one of the afternoon here today from moscow when i'm sick of it i mean this is out international i'm here for the next 30 minutes for the latest for you thanks for your company so for legal and medical professionals have accused the british government of refusing to probe chronic failures in its handling of a pandemic of a range their own public covert inquiry it comes as the number of new u.k. covert cases passes 4200000 including more than 40000 care home deaths and hundreds of health care workers top lawyer michael mansfield q.c. chairs the inquiry and says countless deaths could have been avoided. people's inquiry is the 1st inquiry of any kind that is taking place in to covert pandemic and the handling of it by the government right now the public want art and service particularly the bereaved of which there are thousands unfortunately but others who are the relatives of plainly the relatives of those who fortunately haven't died also have questions because of the being a lot of hospitalizations as well and it's no use waiting we need the answers now and they can be provided people have a very strong views about what should have happened in the 1st place and what is continuing not to happen many of the families do believe that their loved ones did die needlessly not everyone obviously but a large number particularly those who work on the front line who've been susceptible everybody knows that it's being alleging from crisis to crisis that's no way to do it and so we need to know now because it's not going to be over in june the lockdown may be eased by then but of course the virus it still self will still be present somewhere in our room. with a number of you cake over death parting 125000 now one woman's come forward asking for a father to be recognized as the country's 1st victim i think it raises questions about what the government could have done differently. we just saw remember him as far as a loving father as a lot of our he was a lovely man he would have done anything for you and we can't. understand but we need to learn some serious lessons from this so this doesn't happen again back in january 20 2083 year old peter tork passed away long before cave it became a national diagram and when the concern was limited mostly to china the only just come about in china so we we were told you know without a shadow of doubt it was not in this country at the time so there was no why it was on our radar at the time the tipping point for me i think was the inability to get off the oxygen you struggle started march as time went by and we knew more more about covert and we saw these patients in hospital with the. public health experts claim peter afterwards case lays bare the case failure to monitor the virus in its early stages and that there may have been many more deaths in the early months of 2020 than was 1st thought the 1st covert death in the u.k. was recorded on the 5th of march of 2020 weeks before the government succumbed to lockdown on the 23rd of march by that time the pandemic had already sunk its teeth into the country but jane's father passed on the 30th of january of 2020 and that was only days after the city of rwanda where the 1st case of credit were detected went into lockdown she is now calling for the world health organization and the n.h.s. to publicly recognise the historical significance of her father's passing as the u.k.'s 1st private fatality just through that he should go down in history as the part of history now isn't it you know it doesn't matter what you read in the books you know there's always that day of that 1st person and i think my dad should really have remembered well 2020 years of covert 19 will go down in history as being totally unknown and president jane says it's not just about her father's. but about correcting the official records but the government says there was little transmission present at the time of peter. every death is a tragedy there is no evidence that there was sustained transmission within the community in january 2020 we acted swiftly to curb coronavirus and at all times we have been guided by the best available evidence to deliver a strategy designed to protect the n.h.s. and save lives put jane questions still remain unanswered about what actually happened and if anything would have been different had the government acted sooner to end up the country. french medical workers who sounded the alarm was known covert treatment slashed amid a worrying rise in coronavirus deaths and a lack of hospital beds because of it not in charlotte bensky reports. hospitals in the paris region know once again preparing to be overwhelmed by couvade cases with nearly all i.c.u. beds filled the authorities in the force of all the hospitals to slash all known coding procedures by 40 percent this is a very tense situation we needed to react very fast of course falls the country now has the highest number of intensive care patients seen since november during the 2nd wave of the virus for those who work in hospitals the situation is more than 10 . do you need more hospital beds hospitals are closing and there are thousands of bags that have been lost it's unacceptable and we have demanded a real adjustment of our salaries and generally of our profession there has been no difference on the ground since june the rest to people who are quitting the hospitals perhaps it's time to ask the question as to why health care workers are stepping down and take a fact of measures in order to convince them to state we see the reason awareness but it's only facade because in reality there is no understanding of the gravity of the dangerous situation that we're in what is different though this time around is that more of the patients in intensive care and said to be from younger age groups the ones haven't yet had access to a vaccine the government has relied on a road campaign to make a dent in infections to sticks however the vaccination program has been heavily criticized for its slow progress now french doctors are up in all most of the being told that they'll have no vaccine deliveries of astra zeneca for a week instead the jobs will be sent to follow missy's the government has decided