>> this is "the journal." >> i have the business news, welconme. >> the senate votes to end the debt drama but there is much more a to do to help the economy. the u.n. fails on a resolution to condemn the violence in syria. germany and austria pledge to send more peacekeeping troops. it took weeks of wrangling and

it pushed the u.s. government to the brink of default. the senate voted in favor of the plan. the deal was a compromise fleshed out between the white house and congressional leaders. obama said the economy needs more of the spirit of compromise. >> barack obama signed a deal to raise the debt ceiling and to avoid default. obama said there had to be a better way. >> washington has the ability to focus when there is a timer ticking down. it should not take the risk of default, the real it -- the risk of catastrophe to get people to do their jobs.

>> that risk of catastrophe did force a compromise. one the senate backed. many voiced relief but both sides have expressed that they should have done things differently. >> we had to settle for less than we wanted. but we have achieved is in no way insignificant. "the richest of the rich contributed nothing to this. -- >> the richest of the rich contributed nothing to this. the burden is on a working- class and poor. >> obama said he will keep pushing for tax rises for the rich. substantial cuts to social security programs or another disappointment for democrats. many republicans are smarting over cuts to defense spending. deficit hawks one out over traditional defense hawks. the argument will continue. the deal creates a bipartisan

committee that will recommend how to implement the planned cuts. but that drama is not over yet. -- othe debt drama is not over yet. >> the president is frustrated, how does he come out of this? >> we know that a lot of people at the white house are of course a very relieved and very tired. his main message was that he is not happy to have done this the way it was done but he had to do it to avert catastrophe. basically, he laid out what he would like to do. he would like more revenue. he would like to give more money to the middle class. he would like tax hikes to the richest americans to get the economy going. that will not be easy. this statement was the first day of the presidential race. the president knows if the

economy does not get going, he will not be reelected. >> is this a victory for the tea party or has it given them a bad reputation? >> it is a victory for the tea party. the senate is controlled by the democrats. the president is a democrat. only a small fraction of the house is controlled by the t party. they managed to dominate the agenda and to set the agenda for this whole discussion and they got a lot of what they wanted although many tea party members voted against the bill because they said the spending cuts don't go far enough. probably a majority of americans say that the tea party is more obstructionist or anything else. the people who voted for the tea party are happy. they were elected on a ticket to change the way washington works and that is the way they were. >> thank you. initially, the markets were

really happy but then it all kind of went bluh. >> investors are not sure this is enough. they are looking for stock options for safe havens. they are also buying gold which is at a record. the dollar, the euro. financial markets are returning to europe. there was declines because of the issues in spain and italy. >> italian bond yields while spanish climbed 3.2%. the spanish prime minister is not compelled to postpone his vacation. investors are increasingly concerned that this is too slow to reduce debt levels. some analysts say that it is unlikely that the third and

fourth largest economies will need a rescue package andarned against overreaction. >> this could become a self- fulfilling prophecy. the fact that we speak about this possibility even now could make it more likely in the future. >> last month, italy passed a 70 billion euro austerity package. spain is busy restructuring their banking structure which is seen as their achilles' heel. >> european shares are hitting 10 month lows during today's trading. >> many shares lost drastically and the dax also. it is down for the year. it was under what it was at the end of 2010. people are afraid that the debt crisis will have a dampening effect. even bmw went down despite a record half year.

the ceo warned that one should not be too euphoric, the debt crisis could interest -- could dampen the interest of investors. the dax was down not just because of the general mood but also because it did not make a trend towards selling electronics over the internet. >> must take a closer look at some of those numbers. in frankfurt, the dax hit a four-month closing low. the euro stoxx 50 ends the day at -- the dow industrials closed over 2% down. the euro is trading for $1.42. we will have more on the market reaction to the u.s. debt deal later in the show. >> the u.n. security council has failed to pass a resolution condemning the violence in syria. two unnamed members opposed the

resolution. china and russia did not like the idea. lebanon remains opposed to even a statement criticizing their neighbors. in syria, violence continues. human rights groups said that more than 100 people have been killed. >> more video from syria makes it on to the internet. it purportedly is shows the sheer force was which bashar all the side's regime is facing down opposition. -- bashar al-assad's regime is facing opposition. soldiers are thought to have killed 100 people since the siege on sunday. the army has also occupied the northern cities. many syrians appear undeterred by the harsh repression. people take to the streets in a show of solidarity and

