leyen, says that europe should be leading the charge in creating a carbon neutral future. plus, donald trump on trial. democrats lay out their case for removing the u.s. president from office. in oral arguments, the impeachment manager adam schiff says that trump abused his office by withholding aid to ukraine. it follows a bitter and partisan debate over the ground rules for the trial. we will take you live to washington. plus, world leaders set to mark 75 years since he liberation of auschwitz. with the number of holocaust survivors dwindling, the yad vashem center is making sure that their stories never die. ♪ brent: i'm brent goff. to our viewers on pbs in the united states and all around the world, welcome. we begin tonight with chinese authorities making a drastic decision, closing all transport networks in the city of wuhan, the city that is at the heart of the coronavirus outbreak that is spreading across asia and beyond. the government has also advised inhabitants not to leave the city on their own. bus, subway, ferry, and long-distance transportation out of wuhuhan will be closed from ththursday mororning. 17 people have died frfrom the w strainin of the virus. nearlyly 500 cases have been confirmed in china alone. a handful of cases have also been reported in other asian countries and in the united states. chinese health authorities believe the virus originated from wild animals at a seafood market in wuhan. they have confirmed human-to-human transmission of the virus. the world health organization has not declared a global health emergency over this outbreak. that decision just made in the last few minutes. it says it needs more time and more information to decide. to talk about that, i'm joined now by dr. muhammad munir, a virologist at lancaster university in england. doctor, it is good to have you on the show. we just heard from the world health organization and they say they need more time to decide if this is a global health emergency. do you agree with them? i mean, we are seeing a drastic measure being taken in china night. muhammad: yeah. wewell, a meeting has just concluded a few minutes before. since yesterday i have been claiming there will nonot be any emergency. we have been seeing a few clues ababout itit. fofor instance if we talk about the past cororonavirus, whihichs a lot more devastating compared to what we are seeing now. at that time there was not any emergency imposed by the w w.h.. so there were a few indications that it would not be an emergency situation, but there would be some interim control measure which is what they are proposing. so hopefully if the situation carries on with a lot of efforts from the international community we might not need to go for the emergency, but having interim control measures instead. brent: what do you make of what the chinese authorities have announced, which is basically the lockdown of the city of wuhan, where 11 million people live? is that the right decision to cocontain n this virus? muhammad: this is a wonderful decision. if i would be in their position i would probably do this a lot earlier than what they have done soso far. there was a ststrong side effeft backining for this one. if you look into a all those outbreaks or cases that have not only g gone inland but also overseas, , they all have links with original cases in wuhan city. so that means that wuhan city is an epicecenter and icocontrol measures were not taken place in that city, it t might lead to me drdrastic effects.s. so the decision theyey have takn today, i t think it is appreciated, it is great in sort o of containing the infnfen within this locality. because if we do so, the chances to get it spread can be minimized significantly. brent: would you say this dedesion is sosomething like pupulling the e emergency brake? we know the lunar new year holiliday is about to begin in china. once you have tens of millions of people traveling, it will probably become impossible to contain the virus then, right? muhammmmad: yeah, it would b be impossible. bubut all those e control lawye, for example, restricting the movement or r discouraging the gatherings, these do help to some extent in further disssseminating the infections. because what we belilieve is tht fofor a sustainable infection ia community, at least one person has to transmit the virus to another one person at least. so if it is possible to minimize that contact and that transmission, the virus itself will dry out, as has been the case in many other occasions. for example, in 2003. brent: dr. muhammad munir joining us from lancaster university with the latest o on this coronavirus outbreak in china.a. doctor, we appreciate your time tonight. thank you. muhammad: thank you. brent: here in europe, the european commission president ursula von der leyen has told the world's business and political elite at the world economic forum that time is running out to fight climate change. in her keynote speech today in davos, switzerland, she urged leaders to take action, pointing to her european green deal as a model they should follow. that was a stark contrast to tuesday's speech by u.s. president donald trump. he largely ignored the issue of climate change. the u.s. president left davos today, but not before taking a parting shot at the european union. reporter: the world economic forum, hosted in europe's highest town, is hoping to encourage sustainable climate policy. europe aims to become a pioneer, says eu commission president ursula von der leyen. with her european green deal, she wants to make the continent the first to achieve carbon neutrality. >> the novelty and the difference to our fossil fuel-based model is that we will foster growth that is not extracting resources, but that gives back to the planet more than it takes away from it. reporter: just before his departure, u.s. president trump surprised the participants with a different topic. he called for a new trade