you are watching "the journal" on dw-tv. another four years, sepp blatter is nominated as head of fifa. is food making people sick? a deadly rise in the e coli bacteria. and opposition groups meet in turkey as the crack down at home continues.

there will be no change at the top level of the world's most popular sport. sepp blatter has been reelected as the head of fifa. he ran uncontested. the man who was running against him dropped out because of a bribery scandal. fifa is reeling from corruption allegations. >> in the end, there was no element at war revolt. sepp blatter was crowned as president of fifa for another four years and promised sweeping reforms. >> we will put the fifa and clear, transparent waters. we need some time to do it, but we will do it. >> to combat corruption, he vowed to overhaul the system

used to choose world composts. >> -- world cup posts. >> it will not be the committee that decides where the world cup is held. the entire committee will decide. that despite the reelection, trouble brews behind the scenes at fifa. allegations persist that qatar bought the world cup. joined now in the studio by are sortour soccer corresponded. is this good or bad for international soccer? >> he is a pulverized character. his credibility outside fifa a shaky at best. whether he has the credibility to push it home and changed fifa from the scandal the past few

days is debatable. >> why did fifa go to the trouble of having this ballot? there was nobody contesting to begin with. >> it is a bit of a figleaf. if you look at the actual ballot paper, there was only one box to check. there was some dissent, 17 votes against blatter, but too little, of little to no meaning. >> he has promised reforms. it is his reputation too badly damaged to push the reforms through? >> he has presided over, since 1998, a scandalous time in the organization's history. there have been allegations for years now, and it is beneath

them, and nobody believes, i don't think, he is the man to pull that out of the sand. even a couple days ago, he was questioning of this was a crisis. it he played it to the gallery today, said let's have reforms, but he is reluctant to open up fifa to outside scrutiny. >> thank you for coming in. in germany, more people are getting sick from e. coli bacteria. there has been a jump in the number of cases and a quarter of the people infected are said to be dangerously ill. the food poisoning bacteria has killed 15 people in germany and one person in sweden. officials still do not know where the bacteria entered the food supply, and that is drawing criticism. >> the smorgasbord of bread

toppings in this cafeteria is a bit meter these days. tomatoes and cucumbers are off the menu amid concern about the e coli bacteria outbreak. experts and officials said everything possible was being done to contain the outbreak. >> the investigation is under way at all levels and involves all federal responsibilities -- all federal authorities. the states are also doing their own aggressive investigations. >> experts still believe cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes are the most likely candidates. speculation that spanish produce was the source turned out to be false. madrid is threatening to sue german authorities for loss of income by farmers and exporters. >> many farms have been ruined by this crisis. we are seeking to restore their reputation and provide financial compensation. >> german laboratories are

testing thousands of food samples in hopes of identifying the source of the infection. as long as the mystery is unsolved, the one against eating cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes remains in place. a car bomb exploded outside of a hotel used by foreign diplomats in the libyan stronghold of bin zazi. there have been no reports of casualties. the powerful blast occurred in the parking lot of the hotel, destroying cars and damaging the building, also used by western journalists. no one has claimed responsibility for the attack. groups opposing the regime and syria are meeting and turkey. they dismissed an amnesty offer by the president, calling the attack of his security forces massacres. human rights activists say as many as 40 people were killed in overnight bombing raids by

soldiers in central syria. despite the crackdown, there have been more protests. >> these unverified images posted online showed the continuing protests. funeral mourners shouted anti- regime chants. thousands of protesters are in jail. now the syrian president has announced amnesty for the syrian prisoners. they say the amnesty is not enough in turkey. >> we don't know if he will be out. i cannot get any legal sense from that. things are very complicated. >> the opposition is trying to come up with a plan for a democratic syria. the gathering brings to bettetoa broad group.

they are keen to see the president step aside. >> it is time for the international community to ask the international criminal court to issue an order against the president. he is making these decisions. >> after weeks of violent crackdowns by the syrian government, the opposition will only be satisfied by a change of the regime, backed up by far reaching reforms. >> we will take an in-depth look at the situation in syria later in the show. the unrest in africa has sparked a flood of migrants heading into europe, arriving in at an italian island. under current european law, that means they have to stay in italy until a decision is reached on their fate, but the government in rome wants other european countries to help shoulder the burden. >> makeshift tent cities.

