>> hello and welcome. this is the journal. >> ahead in the next hour -- >> the man accused of gang raping and killing the woman in new delhi have been formally charged in court. unemployment creeping up in germany but officials say the labor market is still proving to be robust. >> in the wake of the newton massacre, americans are buying more guns. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

>> in india, five men have been charged with the gang rape and murder of a woman. police are investigating if a sixth suspect is believed to be a minor. >> they are accused of beating and a gang raping a woman who later died in the hospital. the police have described the attack as well planned. it has sparked angry protests across the country. >> protesters observing another did candlelight vigils for the 23-year-old victim. the level of shot dead and an anchor is intense calling for them to face the death penalty. this woman says it should be a very severe punishments about all the men of india should be aware they will not treat women the way they treated her. the suspects including this man

are accused of raping and torturing the victim for nearly one hour in a moving bus. according to testimony, the bus driver also attempted to run your rover. the sixth alleged attackers thought to be 17-year-old and will likely be prosecuted in juvenile court. they have not reveal the victim's identity. >> the name of the girl had been blurred out so it was kept in secret. in a sign of changing attitudes, politicians from the state have been detected on suspicion of raping a woman. in the and television broadcasting images of being attacked and they were taken into custody. >> we spoke earlier to a guardian correspondent and began by asking how people feel about the official response to the case.

>> the official response, they feel, is very late. there's a lot of anger in the government, the elected government in delhi, and more broadly, a long-running sect against the political elite, who people increasingly feel that they are not responsive to their needs or demands to l.a. their fears. >> do think it's likely this will change the way something about how they are treated in india? >> one journalist and spoke to earlier said this is 3 weeks of outrage against 1000 years of tradition. you're looking at a major, unprecedented debate on sexual violence that has largely been ignored for many decades.

that is an important step forward but it cannot be translated into certain measures, harsh penalties, a degree of awareness but really you deep-seated, misogynist dick cultural attitudes particularly in the rural areas. >> syrian rebels and government forces are battling for control of strategic airports in the northwest. there were crashes around the international airport of aleppo and video is said to be showing around the air force. the cautious are also taking place in damascus near to the lebanese border. they have warned that syria is running the risk of partition.

>> a suicide bomber has killed 20 shia pilgrim is in iraq. it took place about 20 kilometers south of the capital in baghdad. they were returning from the religious festival. it marks the anniversary of the death of one of the shia saints. >> u.s. president barack obama has signed the congressional deal on the fiscal cliff. it will delay cuts on spending for another two months. ratings agency moody's is not impressed with the measures saying they will downgrade the u.s. from its aaa credit rating if lawmakers do not do more to tackle the american debt problems. the deficit has topped $1 trillion or the past four years.

our frankfurt correspondent has more to say on the warning and the way that the senate and house are handling things. >> the warning was heard here in frankfurt as was heard in financial markets around the world. the people sharing the criticism that they criticize the kind of crisis management, debt management, that is being displayed in washington and people are worried about the high mountain of debt. people worrying that the united states will come to a good resolved in negotiations. yet, even if they downgrade the united states as the second rating agency that would do so, it would not have the same kind of tsunami affect as the first downgrading by standard and poor's in the summer of 2011. despite all problems, the united states is still being seen as a safe investment. the market share is treading

water rafter that enormous price rise on the day's first trade of the year. >> treading water and it barely makes it for the markets in europe with a lot of profit- taking going on out of those big gains the day before after they cheered on the deal in the u.s.. the selling was widely expected. dax close to 8000 than it is now down about 0.3%. over to new york where the dow jones is down just slightly. the euro trading down as well. $1.3338. one crucial factor remains fairly strong, the labor market. the picture is mixed. >> germany and the with more people working than ever before, but more people are also looking for a job. figures showing unemployment

rose slightly for the ninth month in a row. >> the line's growing in the final months of 2012. many companies are feeling the heat from the eurozone debt crisis and are choosing to cut their work forces instead of taking on new staff. in december, a total of 2.8 million people were unemployed in germany. that was 88,000 more than in november pushing the unemployment rate up to 6.7%. 2012 was a good year for the german labour market. on average, 3 million people were out of a job and the lowest number since reunification. experts say the markets will remain stable throughout 2013. >> if we take the economic data as a basis and we try to predict what could happen in 2013, then we see, on average, are round