to exclude doctors and. pharmacists but does imagine that increasing the numbers of vaccination size will increase the doses meanwhile measures taken to try and curb cases. still appeared to be insufficient france has been under nightly curfew for months now and over the last few weeks more and more regions have been placed into weekend lockdowns so far paris has avoided that fate but for how much longer i think the french people have had enough and that it would not be so effective they have been obedient and they are fed up. concern and lock down for the weekend i hope not but all these measures in place not to mention the curfew it gets complicated we cannot do much if in addition to that we introduce lockdown and we can't make it even more complicated anyway should we really have no choice will have to go through we don't know exactly the reason why sometimes we are in lockdown and sometimes we are and and i think that the top authorities are facing other problems that they have failed to resolve but if there is not a lockdown we will suffer according to france's director general of health still a foregone conclusion to these you daniel this is a measure of last resort would be offered to the government if we had the impression that the hospital could not hold out we are in a tense situation and we are monitoring the situation day by day yet it's clear tough decisions will have to be made in the coming days and hours so let's even ski altie paris doctor spoke to said restrictions on treating patients is a really disturbing development. also in france we have an infection rate at quite a high level and we have difficulties with access to the vaccine we have a lot that is badly organized with the delivery of the vaccine and in particular the prioritization of the limited number of doses that we have in france we get told that for the following week we do not have enough doses that means that all the patients scheduled for vaccination the person said risk they risk severe complications if they ever catch covert it is very difficult for a doctor to select from his patients those most at risk and even more difficult to tell someone who was told they would have the vaccine and that it is being taken by someone who is less of a priority there is great anger at their government's response it didn't have the capacity to vaccinate and what we are missing is simply the manpower but it is totally crazy in fact it misses the point. since we're in the headlines again our german system has filed a lawsuit against the bill tabloid newspaper claiming its reporting was actually spying for the kremlin saskin taylor brought me up to speed. well on the face of it this is a sensational story it's got all the things to joran to read you know the word spy public enemy number one of course russia but unfortunately scribe just a little bit at the sophos and not sensation starts to fall apart so basically done your. employee claiming that essentially he was used as a spy and by the channel that all the info that he was gathering on kremlin critic aleksei involved while she was of course recuperating from an alleged poisoning in a clinic in berlin was being put straight into the hands of russian president vladimir putin's sensational right while unfortunately the evidence provided seems to be taken more from a manual called journalism one o one i'm not spying so as proof. screenshots of a chart with his editors now from my experience on any assignment you always have these chats it's common practice it's an easy way for producers and editors and cameraman to coordinate and that also from my experience very boring it's pretty much just the logistics in that but despite what daniel claims his charge too was also very boring so yes he was indeed asked to go into the shower clinic it's called doing investigative journalism it's called trying to get ahead of the other media outlets to get that unique scoop and in fact build was one of the most active moles inside this hospital. reminds us to accuse us of spying and at the same time to post images of every little step novelli makes including pictures of his garden to host to word it fresh an intelligence wanted to get any additional information they would buy a subscription to build plants and of course we want to remind our colleagues of german that just lation that for now at least protects the media and lowing it to collect information and metis that are considered to be of public interest so when bill does that it's normal journalistic practice trying to get the latest on a developing story when our t. does that it's spying i think a tinge of. hypocrisy that his claim that this watching child was filled with nefarious spying request is also undermined by the fact that when he queries we're getting a hidden camera recording of the inside of the war which was on military territory is appropriate his boss very clearly writes no i don't think so it's in writing so not exactly the most determined of spies i would also add evidence number 2 is the presence of a video agency ruptly parked outside the shower take clinic yes this is true for a period it was actually in fact live streamed on you tube in the same way our tireless cameramen were camped night and day outside the ecuadorian embassy in london and they were the ones to capture those pictures the only ones there were $24.00 serving exactly that sensational moment understand it was dragged out of the building. as you said the only ones to get the pictures media outlets all over the world but by you know they had no problem then with exceptional journalism but now apparently there is one final damning allegation mentioning it's how the r t employee monitoring. assignment was photographed alongside russian foreign minister. of a take public christmas party never mind that this was one of hundreds of photos taken never mind that there were hundreds including foreign journalists this one photo is in controvert to pull proof that. the russian government are in cahoots so like i said seems since ational take a look at it there's very little meat and it's only you know. global regional national channels around the world now and this new one