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>> and now, "bbc world news." >> hello and welcome to "newsday." >> here are the latest headlines. kabul under attack. taliban militants target the american embassy and nato headquarters. nicklauses plans to hand over security will not be disrupted. >> the call them tried to test the transition, -- the taliban tried to test the transition, but it is on track and will continue. >> record levels of poverty in the u.s.. one in six americans now live below the poverty line. >> wind about opens the summer while the economic -- the chinese premier opens the summer world economic summit. what jackie kennedy really

thought of her husband's successor. martin luther king's tape recordings released for the first time. it is 11:00 a.m. in singapore. >> it is 4:00 a.m. in london. this is "newsday." gunfire has continued overnight in the afghan capital after a series of attacks on nato, u.s., and police targets. at least 12 people have been killed, including six taliban fighters. nato says it will not derail the pullout of troops by the end of 2014. one senior u.s. politician has called for a rethink. we report from kabul. >> running for cover from a

taliban assault in the heart of the embassy district. the police opened fire on the attackers high above them. the taliban brought with them an arsenal of weapons. here on one of the city's busiest streets, a rocket lands. you can see smoke from an explosion and gunfire all over the area. this is the u.s. embassy and the isaf headquarters. this seemed like a significant attack. >> gunfire broke out across the neighborhood. we headed for cover. the target was the u.s. embassy. guards took up positions on the roof. inside, they scrambled for cover. nato soldiers joined afghan police. this residential area became a war zone. afghan and international

soldiers were side by side, taking aim at taliban hiding deep inside the building. the gunfire was heavy and sustained. the attack helicopters were called in to fire on the insurgents. the attack started with a suicide bomber at a roundabout. militants then fired from a building about 300 meters away which was still under construction. at the same time, across the city, the police station and the airport were also attacked. the taliban fought on. afghan security forces needed foreign help to combat the threat. >> there reacted quickly. they brought helicopters in, which is the first time afghan national security forces used their own helicopters for an operation like this. they responded very well. i just hope the situation gets under control. >> the attack would likely have

lasted longer without assistance. isaf says it has the taliban on the back foot, but to people in kabul, that seems optimistic. >> official figures released in the united states show that nearly one in six americans is now living in poverty. the census bureau says the income of the average household fell by more than 2% last year, and 46 million americans are poverty-stricken. african-americans and hispanics are disproportionately affected. president obama began a tour to promote his job creation plan. our correspondent is in washington with the details. >> it is about 15.3% of the population the u.s. census bureau says is now living in poverty, the highest rate since 1983. 46.2 million people.

49.9 million people in america are now without health insurance. these are the results, these figures, of an economy that is in terrible shape. growth is minuscule. job creation is around zero. employment seems to be stuck at around 9%. the figure of those living in poverty is care collected by the census bureau coming up with what it calls the poverty threshold, a certain level of income for a family. for a family of four, the poverty threshold would be $22,314. if you think about the world, that is still a lot of money. there are millions of people living on less than $500 a year. but in america, that is the threshold below which 46.2 million people are now living. that is a lot of people in poverty. very gloomy reading. >> now, more details on the

chinese premier's speech on the global economy. >> wen jiabao welcome but business leaders to the world economic forum, known as the summer davos. it is one of the biggest global gatherings in asia. jiabao said he was confident china would continue to grow and leading economies would recover from the economic downturn. >> in five years, the forum has been formed into a philosophy. this is to face the world, face the future, face the innovation, and to face the youth.

before room -- the for = = = ref -- reform has been taken in the form of various discussions. there is fatality, particularly during the time of the economic crisis. it has given the world a voice of hope. it has brought providence and courage. >> for more, we are joined by our correspondent. >> that is right. china's premier spoke to about 2000 global business leaders. he sounded confident about the chinese economy, but also the global economy. for a reaction, i am joined by the president of s.a.p. software. was it a message of hope?

>> it certainly was, but also realism. it said the problems we have today are complex and will take everybody to get their house in order. the message from china was powerful. it said we want to help the world, but also are working on the fundamentals. and the five-year plan that is in place has a very clear strategy. >> in what way do you think china can help the world? >> economically, it will help. the premier talked openly about his discussions with president obama last year, where he offered very candidly that if the u.s. will open its markets more we will invest. likewise, we believe you should be exporting more to china. clearly, there is an underlying economic argument. but the big opportunity is people. china is investing heavily in intellectual capital, developing the skills that are here.

