>> hello and welcome to dw's "journal." >> our headlines for you this hour. >> a landmark trial is adjourned here in germany today. beata is accused of 10 racially- motivated murders. her trial continues next week. >> tito wester well -- we do wester well is -- guido westerwelle pledges to do more to fight anti-semitism. >> abba now has their own

museum. it is described as one of the most important criminal trials in postwar, german history. dirty four-year-old beate zschaepe is facing 10 counts of murder -- 34-year-old beate zschaepe is facing 10 counts of murder. >> most of the victims were of ethnic turkish background. in addition to carrying out murders across the country, the group allegedly set bombs and can -- and committed bank robberies. german law enforcement agencies have come under heavy criticism for failing to link the crimes. opening arguments did get underway on monday in munich, but the trial was adjourned until midway -- mid-may on procedural grounds. >> the main defendant displayed little emotion in court and turn her back to cameras as procedures got underway. prosecutors's will seek to prove

that she is -- prosecutors will seek to prove that she is complicit in the murder of 10 people -- murders of 10 people as a member of a far right terrorist cell. beata says she will not testify. four a leaded accomplices -- four alleged accomplices are facing charges. within a few hours, the trial was adjourned until may 14. defense attorneys hae requested a new judge, alleging the current one is biased. the lawyers representing the victims' families criticize the tactic. >> it is what we suspected number rather than getting on with the trial and at least reading out the indictments, the defense defense is creating a smokescreen out of procedural issues. >> zschaepe's defense come -- complained they were forced to undergo searches before and -- before entering the courtroom while the process -- prosecution was spared the procedure.

turkish officials were on hand, along with family members of the victims. >> i hope the trial runs smoothly. i firmly believe in the german justice system. i don't think i will be disappointed. >> outside the court, antiracism demonstrators mounted rockets protests amid -- raucous protests amid heightened security. >> we go to our correspondent at the courthouse. tell us more about why the trial has been adjourned today and how surprising is this long delay? >> this comes as a huge surprise. the presiding judge, man fred got so -- the presiding judge, manfred -- mandred gotzl, says he does not have to give a reason. both teams want to see him replaced.

they think he is biased. the team of ralf wohlleben want to see -- replaced. they want to see them adjourned. the courtroom that is being used -- that is when the presiding judge took the decision to adjourn. to the great surprise of the defense team, to whom this probably would have been good news at this point. >> how did the families of the victims react to this? >> one of the lawyers representing them said that this is nothing short of a slap in the face for the victims. this is the second time many of them have built up the courage to come here after the trial was initially pressed poland -- initially postponed almost two and a half weeks ago. new all they have seen -- now all they have seen is motions being filed and not really

being decided on. now this long delay again. it means they have to reschedule their lives once again. they are still a far way off from getting any answers to the many questions that they have here >> for most of the day -- they have. >> for most of the day, the court was in session. what have your impressions been? >> what really stuck out was the other zschaepe, the main defendant here -- was the other zschaepe -- was beta zschaepe -- was beata zschaepe, the main defendant here, appeared as an ordinary woman in court. prosecutors said this is exactly the woman they saw one and a half years ago, a young, self- confident woman with a sense of purpose. this cannot have been an easy day for the victims' relatives in court today. >> thank you very much. >> and we will have more on that trial coming up later. in other news, german foreign minister guido westerwelle has

said the european union needs better legal means to fight racism in its 27 never states. >> he was -- in its 27 member states. >> he spoke at an annual meeting in budapest to highlight growing anti-semitism in the country. >> germany's top diplomat travel to budapest to make a clear statement against rising anti- semitism in hungary, and he was outspoken. >> anti-semitism has no place neither in berlin nor in budapest, nor anywhere else in europe or in the world. [applause] it is our common worldview. and it is what we have to protect. >> attendees warmly welcomed his speech. growing and is is is him --

growing anti-semitism came up in a speech with the prime minister earlier in the day. >> anti-semitism is on the rise in europe as well. the economic crisis has rattled europe, and a lack of success by european governor -- government leaders in managing the issues is causing profound frustration. >> organizers had hoped he would single out recent anti- semitic incidents and denounce the perpetrators. the most recent was saturday, when supporters of the far right jobbik party shouted anti- jewish slogans in the capital. the straw the -- the party is the strongest -- the third strongest political force in the country. the international jewish congress has criticize the government for not distancing itself from the far right fringe. >> police in germany have arrested a 93-year-old man believed to have been a prison guard at auschwitz.

