>> this is "the journal" on dw-tv. i'm heather delisle. more protests and more deaths in syria, as security forces again opened fire on demonstrators. can this man prevent disaster in greece? a last-gasp grasp. and saudi women get behind the wheel in a bid for the right to drive. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> human rights activists say at least 12 people are dead ar

syrian security forces opened fire on protesters. this as several governments around the world try to figure out how to up the diplomatic pressure. france wants suffer sanctions against the regime, and the u.s. has been trying to persuade russia to back a u.n. security council rest luge on the issue. the eants government demonstrations continue -- anti-government demonstrations continue. >> they have defied the government crackdown and rallied around cities in syria. reports posted online by members of the opposition say soldiers in tanks and helicopters opened fire on civilians, leaving at least 16 people dead. those reports could not be independently verified. the syrian military says it now has taken control of cities in the north of the country. the regime is trying to placate protesters. a cousin of president assad, who is seen as a symbol of

corruption in syria, has relinquished all his business interests in the country. my clerk said he did not want to be a burden to the syrian people or the president. he also pledged to use some of his wealth for charity work. but activists say the move is not enough to curb the demonstrations. those fleeing the violence continued to arrive at refugee camps on the syrian-turkish border. nearly 10,000 people have already taken shelter here. on friday hollywood star angelina jolie visited one of the camps as the united nations goodwill ambassador, her mission is for calling attention to the plight of refugees around the world. >> libyan leader muammar gaddafi has vowed to defeat the nato alliance seeking to oust him from power. government supporters in

tripoli, state tv broadcast an report and they say they face an armed force. heavy fighting in and around misrata. at least 10 people killed and 40 wounded during government shelling. inside misrata, hundreds gathered after friday prayers to call for gaddafi's immediate departure. morocco's king is making an address to the nation outlining major constitutional reforms. the changes will curb his wide-ranging political powers and transform the country into a constitutional monarchy with a more powerful government. the roles of the prime minister, parliament and judiciary will be strengthened. the king, however, will retain sole control of the military. the proposals will be put to a referendum next month. it may be the most unthankful job in europe right now, finance minister of greece. there is a new man in charge of

the country's money, swapping into the post from his previous position as defense chief as part of prime minister georges papandreou's cabinet reshuffle. the move will probably buy little time for the embattled government, but there are still concerns that athens may not be able to implement the reforms it needs to avoid going under. >> the new cabinet was sworn in by orthodox priests. as he took his oath of office, he sought the blessing of the church. he likened it into going into real war. >> i'm doing this because i believe it's my patriotic duty. i told the defense ministry that i left defense to enter the real battle. >> he has reason to feel embattled. the e.u. and i.m.f. were demanding painful spending cuts in return for helping greece out of its crisis. he appealed to the people of greece to support him.

>> the country needs to be saved, and it will be saved. it must be regain its dignity. it must recover its sovereignty and its economic independence. it must finally leave this turbulence behind. >> the greek prime minister will be hoping the new appointment will improve his chances of pushing through the tough new austerity package. georges papandreou has promoted a main rival within his own party to a key position. >> on the bailout front, the leadsers of germany and france have come up with a compromise that could break the deadlock. they've agreed on involving the private sector in the process on a strictly voluntary basis. germany's insistence on a substantial commitment from private creditors had put it at loggerheads not only with france but with the european central bank. berlin's approach could trigger a meltdown on the markets.

>> meeting at the chancellory in berlin, sarzoky and angela merkel agreed that speed was of the essence in achieving a second greek rescue package. >> france and germany want a new program in place as soon as possible. there is no time to lose. >> a deal now looks likely after chancellor merkel softened her stance, agreeing that private investors should take part on a voluntary basis, rather than being forced to tribute to a new bailout. a key demand of france and the european central bank. >> we want the involvement of private creditors on a vo i want to stress this. there is no legal basis so far for there being obligatory involvement. and we also say that this involvement with private vedtors must be worked out together with the e.c.b. >> meeting the schedule for the

european bank all next week, sarzoky and merkel want concrete proposals to be presented at an e.u. summit starting in a week's time. >> the markets are unhappy about all of this. >> this is all about restoring confidence, and it worked. at least for the time being. queakt markets in europe rallied on friday as the default eased back a bit after germany softened its position on shoulders a part of the burden. financial shares got a boost. the uniteds stand by merkel and sarzoky on a bailout package for greece, bolstered investor sentiment. sending equities and the euro higher. so after sinking to three-month lows, stocks bounced back. >> equities and the euro made a jump of joy after the meeting

of chancellor merkel and president sarzoky. of course, no one is convinced that the euro sovereign debt crisis is solved now after this meeting, but people are impressed. they're impressed with the kind of unity, harmony and the decisiveness that was displayed there in berlin, and merkel and sarzoky also want to include the european central bank and any solution for the future. the dakotas went up also for the week -- the dax wept up also for the week. it's up over a percent after six weeks with a minus. nobody is saying, though, that the greek problem isn't going to be on the table again in the following week. >> in frankfurt, we look at friday's closing numbers. the dax is going into the weekend up by 3/4 of 1%, 7164. the u.s. putting in a strong showing, finishing at 2770. across the atlantic, the dow closed at the top of the hour and it also managed a positive