full of refugees from africa. they arrived on italian soil and under the convention they have to stay on italian soil. the european commission says that will needs to change. it says the current crisis shows migration as a matter for all e.u. member states. >> the convention is under question, and that is difficult to negotiate. >> there is resistance from the northern e.u. states like germany and belgium. they would rather give more money to build up border protection then take in more migrants. >> the principle that the country where the refugees are arrives should start the procedure and regulate what happens is correct. we should not question it. >> the debate on whether the refugees should stay in that country is just the beginning.

ultimately, the heads of the governments will have the last word. he was attentive and cooperative. that is how the had described the former serb army commander ratko mladic. he made his first appearance before the u.n. war crimes tribunal wednesday. the serbian government delivered a ratko mladic to the hague yesterday. he was arrested last year and serbia after more than 50 years in hiding. on friday, he is scheduled be formally charged with genocide and other crimes -- after 15 years in hiding. apeter is here to talk about another bailout of greece. >> they say could be the beginning of the end of the crisis. it looks like there will be a new bailout. the european union economic affairs administrator said there close to a rescue package to prevent greek from -- to prevent greece from defaulting on their debt.

there have been negotiating new loans they desperately need to stay solvent. the deal is expected to include more government spending cuts that have triggered angry protests in athens, as well as privatizing state of assets. greece is still close to bankruptcy despite the bailout from the e.u. and the imf last year. the chinese computer maker elnova - lenova is purchasing a german firm. they have been expanding its side of china at a speedy pace. >> this is where they want to grow, on the shelves of germany's big retailers. of the world's no. 4 computer maker has 7% share of the western european market, but in its 630 million bid to purchase the of the company, that share could grow substantially. the government is not expected

to oppose the deal, and it would not be the first time the chinese company has grown by taking over a foreign business. in 2005, lenovo bought ibm's personal computer organizations. this buyout would be the first time a chinese investor had bought out -- bought out a prominent company here. chinese investors were repeatedly considers as potential stakeholders. the same goes for car maker opel. but those deals came to nothing, either because the target was not attractive enough or the political hurdles to hide. at this time there are no such obstacles. >> shares surged wednesday. we have more from frankfurt. >> after bad economic data in the united states and the ongoing security crisis in the

greek debt crisis, it closed down 1%. at different picture with the median shares, up 20% after the chinese pc maker lenovo issued a takeover europe's per-share -- 30 euros per share. the takeover offer was well priced and well received. >> the market figures with the blue chips in frankfurt, the dax index, closing at 7217. the euro stoxx 50 lower. in new york, the dow industrials, 12,000 to 90. and the euro trading at $1.4321. belarus has asked the imf for a bailout loan. last week they officially

devalued their currency 36%. consumers are struggling to keep up with inflation. belarus has a huge deficit hampered by high energy prices from russian energy imports and that spending on the elections last year. the country's authoritarian president has so far rejected austerity measures of reform. the imf is expected to respond by june 14 perr. germany's protestant church congress has got underway in the city of dresden, with hundreds of thousands set to attend. participants will also discuss political issues and the future of nuclear power in germany. >> thousands gathered for the opening ceremonies along the banks of the river, a celebration of christian values and a place where religion was once frowned upon under communist rule.

the german president applauded the region's christian for keeping their faith. >> it is only possible because here interest and -- here in dresden and saxony questions persisted under the rules of the communist party. >> this banner reads, a "there your heart will be also." more than 300,000 visitors are expected. these pilgrims made the journey on bikes. they will spend five days of singing, prank, and taking part in the discussions. -- singing, praying, and taking part in the discussions. >> we have deep concern of a nuclear power in the aftermath of fukushima. >> the conference is offering more than 2000 offense. participants are a curse to

communicate, celebrate, and reflect. one of professional basketball players. as players, shaquille o'neal, will retire after 19 seasons. he won three consecutive titles alongside teammate kobe light -- kobe bryant. shaquille o'neal won a fourth ring with the miami heat. the miami heat are a game of the best of seven nba finals, beating the dallas mavericks 92- 85. thathe mavericks were leading at halftime. but miami turned up the heat in the home stretch. game 2, thursday night in miami. big juggernaut. >> stay with us. we will be back with the latest

on the situation in syria.

welcome back. in the arabs buring, syria is the flower of reform that has yet to bloom. the president continues to send his troops to crush demonstrations against the regime. more than 1000 people have reportedly died that this year in protest, hundreds arrested. independent reporting from syria is impossible because all foreign journalists have been kicked out. opposition groups are meeting this week in turkey. they did not have to fear for their lives there and and talk openly about how to reform -- how to bring reform to their home country. while they meet a broad, within syria, the notion of reform remains as distant as ever.