agreement with the eu, threatening to impose trade sanctions on car imports. >> they have trade barriers where you cannot trade. they have tariffs all over the place. they make it impossible. they are, frankly, more difficult to do business with than china. reporter: following the trade agreement with china, trump has his sights firmly set on the eu. brent: now to the united states, and the impeachment trial of president donald trump. the republican-controlled senate is now hearing opening arguments from house impeachment managers. trump was impeached last month on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of congress. he's accused of pressuring ukraine to investigate former democratic vice president joe biden, a political rival, and impeding a congressional investigation into that alleged abuse. trump has denied any wrongdoing. for more now, we want to get straight to washington. our correspondent oliver sallet is standing by. he is on the story for us tonight. good evening to you, oliver. i guess those senators, they all need strong coffee this morning. they debated late into the night. what kept them up so late? oliver: yes, that was a big surprise last night. the debate and the first day of the trial was supposed to last until 6:00 p.m. and then went on until late at night at 2:00 a.m., so a total of 13 hours, a real marathon here at the senate last night. and the reason for that is pretty simple. there are hardly any rules laid out at the beginning of such a trial. and this is only the third impeachment trial in the history of united states also, so not a lot of experience to look back to. and the republicans who are holding the majority in the senate were able to shape those rules, which they did of course. the democrats were very unhappy with them. they believe that this is a cover-up attempt to protect the president. they were talking about a very unfair trial. so they tried to alter those rules by proposing a total of 11 amendments, essentially trying to subpoena additional witnesses. but all of these amendments in the end were rejected by the majority, the republican majority in the senate. brent: we know that the democrats, they would like to see the former national security advisor john bolton testify. it does not look like that is going to happen. but could there be a witness or two that the republicans would like to see? oliver: absolutely. and some republicans say why not just agree and have our own witnesses? so, joe biden and hunter biden would be interesting for the republicans. they could make their case they were involved in a corruption scandal in ukraine, therefore justify president trump's phone call with the ukrainian president. there is no proof for that, however. another witness that could be interesting is the whistleblower who made the phone call public in the first place. their strategy could be to question his legitimacy. but let's not forget there will be a vote on witnesses and on evidence later that will take place after both sides have presented their initial arguments, so that is six days down the impeachment trial, and that is way too late in the eyes of the democrats for all this information to be considered. brent: oliver, talk to me about the image that we see here. in washington we have got the impeachment trial that is underway, and the u.s. president, he was last seen in the swiss alps. this seems beyond bizarre. oliver: well, in particular because trump does not like such multilaterals the world economic forum in davos. he did not go last year. but the reason is easy. that is a place where he can shine and distract from the impeachment trial. in the speech he was talking about this great economic data in the united states, low unemployment, high-growth. let's also not forget this is one of the most important selling points for his case and his reelection campaign. brent: our correspondent oliver sallet on the story for us in washington. oliver, thank you. here are some of the other stories now that are making headlines around the world. harvey weinstein appeared before a new york court today as opening statements were delivered. the once-powerful hollywood producer is on trial, facing two charges of rape and sexual assault. he faces similar additional charges in los angeles. he could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted. there is no let-up in lebanon's ongoing protest movement despite the formation of a new government that ended a power vacuum. protesters clashed with police in the capital beirut after nightfall. earlier the new prime minister said that the country must tackle the twin challenges of the protest movement and a nose-diving economy. luigi di maio says that he is ststepping down asas leader of italy's five-star movement. it is the main party in italy's governing coalition. the 33-year-old is expected to stay on as foreign minister of the country. di maio has headed the antiestablishment five-star movement since september, 2017. brazilian prosecutors have charged 60 people from the mining company vale and its german auditor over the collapse of a dam one year ago. the disaster in the southern state killed 270 people and dumped toxic sludge in the local river. charges include homicide and environmental crimes. dozens of world leaders are gathering in jerusalem to mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the auschwitz death camp. and all eyes will be on the world holocaust remembrance center, yad vashem. it is israel's official memorial to the victims. but as the survivors of the holocaust die out, the center has the very important task of ensuring that their stories are not forgotten. reporter: leading a tour through jerusalem's holocaust memorial, yad vashem, is always special for jonathan matthews. today, the young israeli researcher is guiding a group of israeli schoolchildren. with its monumental architecture, a powerful exhibition, it is a place like no other to