conservative party and the next chancellor predict marriage throws his hat in the ring the woman that chance so i'm going to america had selected as her successor says she is no longer in the running. i'm burnt off it's good to have you with us tonight the most positive outlook since the coronavirus scare began trying to suggesting that the virus is outbreak has reached its peak health officials there have reported 97 more deaths and more than 2000 new infections but they say these are the lowest figures since january and they predict the epidemic could be over by april but the world health organization says an appearance low down in the epidemic should be viewed with extreme caution adding that the. outbreak could still go in any direction. for more now i'm joined by don hong kong a senior fellow for global health at the council on foreign relations it's good to have you on the program but let me start by asking what do you make of the way china has handled this epidemic so far but are they taking the right steps to control it. well beginning in january 20th the government has launched a very. new measure of this and tackling the outbreak including quarantine this time cd and the surrounding c.d.'s you know basically you have 100000000 people being quarantined in who by and that approach tass. seemingly and she. stabilizing the epidemic although to what extent is actually that you that remains to be seen but what do you make of china saying that this rate could be over by april or as soon as april i mean is it possible to even make that kind of prediction at this point. well i think it's too early to say wayne we're going to see the fashion poisoned you know weighing the crises will be over but mainly public house next hers i think that we can do see the infection poisoned and that is that case is starting to trough up late april. probably and sees other thing who pay for the entire china probably we're not going to see they. point to drive and next month so my hunch is that. very likely a wave going to see the virus. may in may and instead of april so that's a months difference and that brings us to the international response that we've seen so far has the international response or has it been proper in your opinion has it been enough well i think if you look at international response you know so far i think it's very uncoordinated. almost like a need your panic response to the break in china and and very likely in any of this response these violated international health regulation article 43 which allows countries to take measure us based on the international law but it also say these measures should not be too even basically true see to people. those are reasonably valid. that could achieve a profile of their goal of health protection so do you think the u.s. policy for example of not allowing anyone any chinese nationals for example to come into the country or putting people in quarantine you think that has been too drastic. i think. all right well that's going to wrap it up young hong kong senior fellow for global health at the council on foreign relations we appreciate your time and your insights tonight thank you thank you. here's some of the other stories now that are making headlines around the world italy's senate has cleared the way for former interior minister matteo selvi to be tried on charges of holding migrants hostage he says that he was defending italy's border when he refused to allow rescued migrants to disembark from the ship for several days last summer police in northern ireland have charged a man with murdering the journalist leader mckee she was killed last april during your y. in london derry the dissident republican group in new ira later said that it shot mckee by accident the 52 year old man charged is one of 4 suspects arrested on tuesday dutch police say extortion is the motive for 2 letter bombs that exploded early wednesday one went off in the mail room of the dutch bank a.b.n. amro in amsterdam the other in the offices of the japanese company ricoh in the city of. no injuries were reported in either blast. the latest advances by syrian government troops into the rebel held it live province has ruptured relations between the key international players in the conflict the past 10 days have seen deadly clashes between turkish soldiers supporting syrian rebels and the forces of the syrian regime turkey's president richard tell your bear to one has hit out at syria and its russian backers promising to attack regime forces everywhere in syria if his troops are attacked meanwhile the country's humanitarian crisis it continues to grow. the roads ative sarmento and it looked province in the last 2 months more people have fled the fighting here than it any other time in the syria conflict many are braving the harsh winter conditions simply to get tight. them it's really sad to see people here enduring snow and cold and most of the children what are we going to do we've got nothing left we're sleeping under all of trees. it's a terrible sight but. this road is completely cutoff because it's packed full of cars. and people have no idea where they go they did that. this is what they are the even behind violence is cleared in at least in recent weeks and strained ties between 2 of the main international players in the region russia and turkey and caressa sent more troops to the area and his warned it will strike syrian regime forces if it soldiers come under attack. anyone targeting turkey should know that they will pay the price for this not only at the site of the attack but everywhere. hundreds of thousands of people have left in recent weeks but not everyone can get. those still stuck in adelaide face an anxious wait until worsening humanitarian crisis. well earlier we spoke to. he is a teacher in dove it