>> another peaceful protest in syria is brutally repressed by security forces. demonstrators are shot, beaten, and killed. in the absence of free media, such videos made by the protesters themselves are the only evidence of what the syrians are going through. but confirmed the authenticity is difficult, and reports are contradicted by the syrian government and its own media. syrian state television broadcasts its view as well, from reports of brutal demonstrators to extensive footage of dead soldiers. it shows detained opposition member is giving concessions. the government says the unrest is caused by foreign powers that want to destabilize the country. many syrians did not know which side to believe. opposition supporters are having difficulty telling their stories.

many have fled abroad. this person says his city is pure hell. two weeks ago he escaped to be rude, but he believed -- he escaped to be rude, but he believes that syrian intelligence agencies are there as well. >> they beat and tortured us at 10 days in jail. they arrested 4000 people, except for 500 people, everybody has been released again. the protests continue. >> mohamed said he smuggled these pictures out of syria. he wants everybody in the world to see that the people are being brutalized and tortured. the pictures and videos are the only way people can fight back against the government ' hold on information. -- the government's the stranglehold on information. >> we're trying to give this

material to the international media. one of bus was caught with a satellite phone. he was immediately sentenced to 1.5 years in jail. >> the government has clamped down on all means of communications, tapping telephone lines and censoring the internet. coordinating a common strategy is nearly impossible for the protesters, remain a loose confederation with no political strategy that is clear. every conversation could be deadly. nevertheless, last week this syrian writer decided to speak with the german television stations from an undisclosed location and syria, where he has been hiding for two months. >> i wanted to speak freely, and my duty is try to explain what

happened. you cannot do this in syria. >> he says he does not think his life is in danger. the well-known political activist rights for several newspapers and keeps a blog. he has already spent 16 years in jail. >> there will be hard times in front of our country. >> many syrians still admire and trust president. when he took over the presidency from his father 11 years ago, he promised reforms and not opening of the economy. his measures have brought prosperity to some serious. -- to some syrians.

religious organizations have been able to coexist. many fear all of this could change. though he has not kept his political promises, he has made a few concessions. he has ended a 40-year state of emergency. tuesday, he announced a general amnesty for the opposition. but the protesters on the streets have heard these promises before. it will continue to take to the streets and secretly up load videos in the hopes that eventually all syrians will change their view of the regime. >> i am joined by a journalist who has lived in syria. christine, thank you for joining us. bouar the group's -- who are the group's meeting right now and how close are they to the events on the ground in syria? >> it is a broad spectrum of the opposition, the muslim brotherhood, secular figures.

the problem is most of them, almost everybody there, lives in exile, which means that have left the country some years ago, some decades ago. this is the problem. they're trying to benefit the protest movement on the ground, and they are trying to be people that the international community could talk to. the opposition figures and side of syria say they do not want foreign interference, meaning even if they a finance conference. this is the biggest challenge for them, how to interact with the people on the ground. >> do you get the feeling there is any focus or unity in all of these protests we are saying? >> the demands of the people are very clear. they want more political participation, more freedom. many are asking to topple the regime.

but it is thousands here and there, not the majority of syrians taking to the streets. i doubt the majority of syrians right now want to see the president go because they are afraid of who would come next. they are afraid of chaos or civil war. the question is, is there a future for the president and syria? the opposition says there is no way for them to negotiate with the regime that has killed 1000 people lately and put a lot of people in jail, but other people are saying there needs to be some transitional time and maybe the president should be there. >> are there any signs of cracks appearing in the syrian regime? >> there are rumors of soldiers who have turned their backs on the army. in general, the army is very loyal to the political leadership. the army perceives itself more like an army that protect the leadership, and they're not only

struggling for the survival of the regime that their own personal survival. i don't think we have at this point major cracks. >> is there anything the international community could do, more than have already done, to stop the regime from pushing this crack down further? >> the u.s. and european countries are trying to get a resolution from the security council. it would depend on russia and china, whether they would put a veto on this. they could put sanctions against certain companies. i think general economic sanctions against syria would harm the people more than the regime. what i see as important is the role of the neighbors to have a lot of financial power. until now, these countries have stayed with the president. >> christine, thank you very much for talking with us. that has been our in-depth report on the pro-democracy

movement in syria and the push for reform. as always, thank you for watching. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--