learn about the shoah. >> generally speaking the whole concept of telling the story in this museum and perhaps connecting different generations of the holocaust is by focusing on the victim. by focusing on the victim we have the historical museum but we have personal artifacts and video testimony of survivors. reporter: the individual stories of the victims are an essential part of the museum. making the horrors of the shoah tangible. over 75 years later, the increasingly elderly survivors are slowly disappearing. that poses a challenge. with the museum, educational programs, its comprehensive archive, and a large collection of documents, yad vashem aims to keep the victims' memories alive. the exhibition also deals with the nazi's rise to power, totalitarian regimes, and anti-semitism. an issue that is just as rolled -- relative today. >> anti-semitism and holocaust denial. this is one of the reasons i believe it is important for me to work here. as an individual, but it demands more active involvement of different governments in the world to deal with this problem. reporter: the hall of names. many victims never left a trace, never had a headstone or a grave. it is a memorial for all of the six million murdered jews. young israelis often learn about the holocaust through their own family histories, annual memorial services, and school. from the age of f 16, school groups usually g go to yad vash. but a visit like this is never easy. >> it my first time here. when i walked in it was overwhelming and difficult to see. you feel their suffering, what they went through. you can see and hear many artifacts s from that period, ad it is really tough for me. >> i think it is very important to conserve this, because people need to know what happened. and to prevent this from happening in the future again. and to show that even in hard times, there were people who kept up their hopes and helped others and tried to survive. reporter: yad vashem. a place to reflectct on what happened over 75 years ago, and a commitment to keeping that memory alive for generations to come. brent: joining me tonight from jerusalem is our correspondent, peter hille. peter, it is good to see you. i want to talk about what we are seeing here. this is going to be one of the biggest diplomatic events in israel's history. what is already happening today? peter: well, jerusalem was already a diplomatic beehive today. you could see motorcades with black vans running back and forth through the city, and that is because many of the more than 40 presidents, prime ministers, and crown princes have already arrived here in jerusalem and they were here for diplomatic talks today with the prime minister netanyahu, also withh the palestinian president. among them was emmanuel macron, the french president, who stated after meeting netanyahu that he considers those denying israel the right to existence also as anti-semites, and i think that was an important signal here today. and of course also frank-walter steinmeier, the german president has been here today for talks with the israeli president. brent: we just saw the german president in those images. here is part of what he said today. >> finally, i want to assure you that we are aware of germany's responsibility. and i have repeatedly said that this responsibility has no cutoff point. brent: we know that, along with the allied powers of world war ii, germany will also be speaking at this commemoration event tomorrow. what else can we expect tomorrow, peter? peter: well of course all the world leaders have come here. they are here to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the german extermination camp of auschwitz by the red army, by the soviets. and i think they will do both. they will try and commemorate the holocaust, remember the holocaust, keep this remembrance alive, and also look into the future and discuss maybe, or talk about how to fight anti-semitism in europe and in north america. because when you look at numbers, hate crimes against jews have risen in europe and they have reason -- risen in north america. so i think that will be an important topic tomorrow as well. brent: and we know that tomorrow, the polish president will not be there, reportedly because the russian president will be there. what is this diplomatic row all about? peter: yeah, those two countries seem to be fighting about how to remember the role of their countries during the holocaust and during the second world war. there seem to be forces in these countries trying to rewrite history, trying to make their countries look better, and that is the diplomatic row that they are fighting there. and because the russian president has accused poland of anti-semitism during the holocaust and during the second world war, and that has caused the polish president to decide not to speak at an event where he cannot be speaking after the russian president. brent: the politics of memory, as politically charged as ever. peter hille on the story for us tonight from jerusalem, thank you. turning now to greece and tensions over migration. thousands are protesting, demanding that the government close squalid migrant camps on three greek islands. demonstrators say they are being overwhelmed by a new surge of refugees, with migrant camps already overcrowded. inside those camps, a picture of desperation. reporter: it is likely to be the largest protest in the history of the island. more than 8000 people have followed the call of this man. the governor of f lesbos. from the islsland's capital, he wants to send a message to the government in athens. the island can no longer bear the brunt of europe's refugee crisis. >> we want our islands back. we want our lives back. reporter: you don't have to go far from this scene to see how the crisis has taken hold of the island. this is ththe notoriouous moria ca, europe's fastest growing humanitarian crisis. just a stone's throw away from the capital. more