the "journal >> live from the dw studios in berlin, this is the "journal." >> in the next half-hour, parts of eastern germany continued battle floodwaters as the search moves northward. >> germany's highest court tells the government to give same-sex as married couples. >> the pressure mounts on the turkish prime minister as he takes an even harder line with protesters. >> these are extremely tense hours for many thousands of people of central europe as flood waters have yet to crest

in a number of areas. parts of germany, hungary, and the czech republic are still under water. at least 15 people have died since the flooding began last week. >> officials have evacuated thousands of people to escape the rising flood waters. for some areas, the situation is improving. the water has started subsiding, but it is a slow process, and the question is if the levees will hold out. >> it is the same story in the city of dresden. our coverage begins northwest of there, which is the exact direction the flood surges is headed. >> preparations continue to protect the town from flooding. chancellor angela merkel visited the flood defenses. she brought a promise of aid from the government and admiration for helpers'. >> i am impressed by the atmosphere here, the way everyone is pulling together. i know a lot of people are exhausted after so many days, but they are not giving up. >> in eastern germany, the flood

waters are moving inexorably many dikes are threatening to burst. lower saxony is preparing for the river elbe to swell. further upstream in dresden, the crest of the flood has already passed. temporary flood barriers help keep the historic city center dry. dresden is home to many treasures of baroque architecture. but in residential areas, the battle against the high water continues. again, locals have been pulling together to build up defenses. >> there's obviously a lot of fear, but people have just been fantastic. we are sticking together. it is good. >> it now looks like dresden will escape the kind of inundation it saw in 2002, but the cost of the damage is likely to be high. authorities anticipate a 2 billion euro bill for the state of saxony alone.

>> our correspondent is in dresden. a short while ago, he gave us this update. >> experts tell us the floodwaters have crested here in dresden, and yes, the city center appears to be safe. it is not such a pretty picture for the suburbs to the east of the city center. the flood defenses are much lower. they are also not as strong as those here. there are urban banks virtually that have been shored up with sandbags, and there are two problems connected with that. the first is that the flood waters are expected to take some days before they sink significantly. the second is that they're not so stable here, which means the enormous pressure on them over several days could mean that the water will start seeping through, and once there is a breach in the defense's, then that are ripped away, and there could be very severe flooding.

that is also the concern to the states neighboring saxony and following the river. all this states near lower saxony and member of our concern about this huge hoard of water headed towards them. >> as we just heard, germany's neighbors to the east have been very hard hit. the river elbe flows from the czech republic, and the first big town on the czech republic, the high water finally began to recede on thursday, but many homes remain flooded. heavy rains folea czech republi. than n people had to evacuate hin other news here in,

gays and lesbians living in civil partnerships may be eligible for a tax refund. the country's top court has ruled those with civil partnerships are entitled to the same tax breaks as married couples. >> the constitutional court posted decision is a blow to chancellor angela merkel's conservatives who have long promoted tax preferences to traditional families. >> the entered into a single partnership in 2001, but they have never enjoyed the same rights as heterosexual married couples. under german tax law, and married couples enjoy huge savings in cases where one partner earns more than the other, so the couple sued, and today, germany's highest court sided with them. >> the legislator has decided to put civil partnerships essentially on an equal footing in terms of civil law, so there is no substantial reason for any unequal treatment when it comes to laws on income tax.

famine now, bundestag must change the law that dated to 2001. some members of the governing coalition resisted the move, but others welcomed the news. bamut equal responsibilities should go hand in hand with equal rights. it is important that we as a government show leadership and implement this ruling word for word. i hope and expect that we will get it done before summer recess. >> that leaves lawmakers less than a month. if they fail, tax equality will have to wait for germany's same- sex couples until legislators return. >> for more on this ruling, we are joined in the studio by our political consultant. how significant is this ruling? >> very significant. there are really just -- or their work until yesterday two main battle areas on full rights for gay unions. those were taxation and adoption, and one of those has essentially been now settled.

at the point in which they made civil unions exactly equal to heterosexual marriages, you have the same rights for different names. essentially, we are one step away from gay marriage in germany. we're talking about quite a bit of money for those couples that have a very different income. essentially, the system is such that the partners can distribute the income between the two, which means taxation is lowered. effectively, what the court showed was that there is a tax on being gay, and this is what they projected. >> you mentioned adoption rights. how far away is that? >> here is the story. it seems what we saw was the juridical system jumping ahead of the political system. they showed that they will not wait. what we need is basically an adoption legal battle in order for this to be legalized.

