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00:00The HTS rebel group expands its control in the Syrian capital, Damascus, as it gains
00:06a foothold in key security sectors.
00:12A massive beer bar has opened in North Korea's capital of Pyongyang.
00:25The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group is continuing to consolidate its power over Syria.
00:31The rebel group has now taken control of Damascus police.
00:35It's currently working in a very limited capacity, as it has no legal framework to work by or
00:40laws to enforce.
00:42The HTS is set to be working on creating new nationwide laws, but in the meantime the capital's
00:48police are only able to take complaints from the public and provide them with verbal assurances.
00:53The former head of Idlib police, the stronghold region of the ruling rebels, has been appointed
00:58to oversee the capital's stations.
01:01Meanwhile, in the western coastal city of Latakia, the interim government is hosting
01:06a new reconciliation program for former soldiers.
01:10Soldiers and police officers under al-Assad were invited to come to a center and register
01:15for a new special identity card.
01:18The cards are valid for three months and grant their holders freedom of work and movement
01:22in the country.
01:24The interim government says all former security personnel who did not participate in the killing
01:28or torturing of civilians were granted immunity.
01:32They say the new program is an opportunity for them to seek rehabilitation and adapt
01:37to life in a new, safe and united Syria.
01:49All roads leading to Syria pass through Ankara.
01:52Turkey, one of the biggest winners of regime change in Syria, has indirect military presence
01:57in the country and supported the rebels who seized power last week.
02:03This gives Ankara good access to Syria's new leaders as well as international recognition
02:07as a major player in the country's affairs.
02:11From U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to European Commission President Ursula von
02:15der Leyen, Western leaders are visiting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss
02:19latest developments in Syria.
02:44On Monday, a senior EU diplomat had already made first contact with the provisional government
02:48set up in Syria by HDS.
02:50But for Brussels, it is important to use Ankara's influence to facilitate a smooth transition
02:56that guarantees the unity of the country and respect for all minorities.
03:02If you listen to Turkey, they are ready to play a big role.
03:08They are in favor of tolerance, as we are, as Europeans, of course.
03:12They are in favor of territorial integrity, as we are.
03:16But in the case of Turkey, remember that they have lots of troops in the northern part of
03:22Syria.
03:23So how this will unfold, we don't know yet.
03:26And also, in Syria, we have the remnants of Islamic State, so security there is very important.
03:34But in northern Syria, there is not just a Turkish buffer zone controlled by the Syrian
03:38National Army, but also a significant area under the control of Kurdish groups, which
03:42are supported by the U.S.
03:44And Ursula von der Leyen will try to avoid a new confrontation.
03:49She will not want Turkey and particularly the Turkish-aligned rebel militias inside
03:57Syria to aggressively pursue military confrontation with the Kurdish militias, which is another
04:05way of saying she will want Turkey to help create a unified Syrian country and not start
04:14another civil war to pursue in another theater the ongoing Turkish military operation against
04:25Kurdish rebels, both inside Turkey, inside Iraq, and today occasionally also inside Syria.
04:32There is also the issue of refugees.
04:35Considered not enough by Ankara, Turkey has received some financial assistance in the
04:38past from the EU and a promise for an additional 1 billion euros to host Syrian refugees.
04:42Now Ankara wants to send them back, and this will require stability in the region.
04:50The European Commission launched formal proceedings against TikTok on Tuesday over a potential
04:56breach in the Digital Services Act during Romania's presidential election.
05:02Internationalist and Euroceptic candidate Kalin Djordjescu unexpectedly won the first
05:07round, despite being little known to the public.
05:11The election was annulled after the Constitutional Court received evidence of Russian interference
05:16in the voting process.
05:19Democracy can only develop well if there are no manipulations.
05:25A free citizen must be able to express himself freely and if he is misled by algorithms
05:31that do not work or other means of manipulation that today seem to be running on platforms,
05:38it is unacceptable.
05:39So we have to fight them with the means at our disposal.
05:43TikTok is accused of not adequately mitigating risks linked to the integrity of Romania's
05:49election.
05:50The Commission's concerns relate to how the social media's recommendation algorithm works
05:55and the system of political advertisements, which require labeling.
06:00If found non-compliant with EU law, TikTok could face a fine of up to 6% of its global
06:06revenue.
