>> welcome to al-jazeera. syria gives the okay for inspectors to look at the site of the chemical weapon attacks. and firefighters working firefighters out west and by i don't go -- biographer salinger says there could be new unpublished works on the way. ♪ [ audio garbled ] >> syria has okayed u.n. inspectors to visit the site of

the alleged chemical weapons site. they agreed to a temporary ceae fire so the inspectors can investigate the attack. do we expect anything to be resolved on this soon? >> there is a lot going on in both directions but essentially the syrians had no choice in this. [ audio garbled ] >> insisting everyone go -- everyone be allowed to inspect the site of attacks. there was a lot of foot-dragging

by the syrians exacerbated by no one to be able to tell who did what as attacks were ongoing. we have an organization called doctors without borders who have been there the last several days and they say there is clearly evidence of chemical attacks -- [ audio garbled ] >> david, proving there was a chemical weapons attack is one side of the equation. the other side of equation that there was no attack. is what you are hearing that the international community should react quickly? >> well, if there is any reaction, this will be escalating quickly.

if there is any response by the united states on the syrian government -- [ audio garbled ] >> is there concern or worry or fear here in lebanon and in syria? >> there is and everyone thinks cooler heads will likely prevail. inspectors will go in tomorrow and i guess there is a question mark should the attacks prove to be true, then there will be questions of the syrian government. >> you see the gas masks, the explosions, it appears there are two wars here being fought and

as well a public relations war? >> yes, public relations has been tricky for everybody involved since no one can go in on the ground to see the victims at the hospitals. no independent organization has been allowed in other than doctors without borders. they seem to think the cause of death was caused by chemical weapons without proof and being able to safely determine what was going on. >> david, thank you for that report. there is very little doubt chemical weapons were used by the syrian government against

civilians. today, defense secretary chuck hagle said the u.s. is poised to respond. >> first of all, we will ask the defense department for options for all contingencies. we have done that. we are prepared to exercise whatever option and means to deploy those options. >> police in india have arrested a man who attacked a journalist. on thursday, the 23-year-old woman was attacked in the garment district. the man was quickly arrested and

that has sparked several demonstrations. 55,000 firefighters are battling the yosemite fire blaze which is only 7% contained. right now, 45 homes and businesses are in the fire's path and now the hydroelectric reservoir and water power station is standing in the fire's path. those have both been shut down for safety reasons. we go live to melissa in california and the concerns about that water plant and the fire? >> reporter: absolutely. they are hoping to minimize the damage to yosemite national park. we also tried to get close to the park and were stopped by

police and firefighters trying to prevent the fire from crossing the road. it has jumped the road in one place however so that is one battle left. it is a very, very tough situation for the firefighters. >> the power plant supplies power for more than two million customers. what happens there in the meantime? >> well the power plant is down and it provides 15% of the power for the city of san francisco but what officials say is there will not be any blackouts in the city and they will purchase power from the market in the meantime. there was a concern about the water source to fight the fires

but they have been able to obtain more water and that is good news. >> melissa, can you see the fires where you are? >> well, up to three days ago, this place was essentially encircled by a ring of fire. the fire was everywhere. they continue to throw more resource at the fire and that is partly because of the emergency declarations by the city and the state to get resources there faster. i know 7% containment doesn't sound like a lot but we have been here for days and looking at 0 and 2% so this is good news in the big picture. >> hell liss is a chan, reporting live from yosemite,

thank you. nidal hassan will face the penalty phase of his trial on monday. he could be the first soldier to be executed by the military sips 1965. he is charged with the 2009 shooting spree against unarmed soldiers. and amidst growing sectarian tension in egypt, mubarak is back in court. and a lawsuit against donald trump alleging bad business. we have a report from the northwest coming up very soon after the break.

welcome back to al-jazeera, i'm del walters. former egyptian president mubarak appeared in court today facing charges for the deaths in the uprising in 2011. he was released from prison on thursday. he will be held under house arrest in a military facility. he has been in power for a decade after the sadat passing

in 1981. in january 2011, antigovernment protestors demanded his resignation in what became to be known as the arab spring. mubarak was convicted and sentenced to prison for his role in killing demonstrators in the riots. a retrial of the case began three months later. then last week, the state news organization said he would be released from prison but he remains under house arrest as we speak. jonathan betz joins us and there is relative egypt calm at this

hour? >> there is calm especially since the curfew has been extended by a couple of hours. we did not expect protests today. we frankly weren't knowing what to expect with the trial resumeing for mubarak today. the hearing was very brief and the big question here is what about morsi, former president and islamic leader. he was thrown from office seven years ago, is on location, not been charged and has not had

access to a lawyer. >> with everything going on in egypt in most recent days, does anybody believe these trials are -- okay, jonathan betz says he cannot hear us so we will check back with him a little later in the forecast. at least one person is dead, others injured after a bomb ripped through a military bus in yemen. the bus was said to be carrying aviation specialists. so far, no one has claimed responsibility for the attack. every year, woe workers and

friends post notes on the western wall so what happens to the old notes? today they are being cleared in preparation for the new rashash ana. the united nations world tourism organization is meeting in zimbabwe. officials from 60 countries are going to this tourist destination to advertise its appeal. the elephants and hippos in africa's fourth-largest river. a few days ago, the current leader was sworn in for his sixth term in office.