he was arrested at his home. he is being accused of involvement in mass killings of the nazi death camp. he was deported from the u.s. in 1983 for lying about his nazi past. he admits to working it -- at out with -- at auschwitz between 1941 and 1945, but he says as a cook, not a guard. russia fears the fighting in syria could now escalate following a series of air strikes by israel. moscow called the attacks a source of particular alarm. about 15 syrian soldiers are said to have been killed in the air raids near damascus. >> those at israeli sources are saying it was targeted at hezbollah. >> israel is on high alert. security is being beefed up at military posts on the border with syria. 10 kilometers from the border is -- from the border, israel

has rocket defense systems in place to guard against possible attacks from its neighbor. a routine procedure, says the israeli army. late on saturday night, israeli jets apparently attacked several sites near damascus. syria says the target was a military research center. state television broadcast these pictures. the syrian government described the action as a declaration of war and threatened to retaliate. >> the government will use all means possible to protect our homeland, our state, and our citizens against any internal or external aggression. >> israel has not confirmed that it hit the syrian research facility, but the government in jerusalem has stressed the country's right defend itself against syria arming lebanon- based hezbollah militants. there is international concern

that the situation could escalate. am i have not condemned what israel has done in relation to syria in the past -- >> i have not condemned what israel has done in relation to syria in the past. we need official confirmation before i go any further. >> israel continues to stay mute. prime minister benjamin netanyahu, currently on a visit to china, has not commented on the strikes. >> to spain now, where unemployment dropped slightly in april, largely down to business is taking on staff as they prepare for the busy holiday season. >> at the general situation in spain remains worrying. more than one in four people there are without a job, and analysts to not expect much of an improvement until next year at the very earliest -- analysts do not expect much of an improvement until next year at the very earliest periods -- earliest. >> restaurants and hotels like this one are gearing up for the

summer holidays, taking on more staff. a big factor in april's figures, showing a fall in unemployment. outside the tourist industry,pi. or people were out of work in april than the same time last year -- more people were out of work in april than the same time last year. >> i don't think i will find work as a social worker because more cuts are being made in the sector. >> i will do what everybody does -- work under the table. it is not a good thing to say, but it is the only option we have -- the only one. >> analysts are forecasting the economy will begin to pick up next year with unemployment starting to drop. funny seven percent of spaniards are currently out of work, a record -- 27% of spaniards are currently out of work, a record high. >> on to monday's market action now. european shares ended the session slightly lower, but still hovering near the five-

year highs they hit last week. our correspondent sent us this summary of the day's trading from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> only three points were missing for the german stock index, dax, to reach another all-time high. investors were not courageous enough. this has to do with the fact that, this week alone, eight dax companies will present their quarterly earnings reports, and not all of this new six -- news is expected to be positive. this makes it unclear whether the market will come -- climb further up words in the course of this trading week. in the -- linde managed to beat analyst expectations with its earning report -- earnings report. the demand for the stock was very high. linde's shares ended today as the biggest dax gainer, adding 3%. >> we will stay in frankfurt

for a closer look at monday's numbers. the dax finished down just very slightly at 8112 points. the euro stoxx down. across the atlantic, on wall street, the dow is up to 14,978 points. the euro is a bit weaker against the greenback. >> the european newspaper congress has kicked off in vienna, and it is the largest meeting of its kind in the world. on for discussion are topics such as ethics and freedom of speech. am a delegates to the will also be talking about the growing -- >> delegates to the conference will also be talking about the growing consumption of online news and what it means for the future of traditional media. >> last december, the final print edition of the final -- financial times germany went to press. 300 workers lost their jobs.

the publication never made a profit. a glance at the circulation figures suggests it will only be a matter of time before another german paper is forced to close -- to close its doors. in the past that it alone, a total -- the total circulation of germany's newspapers has fallen by 25%. technology has changed readership habits. helped by smartphones, tablet pc pc's, and desktop computers, many people have replaced their daily paper with online content. in the digital world, much of the news they would otherwise have to pay for comes for free. over the past 12 months, visits to online media have risen by 10%. many newspaper publishers are now trying to cash in on their internet presence. one group is already providing its web content in video format. and it soon plans to charge

tablet and smart phone users to access it. >> we will be back after a short break with more on the neo-nazi trial in germany. >> also, some sporting headlines, some bundesliga soccer, and some ice hockey. stay with us.

>> welcome back. returning to our top story, the trial has opened in munich of the surviving member of a neo- nazi show -- cell, beate zschaepe, in connection with a series of racist murders. >> the cell went undetected for more than 10 years, largely because police failed to consider the possibility that the killings could be racially motivated. >> instead, they chose to focus their investigations on the families of the victims -- something which still causes resentment. >> her father was killed when she was 14.

he was one of the victims of the neo-nazi terrorist cell. but investigators did not seriously consider it a motive. in said, they suspected the culprit -- instead, they suspected the culprit came from the family. >> they bombarded my mother over and over again with the same questions about my parent'' marriage. it was not good, was it? did your husband have a mistress? is it true he had a mistress and she was pregnant? did you have a sex life? it was unbearable for us. we were the suspects. they considered my father a shady care there. and, to be honest -- shady character. and, to be honest, we began to have our doubts. >> she has written a book about the murder and about racism in germany. the families of other nsu

victims have also broken their silence. at a state memorial service in germany last year, some spoke out. >> i was born in this country, grew up here, was rooted here, and i never thought much about integration, but now i'm standing here worried to death not only of my father, and i am tormented by the question, am i at home in germany? >> in the wake of the official blunders, chancellor angela merkel offered the families her full support. >> as chancellor of germany, i give you my promise that we are doing everything in our power to shed light on the murders, to track down accomplices and instigators, and to make sure all the culprits will be duly punished. >> the families will be watching closely to see if that promise is fulfilled. the trial will no doubt be a very painfu time for them, and