close to the day and the week, for the first time in a month and a half. it finished above the 12,000 point level at 1,004. and the euro trading at a value of $1.42.98. after a hostile takeover saga that has played out over nine months, a spanish construction company has finally accumulated a majority voting stake in its german rival. they hold just over 50% of the voting shares in the company. their strong balance sheet is expected to help a.c.s. cushion its exposure to spain's struggling construction sector and ease the pressure resulting from an $8 billion euro debt pile. but employees at the company fear a.c.s. will now sell off the assets in order to help it restructure. for the first time since the collapse of the soviet union, russia's army has agreed a major deal to purchase defense

equipment from the west. at the st. petersburg forum, the president was on hand to sign a $1.2 billion euro deal for two helicopter carriers made by a french-led consortium. he says he wants to make it easier for foreign firms to invest in russia. >> modern x-ray apparatus for the huge russian market. dutch electronics giant, phillips, has been producing medical equipment at its st. petersburg plant for a year with a russian partner to save import tariffs. business is getting off to a slow start in russia. >> last year was difficult. the state invested very little during the crisis. but now things have improved. a lot of promises have been made this year. a lot of money is being invested. we are slowing down a bit, but we're satisfied. >> at the economic forum in st. petersburg, russia is trying to attract foreign investment for a broad range of projects, like

a moscow suburb they have championed as the silicon valley. the president has vowed to modernize the economy. >> victory over corruption without effective governance and a good quality financial system will not overcome our extreme dependence on national resources and we will not achieve a high quality of life. >> contracts worth millions are being signed at the forum, and many are with chinese companies, thanks to president hu gin tow. but a deal to supply natural gas to china has yet to be made. >> the plans have been well received here at the forum, but a question mark hangs over his future. will he stands for re-election in 2012 or will it be vladimir putin? to that question investors have yet to hear an answer. >> that's a look at business. now over to heather for an update on what's going on in asia. >> china's worst flooding has

forced the evacuation of more than one million people in the southern provinces. some of the worst floods are in the eastern province. officials have raised the disaster alert to the highest level and deployed troops to help with flood relief. >> seemingly endless floodwaters roared through the countryside in the province. officials say the river is 2 1/2 meters above safe levels. two dikes in the province gave way on thursday, flooding at least 18 towns and villages. one of them is this one, where hundreds were evacuated, but many remain trapped. others have opted to stay in their flooded homes to guard their belongings. local authorities have been trying to provide them with food and water. >> the rescue boats can't pass through the narrow village alleys. many people depend on relatives rowing small wooden boats to get to them. this is how they get food.

it's hard to help the people inside there. >> forecasters say it could still take days for the rains to let up. >> sometimes the best way to change the world is simply to do what a repressive regime tells you not to do. for some it means getting behind the wheel of a car. it is a form of civil disobedience in saudi arabia, and it started with a facebook campaign. women across the country are taking to the streets for a motorized revolution. >> it's shortly after midnight in an undisclosed location in saudi arabia. a woman drives to the supermarket undercover of darkness to avoid attracting attention. later, she posts the footage of herself behind the wheel on the internet. this act of civil disobedience was inspired by al-sharif, a divorced single mother and computer scientist who obtained her drivers license in the u.s. last month she was arrested and detained for 10 days after

posting video of herself driving. she's facing charges of stirring up public opinion. women in saudi arabia depend on family members, taxis or hired drivers to get around. >> if my wife could drive, i wouldn't have to do all the day-to-day things, such as school runs. i would also feel safer knowing my children were with my wife, rather than with a driver. >> all we want is not to have to depend on drivers. so if i want to go to work, i can drive there myself. if i need something, i can get it. i think society is ready for this. >> the unidentified woman reaches the supermarket without getting caught. she and other saudi driving activists hope more women will join the campaign and increase pressure on the authorities to give women the right to drive. >> and we'll have more on the rights of women in the arab world coming up in our "in-depth." first, soccer news.

the woman's world cup kicks off in just nine days on sunday, june 26, here in the german capital. they played their last warm-up matchup last night winning 3-0 against norway. germany has high hopes of winning the cup after victories in 2003 and 2010. germany had been drawn in group a with canada, nigeria and france. the opening match of the world cup pits the hosts against canada. we'll be looking at all the teams over the neck week. we start with germany. >> germany's women's soccer team has gained more and more recognition in recent years, after snapping up one title after the other. now fans are hoping they can win the world cup on home turf. >> i don't think the pressure is such a bad thing. it's actually good to have expectations like these. we said ourselves we definitely want to win the world cup. >> germany coach neid is placing her faith on

experience, but also made room for new talents, such as players from the under-20 world cup. and also at the last world cup germany's goalkeeper didn't concede a single goal. >> if i had the chance to play the whole tournament with a clean sheet, i'd take it. i don't think i can top my last outing. >> as reigning european and world champion, germany is perhaps the world's most successful women's team. they'll make history as they secure a third world cup triumph. perhaps their new jerseys will give them that extra edge. >> it's nice to have shirts made just for us. but i prefer to play in white, rather than red. >> but whether they're sporting red or white jerseys, the germans are the clear favorites at the 2011 women's world cup. we give the team a full seven-ball rating. >> you're watching "the journal" on dw-tv. i'll be right back after a

short break with our "in-depth." we'll be talking about whether it's an arab spring for women, too.

