>> this is the journal coming to you live on dw. ben: a germantown honors its victims from last week's playing crash and executives pledge support for their families. >> iran says achieving a deal on its nuclear program depends on russian flowers -- russian powers in germany warns negotiations could still collapse. >> a palestinian authority has become a member of the international criminal court. >> the pressure continues to grow on lufthansa. people want to know how young

man with suicidal tendencies was allowed to fly on the flight. >> the northwestern germantown lost 16 students and to teachers from one high school class. it has been holding a mass in memory of those victims. ben: the recovery work is still ongoing. >> authorities say they have finished collecting the human remains. now the recovery workers are concentrating on gathering the personal effects and the remaining wreckage from the plane. the question remains, why was the copilot allowed to fly when his employers knew he had been treated for depression? back in 2009 lubitz told the move tonsil flying school about the seared -- severe depression he had suffered.

>> we are just very, very sorry that such a terrible accident could have happened. we put so much focus on safety we are sorry for the losses that occurred and there's just no words to express our sorrow. [indiscernible] >> why are you refusing to take questions? reporter: lufthansa said it would him to roll the necessary medical tests, and he passed all of them. the company went on to give him a job at its subsidiary, germanwings. it's unclear how much of his medical file his employer was aware of. prosecutors say he was treated for having suicidal tendencies.

more answers are needed by the families of the victims as they seek to come to terms with the tragedy. sarah: it's a game of watching and waiting. iranian and western negotiators remain locked in talks over iran's nuclear program. ben: the deadline for agreement has been extended. all sides say much progress has been made in the discussions but a final agreement remains elusive. >> iran's foreign minister returned to the hotel to carry on trying to hammer out details of a possible nuclear deal. tuesday deadline of midnight passed without any breakthrough. wednesday morning, the iranian delegation met with u.s. counterparts for bilateral talks, the first for several days. iran says it is important to get every detail right. >> in reality, we are in the final extended stages of negotiations.

we had arranged to complete the talks yesterday, but we won't allow a deadline to force a final decision. time is important to us, but the details of negotiations and are wireless are more vital. >> what iran wants is for the economic sanctions to be lifted. in exchange, it's negotiating partners want to achieve one thing, to make sure iran doesn't yield a new year bomb. in berlin, the german chancellor angela merkel stressed that this was the essential part of the talks. >> i hope that a compromise will be reached today that corresponds to the conditions we have set, namely that iran gets no access to nuclear weapons. >> israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has been highly critical of the efforts to reach an agreement with iran. >> the concessions offered with ensure a bad deal that would

endanger israel, the middle east, and the peace of the world. >> behind closed doors, the negotiating goes on. both sides need to feel they have won if they are to finally reach an agreement. ben: we just heard from a critical netanyahu the german foreign minister has rebutted that criticism. tell us what he has had to say. >> he told us just two hours ago that netanyahu plus criticism is not really a responsible answer to the negotiations. everybody here has in mind that it's also about the neighbors, especially about israel. if it goes on prohibiting that iran ever hasn't atomic bomb. >> were talking about hopes for what, a good deal or a bad deal, do you think? reporter: either is a good deal

-- either there is a good deal or no deal. when he spoke to journalists this afternoon, he said the talks will go on tomorrow and he hopes that everything can be solved. the iranians don't want the big paper here that really solidifies what was negotiated. on the other hand they want -- they want to write down what has been negotiated because these are the guidelines for the end of june. then something can be underwritten by the foreign ministers. everybody here hopes even the iranians, to come to a conclusion because the iranians want the money. ben: thank you very much for covering that for us. the german chancellor says there is some calm in ukraine, but that a hard one cease-fire is

still not being fully respected. sarah: she spoke with ukrainian prime minister. they discussed ukraine's economic problems. fighting continues between ukrainian forces in progress and rebels, but it is dying down. dw's chief political correspondent, melinda crane has been following the visit. do you expect angela merkel will reach into her pocket book? melinda crane: so it seems she had strong words of praise for ukraine, saying it efforts at institutional reform, it's fine against corruption, it's push to establish transparency, that all of those were present and they would go a long way to improving the investment climate. speaking of investments, she referred to it upcoming eu conference for investors and said that although german firms

would certainly be deciding for themselves, she would be encouraging them to look into investing in ukraine. for her part, the german government has pledged along of 500 million euros to ukraine. the chancellor said today 300 million of that would go to investing in infrastructure and also improving the health care system. she said that in her opinion, both of those would help to strengthen the investment climate as well for private firms. she said the remaining 200 million would go to the government to help support its budget. for his part, he made it clear that he badly needs that money. ukraine has lost 20% of its economic strength due to the russian incursions. sarah: melinda crane, thank you for your analysis. istanbul is on edge after a

second day of deadly violence. >> would go to our correspondent in a moment. first, this report. experts the third attack on an official building in turkey's biggest city within 48 hours. officials say two assailants attempted to storm the police headquarters in a central neighborhood. police shot a woman dead on the scene. her, was, a man, was taken into custody. the attack came just hours after a gunman rated and istanbul office of the governing party. a day after a prosecutor was killed, after being taken hostage by two leftist militants. hundreds of people gathered on wednesday to pay tribute.

