks of speculation came the announcement from vice president's son on state television. where we lost our leader president of the republic of tanzania the owner. who parted this life from heart complications in hospital in dar es salaam rumors had been swirling that magnified had sought treatment for covert 19 largely fed by opposition leader to lease to and kenyan media the government denied the reports and arrested at least 4 people who speculated about his health on social media government but even when you have all this government no one wears a mask including me it proves that there is no corona virus and god loves this nation president maggie foully was more than a coronavirus skeptic his government stop sharing data with the world health organization last year and declared tanzania covert free divine intervention the official tally still stands at 500 in 9 cases and 21 deaths all these months later he displayed a disregard for health advice focusing on prayer and local remedies while also claiming the vaccines were dangerous this true condemnation from the w.h.o. and the roman catholic church. coppa denial had turned into policy for a nation of 60000000 what we have that the ministry has no plans to receive vaccines for cave in 19 which are already in use in other countries. the w.h.o. has repeatedly asked the government to adopt preventative measures such as wearing face masks to start reporting cases and to share data foreign embassies began warning of a significant increase in the number of kobe 1000 cases that could overwhelm tanzania's limited hospital capacity in late february maggie farley finally began to change his tone warming to the idea of wearing locally made face masks that was just days before a shocking press conference from his finance minister philip pungo which was called to address rumors that he had died of corona virus. tanzania has refused to join the kovacs program which has delivered millions of doses to $22.00 african countries it will be up to some e.s.l. haasan to decide whether it remains an outlier when it comes to protecting its population and that of neighboring countries. al-jazeera. italy's prime minister mario draghi has attended a ceremony in longer day a region that became europe's covert 1000 hot spot one year ago more than 100000 people have died across the country over the last year and that toll looks likely to rise as the country prepares for another wave of infections andrew symonds reports. dignity one year after the chaos and death that consumed the long body region of italy the 1st european country to be hit by covert. italy's prime minister mario draghi having imposed a new lockdown is only too aware of the threat posed by another wave of the virus for now though he pays homage to 3500 lives lost in this region and nationwide the total date of more than $100000.00. this is a day for the sadness but also full of hope and i want everyone to feel close through the sadness and hope. the images emerging from this region exactly a year ago were viewed with disbelief all over the world convoys of military trucks filled with coffins. the sounds. and the silence such emptiness. yet avoid daily outbursts of support for medical staff. and looking back to the time his church was filled with coffins this priest reflects the even. and that's one of the live lupul really are people similar for the young to visit own become an area where nothing could be done anymore was a year ago time stopped. in the hospitals overwhelmed to breaking point a year ago the staff talk of a new confidence medical directors say they have more control despite another wave of infections all our. life changes. that you pay for but coastal communities what you need to think of priority i think sometimes through weird. we don't have markets 50 m. back. we have more capacity than we think we have. but similar scenes to this will continue with the rollout of vaccines having a long way to go not just here but all over the world andrew simmons al-jazeera in the netherlands prime minister mark reiter has claimed an overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections if we can form a coalition that will be right as a 4th government 3 day vote was the 1st big election in europe since the start of the pandemic managing the crisis was a key issue in the campaign including vaccinations and growing anger about lock down restrictions stop us and has more from the us to them. the netherlands has chosen for continuity despite the fact that the government of marketa was tainted by these serious scandals like the child care benefit scandal but the most surprising outcome of this election is when the former u.n. diplomat was actually challenged marker to directly by saying we need new leadership in this country and i want to be the 1st female prime minister in this country and what it also means is that her party is much more euro e.u. friendly than the market this party is so it could mean that there will be more openness to the e.u. but on the other hand what we can't can conclude is that the left wing parties have lost dramatically and that the right wing parties especially the far right has really won this election one party it was a small party to form for democracy who has campaigned solely on this down and is tantamount against it has now 8 seats in parliament which is actually the largest win in this whole election so it is also a significant right move here and that also could mean and they are of course a very euro sceptic that also could mean that this whole debate in parliament about going more open to have a more international view on topics could also be hampered by this turkey is defending its decision to strip an opposition politician of his role after he was sentenced to prison for spreading terrorist propaganda it comes amid a move to try to ban his procurators political party prosecutors filed a case against the d.p. party on why the senior politicians including the president's office say it's a front for the kurdish p.k. k. group which i'm correct considers as a terrorist organization lebanon's worst economic crisis in decades is pushing people deeper into poverty the minimum wage has now reached less than 50 dollars and is in a hole the reports from beirut is no solution in sight with the country's politicians failing to form a new government. lebanon is crumbling much of the middle class is now poor forced to rely on food handouts from charities the economy's collapse began in late 2019 the local currency lost 90 percent of its value since then 20 percent in recent weeks conditions worsen this politicians refused to work together to form a new government that will implement reforms to stop the financial meltdown i always. i can't support my family any longer i am in a minimum wage $50.00 but due to the economic crisis they slashed my salary and hops look what they did to us going to help us survive what is to come the prices of essential goods like bread and fuel have been rising in a country that imports almost everything officials warn of further scaling back on subsidies on some food items as the central bank runs low on foreign currency reserves. even before they lift subsidies everything was a ready too expensive the worst is yet to come the situation is getting worse by the day i am an informal work and earn $3.00 a day how can i afford to live. people have returned to the streets as salaries lose purchasing power the minimum wage is now less than $50.00 a month. at home or not as i please we have begging you look at a situation where starving we are dying even those who have money can't access their savings because of banking controls more than half of a population of 6000000 people are poor. the crisis has affected stability commanders say there is low morale among soldiers and security personnel the salaries are now nearly worthless crime is on the rise electricity cuts last 12 hours a day and if money is not found to enforce feel levanon could be plunged into total darkness by the end of the month for more than a year people have been demand. the removal of what they call a corrupt leadership that has governed for decades but politicians won't relinquish power and their ties to iran and saudi arabia in tackles lebanon in a geopolitical struggle. saudi arabia want to assist lebanon financially if hezbollah is represented in the government all while the iranian us struggle continues as well as discussion over syria's fate and has influence in lebanon it appears hezbollah has an interest in the total collapse of the state since it wants to impose a new power sharing agreement it's a battle for power that could take time to resolve time lebanon and its people don't have that. beirut. the 1st native american cabinet secretary in u.s. history has been sworn in as interior secretary deb holland will oversee national parks and other government owned land should also be in charge of washington's relationship with more than 500 tribal nations. a statement more service is being held for south africa's zulu came good will is when a thing was buried in a private ceremony earlier on thursday he died last week at the age of 72 after being in hospital for weeks to treat diabetes being in his presence was a rare privilege he always exuded warmth. and love for the people of south africa and our entire continent. his majesty was a champion for development and progress. he was a great visionary and had deep inside us on how best to develop our country. and his people he advocated for better health outcomes among his people leading from the front in the fight against hiv aids and tb. has been the memorial in goma. goodwills when a teen is memorial service has begun but in the palace grounds like sides. have gathered they say they're here to praise the king they feel see the oil and they're upset that they're not part of proceedings within the palace grounds resumed aryans have made their way to the front of the kind of spades police have prevented them from going through the race maybe it wasn't the morning. or the ritual that they want to put an end to the number needed to praise him and to prove to the end. he 67 tell us what you're referring. to another 20 years ahead of them that they're gathering at the side of the gates middle continue to the rituals but many of them once they get through to the ballot. this is all to say that these are the top stories european regulators have broadcasters and it is vaccine is safe the european medicines agency found no evidence of a higher risk of blood clots several you countries have suspended.