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00:00Austria's president gave far-right Freedom Party leader Herbert Kicill the green light
00:06to attempt to form a new government.
00:11Germany is about to find out who governs next.
00:14One thing is sure, no one can rule alone.
00:21Three Israelis have been killed after gunmen opened fire on a bus in the West Bank on Monday.
00:35Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen gave the green light for far-right Freedom
00:39Party leader Herbert Kicill to attempt to form a new government.
00:44The two met in Vienna on Monday, a few days after Chancellor Karl Nehammer's ruling party
00:49failed to form a coalition.
01:07Several hundred protesters gathered outside the Austrian president's office to demonstrate
01:12against a possible far-right-led government.
01:29Kicill's FPÖ won the September election, but Nehammer's People's Party was initially
01:33given the mandate to govern, after other parties refused to govern with the FPÖ.
01:39After Nehammer's resignation, the People's Party signaled it could be open to working
01:44under Kicill.
01:46While talks between the two parties are not guaranteed to succeed, there are no viable
01:50alternative coalition options in the current parliament.
01:57Since Germany's government alliance has collapsed, the country is heading for elections in a
02:01fragmented political landscape.
02:04The dynamics are shifting strongly, as support for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition of
02:08SPD, Greens and FDP declines.
02:11Polls show the CDU-CSU leading, with party-dominating voter preferences.
02:16The far-right AFD, which is now the second-largest opposition, continues to gain traction with
02:21Alice Wiedel as its Chancellor candidate.
02:24However, the AFD remains isolated, with mainstream parties refusing any coalition.
02:30On the left, Saar Wagenknecht's newly formed BSW is appealing to discontented voters, further
02:36splitting the political field, as her party already positioned ahead of the Liberal FDP
02:41in the European elections.
02:43Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck has also joined the race for Chancellor, but the Greens are
02:47struggling after the coalition's collapse.
02:51As elections near, no party approaches an absolute majority.
02:56Polls suggest the CDU-CSU is best positioned to lead a coalition, likely with the Greens
03:01or SPD, as the FDP risks falling below the 5% threshold needed to secure seats in the
03:07Bundestag.
03:10Water dissatisfaction with the current coalition has deepened amid economic and social challenges.
03:16And now, Germany's proportional system hints at prolonged negotiations to form a stable
03:21government.
03:27German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned Elon Musk's endorsement of Germany's far-right
03:31AFD party ahead of the country's upcoming elections.
03:35The crucial thing is that Mr. Musk has supported a right-wing extremist party in parts, and
03:43as you can see, not only here in Germany, but also in this direction, and that is something
03:48that we are not only not in agreement with, I reject that.
03:53Scholz has largely disregarded personal criticism from Musk.
03:57The Chancellor, however, is far more concerned with the U.S. billionaire's attempt at seemingly
04:02trying to get involved in the general election.
04:07Scholz also voiced his concern over the role social media algorithms play in shaping public
04:13opinion.
04:14We are used to the fact that rich media companies have a different opinion than the Social Democratic
04:19Party.
04:20That is nothing new.
04:21What is certainly new is the fact that algorithms are not sure how the opinion-building that
04:29is organized by the structures of these systems takes place.
04:33Musk repeatedly backed AFD both online as well as in German media.
04:38This previously led to election interference allegations made by government officials.
04:44The French farmers rallied against the Mercosur trade deal, staging protests near Paris and
04:51demanding better compensation.
04:53The second-largest farmers' union in France called on its members to demonstrate and go
04:57to Paris by car or tractor from all over the country.
05:02French police met the procession with roadblocks, causing significant delays as the tractor
05:06convoys aimed to converge on Paris.
05:09The union wants to obtain a guarantee from French Prime Minister François Beyrou in defence
05:13of the agricultural industry based on the protection of small farmers.
05:37French farmers argue the EU-Mercosur agreement is part of a broader trend threatening rural
05:42livelihoods in France.
05:45The agreement is a proposed free trade deal aimed at boosting economic ties and cooperation
05:49between the EU and South American countries.
05:52A main feature is the elimination or reduction on tariffs on a wide range of goods, including
05:57agricultural.
06:06Thousands of people have protested in Montenegro to demand the resignations of top security
06:11officials after 12 people were killed in a mass shooting on New Year's Day.