>> of course, everyone is not happy with this, but is it a global trend? >> i think it is a global trend. minimally, it is a western trend, and it has to do with technology and what we call the flow of values across vast distances. >> thank you so much. to another german story making headlines around the world -- the landmark trial of a neo-nazi terror cell that went undetected for over a decade -- the cell, that is -- while allegedly carrying out a string of immigrant-related killings across the country. >> a second witness has taken the stand. the 39-year-old man who was active in the far right scene has testified against the group public -- the group's only surviving member and has also apologized to the familiesof the victims. >> as the child reached its seventh day, one of the prosecution's main witnesses took the stand. he painted a detailed picture of

his contact with the three defendants. he said he transported a gun to a group that included the main defendant. his testimony could help the prosecution's case. they accuse the defendant being an equal member of the suspected terrorist cell with full knowledge of its plans to murder. the speaker himself is accused of supporting the group and portrayed his meetings with the group as open and normal. they went for meals together, sometimes played pool. he said he felt obliged to help them out of friendship, that he knew nothing of the trio committing any murders. but one lawyer for the victims' families was skeptical, saying his testimony was unconvincing. >> if i had known these people, been so close to them for such a

long time and if i had known about the violence, if i supplied the papers and provide these people with a gun, then i have some idea of what is going on. >> but on that issue, he was not forthcoming. after his testimony, the court adjourned the trial until next week. >> some business news now, and the european central bank has lowered its economic outlook for the eurozone. >> instead of the previously predicted 0.5%, mario draghi says the eurozone will shrink 5.6% this year. the data confirms the bank forecast that an economic recovery come towards the end of the year. >> those comments by mario druggie did little to encourage traders in frankfurt. our correspondent has more. >> several things that the

president of the european central bank said the stairs they were received negatively on the stock market's -- the president of the central bank said this thursday. he gave no indication if they might lower interest rates soon. of course there was the weaker growth projection that he gave. also, disappointing for some market participants, was that drug he did not announce new measures, new ideas, how to health small and mid-sized companies get easier access to bank loans -- draghi and did not announce. he also said the european central bank was more conservative than other reserve banks. that is not the sort of stuff that the markets like to hear these days, that they are so dependent on cheap reserve bank money. >> let's get a closer look now at the market numbers. a rough day on the dax, down more than 1%. euro stoxx 50 taking a dive into

negative territory as well. the dow jones industrial average up on trading on the day, and the euro trading against the dollar -- $1.32. the imf report that shows serious errors in the 2010 bailout for greece continues to cause shock waves. the international monetary fund now says it would have been better to restructure greek debt earlier instead of waiting for the second bailout the forced private creditors to take losses. the european union has firmly rejected the findings, and people on the streets of greece have reacted with fury. >> greek pensioners are angry. many have lost half their income due to cuts in pensions. they accuse the government of robbing them of their last crust. >> every month, my pension is being butchered more and more. when will we get it back? who will listen to us?