internal consumption is growing. we must get the intellectual capital that exists in china today. >> the buzz here the last few days has been reports that italy has approached china is essentially for a bailout. did the premier say anything about that? >> if he did not speak about and a particular country. he talked about sovereign debt in europe. he did have the discussion about countries getting their own house in order. but he did not mention specific countries. >> what did you think of the speech overall? >> the positive message of hope and optimism. it is ours to achieve. >> stephen watts, thank you for joining us. rico, but to you. i will be here all week. >> the world economic forum, thank you so much for joining us. in other news, at least eight people have been killed and others injured in a collision

between trains in southern india. a passenger service ran into another train that had stopped at a signal. the accident happened about 80 kilometers from the city of to nine -- of chennai. one of colonel gaddafi is sons is now in [unintelligible] he crossed the border on sunday. various members of gadhafi's inner circle have entered niger this month, including three generals. the whereabouts of the former leader remain unknown. the turkish prime minister has renewed his attack on israel, saying its government mentality is the main barrier to peace in the middle east. in a speech at the arab league, he said palestinian statehood was not an option, but an obligation. you are watching "newsday puzzle

ravaged by earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear radiation, six months after japan's catastrophe, we return to one of the worst-hit towns. >> with a little help from their friends. the photos captured by one of the beatles' closest confidants. at least nine people have been killed and over 200 injured after a train crashed into a bus in the argentine capital of buenos aires. the impact derailed the train, which was then hit by a second train. vladimir hernandez has more. >> this is the moment an error in judgment may have turned into a fatal mistake. tv footage shows how the train hit the bus going to a level crossing. it then crashed into another train. the bus was crushed and wedged against the platform. its driver was one of those killed. it happened in early rush hour,

when thousands of commuters were trying to reach buenos aires. the consequences were evident. 100 ambulances and attended the scene in a giant rescue effort. for the people who live in this area, there were unforgettable scenes of horror. the argentine capital often sees incidents at its rail lines, which run through many residential areas of the city. but not all accidents are as tragic as this. the authorities say an investigation is already on the way. many rail lines go through residential areas in buenos aires, and it is not unusual to see drivers and pedestrians ignoring the warnings of an incoming train. the driver of the bus may have ignored warning signs at the crossing. >> the video shows have the impact happened to, and what is more the negligence and evidence of the driver will be determined by the investigation, which the

accident experts will review. >> this is the fourth real crash reported this year in buenos aires, and the most lethal. it will take days to clear, but will live longer in the memories of those who live there. bbc news, buenos aires. >> this is "newsday." >> a reminder of our top stories. troops and police in the afghan capital, kabul, are battling to contain an attack by taliban militants. >> level of poverty in the u.s. have reached record highs. one in six americans now live below the poverty line. >> breaking news. this is from the afp agency. an ax wielding man has killed four in china in an attack on a

kindergarten. we will bring you more as we continue. >> six months ago, emergency workers in japan were just beginning their desperate struggle to control the nuclear power station at fukushima following the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami. three reactors were overheating, and a vast cloud of radioactivity escaped. more than 100,000 people were ordered to leave their homes. science correspondent david shukman is one of the few journalists who have ventured back to this town. >> the nuclear ghost town. we have arrived in a long street of shops, and there is nobody here. we are a few miles inside the exclusion zone. a radioactive cloud blew over six months ago, but experts have assured us that radiation levels have fallen. a local farmer has slipped as past security.

this is a main street, but it is completely empty. he wants us to see how this community has suffered. we find it was hit by the earthquake and tsunami, and then by the leak from the fukushima plant. this used to be a town of 16,000. this is the main street. as you can see, it is completely deserted. motorbikes abandoned. shops completely empty. no traffic at all. weeds growing up in this court here. a shop wrecked in the earthquake, still completely untouched. in all the time we have been here, the radiation level has been surprisingly low. the problem is this. if you get down to ground level, it shoots up. the problem for us on a very quick visit, but scientists are wrestling with how dangerous the contamination is and will continue to be in the long term. it was back in march that

exposures at the nuclear power plant released british erected material. leaks contaminated some areas more severely than others, but everybody within 12 miles of the devastation was ordered out. naoto decided to stay on. he does not bother with protective clothing. in the ruins, spiders have taken over. webb stretch over everything. naoto clears the path to show us something. this is a distressing sight, the couple should. the owners left in such a hurry they were not able to release their family -- their animals. in each of these pens, their art two which died, a total of 60. some animals broke free, and are running wild. naoto tries to care for a new generation going in the nuclear zone. he wants to keep his community