2.9 million people will be unemployed. as far as employment is concerned. high numbers are michael -- are likely to remain. >> that is good news for the economy. despite growth grinding to a halt, the german labor market looks to be weathering the storm. >> return to our political correspondent, terry martin. thank you for joining us. there has been a slight spike in employment, something germans need to worry about? what's the latest the statistics offer no reason to be concerned. the jobless number rose less than many had predicted in the overall unemployment rate is hovering below 7%. that is good as far as germany is concerned. compared to many of the german neighbors, that is excellent, but the statistics do not tell the whole picture.

many of the jobs that have been created are very poorly paid and virtually no job security. in qualitative terms, everything looks fine. >> how do today's mixed figures tie in with chancellor merkel's new year's speech. she had a very somber note there in economic prospects in terms of how she looks up the job? >> her new year's address did it knowledge that germany and had great labor market performance in 2012 but pointing out there could be tougher times ahead. she says the economic environment will becoming more difficult and that the crisis is not behind us. she knows germany of looking at 0.4% growth in 2014 according to bundesbank. >> terry martin, thanks. >> before the days of discount

airlines come much people travel by the freedom of open road often became truckdrivers. >> there's a real shortage of qualified truckdrivers. job-seekers are moving towards more highly skilled jobs. the truck driver jobs are going unfilled. >> he could almost do his job blindfolded, if he were not a truck driver. be as were the four years now for a construction materials company. his truck is outfitted with a gear that allows him to lift a massive loads effortlessly and prepare them for a bumpy ride. >> we have to make sure that everything is secured and that nothing can slip or slide. the equipment has to be checked regularly and be safe. >> there are about 800,000 truck drivers in germany, but they are

getting old and one-third are set to retire in the next decade so drivers are becoming scarce. that is visible to this manager who interviews candidates. >> new truckdrivers are very expensive unless we train them ourselves. they know they're worth more. the look at how the markets are developing. we certainly noticed that pay is on the rise. >> the training academy as try to get smaller academies have them go through extensive courses, but despite the subsidies, it costs about 305,000 euro. they have to know there be a go inside and out. >> of something breaks down on the road, you have to be able to fix it. >> the job has lost a lot of its

original appeal. >> things are slowly changing. many companies are now taking measures to make it look more attractive. pay is the first issue and then working conditions in general and then the amount of physical exertion required on a daily basis. >> he will turn up at the in two years. that means he will have to pass a physical to keep working. his original plan was to do something else. >> when i look back at what driving has given me, i think i will just keep working until i retire, a 10-12 more years. >> he knows what it is like to be king of the road.

jogger driver still need to be convinced. >> now for a look at some of the other stories making news. >> unemployment in spain falling for the first time in five months. jobless numbers increased by nearly 60,000 in december, but the overall rate remaining high at about 25% of the labor force. >> a memorial service is being held for former defense minister who died shortly before christmas. family, friends, and politicians a share due to his willingness to address the uncomfortable truth. he died at the age of 69 after a heart attack. >> u.s. drone strikes have killed at least 10 people in pakistan in the lawless southern region. reports say a prominent were lowered is among the dead.

the militants are set to have ties to the taliban and target international troops. >> they with us here on dw. have more coming your way.

well >> combat. it is back to school for students attending sandy hook elementary in connecticut. it is the first day back since the shooter killed 20 students and six adults. that move to a neighboring school and this has sparked a heated national debate on gun control. >> despite a push for lotus addition, sales of firearms are booming. some fear this will cause issues. >> that is an increase over november.

>> the school where they are heading is a few kilometers away. they're doing what they can to make life seem normal in the new building while they continue their investigation in the old school. parents are allowed to attend class with their children and they have been monitoring the temporary school building closely. they now say it is the safest in america. >> we have installed numerous different security devices and we will maintain our presence until further notice. >> some have advocated allowing teachers to carry concealed weapons. in the state of utah, hundreds showed up for training sessions. >> i think they may hit them on purpose because they are easy targets. if they knew they were prepared, they would be less likely to go in >> they say a rise in gun

sales following the attack reflects the fear that they will ban on the sale of certain weapons. >> the biggest reinsurance groups as the united states burned the branch of the national disasters. >> insured losses is 20 200 billion euro and it was down slightly from the previous year. there were fewer deaths caused by natural disasters. the annual average has been $106,000. >> they say if super storms and the have not struck it would have been a safe year, for the united states at least. >> when hurricane sandy tore through the eastern seaboard in october, it killed more than 200 people. for weeks, people went without electricity and water.