who is going to save us? >> for many older greeks, it is devastating that their children have no way of earning a living. 27% of working age greeks are without a job. 60% of young people have no work. the imf's conclusion that the first greek bailout worsened the country's plight has outraged many people here. >> what does this admission bring? they did it. now they say they should not have. what is the point? will the admission change anything? are they going to give anything back to us? no, they are not. >> greek media have expressed hopes that the strict austerity might now be softened. government forces in berlin have reportedly dismissed that as a wild conspiracy theory. >> the european union says member states are losing about 10 billion euros a year due to cigarette smuggling. the commission has launched a

new campaign to stamp out illegal trade. >> brussels says most cigarette smuggling is the worst of organized criminals. the eu says the majority of the contraband comes from china, and russia is named as an important transit group. time now to get your computers or mobile phones or whatever devices you used to surf the web because according to a recent study, over 3.5 billion people or have the global population will be online by the year 2017. >> and is difficult to believe, isn't it? today, one in three people -- also a huge number -- use the internet, and the amount of online devices like smart does this phones and tablets also expected to rise. experts estimate that 19 billion devices could be downloading data by 2017. they also caution that without increased investment, the web might not be able to handle all that increased amount of data flow. >> time to take a short break.

we will be back with more news in a minute. >> stay with us.

>> welcome back. the turkish prime minister has deepened his hard line against protesters, linking them to terrorists and promising to go ahead with the istanbul shopping center project that sparked the protests. >> at least three people have been killed in his protests, over 4000 injured in a week of demonstrations that show no sign of ending. the stand has been met with silence from this conservative islamic party, and some are concerned about his handling the crisis. >> images of police beating demonstrators have shocked even many committed supporters of the governing akp party. for years, this journalist supported the prime minister, but he, too, has been taken aback by the prime minister's

handling of the situation. >> while using the power, you should not hurt people. you should not use your power in a position that provokes more for makes people feel intimidated or threatened. >> he has shown no signs of changing his tone. on the contrary, he has indirectly threatened counter demonstrations. >> our supporters make up at least 50% of the people. it is not easy holding them back and stopping them from taking to the streets. >> but now, religious and conservative demonstrators are also joining the protest. the disparate group gathers in central istanbul -- young and old, liberals and anarchists, feminists and housewives. for many, it is no longer just about saving the park.

they are demanding a new turkey. >> we want a public debate. that is true democracy. we have called for that before, but no one listened to us. >> food for the demonstrators is funded by donations from across turkey. lawyers are providing free services to demonstrators who end up in jail. doctors have set up a clinic to treat the wounded. >> we are working here voluntarily and treating for free those who have been injured during clashes with the police who have been affected by too much teargas. >> the clinic has its work cut out for it. every night, there are violent clashes with police. critics say it is up to the prime minister to take a responsible approach. >> i of the prime minister -- if the prime minister takes a lesson from this and decides to change his controversial intimidating tone, he will still

continue to be a successful leader for turkey in the years to come, but it does not, -- if he does not, this will escalate. >> demonstrators say they will not back down. they want to keep fighting for what they say needs to be a more democratic turkey. >> is the turkish prime minister looking for a fight with his critics? our correspondent joins us now on the line live from istanbul. he's taking a very hard line. how are opposition parties responding? who do you think is going to come out on top of this? >> well, the opposition movement have been shocked by these comments. this cuts across with they had seen as a tense for the government to reach out and compromise. the immediate response was to call for people to join a massive protest. they are really, very much, for

a showdown with the prime minister. >> what about the protesters? what do they want to see happen at this stage? >> they have a list of demands. the first key one is the maintenance of the park to end this development project. they are also calling on the police chief and government responsible for the crackdown on protesters across the country to be fired. they are also looking for an end of what they say is authoritarian rule of the prime minister, but it is more than that. they have a message that this is about independent freedom, and their individual freedoms should be respected and how they want to live should be respected. >> what do these protests say about the deep divisions in the country between modernists and traditionalists? can they be reconciled? >> this debate, this struggle has gone on for a century in

turkey or more, but it is different because it is not about one group wanting to impose on the other. this is about saying, "whoever we are, weather -- whether you are secular or religious, you have the right to live your life and that right should be respected." this has opened the door for islamic groups now to join the protest movement. >> thank you so very much. in another sign of just how destabilized the region is becoming, the united nations peacekeeping troops austria has had for decades in the israeli golan heights are being called home. >> two united nations peacekeepers have been wounded in the fighting. austria says it can no longer guarantee the safety of its troops in the area. syrian government forces have reportedly been taken the

