>> live from dw studios in berlin, this is "the journal pic." >> central europe battling waters as dresden braces for the worst. >> german defense minister faces parliament over a ditched drone deal. >> the syrian army retaking the key rubble stronghold of the opposition a big blow. >> thousands of people are on

the move to escape from rising floodwaters that have claimed at least 15 lives and have yet to peak. local dams and dikes have been breached in a number of areas. >> the flood surge moving to the czech republic is heading toward eastern germany. the state of saxony is on high alert. dozens of trips have been called out and civilian volunteers have been lending a hand in places like dresden to help residents prepare for the worst. >> the elbow is rising by the hour. it has swollen to crotch rode its normal level -- the elbe is rising. they are fearing a repeat of the catastrophic flood from 11 years ago. >> we are defending our homes. we were wiped out in 2002. >> municipal authorities say it will not be as bad as the last

flood. important landmarks are under threat like this one that was restored for millions of euros. the elbe as now at four times the normal level. the situation is critical. the river is at its highest in 400 years. many parts are inaccessible. hundreds of emergency workers are powerless in the face of nature. >> we have a four-our break but we are completely exhausted. we had to give up because it was hopeless. >> the threat remains where soldiers are building walls. the dam here has burst releasing huge amounts of water into a lake. 10,000 people have been evacuated. an evacuation remains an issue back in dresden. until it is not how much water will reach year from the czech republic, it's impossible to say how much more property is

under threat. >> dresden is bracing for the flood surge right now. we are joined from their live by our correspondent, john. how serious is the situation in dresden right now? will we see any evacuations? >> at the moment, brianna, the river is considerably a lower level than it was during the catastrophic floods of 2002. as you mentioned in that report, it has not peaked yet. is it elected to do so tonight or in the early hours of tomorrow morning. the water will be coming down there from the czech republic and, at the moment, it is in a torrent of brown, filthy water carrying all sorts of things, among the most serious, a couple of empty gas containers, which could have exploded, and which had to be removed by army helicopters. we will know tomorrow morning

what the worst is. the old city, we are told, is not in immediate danger as it was in 2000 two of being disastrously flooded. at the moment, the main concern is actually the suburbs to the east where the critical liberal -- level is 8 meters, 50. >> he would hope after the flooding in 2000 two that this region would be in for a respire. how are they dealing with the new flooding -- after 2002? >> yesterday i was in the neighboring states of saxony and they were even stoic about it. saxony used to be part of communist each germany and they said that this is a flood area and they are used to having their basements flooded. since they left column this morning to come to dresden, -- halla to go to dresden, the

main roads are flooded and impossible in the aerial photos are really quite disturbing. >> a parliamentary committee is explaining why the euro hawk program had to be ditched. >> the opposition has called for the defense minister's resignation. >> up to three weeks of waiting, journalists could find some of the answers they are looking for. they did not know for the complete extent of the euro hawk row graham earlier. >> i regret it.

as minister, i ought to have put this part in order. i should have been more strongly involved in items of this magnitude. >> it underwent intense questioning by parliamentary defense ministry members. he said mistakes were made within communication and his ministry, but he insists he hold off pulling the plug in order to give the project the best chance of success. members of the opposition were critical. >> i refuse to accept that aligned that it is as good as the minister. >> he has brushed off calls for his own resignation but he says others may have to go. >> protesters in turkey are turning to encryption software to thwart censorship of the

internet and twitter. after six days of antigovernment demonstrations and a wave of arrests, they are organizing protesters on social media sites. >> they delivered a list of their demands in talks at the capital including an end to political arrests. they are joined by hundreds of union members who have gone on a strike of solidarity. three members of the women white's group are appearing before a court in the capital of tunisia. -- women rights group. like they face up to three months in prison on charges of public indecency. they staged a topless demonstration in public to protest the imprisonment of an 18-year-old tunisian female

activist. they call the symptomatic of the repression of women by authorities and to niger. in business news now, latvia looks set to join the eurozone. we will tell you more about that in a moment. >> a quick look at other stories making news around the world. >> lawmakers and pakistan have confirmed sharif as the new prime minister. he was ousted in a coup in 1999. in his first address, he demanded an end to u.s. drone strikes in a country that have claimed hundreds of civilian lives. >> a fire in moscow's metro system injuring 50 commuters. a high-voltage cable caught fire filling the station was smoke during the morning rush hour. over 4000 people had to evacuate. >> the white house has announced susan rice will become his top national security

advisor. she is currently the u.s. ambassador to the united nations and she is expected to take over the role from tom donnellan in july. >> plenty of debate in the number of euro zone countries about leaving the euro, there are still some countries trying to join the currency bloc. the european commission has given the greenlight to the tiny baltic state of latvia latvia. a final decision will be made by the finance ministers next month. >> latvia has already proven that they can juggle inflation, devastated -- deficits and debt. >> at this fruit and vegetable market, this is the currency used to buy and sell goods, but the signs will be changing soon. they will become the 18th the eurozone member on january 1.