the damages were estimated at about 38 billion euro. that met sandy accounted for about one-third of the worldwide economic damage. in 2012, a record drought hitting farms in the american midwest. they accounted for damages of more than 15 billion euro. natural disasters hit the u.s. harder than any other country in 2012. the biggest hit was from an earthquake in italy in damages exceeded 12 billion euro. devastation causing devastation and tornadoes in the u.s. left quite the cleanup bill. in human terms, the more than 1000 people who died during the typhoon in indonesia made it the worst event of 2012. >> as part of our special series on stories that will dominate the news, we'll look at sovereign debt.

united states has stepped away from their fiscal cliff, but the basic problem has not gone away. >> in europe and japan also, and the immediate sense of crisis has eased on both sides of the atlantic, the long-term challenges are daunting, especially when you combine debt and an aging society. >> the united states stumbles from one edge of the cliff to the next. paying off japan's debt would take 2.5 years of every single person worked for nothing and the eu is struggling to stop the barring of member states from breaking up the eurozone. camera worldwide in answer to its sovereign debt problems in 2013? it has become common to see leaders burning the midnight oil at crisis meetings and exhausted politicians at the summits. southern europeans are now

accustomed to gloomy economic headlines like these in portugal. there are signs that the crisis could drop out of the front pages in 2013. the risk that a member of the eurozone will default seems to have dissipated, for now. in october, finance ministers launched a permanent bailout fund. if the money runs out, the european central bank can buy up on limited quantities of government bonds, even if it means printing money. it has calmed the market's in members no longer have to worry they will suddenly find themselves unable to service their debts. experts are optimistic about the single currency future. >> in all likelihood, the euro will survive the year ahead, even if difficulties persist. >> despite the fire fighting, the root cause of the crisis still has not been dealt with.

the debt card continues to take. in europe, japan, the united states, and other industrialized nations. it has revealed an underlying problem. states around the world have borrowed much more than they can afford. globally, the figures are sobering. government debt has ballooned to over 100% of gdp. in japan, 250% and in the eurozone, more than 90% of gdp. they believe an 80% debt to gdp ratio is manageable. larger nations also have the same. how will the world economy grow when everyone is cutting back? as greece shows, the cuts can touch -- push back. >> these are countries where consumer debt is too high and would take a long time to return

to growth. it will remain below past levels for many years to come. >> on top of that, many highly indebted nations are also rapidly aging nations. >> the demographics are clearly closely tied to finances. it has to do with the fact that fewer and fewer are around to shoulder the nation's debts. there's also the issue of how to adapt the infrastructure for a declining population. >> that means the debt crisis could return in a new guise. if they print too much money, it could cause inflation and wipe out elderly's savings. that is a potential long-term scenario. the eurozone fire fighters are likely to get a break from putting out financial flareups,

but a long-term solution is now required to permanently deal with the developed world's dependence on debt. >> many of us spend a lot of time every day sitting behind computers and we would not get very far without one of these. >> it helps us that it the complexities of computers and the internet. one thing you might know is the first mechanical version came out in the 1960's. >> as the 1980's, billions of them have rolled across the world. in the era of the smartphone, have they had their day? >> they graced the desks of hundreds of millions of computer users, but now they could be facing extinction. the trusty mao's first saw the light of day at the stanford research as the two in california.

it was an instant hit in high- tech computer labs before heading home across the world. consumers have been clicking these buttons for 30 years. they made operating a computer child's play. anyone could do it. we used our hands movement to direct an on-screen cursor. experts hailed this as the best way of getting things done on a pc. they were not always treated well, especially in the early years. just a little speck of dust would see them grinding to we holt. -- to a halt. those days are long forgotten. today's mouse is a very different beast meeting any challenge to throw out it. it no longer needs a tail and it is guided by lasers. it can come in different shapes and sizes.

it has never quite managed to be sexy. >> why does not have what it takes to become a status symbol? i did it belongs at home by the pc. it cannot be taken out and paraded around for everyone to see. >> there is still plenty of scope for novelty value. they bring color and excitement into the dull life at the office. treat them well, and they will take you wherever you want to go in the digital world. new products such as digital pens, touch screens, and facial recognition technology are gaining in popularity and invading the mouse's natural habitat. that means its days on the desktop could be numbered, destined to be consigned to the

dustbin of technology forever. >> just briefly to an interesting political-financial story. gerard depardieu has been granted russian citizenship by the kremlin. >> the actor said he was also prepared to seek tax exile elsewhere. the french government is planning to impose a tariff of 75% on the richest citizens. their top rate is 13% in russia. >> thank you for joining us on dw. we will be back soon. >> more news at the top of the hour.