the turkish minister was alone be mourners. >> the nation and legal community condemns and curses this cowardly attack. we don't see this attack as one against our deceased colleague but against the entire turkish judicial system. we see it as a gun pointed towards our nation. >> he had been leading investigations into the protesters wounded and killed during antigovernment demonstrations two years ago. ben: just hours since the funeral of the prosecutor who died in yesterday's violence. let's go over to dorian jones. tell us what is the atmosphere like in istanbul right now? dorian jones: there's a great deal of anxiety and fear. the concern that turkey could be

going back to the past. the fear is that why these events are happening now is on the minds of many turks. yesterday they had nationwide power cuts. could turkey be slipping back to the bad old days? the question on many people's minds is, what is happening next? >> are people linking these incidents? >> the person who was there on for old with a symbol that is connected to the islamic minority sect. they claim they have been persecuted by the state. these people make up a large number of followers of the group believed to be responsible for the killing of the prosecutor, so there has been a connection being made there, but not confirmed. ben: what is the violence and uncertainty likely to mean for

the election in june? dorian jones: the prime minister has promised a very tough stance. he said they will not tolerate any more protest that are illegal. it is all feeling toward the deep polarization that is expected deep and even further. the election is expected to see the first real challenge to the ruling parties power in 15 years. ben: the international community is hailing nigeria's landmark election, the country's first democratic transfer of power. >> the opposition leader has won the vote, defeating president goodluck jonathan. the former general has pledged to strengthen democracy. a historic moment for nigeria after a past mark by coombs and rigged votes, the country faces its first democratic transfer of power. he won by more than 2.5 million vote.

he said the election proved to the world that nigerians as a people had embraced democracy. he described election results as the dawn of a new democratic age. he also promised to establish the rule of law and to crackdown on corruption. he also had warm words for his pponent, goodluck jonathan. the outgoing president promised a peaceful transition and urged his supporters to accept the result. >> nobody's ambition is worth the blood of any nigerian. the unity, stability, and progress of our dear country is more important than anything else. >> many nigerians are hoping the victory will usher in a new era. >> all nigerians are very happy today. we shed tears of joy because we are grateful.

>> we know there isn't any perfect election in the world, but this is close. >> the 72-year-old has led nigeria before. in 1984, he headed a military government before being deposed in another coup a year and a half later. ben: moving to another part of the world the fire on an oil platform in the gulf of mexico. >> as many as 45 were injured in the blaze which erupted overnight. the mexico's state-run oil company says hundreds of workers were evacuated. the cause of the fire was not clear. sarah: palestinians gain membership in the international criminal court and are gearing up for an investigation into last year's conflict in gaza. we will have more after the break.

sarah: welcome back. palestinians say their membership in the international criminal court is a milestone in their drive for international recognition. ben: the palestinian authority joined the icc today with a ceremony at the hague. the move has sparked when you controversy. palestinian and iranian officials could be exposed to possible war crimes prosecution. >> they will formally request an investigation if it takes too long. reporter: these are the death certificates of four palestinian boys killed during the war in gaza last summer. this is a logger who works with the palestinian human rights organization.

he has been gathering evidence of possible war crimes. >> we are questioning people taking photographs, looking at medical reports and recording the names of the victims. we are collecting all the evidence we can. >> each sheet in these boxes corresponds to one human fate. few of these cases have been examined by judges. if they have, it has been in an israeli military court. human rights activists see the international criminal court as the only chance to hold israeli commanders and politicians accountable. >> it's not palestine and israel, it's the victims. they are farther than ever from achieving their rights. >> the family hopes the icc agrees to hear their case.

it's tough for them to go back to the beach where their 10-year-old son and three of his cousins were killed last summer. another son was injured and remains traumatized. >> when i come here where the children were killed, it's almost as if it just happened. i can barely look at the scene. it is to be a special place for me, since i'm a fisherman. but now, i can't stand the view. >> the boys were playing here on july 16, 2014, when they were caught in an explosion. he is still too disturbed to talk about it. this is the immediate aftermath. eyewitnesses including foreign journalists, reported two explosions in quick succession. they were believed to be shells fired by the israeli navy.

they say they did fire on hamas targets at the time. an israeli military court is currently examining case, but this family and human rights activists see the international criminal court in the hague is it better guarantee of justice. even if the case could take years. >> islamic state has moved closer to the center of the capital, damascus in syria. militants are just a few kilometers away from the city center. >> the area was being controlled by other rebel groups who i has managed to push out. before the war, about a half million people live here. the population is now estimaed at just 18,000. >> here in germany, some 650 germans have gone to fight with islamic state in the last four years. ben: it has raised serious questions about why so many young germans have been radicalized and what society can do to stop it from happening.