of. wonder just to the back of my head is there any. connection well you really have to decide whether you believe in coincidence here because yes not long ago and now it's there will be setting up a channel in germany shortly after the. a couple of problems started well 1st off headlines appeared which could be considered a small smear campaign than last week which is counts were shot in job many fast forward to this week and apparently all to do it is a crime and spy so like i said really depends whether you believe in a coincidence for how. the woman on t.v. to a chimp for you who was so damning to be photographed with such a lot for off does not what we see in germany today is a clear attempt to see this is an attempt as is being constrained to be has come to love those standing around in the media at every turn against me and where fools allegations and suppress the knowledge of the sitting freedoms and making powers the attacks this is what it means to be an alternative voices in germany and as a final point i think it is worth mention that bill doesn't necessarily have the best track record between 20152028 was hit with $72.00 reprimands by the media regulator that is more than any other outlet and it was a thought of the total in that period so it's something to bear in mind when one jumps ahead fast into this latest offering from the top lawyer a top lawyer seemingly offers up here a juicy spy story but in reality is just i'm covering the day to day walking of any john list anywhere in the world. so i ask you to explain more to me about. the globe 60 minutes past the hour but do stay with us after the break a leap let's reveals washington wants the afghan government to share power with an enemy it's provided to the decades good plot or not but would it work more after the break. join me every thursday on the alex salmond show and i'll be speaking to guest of the world of politics sports business i'm show business i'll see you then. i guess so as mentioned before the break that the u.s. is urging the afghan government to share power now with the taliban the revelation coming from a leaked u.s. letter to kabul in what's being described as a last ditch effort before a deadline for the pentagon to quit the country kind of maupin's got more on it. it's america's longest war ever remember why the troops were 1st san into afghanistan to remove the taliban regime the taliban has been given the opportunity to surrender all the terrorists in afghanistan and to close down their camps and operations full warning has been given and time is running out the united states military has begun strikes against al qaeda terrorist training camps and military installations of the taliban regime and afghanistan this military action is a part of our campaign against terrorism. the past 2 administrations have promised to find an exit strategy our troops will continue coming home at a steady pace by 2014 this process of transition will be complete and the afghan people will be responsible for their own security we will end this war bring our troops home and by the end of next year america's war in afghanistan will be over from got pretty close even promising to set a withdrawal date. we should have the small remaining brave men and women serving in afghanistan home by christmas moment at the end of the year joe biden seems to have come up with a new solution peaceful coexistence between the afghan government and the taliban a proposal that was leaked to the media would give america's longtime battlefield enemies significant control over the country now the taliban would get 50 percent representation in key executive bodies that would enable them to propose new legislation and help write the new constitution however the afghan government would get one extra member so they could be the deciding vote in exchange the taliban would agree to a total ceasefire and join the new military panel essentially being absorbed into the security forces of the country the taliban will cut any ties with foreign powers and quote not expand their force configurations or recruit new fighters in the leak letter the new u.s. secretary of state anthony blinken urged the afghan government to just accept this agreement i urge you to develop constructive positions on these written proposals many are currently anticipating yet another spring offensive more deaths and more killing however at this point it appears the united states is willing to hand power back to the very people they've been fighting for the past 20 years the proposed agreement has gotten a mixed reaction from afghan officials they can make a decision on their troops not on the people of afghanistan but will never accept and imposed peace. the weakness in the message of the u.s. state department is that they have not recognized afghanistan structure and it has coercive language and a coerced and tailored piece will not lead anywhere i think that if there is any lesson to be learned here it is never do anything like this ever again stop trying to overthrow governments in venezuela and elsewhere around the world immediately this is a tragedy however it plays out however long the troops remain for the people of afghanistan most of whom are very poorly represented by either the afghan government or the taliban and this deal could have been had over 19 years ago with a lot of people still alive and trillions of dollars on spent so the obvious number one lesson is never ever do this sort of thing it is immoral and it is criminal how in the past 20 years the war in afghanistan has looked pretty on winnable but it appears the new administration and the u.s. state department may have crafted the least painful way to bow out caleb mop and r.t. new york. residents are given a mixed response after plainclothes officers began patrolling the streets of the belgian capital stop a shocking rise in sexual harassment cases the measure follows women complaining the no fear leaving their homes over it because of the growth in sexual assaults brussels police say they hope to catch the assailants in the at as attacks are apparently rarely reported by victims of women's rights activist welcomed initiative. i'm to