government crossing -- the border crossing after it was seized by rebels earlier in the day. >> news agency is reporting that clashes have broken out in the center of tripoli in northern lebanon, and the aid group doctors without borders has issued a report saying more needs to be done to prevent hospitals from being attacked. >> syrian government troops entering the former rebel stronghold -- the city lies in ruins. even hospitals such as this one have been destroyed. day after day, fighters violate the united nations convention by targeting hospitals and medical practices. doctors without borders in berlin, which covertly runs five clinics in basements and apartments in northern syria, say the situation is dire. >> we often have to move our clinics and where we sleep so as not to attract attention. i was there just last year, and rarely did we spend two nights in the same place. we were always looking for a safe place.

obviously, that makes our work more difficult. >> doctors say it is more dangerous for them to be caught with a patient who is a combatant than with a weapon. >> the situation is deteriorating day by day. in many parts of the country, civilians have no access to medical care. the one did not receive any treatment, which is catastrophic. >> the syrian government makes it almost impossible for international aid organizations to operate. doctors without borders are calling on international leaders to increase pressure on damascus as they try to keep suffering to a minimum. >> to the u.s., now, and colorado's rocky mountain high is proving a success story for pennsylvania smokers and the government. so much so that the state is considering further liberalization of pop sales. >> the state council voted to develop a legal framework to licensed shops to sell marijuana to adults by next year.

>> main gate is supposed to make these marijuana plants grow faster plantsregae is supposed to make these marijuana plants grow faster. selling mary jane has become a big business in colorado. this man months one of the largest marijuana farms in denver, the state capitol. his company, a river rock wellness, it is dedicated to producing organic medical canada's products. he says the future of colorado is green. >> the cannabis plant did not carry with it the 70 years of taboo and prohibition. we had just discovered it in the amazon a month ago. the world's big pharmaceutical companies would be foaming at the mouth to have first bite at it. >> colorado voted to legalize marijuana for medical purposes in 2000. people shopping at this outlet

our patients buying medicine. different varieties of the plant are sorted according to malady. medical marijuana has proven extremely popular with patients. people who prefer a smoking pot to popping pills. it has proved a boon for the city of denver as well. canada's -- cannabis shops are sprouting up like weeds. some are even on wheels. the industry is creating thousands of new jobs in colorado. tax revenues are in the millions. >> we made a rhetorical move here more than anything else, to stop viewing marijuana like a hard drug and instead started from scratch with a blank piece of paper and build a supply chain and distribution model for medical marijuana. >> in denver, you can buy now one in a drink, as a meal, or as a snack -- that is, if you have

a prescription, but starting next year, people here will be able to buy cannabis for recreational use as well. colorado politicians say legalizing marijuana is good for the city, but there's one small problem -- using marijuana is illegal under federal law. with one swipe of his pen, president obama could end colorado's hi. >> we cannot protect them from the federal government. what we can do is establish a set of rules by which they compete with each other that minimize the risk of the federal government intervening in that way. >> colorado is taking pains not to get on washington's bad side. strict regulations require growers to account for every gram harvested. video cameras monitor the stores. some growers go as far as attaching a bar code to each and every plant. the data is stored on a computer. there remains an underlying fear that washington could come poking its nose into colorado's

green gold rush. >> i am word about all of those things that could come with a federal intervention -- absolutely. do i have trouble sleeping at night -- sometimes, but then i have medical marijuana to help me out. >> it is good for anxiety as well. if you need a dose, you can find it in colorado. >> certainly ground-breaking legislation there. >> the music helps, doesn't it? >> thanks so much for joining us. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

glad to have you with us on this edition of "newsline." it's friday, june 7th. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. turkey's prime minister is pressing ahead in the face of demonstrate strarts caors callio step aside. he commented on the demonstrations during a visit to tunisia. he said there are extremists among the protesters. his comments inflamed tensions in