sarah: one city has been especially hard-hit. we take a closer look. >> members of the muslim community praying for children of theirs who have gone to area. they hope they will come back safely although they know some will never return. this community leader recently bumped into a grieving mother. >> i just asked her how she was and tears welled up in her eyes. later, i found out that one of her sons was in syria. >> since 2013, 15 young men have left the city to join the islamic state militia. their families are left behind to wonder whether their sons will be killed or are killing other people themselves.

waiting and trying to understand what went wrong. he spent years recruiting members for his organization. he was called the sheikh by his admirers. he gathered followers around him. emily tried to intervene getting angry, begging their children to come to their sense. one family went to the police to try to prevent him leaving. >> the family expressly asked to be helped. they wanted his passport to be taken away, if possible could you family gave police about the radical interpretation of the carranza. they told officers -- interpretation of the koran. they told officers who had already gone to fight in syria and who was planning to. it was a call for help. >> i don't know what was done i don't know what the police actually did.

>> last year, the group traveled to syria unhindered. the young men sent heroic pictures back to germany, chatted with their friends online. they boasted that they were on their way to paradise. but some of them also quickly said that they wanted to come home. one of the group said he was going to commit a suicide attack to enter paradise like a bird, he said. his mother posted this picture on facebook a few weeks later. but could all of this have been prevented? >> it's hard to understand that the police didn't do anything. it's hard to say in retrospect what might have happened if passports had been confiscated for example, or if the young people had been spoken to. but it would at least have been a signal, and perhaps one or two could have been caught. >> none of the group pointed out

that police had their passports confiscated. they cannot comment on cases under investigation at the moment. three of the group met their deaths in syria. the most recent, three weeks ago. he is said to have killed 29 people in a suicide attack. his name was known to the police seven months before he left. sarah: time now for some business news. april 1 marked the start of the second quarter on stock markets. >> a promising start to the second quarter here at the stock market, at least in the first hours of trading. share prices went up. good news from purchasing managers, reflecting on the kind of mood and situation there was in industry in the eurozone. the situation was much better than expected, also good for jobs created.

then the momentum was lost because of economic data coming in from the united states from the labor market. less new jobs created, according to a survey by private company that people had hoped. wall street started lower and that brought the dax down, still gaining on the day but not as clearly as at the beginning. sarah: porting their from the frankfurt trading floor. it was a positive start to the second quarter, but just how positive? let's let the numbers do the talking. germany's dax gained .3%, ending at 12,001. also up on the day was the eurozone euro stoxx 50 nearly .5 percent gain there. over in new york, traders are still on the floor, but the dow is in negative territory. the euro currently trading at $1.07.

the german government has approved plans to allow fracking of shale gas for testing purposes. this legislation still has to pass parliament. ben: some government deputies are threatening to join the opposition in voting against the bill. they are concerned environmental controls don't go far enough. fracking involves pumping water sand, and chemicals into the ground to extract gas or oil. it has been linked to pollution. at least 11 people have died as a result of a storm raging through germany and austria. sarah: the storm reached hurricane strength in some areas and caused traffic chaos and left thousands of people without electricity. >> with fallen trees and severely damaged roofs the cleanup operation has not been easy. in berlin, the iconic television tower was not spared. gale force winds meant that its elevators had to be switched off. visitors were brought to safety

by the fire escape. berlin's firefighters were called out more than a thousand times to help city residents. >> it's a huge challenge. we had as many deployments in 12 hours as we normally have in 20 or. >> the storm caused severe disruptions to germany's rail services. berlin was just one place where downed trees and power lines meant delays of several hours. the aftermath was still visible on wednesday with long lines at information counters. although most services had returned by morning a railway operator warned of ongoing cancellations and delays. >> it's really a herculean task so there will still be more delays. the priority is to be operating on time on thursday and good friday, which are heavy travel days. >> they have not come up with an estimate of the cost of the

damages. >> they were not prepared for it. i had to walk to work today because the train wasn't running. ben: that would have been a hard walk against the wind. thanks for joining us. sarah: we're back again at the top of the hour with more news and updates from the heart of europe. see you then. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

>> hinojosa: did you know that there are more chinese restaurants in america than mcdonald's, burger king, and kentucky fried chicken combined? what makes americans so crazy about chinese food? my guest today is journalist and author of the fortune cookie chronicles jennifer 8. lee. i'm maria hinojosa. this is one on one. captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org jennifer 8. lee, you are a former new york times reporter and the author of fortune cookie

chronicles: adventures in the world of chinese food. and lets just start with that first statistic of if you look at the number of mcdonald's, burger kings, kentucky fried chickens, and wendy's combined