resistance, like here in a suburb of damascus. as the death toll rises, so does the pressure on the international community to take steps against the syrian regime. the u.n. security council has been discussing a draft resolution to condemn the repression in syria. early moves to do so were halted by russia and china. >> earlier, we spoke to the deputy foreign ministry of germany and asked what we can expect to come out of the deliberations of the security council. >> there was movement in the security council. some of the members have been very reluctant to enter the dialogue on a resolution or a presidential statement. they've changed their position. the people in damascus have been incredibly violent. anyone who, people are getting

more and more discredited. >> italy would like other countries to pull their ambassadors. do you think that germany should follow suit? >> we have not decided yet. this is a very difficult decision was quite some consequences. we will think about it in detail and we will consult with our partners. >> can the international community to anything to influence president assad? >> he is in a rather strong position. this is a position of any prospective or any help. i think that we should send clear messages to him and his people and make clear that there is not going to be a future with this regime and without democracy and respect for human rights and respect for the law.

>> thank you. we will be taking a closer look at the syrian regime's crackdown later on. of these four people have been killed in a suicide bombing in northern afghanistan. all four victims were afghan security guards. this targeted a guest house regularly used by foreigners. one attacker exploded a car bomb then in two suicide bombers fought with police before debt explosives. the taliban said they carried out the attack. we are getting ready for some air travel chaos. >> this is not good news for summer holidays. the german air traffic controllers union has called on their workers to walk out. there is demand for wage increases and better conditions. the strike would affect tens of thousands of holidaymakers. >> if the air traffic

controllers' strike on tuesday, it will be as air-traffic reaches its peak. this is the first strike of this nature in german history. the management says the strike is illegal. the shot put the union demands to the test of the county. we consider them some of -- we consider some of them on lawful. we would like to obtain a legal ruling as fast as possible. >> the union is standing by their call for a pay hike, improved working conditions, and less overtime. they rejected management offers last weekend. they said if the strike goes ahead, this will affect 2500 flights. >> we advise passengers to ntine they are booked with well in advance. they should check if their flight will be outsourced to another operator or perhaps will be departing from a nearby

country. if canceled or delayed for the duration. >> if court action sales, management can call for arbitration which would force the union to halt strike action until the union had not until the strike had run its course. >> a french banking giant has announced that second quarter profits were up by over 1%. this is less than analyst expectations. the bank said they had to set aside over half a billion euros. they hold over 2 billion euros worth of greek government debt. barclays is supposed -- has posted a drop in profits to reduce costs but also cutting out the 3000 jobs this year. hsbc has announced plans to cut 30,000 staff. >> nato says they will send

hundreds more peacekeeping troops to cosimo over the coming days following an escalation in violence. some 600 troops from germany and austria will john -- joined the force. serbia has not recognized goes of o's independence. >> ethnic serbs continued to block roads. they have come in their hundreds with no intention of leaving. this is despite an ultimatum from nato peacekeepers. ethnic serbs would like to contain control of 50 border crossings. belgrade has sent a negotiator to the province. once we will continue to fight for our interests in a peaceful way. this is not a ghetto, this is serbia. >> in fact, this is a state

recognized internationally. this is a cause of the enduring tension. nato's peacekeeping mission is set to get reinforcements from germany. there is little sign that the latest flare-up is about to subside. ethnic serbs have vowed to continue their blockades until the demands are met. >> lethal levels of radiation have been discovered at the fukushima power plant. the latest sign that the danger is far from over. the japanese government has extended a ban on beef shipments. radioactive substances were found in several cows that were fed contaminated hay. >> it beef from this region is considered a delicacy. it turns out that these cows have been contaminated with radiation. >> i am trying to provide safe and tasty food for consumers but

it is tragic that these are ruined by the incident. >> authorities stumbled upon radioactivity while taking a random sample from the farm. the livestock is believed to have eaten contaminated hay. there is a ban on meat from four prefectures. no one knows how much contaminated beef has made it into supermarkets. the nuclear power plant has been leaking radiation again. they recorded radiation exceeding 10,000 -- per hour. >> a reading like this has not been found anywhere in the plan so far. >> it is unclear what caused dramatic spike in radiation between reactor's one and two. also whether other areas of the

plants were affected. >> you are watching "the journal," we will be back after a short break.