than 20,000 people are stuck here. this part of the camp, the so-called jungle, has only been here for a few weeks. every day, scores of new arrivals set up camp. trash is piling up everywhere and it is hard to find a child that is not suffering from disease or injury, like this boy who burned himself on an open fire. for refugees like this man, winter has made life even more difficult. together with his wife, he came here two months ago. terrorists in somalia shot him in his leg and shoulder, he says. the 26-year-old can hardly walk and is in constant pain. being forced to liveve in this shack he built himself, it is the conditions in moria that now bother him the most. >> there's nothing we can do about it. what can we e do about it? reporter: what is the night like? when it gets colder? >> it is like we are in the fridge. you don't want to come out. reporter: according to lesbos' governor, roughly a quarter of the island's population is made up of migrants. he says nobody outside of lesbos seems to feel responsible for the situation. >> i am afraid that the rest of the euroropean countries, the rt of the european union closed their borders to these problems because they do not want to be bothered b by this. and i'm afraid that the rest of greece is closing theieir bordes to the islands here becacause ty also do not want to be bothered. so it is a situation of double the walls built. reporter: a situation that is also affecting people in the village of moria opposite the camp. everyone here tells us their lives change for the worse when the greek government started sending people here in large numbers. christina runs a hair salon in town. twice, people have broken in and stolen her equipment. she believes they came from the moria camp. >> we are not safe. we do not feel secure and d noby protects us. when i leave my salon, i am scared. reporterer: she says she does fl for the families who are forced to live in the camp. christina has two children herself, but she is also worried about their future. >> now, if the situation continues like this, we will not manage the next few years. we will have to leave in order to live. why do i have to leave? it does not sound fair that it has to be me leaving my place. reporter: back to the protests, the governor at first seems skeptical that the government in athens would listen to the islanders, but leading a protest this big seems to haveve encouraged him. >> n never been such a crowd he. and we feel very happy and we feel very powerful now to go to athens to demand all of our demands. reporter: not just a symbolic move, but rather a cry for help to finally take the pressure off these greek islands. brent: sports news now, a top referee here in germany has criticized soccer's video assistant referee technology, known as var, for not adapting to meet the needs of the game. the technology was supposed to make the game more fair and accurate, but it has caused plenty of controversy, more than expected. the german referees association says that a solution may be found in american football. reporter: making split-second decisions is what makes this one of the toughest jobs in football. but the fast-paced sport also makes it d difficult for r refes to always make the right calls. the introduction of var, or video assistant referee, was supposed to help eliminate human mistakes. but has it caused more confusion than clarityty? >> when you look at how many wrong calls we have already prevented then it is fine, but there are always things we can continue to improve. reporter: critics say there's still too much human interpretation, that the calls are inconsistent, and the delays take a punch out of goal celebrations. one of germany's elite referees, who was in charge of the match on the weekend, is pushing for an nfl-like system where the coaches have two challenges per game and whehere referees can explain their r decisions to fas and the media. it is s an idea that is slowly gaining ground in the bundndesliga. >> we are working on how far we can integratate the referees to communicate directly on the field. they may even n sometime iththe future explain their decision and clarify ththe process. reporter: that clarification could go a long way in appeasing the system's critics. brent: here is a reminder of the top story that we are following for you. chinese authorities are closing transport networks in wuhan, the city at the heart of the coronavirus outbreak that is spreading across a asia and beyond. the world health organization has not declared a global health emergency over the outbreak yet, and is delaying its final decision until tomorrow. i'm brent goff in berlin. after a short break i will be back to take you through "the day." but first, a tribute to the genius of terry jones, a revolutionary in british comedy, one of the founding members of the monty python team. terry jones, dead at the age of 77. >> ♪ always look on the bright side of life for life is quite absurd, and death's the final word you must always face the curtain with a bow forget about your sin, give the audience a grin enjoy it, it's your last chance anyhow. when you're feeliling in ththe dumps,s, don't be silly chuhumps push your lips and whistle. ♪ ♪ [captioning performed by the national c captionining institu, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] be dede at two am et. yeah but it's use welcome to live from paris will be sent analysis france twenty four i marco in these of being world news headlines. president macron's verbal face off with israeli police the french leader on his first official visit is president. took to task of the police when his c. blocked his way into the st and french judge. in jerusalem. the city china where the coronavirus outbreak started has reportedly being close to public transport the rail and bus hubs in bhutan have been shshut down. the seventeen peope have died after catchining the sars like virus