06:16Protesters staged dual rallies in the capital Podgorica and in the central town of Cetinje
06:21where the shooting happened.
06:23Many residents of Cetinje believe the police mishandled the situation and haven't done
06:28enough to boost security since the first massacre in August 2022.
06:41The shooting on New Year's Day came after a bar brawl.
06:56A 45-year-old man went home to get his gun before returning to the bar and opening fire.
07:02He killed four people there and eight others at various locations before killing himself.
07:07The massacre has raised questions about the readiness of state institutions to tackle
07:12the problems, including gun ownership.
07:15Police have said the shooting was impossible to predict, though the gunman identified as
07:19Arko Martinovich had been convicted for violent behavior and illegal weapons possession.
07:25Authorities swiftly announced a new strict gun law and other tough measures to curb illegal
07:30weapons.
07:31On Sunday, police said they raided several locations in the country and confiscated around
07:3620 weapons, more than 500 rounds of ammunition and explosives.
07:41Prime Minister Miloš Košpajic promised draconian punishment for anyone who violates the new
07:46law.
07:53At least three people were killed and seven injured in a shooting on a bus carrying Israelis
07:58in the occupied West Bank on Monday, officials said.
08:03Rescue services said two women in their 60s and a man in his 40s were killed.
08:10Hamas praised the attack in a statement but did not claim responsibility for it.
08:17Violence has surged in the West Bank since Hamas' October 7th attack on Gaza.
08:21The Palestinian Health Ministry says at least 838 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli
08:27fire in the West Bank since the start of the war.
08:32Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed revenge against the attackers and
08:36anyone who assisted them, adding that, quote, no one will be spared.
08:47At least 32 dolphins have died since oil spilled out of two stricken tankers three weeks ago
08:53in the Kerch Strait.
08:55The waterway separates the occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia's southern Krasnodar
09:00region.
09:01Russia's Delfa Dolphin Rescue and Research Center said the deaths are most likely related
09:05to the fuel oil spill.
09:07Two Russian oil tankers were badly damaged in a storm in the Kerch Strait in mid-December
09:12with one vessel breaking in two.
09:15State media reported that both tankers were carrying around 62,000 barrels of oil products
09:20in total.
09:21In late December, officials said more than 3,300 tons of low-grade fuel had been spilled
09:27into the strait.
09:29Officials in Crimea declared a regional emergency on Saturday after oil was detected on the
09:33shores of Sevastopol.
09:35That came a week after a similar declaration was made in Russia's southern Krasnodar region
09:40after fuel oil began washing up there.
09:47Monday marks the fourth anniversary of the 6th of January attack on the U.S. Capitol.
09:53Hundreds of Donald Trump supporters breached the building in a bid to stop lawmakers certifying
09:58the results of the 2020 election which saw Joe Biden win the presidency.
10:03And as lawmakers meet to repeat the process, opinion is split among Republicans over Trump's
10:08pledge to pardon all those jailed for their involvement.
10:12Trump said he would issue pardons to rioters on day one of his presidency, which begins
10:16on the 20th of January.
10:18Most likely, I'll do it very quickly, he said on NBC's Meet the Press.
10:23More than 1,250 people pleaded guilty or have been convicted after trials in connection
10:29with the 6th of January, with more than 650 receiving prison time ranging from a few days
10:35to 22 years.
10:37Some Republicans, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, are in favor of sweeping pardons for all those
10:42convicted.
10:43I think they've served their time and I think they should all be pardoned and released from
10:47prison, she said.
10:49Others believe it's more appropriate for Trump to look at pardons on a case-by-case basis.
10:55Veteran Republican Gus Bilirakis wasn't prepared to sanction sweeping pardons.
11:00You've got to look at it individually, some probably deserve to be pardoned, he said.
11:06But police officers who defended the Capitol are particularly incensed about the possible
11:11pardons.
11:12Many officers were beaten, some with their own weapons as they tried to hold back the
11:16mob.
11:17About 140 officers were injured in the violence, making it what one attorney called likely
11:22the largest single-day mass assault of law enforcement in American history.
11:28House Democrats, who conducted an investigation into the attack, warned that the pardons could
11:32have far-reaching consequences.
11:35And Republican Bennie Thompson, who led the House committee that investigated the riots,
11:40said in his report that Trump lit the fire for the insurrection.
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