it may take up to two years for a verdict to be delivered. >> the pictures of beate zschaepe have gone around the world. prosecutors described her as the country's most dangerous neo-nazi. >> in our next report, we take a closer look at her background and ask one analyst what he has been able to find out about how she became radicalized. >> yeah the zschaepe -- beate zschaepe recorded by a police camera after her arrest. she is now 38. she grew up in east germany. when the communist state collapsed more than two decades ago, her life to send it into hatred. after the political system fell apart, many young people found their lives in disarray. or zschaepe, her usual -- for zschaepe, her youthful frustration became -- that is the opinion of one expert. he theorizes the motivations

behind the nsu, how they turned to hate to give their lives meaning and direction. especially hatred for foreigners. >> and that meant an ideology him and not see ideology, racist ideology -- ideology, not see -- nazi ideology, racist ideology. they were driven by rage. >> zschaepe met her co- conspirators in the mid-1990's. they became inseparable. sometimes, they were just friends. other times lovers. but they were mostly bound by a right-wing ideology. their role models came from the time of the nazis. the auto zschaepe -- beate zschaepe was more than a passive follower of the movement. >> she was an active member. as a member of this trio.

>> the three wanted more than just talk. they wanted action. in 1998, police raided a rogers -- garages zschaepe and boenhardt had rented. inside, they found explosives and nazi propaganda. the three soon went underground and began a 13-year spree of violence. the group is accused of murdering 10 people in germany, most of them of turkish origin. prosecutors's say the 3 -- prosecutors say the three formed the killing unit. they say zschaepe was responsible for the murders, even if she was not actually present during any of them. beta zschaepe says -- beate zschaepe says she will remain silent during the trial. >> one of italy's best-known

politicians has died. more on that in a moment. >> first, a look at some of the other news around the world. >> the un has distanced itself from an investigator's claims that syrian rebels have used chemical weapons in the country possible war. a member of a un inquiry commission, carla del ponte th, says there is evidence the rebels have used terror and asked -- have used sarin gas. >> the taliban has claimed responsibility for the bombing that killed at least 16 people pakistan.aign rally in northwes- the rally was being held for an islamist party normally seen as a taliban ally pali -- ally. there has been a wave of violence ahead of national elections in june. >> india and china have resolved a three-week standoff over their common border in the himalayan mountains. the crisis began in mid-april when delhi accused chinese

soldiers of infiltrating indian territory. the two states sought a brief war over the region -- fought every four in the region in 1992 -- the two states fought a brief war over the region in 1992. former italian prime minister julia andreotti has died at age 94. known as a pragmatist -- giulio andreotti has died at age 94. known as a pragmatist, he remained a prominent figure in italian politics for over 60 years. >> he spent years fighting criminal charges pressed against him. >> giulio andreotti was one of postwar italy's most powerful men. he helped write the postwar constitution, was elected to parliament in 1948, and stayed there for the next 60 years. andreotti served as a government minister for the christian democrats 21 times.

he was elected italian prime minister seven times. a wily lyrical centrist, he maintained strong ties to the catholic church. he once said a man can learn politics from watching the pope. under andreotti's leadership, relations between italy and germany remained cool. german chancellor helmut kohl failed to get andreotti's support for german reunification. he said dryly, i like germany so much i prefer two of them. he was a christian democrats, but also build coalitions with communists. for years, he fought criminal prosecution. in 2002, a court sentenced andreotti to 24 years in prison for having a journalist killed who accused him of having ties to the mafia. andreotti appealed the decision and never served time, but the court did find mafia links, permanently blemishing his reputation.

observers agree that he has taken many secrets to the grave. >> bayern munich's embattled club president will keep his post at the head of germany's top football club for now. he is being investigated for tax evasion and could face jail time. >> bayern munich's board of directors decided to reject his offer to resign. they said the club needs to focus on winning the champions league final later this month instead. two ice hockey now. the german national team has hit a bit of a rut -- to ice hockey now. the german national team has hit a bit of a rough patch with a loss against slovakia. it was the third defeat in a row for the german team. slovakia rallied late in the contest. now the germans will have to fight to prevent relegation

when they face off against austria on wednesday. together, they are abba -- sweden's biggest ever pop export. the 1970's and 1980's are pretty much unthinkable without abba's songs. >> now there will be an abba museum. >> these lucky fans got a sneak peek at the world's first abba museum a day before the grand opening. the exhibition allows people to get up close and personal with sweden's legendary disco group. a highlight that enthusiasts can get -- a highlight -- enthusiasts can get up on stage and sing with sweden's most successful band. ♪ >> i would like to say it is --

thank you for the music. >> whether you want a cbr and -- want to see bjorn's guitar or check out costumes, it is full of abba memorabilia. this fan says it is almost too much. >> i am a boy in a candy shop. >> in the abba museum, the spotlight will always shine on sweden's foremost successful pop stars -- four most successful pop stars. >> you are watching the "journal" on dw. don't go away.