>> welcome back. the freedoms so many women in the west have enjoyed for decades, from university educations to simply wearing what they want in public remained forbidden to millions in the arab world. as part of this week's "in-depth" focus on ume rights, we take a look at the situation for women in those countries. our special report follows the stories of three women in egypt, tunisia and morocco struggling to lead the lives they want to lead, not the ones spribbed buy fathers, husbands or brothers. in morrowco women have enjoyed a boost in legal protections over the last year. in egypt they are hoping for the promise else of the revolution to be fulfilled.

but we start off in tunisia, where the arab spring that is still sweeping the region began. tunisia has long stood at the forefront of arab nations in guaranteeing equal rights for women, especially in education and in the workplace. the political party leader in tunisia has been campaigning for equal rights for women since her university days. four years ago she went on a month-long hunger strike when the tunisian government under the then president tried to shut down her office. she wants tunisian women to have equal access to key positions in government and society. >> after january 14, after the revolution, it looked like

women were quite well represented in some areas. but in my view it's still not enough, especially when one considers the important role that tunisian women played in the revolution. tunisian women are proud of this revolution and proud of the social gains that now need to be anchored in law. >> tunisia is a relatively modern state and a pioneer among arab countries when it comes to marriage law. civil marriages have been recognized since 1957 as men and women have equal rights in divorce cases. tunisian women are also well educated,. more than half of all high school graduates and university students are women. >> but there's still a big difference between modern tunisian law, of which we can be proud, and what women experience every day. for instance, women don't earn as much as men, especially in

the private sector. although women are just as well educated as men, there's still a lot to do. >> she has faith in a democratic tunisia, and she doesn't believe that islamist parties will do well in elections scheduled for october. she's confident that no one will be able to roll back the gains that tunisian women have made. a business consultant in egypt. they were married once and are still close friends. a rare exception in egypt, where women are usually stigmatized if they get divorced. then on january 25, as the revolution against president hosni mubarak was starting, she

and her husband went to the square to join the protests. she was one of many women demanding change. >> the revolution has abolished the concept of "not possible" on many levels. not only on the level of equality between men and women. people started thinking about the impossible and started doing it. it started being the norm to think beyond what people are used to, and to think about what's right, even if it's not what the majority agrees to. >> she is an independent woman in every respect. she's a self-employed business consultant and has been volunteering for a non-governmental organization for 10 years. her goal is to help women obtain small loans with which they can become less dependent on their men. she says it's usually men who make important decisions in egypt, in households as well as in the government.

she was shocked that army officers had reportedly ordered virginity tests for some women arrested in a march demonstration. but despite such incidents, she remains optimistic. >> nothing will happen overnight. fundamental changes will occur not so fast. we had a revolution. some things changed, but i do not imagine that everything will be corrected overnight. no, it will take time. this means that things will happen as they happened in the past, and that's how it has been for many things so far. people will insist on change, though, so things will change, but it will take time. >> president of the moroccan rural women's association. after getting a degree in business management, malika

established an organization to promote the interests of morocco's rural women. she realized that women in the countryside needed her support more than urban women. many rural women rarely leave their villages and do not even know they have the right to vote. the rural women's association school in sale teaches young women. malika has come to see how the students are doing. their lessons include practical skills, like making candies or weaving carpets. >> the school is key, as are learning materials. we train women and then support them when they look for work. we also help them set up their own businesses.

>> she is one of the school's graduates, trained as a beautician. today she's helping a young woman get ready for her wedding ceremony. her dream is to own her own cosmetic studio in another country. >> i have a goal in life now, and i'm proud of my profession. i am no longer unemployed. everyone knows that i'm a beautician. >> almost 1/3 of all moroccans are illiterate. 70% of the country's illiterates live in rural areas, and many of them are women. malika is constantly battling widespread ignorance and a deeply entrenched patriarchal system.

>> in the villages, only the older women go shopping. a mother will do the shopping for her son's wife, for instance, so that other men cannot look at her or talk to her. men always have the last word in rural communities. they see women as second-class members of society. >> that's something malika is determined to change. she's hoping the government will institute more reforms and equal rights for women. morocco hasn't experienced a revolution like some other north african countries, but step by step things are changing. >> three women striving for change in the midst of the arab spring. that's been our "in-depth" at this hour.

thanks for watching and please say tuned to dw-tv. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--