>> they are both i sustainable path. >> the government has had to cut back spending drastically to join the euro and latvia has just emerged from a deep recession. they dismissed doubts about joining in the midst of the debt crisis. >> european states can benefit from membership in the currency union, and the monetary union, of the eurozone. then you can benefit from the price stability in the overall economic stability. >> what is quietly being played down is that joining the euro was a precondition of their eu membership. >> they see that the apostle exception to the euro as a sign of trust at just the right moment in time. -- they see latvia's ascencion

to teh euro as a sign of trust. this could help to tarnished -- help the tarnished image. >> other issues weighing on traders mines in frankfurt. >> weak economic data from europe and the united states, rather week indicators, from the service and labor market made buyers on the stock market here on frankfurt go away this wednesday. still, there was also news to be happy about. latvia for filling all the requirements to become the 18th member country of the eurozone. experts and the ecb believed that the latvian economy has high growth potential and they are even a little bit concerned about certain inflation risks

in the country, but in general, a country where the economy is growing is what we need, traders are saying, so welcome, latvia, as a new member of the eurozone countries. >> private sector jobs in the u.s. were shy of expectations setting the tone for the financial markets. the dax in frankfurt down by 1.2% closing at 8196 and the euro stoxx also down. the dow is also currently down 1.36% and the euro is up trading at $.3089. >> china is opening a probe to see if they are unfairly moving exports into china. they will be imposing duties on chinese solar panels. the european commission accuses beijing of selling their panels below cost, price dumping of. several oppose the commission's

decision fearing it will spark a trade war. france has described the probe on the wine as "an appropriate ." >> gdp in the eurozone continues to decline. it has now shrunk for six straight quarters. gdp contracted by .2% in the first quarter. the eurozone a struggling with high debt, tight credit, and record unemployment, so consumers have been reining in spending and companies are cutting back on investments. economic performance varies but nine of the region's nations are now in a recession. >> textile workers in cambodia are remaining defiant after a series of recent incidents at a factory for the american company nike. they are facing the exact low and dangerous working conditions as in places like bangladesh and india. >> a recent crackdown on dissent stems from the government trying to silence

critics in advance of next month's elections. >> angry workers venting their frustration in front of the provincial courthouse in southern cambodia. they are demanding better conditions and more pay. they are also making demands. >> we want all eight union leaders to go free. they've done nothing wrong. >> the protests are a part of an ongoing dispute at the textile factory that uses goods for the u.s. company nike. on monday, ryan police broke up the demonstration and arrested the union activists. western companies and consumers have long taken advantage of low wages at factories in asia, but the outrage is growing up the plight of workers who earn little and risk much. >> when we come back from a

short break, has the fighting in the syria reached a turning point? >> we'll see you in a moment.

>> welcome back. not to a major development in the syria civil war. pro government forces have gathered near the border of lebanon and it was retaken with the help of the lebanese hezbollah. they were forced to withdraw after an infantry with -- assault. >> at least one member of the free cereal and army has threatened to extend the conflict to lebanon. it is in retaliation for the loss of the town of kucera. >> images of a victory that the syrian state to be broadcast to the. its army was jubilant.

>> we can confirm that kucera is now safe and has been taken over by the militant groups. safety is now assured thanks to the people's committees. . we invite people to return. >> representatives gather in geneva to discuss plans for a peace conference, but they fail to agree on a plan. u.n. on blalock saar brahimi was disappointed. -- brahimi was disappointed. >> we are not capable of holding this conference already? as you know, the opposition has to complete a lot of work work to get ready for this conference. i think that they are doing that. until the full position is

ready, all we can do is wait. >> brahimi says they are now hoping to fix a date in july and it will be opened by un's secretary-general ban came in. -- ban ki moon. >> this is proof that they have used a deadly nerve gas, sarah and, likely to make peace talks all the more difficult. -- nerve gas, sarin. >> joining us on the line from beirut, tom, what is the situation right now on the lebanese border just across from the retaken town of kucera? >> it's very tense and i understand that the lebanese are waiting to bring the wounded but our civilian. apparently, in all of the attacks, there was some negotiation to allow loom to escape with the wounded to get treatment.