06:12Russia's security service says a 29-year-old Uzbekistan citizen has been detained over
06:18the killing of Igor Kirilov, a top Russian general.
06:22Kirilov was killed outside an apartment building on Tuesday after an explosion from a device
06:27hidden in an electric scooter.
06:31The SBU, Ukraine's security service, claimed responsibility for Kirilov's death on Tuesday.
06:36He was in charge of the Russian military's nuclear, biological and chemical protection
06:41forces.
06:42Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev vowed to retaliate against
06:47Kiev.
06:48In any case, law enforcement agencies must find the killer in Russia and do everything
06:56to destroy the clients in Kiev.
07:01These clients are also known, this is the military-political leadership of Ukraine.
07:07UN spokesman Stefan Dzerzhik urged all parties involved to exercise restraint.
07:13Meanwhile, the US government says they were not informed or involved in Kirilov's assassination.
07:18It's not something that we were involved in.
07:20Obviously, he was a general who was involved in a number of atrocities.
07:26He was involved in the use of chemical weapons against Ukrainian military.
07:30It's something the United States has publicly assessed before.
07:35Russia has denied using any chemical weapons in Ukraine and in turn has accused Kiev of
07:39using toxic agents in combat.
07:46Oil stains washed up for tens of kilometers along the shore in Russia's southern Krasnodar
07:51that is according to the region's governor.
07:55He said 260 people were deployed to handle with the aftermath such as by cleaning the
07:59beach covered in black liquid.
08:02It came after a storm damaged two Russian oil tankers over the weekend, one of which
08:07broke in half and sunk.
08:10The submerged vessel was estimated to have spilled 3,700 tons of mazut into the sea,
08:16which is a low-quality heavy fuel oil.
08:19Last week, the European Union issued new sanctions against Russia and their so-called Shadow
08:24Fleet, which consists of oiled, uninsured tankers to circumvent Western restrictions.
08:30The European Union and the shipping industry previously expressed their concerns over Russia's
08:35use of the poorly maintained vessels as they pose significant environmental as well as
08:40safety threats.
08:47An overnight curfew has been put in place in Mayotte starting Tuesday evening, in the
08:52aftermath of Cyclone Chido.
08:55Dozens have died after the worst storm in nearly a century hit the French overseas territory
09:01in the Indian Ocean.
09:04Aid efforts continue as French military aircraft continue to deliver food and water daily.
09:11An airbase on the nearby Réunion Island is being used as a staging post for emergency
09:16relief supplies.
09:19Nearly 70% of Mayotte's population has been gravely affected, with entire neighbourhoods
09:24reduced to rubble.
09:26The island's main hospital remains severely damaged, and a field hospital is expected
09:31to arrive on Thursday.
09:34French President Emmanuel Macron has pledged to visit Mayotte soon and to declare a national
09:39mourning period.
09:47A landmark beer bar has opened in North Korea's capital of Pyongyang.
09:53This government-issued propaganda-style footage shows the massive Western-style establishment
09:58that was built in one of the city's new districts.
10:02Visitors can buy the country's trademark beer, Tae Dong Kang, which comes from a brewery
10:07the government purchased from England and reassembled in North Korea in 2002.
10:25While Pyongyang advertises a rich North Korean beer culture, it remains a drink reserved
10:31for the elite.
10:33Most of North Korea's largely rural population struggles daily with poverty and food insecurity.
10:40People must exchange food vouchers in order to buy beer, and most can't afford to sacrifice
10:45the small amount they can spend on food.
10:48Only in Pyongyang, men are exclusively given special beer vouchers.
10:52In the countryside, people must rely on low-quality home brews.
10:57Because of these limitations, high-end beer houses like this one will likely only be frequented
11:02by Pyongyang's elite and a small number of international tourists.
11:10An injured cave explorer in northern Italy was carried to safety on Wednesday, 75 hours
11:15after she fell while attempting to map an unexplored branch of the Buenofontano cave.
11:20Italian alpine rescuers strapped the 32-year-old Ottavia Piana into a stretcher that reached
11:26the cave's mouth in the early morning hours.
11:28It was her second time in 17 months to be rescued from the cave near Lago d'Eseo, northeast
11:34of Bergamo.
11:35Piana suffered multiple fractures when she fell 5 meters.
11:39Nearly 160 technicians from 13 Italian regions assisted the rescue.