the tourism office hopes there will be civility. >> hopefully it will insure our stability. to manage our public transportation and encourage foreign visitors to come into our cities. visitors come from spain, australia and england. >> we just had a fantastic time. >> we have got a lot for the people and we have a lot we can give out. >> but government officials are still being portrayed unfairly. >> when you bring it into the current situation, it does not

represent africa today. they are coming because they are endorsing us. they wouldn't come if we weren't. >> but the number of people coming here have dropped. they are hoping to draw people back into tourism. >> the five bodies found in a grave in mexico city have now been identified. they are five of 12 people who were kidnapped from a mexican bar. a 13th body has been found but they don't know if it is related to the kidnapping. the abductions were linked to a dispute between gangs that controlled different parts of

the city and bars. new york's tourage has charged donald trump for trying to run a fake university. many of the participants paid up to $35,000 each on hopes of meeting donald trump but didn't. he is accused of violating fraud and environmental protection laws. some of the worst flooding on record in russia due to extreme weather conditions there that linger. and salinger's other works may be coming to a book store or

kindl near you. new works released even after his death.

syria is now agreeing to let the u.n. examine the site of the alleged chemical attacks. the u.n. inspections could begin as soon as tomorrow. fires continue to hamper california firefighters especially that near yosemite national park. firefighters are trying to protect a small group of giant sequoia trees that are some of

the oldest trees on the planet. and a claim that a series of salinger books are planned for release as soon as 2015. a small plane crashed 40 miles south of boston. firefighters spent hours hosing down the plane. they are now investigatingment it is believed the plane was taking off prior to the cash. they have not yet identified the victims. heavy rains in china this weekend from a typhoon caused riverbanks to overflow leaveing villagers trapped for hours. and the russian army is now

working to help flood-ravaged victims and mobilizing the army to shore up in anticipation of the coming weather next week. >> joining the ranks of some 30,000 emergency military and civilian forces boosting the defenses around the city. >> we are here to help our neighbors. >> there is a new sense of urgency here. floods that left people in water on sunday won't deliver their full force till next weekend. they hope to shore up the city in the meantime.

more than 5000 military and emergency men are being bussed into the city. there are more and more washed out roads, more apartments lost. this is worrying the people as they prepare for another seven days. >> 6000 kilometers from here, the kremlin is prioritizeing the defense of the city. president putin is expected here in the next few days. for those outside the city near the riverbank, the destruction is nearly complete. they will be set up in camps like these amid allegations that more could have been done in the first few days of the emergency and that the government

responded too late. the flooding has hit the entire area in the far east, 15,000 people homeless with more flooding expected to arrive. the rescue operation may now very quickly broaden its scope before it gets worse. >> too much rain there, too little rain in other places. here is jalelah ahmed with the weather. >> here in idaho where the pony and complex fire are now contained but unfortunately, radar is tracking another area of weather with winds 40 miles per hour which could perpetuate

those infernos, all way into the central portion of idaho and into oregon's cascades. there is moisture farther to the north but very little in the areas where they need it. even into oregon, the majority of the rain falling across portions of utah. across the southwest, we're going to see some wet weather in vegas as we track into today. also in the phoenix area, flagstaff and along i-17. as we continue to travel further to the east, central portions of

the southern panhandle and tracking a plume of moisture newer new orleans. now back to you. thank you very much. it is incop receivable that a son could finish writing his father's last novel. had he finished before his death, it would be his 46th novel. salinger died at 87 years of age after suffering from a stroke. and one of the great mysteries may soon be solved. we may now know what j.d. salinger was working on for the last 15 years of his life.

there will be at least five additional books to be released, possibly drawing on his world war ii experiences and interest in eastern russia. the last salinger novel was released in 1960, "the catcher in the rye". he died in 1981. the first lady was the 18th annual arthur ashe recipient of the award at the u.s. open for her efforts to get people physically involved. after doing push-ups with the

tonight show host, if she were to pick up a tennis racquet, she would probably be very good at that also. that is it for al-jazeera america. we will have more news at the top of the hour.