and say that's a village in the countryside west of aleppo we asked him about his living conditions in a region that has been ravaged by war for years. in fact these days people are facing one of the most difficult situations you know maybe in the last 9 years because now all people are fleeing from the west and countryside and lead to north to the borders of jerky and in fact just. outside my home a long line of cars maybe taking kilometer line of cars are just leaving and fleeing i don't know they don't know where to go and all people in fact they are mentally ill psychologically ill and physically ill in fact even i do member just now that it's 2 days my daughter's birthday nevertheless who cares we can't i can't help i can't make a party for hair i mean this is just how people think they can't think anything just to have to go what to do and they don't have answers like me in fact it's your region is getting so closer to the borders of turkey and people don't know what do you if they've led now so what's the next step i mean they think they are fleeing from day to day this is in fact the whole situation these days in fact i wanted to send a message for the hold that this is maybe the last step to take. to do it to take it to take an action for this people i don't want anyone to tell the next generation that we didn't know we didn't hear we didn't see it because yet the last period of the last 9 years had been very horrible 14 people by the coming might might be the worse it was the desperate outcry there from a teacher called in syria's war are now into politics here in germany the conservative politician friedrich merits reportedly plans to run for the leadership of chancellor i'm going medicals christian democrats the c.d.u. americas was widely expected to make this decision and enter the race for the position of party chief back in 28 seen merits narrowly lost a race for the leadership to go on a great crumb. on monday she stunned the country by announcing that she is stepping down. are for more let's bring in our chief political correspondent melinda crane she's on the story for us tonight good evening to you melinda friedrich meds and uncle america what we know they have rarely seen things. if he were to become leader of the party might she rethink her current plan to remain chancellor until next year. that could well happen it's not only her plan of course she is at the head of a government whose official term goes until 2021 and she has said she would stay out that term but the fact is that these 2 fried fish mats and america they have a long history their rivalry goes way back and in fact she proved such a nemesis for him that he wound up leaving politics altogether for many years he is distinctly to the right of chancellor merkel if you remember he was the author of that term lead in culture to describe the idea that germany needed to return to a stronger sense of its national identity all of that could make them very easy bedfellows so to speak so many people do speculate that if he were to become the head of the party that she might step down earlier which in fact would then prompt new elections because the social democratic the junior partner in the governing coalition has said it's ready to serve out to the end of this government with angela merkel in place as chancellor but not with somebody else and let's say treated meds does become a party leader of the christian democrats does that mean that he would follow uncle americal and would be a candidate to become the next chancellor. well that is the current intention of a new great crime current power who is still leading the party as you'll remember all this was prompted by a crisis in a local election in the state the eastern german state of the regina where the chancellor's conservatives the cd you voted side by side with the right wing a f d party to put in place an outsider as state premier all of that sent shock waves all the way to berlin because it is a taboo to cooperate in any form with the right wing a.f.d.c. so great crump come crown bar was not able to establish her thought authority over the local party she said we need new elections she explicitly splits at least said to them they should not wote next to the f.t. and they went ahead therefore she stepped down she has a plan and her plan is that to reignite the head of the party with the chancellor candidate but a number of people say this is not going to work because of the time frame and there are quite a few. branches in the works at this point for her plan so i don't think we can count it and even if 3 dish mats did become chancellor candidate and party leader that is not to say that the c.d.u. would have such a strong showing in the next election that they could in fact then lead the next government that's true assumptions in politics are very dangerous that's for sure chief political correspondent linda craig to thank you. a once upon a time it was one of the beatles' favorite hangouts now a pub in liverpool has been given protected status putting it on par with buckingham palace built in $898.00 the philharmonic dining rooms is the 1st english victorian era paul to be to receive a grade one listed status john lennon once complained that the worst thing about being in the beatles was not being able to have a pint in the still and paul mccartney returned there in 2018 to play a surprise get. royal treatment there you're watching the w. news coming up next business news with kate ferguson stick around kate will be right that. johnny doesn't let his wheelchair keep him from pursuing surfing. thomas johnny cross is not your average trickster every day he pushes himself to the limit fighting for his dream. works life follows johnny as he comes off the cools and breaks down barriers for a wheelchair.