>> as syria continues their military crackdown against protesters, western powers are looking at diplomatic means to put pressure. the eu has extended sanctions including an asset freeze and a travel ban on the defense minister. there is an emergency just how violence across violent the crackdown is. we met up with a man -- there is an emergency indication of just how violent the crackdown is. there are calls for bashar also sought to step down. -- bashar all aside -- al-assad

to step down. >> we want to speak out. it is our right. >> i just wanted a better future for our country. >> he left germany in early march to return to syria. he hopes with his friends to demonstrate peacefully for freedom. he soon landed in jail, sharing a prison cell with many others. >> there was 38 of us in a room measuring square meters. there were people who were just 17 years old and up to 55. among us for many lawyers, doctors, imams, and and students. >> he says all the prisoners were beaten and tortured. he shows us images that is

designed to scare people. it is on clear where these pictures were t t t t tut he sad that he was tortured like this. >> in my case, they ordered me to kiss or lick their shoes. the one who interrogated me kept kicking in the head. he put out cigarettes on my body. they beat me not only with their hands but their legs and my face. they beat us with sticks and electrical cables. they would laugh at us. you want freedom? we're giving you freedom. or, derr, westminster ---

>> [inaudible] >> after several days in jail, they heard familiar voices coming from a neighboring cell. >> i heard my brothers and sisters. they were crying. they said, we don't know, we don't know. i did not know was going on outside. you don't get any information. i did not know was going on with my brothers and sisters. if they were free or not. >> he was released after a month with no reason given. he fled the country and returned to germany. his family is still in syria.

>> it threatens me if i did not tell them what they wanted. they said they would use violence against my family. >> he would like to conceal his identity to protect his family. he says he's not afraid. >> they did not achieve anything by torturing my body. they could not change my thoughts. they cannot control them or influence them, no matter what they do. >> this is not the end. i am involved again in berlin and other cities. we intend to hold demonstrations. we want to say out loud that we no longer want this regime. we don't want these criminals anymore. we will continues on this path until we win and the country is free, until we have democracy, until we have democracy and justice and freedom and syria. -- in syria.

>> earlier, we spoke to a middle eastern affairs analyst. we asked him whether the opposition has the power to overthrow the president. >> well, the people are strong and specifically now in the month of ramadan, we can expect that people will continue to come out in high numbers and we will be continued to prepare and suffer casualties. the regime does not show any signs of cracking. the army does not show signs of cracking. the question remains that how long the people will be able to sustain this kind of mobilization. >> the eu has expanded the sanctions. will that have an effect? >> i doubt that that would have an effect. this regime is prepared to pay a

price for remaining in power. the price so far has not been too high. the position has been high. i think that people do not care for. when it comes to staying in power, i think that they shrug off these sanctions. >> what has serious neighbors done? >> if you're talking about the neighbors, they're our neighbors such as saudi arabia, perhaps jordan, who have concerns but this kind of movement might actually spread to their own population, so they are reluctant to weigh in on the side of the opposition. they're also concerned about instability, perhaps even civil war in surry which could mean refugees.

we can think about people pouring over the border into the western provinces. all about gives those regimes and governments pause. >> what else can the international do besides sanctions to put pressure on the syrian regime? >> unfortunately, not very much. we have seen that this regime has burned bridges with turkey and qatar and that intel's a significant economic cost. however, if the united front against this regime and its practices of human rights abuses, this would emerge that a majority of the neighbors would increase the pressure that comes from those parts of society which many have concerns about

stability, concerns about the economic interest who will start thinking that this regime is a liability that one would want to get rid of. the regime itself is put under pressure or react -- remains in question. >> what is the way out of this? how can stability returned to the country? >> i think the only way that stability can return to syria is a credible transition process that will lead to pluralism and that will lead eventually to an end to the assad regime. such a process, there are proposals for such a process that have come from the opposition. they are practical. however, with every day of violence, with more blood being

spilled and more people dying, the likelihood of such an outcome becomes less and less. >> thank you for your analysis. >> thank you. >> stay tuned.

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