as blaue is claiming that this is a victory as well. -- hezbollah is claiming this is a victory. they are saying this is a celebration. >> is this a turn in the fighting or will the rebels managed to regroup? >> this also opens up roots for the ports on the mediterranean. there is a big momentum here in launching a new effective into the suburbs, but it is not so much a huge victory for the regime as much as it shows how this is really showing the stalemate between the regime and the rebels. they are certainly regrouping near kucera and they have reinforcements coming up from other parts of the country. >> thanks so much for that. >> the push continues to put

together a serious increase conference. -- a cerium peace conference. >> it looks like it will take lace next month according to officials in america and moscow. >> the agendas are making this difficult, not only in the world but also regional powers. >> v cerium civil war has involved into a national conflict. it has become a proxy power struggle involving several foreign governments, all with different interests. >> they have repeatedly blocked actions at the un security council. russia has many vested interests in syria, who is a big exporter for their arms.

on the side of the rebels, so far limited to diplomatic support, the united states. for the u.s., this is not just about assad but also about the ambitions of iran. this could weaken the regime in tehran and this could force them to compromise over their nuclear program. iran is already a key player in the conflict supplying weapons to assad's troops and has advisers on the ground. to transport their arms to hezbollah fighters. hasn't a lot and assad are among the key allies in the battle for influence in the middle east -- hezbollah and assad are among key allies. the european union sides with

the rebels, but they worry they could fall into the hands of islamist extremists. there is also the fear that their allies could be drawn further into the conflict making intervention unavoidable. saudi arabia and turkey are both keen to stake a claim as regional powers. the saudi's have provided financial help to the rebels and turkey has provided refuge to the free syrian army. assad forces have repeatedly attacked the border area between the two countries. for israel, assad has always been a predictable adversary. as the conflict rages on, fear is growing that assad could pass chemical and other weapons to hezbollah in lebanon and that fear is thought to be behind two recent israeli airstrikes on military facilities. the same time, there is concern about who could take over if assad were to fall.

with the conflict becoming increasingly international, it is hard to know who is fighting who. the only thing that is sure is that the civilian population is crocked in the crossfire. click now to the trial in munich of a neo-nazi terror cell. testimony continued for a sixth day and they heard from one of the legends helpers known only as karsten s. >> he testified about his links to the only surviving member of the right wing extremist group, the national socialist underground. >> the hooded defendant karsten s. could emerge as the most important witness for the prosecution in bidding to giving the murder weapon to her and her accomplices, but he

claims his only motivation was to show off to his friends. >> when you supply someone with a weapon with a silencer, and looks impressive. anyone would say that. >> they argue that he was simply seeking recognition and was not motivated by a commitment to neo-nazi ideology. but he says he cannot recall many of the details surrounding the purchase of the handgun. lawyers believe he knows plenty. >> he describes this like it was an adventure holiday. he was a leading member of the neo-nazi scene. >> his testimony could prove damaging to a codefendant, a former leader of the far right party. he is alleged to have urged him to procure the weapon. >> they were surrounded by many young neo-nazis. they'll share the same

conviction, hatred of others, racism, and enjoying inflicting violence on others. >> the german government has blocked legislation to grant dual citizenship to hundreds of immigrants. only allowing immigrants dual citizenship was unfair to native germans and risked creating parallel societies. >> a law takes effect to require people born in germany of foreign origin to opt in or out of german citizenship by the age of 23. >> left-wing opposition has long opposed the stance they have promised to legalize dual citizenship if they come into power. >> her parents are from turkey. she is one of many young people with two passports and now she has to make a decision. >> i'm turkish and they feel turkish, but when i travel to turkey, they treat me as though i don't belong just because i live abroad. here, i'm considered a

foreigner even though i have a german passport. >> those born in germany with foreign parents can keep dual citizenship until 18, then they have to choose. >> we consider integration successful when a person decides for germany, pledges fealty for our country. that essentially only happens by giving up one's former citizenship. >> she must make her decision by the time she turns 23. if she does not choose to keep her german passport, she will have to leave the country. every year, tens of thousands of people like her are forced to make the same decision. >> what sort of signal is this for young people who have been in germany for 23 years? now they have to turn their backs on the country of their parents and grandparents in order to keep their german citizenship.

>> it may be a decisive issue in the upcoming federal elections. opposition leaders vowed to abolish the law if they win in september. >> something now for fans of tintin comic books. >> lovers of the comic series have a treat in store. first editions from the 1930's and original drawings are coming under the hammer. they are expected to reach five or six figure sums. >> that's it for now. thanks so much for joining us. >> see you later. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

hello there. welcome to "newsline." it's thursday june 6th. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. turkish leaders are struggling to end anti-government demonstrations across the country. they're angry about what they see. the deputy prime minister has met some of the protesters but failed to convince them to go home.