sydney in favor of this idea because finally we're seeing you know this police went to court and asked for it to end a budget into this you know horrible emergency that is violence and harassment against women finally we men have the voice and they're speaking loud and they're saying you know no i don't accept harassment i don't accept binah you know this isn't justice we need to change and our politicians they're finally listening to this voices and that's why they need it to get a budget a big one in order to tackle this problem and find all the best solutions like this one a troll in the streets in order to help women. were turned trust in the police is so low that many residents fear officers more than the threat of assault itself. i don't feel safe around police i see police as a grasses and violent people and repressive rather than people that are protecting me. i prefer the police and gentle by themselves as officers that's clear for me i don't want police dressed like civilians. police play an important role but we should find a way to communicate with the police won't be there when you really need. and i think it's a good idea because there is a lot of. history. for sure when this policeman is you know from. the women's rights activists we heard from warms the root of the problem goes even deeper to. so we need to not only to repress and this is good to protect our oppressed but we should also think about programs that prevent these problems to happen and that's why we need education when indication of for our children for our boys and our girth and we do cation for immigrants who come to our countries especially if they come from kountry where they don't respect women as we do in the western countries we need to be all engaged more to tackle this problem because women's rights are human rights and in 2021 we should and once and for all by a lens against women. new york city's 1st lady has told people to physically intervene if they see a hate crime taking place the mayor's wife singled out the riots in assaults on specific ethnic minorities as a texan asian american communities continue where asking new yorkers to show up for their neighbors intervene when we disengage from violence harassment i know that can be frightening when you are unsure what to do or say but you can learn the city's suffering a rise in crime across the board including homicide shootings burglaries and car thefts shooting instances doubled last year reports say there's been another 75 percent jump in the last month alone at the same time as last summer the backdrop to it authorities slashed a $1000000000.00 from law enforcement budgets after pressure from protesters to defund the police the city said instead it would reinvest that money in youth and social services are reducing the size of our police force by not having the next recruit class we are reducing our overtime levels were shifting functions away from police to civilian agencies but a retired new york police dept inspector told us the advice to intervene in possible crimes could leave more people hurt. well you talk about civilians and if it were people as being assaulted you almost put now or corfu vigilantes to go and do or you know almost like you know the superman or superwoman we can't have that because it's very irresponsible people are going to hurt god forbid somebody that we're trying to help somebody their lawyers going to sue the city and say hey we're made his wife told us to do this if you get not call from the top leader in city government telling you to go out there in protection 8 was believed to be somewhere i believe and that regards would you call it for people to go out and do that the only thing that subdued you should be doing is maybe videotaping from a very safe distance getting a detailed description of the person or persons who's committing the assault and then calling them want those are the 3 things that people should be doing that's now on police officials. came across something we're talking about today at r.t. dot com for now though this so when it says kevin 0 in signing off roaring suitcase here in half an hour take for the afternoon call a brother that i should say ahead on this channel we are of course. international. there are tactics that can be used to get innocent people to confess to crimes they didn't commit i don't even think people in the us really get that the police are allowed to lie to you the person who falsely confessed actually came to believe the lie that they were told about their own behavior once a false confession is taken the case is closed and nobody really can tell the difference between a good confession and one that isn't. hello and welcome to cross talk where all things are considered joe biden famously said nothing will fundamentally change just appears to be the case when it comes to u.s. policy regarding the middle east we asked the question what is the strategic value of the middle east and who benefits from all these forever warse. to discuss these issues and more i'm joined by my guest here who's taken to those that he is a professor of history and director of the nucular studies institute at american university as well as co-author with oliver stone of the untold history of the united states in new york we have roy leiter he is an associate a senior research analyst at the institute for war and peace studies at columbia university and here in moscow we have maxime's he is an expert at the russian international affairs council originally cross-talk rules in effect that means you can jump in anytime you want and i always appreciated ok let's go to bethesda 1st peter i'm going to ask a very simple question what to on this program what is the strategic value of the middle east for the united states it's been there for decades and we keep being told it is necessary that we be there we had a president for 4 years been trying to get out even the president of the united states in the powers of that office could pull troops out of that region so what is the strategic value of the middle east for the united states right now and 2021 it wasn't only the by trump administration that wanted a pullout of the forever.