going. >> there is no electricity. there is no gas or water. but older people want to come back. even my mother and father, their wishes to die here. >> after three hours, we check our radiation dose. it is roughly half of what one gets from a chest x-ray. naoto refuses to think about radiation. he is determined to stay on. he lives by candlelight. most of his food is tanned. a dog is his only companion. he wants his town to return to normal, but it will be a long wait. bbc news, japan. >> aid workers in pakistan say the floods in sind are more serious than last year's devastation. the number of those affected is expected to rise as torrential rain continues to fall

throughout the region. >> this is what large parts of this massive province in southern pakistan look like right now, submerged by water. all the villages around this area have been inundated by the water after heavy monsoon rains. one aid agency is talking about over 4000 villages that have been affected over recent days. that is an extraordinary number, but there are also problems with access. roads have been destroyed or submerged. we are talking about 5 million people who have been affected in the last week alone. this is just a few who have come from villages that have been destroyed to get food aid. they are carrying in wheat, but there is also oil and high energy biscuits being given out by international organizations. these people are at least getting some help at the moment, but there are real worries about people who are trapped. the navy is going out to try to

get to villages that have been cut off over the last several days. as you can see, the rain has stopped for the time being, but the forecast is more rain in the coming days. >> meanwhile, in has been reported that more than eight people have died in flash floods and landslides in parts of north and central thailand. the weather agency says the monsoon rain is likely to worsen over the next 48 hours. 200,000 families have already been hit by floods and landslides. more from bangkok. >> this is what weeks of torrential downpours have done to parts of thailand. this is what the province looks like just over an hour away from the capital city, bangkok. people use boats to try to salvage whatever they can to -- it can from their devastated homes. it is thought almost 1 million

people have been affected by floods, and about a third of thailand's provinces have been declared disaster zones by the government. the heavy rains have also led to landslides, damaging schools and houses and trapping many in the mud. rescue teams have been trying to dig people out, but more bad weather is expected in coming days, which could affect their efforts. more than 80 have lost their lives, and many more remain extremely vulnerable to the threat of further downpours. the biggest challenge has been trying to reach those in remote areas. authorities say they are doing all they can, handing out food and aid packages to those who have been affected. critics say the prime minister's overseas tour is badly timed. instead of meeting with dignitaries abroad, they say the leader should be at home to deal with this crisis. the floods have followed days of

heavy seasonal rains, which caused rivers to burst their banks. the fear is that bangkok could be next. this is the area in bangkok which typically gets hit by flooding first period when bangkok experiences bad weather, officials have already warned residents to stand on guard for flooding. more bad weather is expected. thailand's new government has been criticized for what some say is a slow response to the natural disaster. the prime minister says she is committed to finding a long-term solution to flooding in thailand. bbc news, bangkok. >> now, audio tapes of jackie kennedy made just months after the assassination of her husband have been made public for the first time. >> in 1964, the former first lady recorded a series of interviews with arthur schlesinger, the historian, but

only on conditions there were not released until 50 years after her death. her daughter carolyn has decided to release them now. there were reported for months after her husband was assassinated, and focus almost -- focus on her most recent memories. >> he would always come in before he went over to the office. >> it is jacqueline kennedy in her own words, her oral history in a series of recordings never before heard intel this diane sawyer exclusive. the year is 1964. the first lady describes her years in the white house. in one recording, she recalls begging her husband to let her stay with him during the cuban missile crisis. >> even if there is not room in the bomb shelter on the white house, i just want to be with you.

i want to die with you. the children do. i do not want to live without you. >> her husband did not support a lyndon johnson presidency. >> she was fond of lyndon johnson. she found him amusing and warm hearted. >> caroline kennedy compiled the recordings in a new book. >> i can hear her voice in my mind. i think it is important to realize the value as well as the limitations of an oral history. once you start making changes, what do you do? it is not my oral history. >> there are lighter moments. it shows what life was like in the white house with young children. >> i always thought it was so funny. after people used his bathroom that men could use after dinner -- there were all of these floating animals in the tub.

>> photographs illustrating the early years of the beatles will be sold at auction might to this month in new york. performing as an up-and-coming band in homburg -- in hamburg, the images were captured by a young german photographer. >> four faces that change music forever. the beatles are instantly recognizable now, but when these rare photographs were taken, they were still just an up-and- coming band. >> the beatles' first arrived on the scene, and i was sort of around. they were very slick looking. their hair was cut the same. they became a single entity. what you see here are visions of them in their rawest, rugged best, before they meshed together.

>> the pictures were taken by a young german photographer who was engaged to stuart sutcliffe, the beatles' original bass player, who died in 1962. it is pictures of the beatles in their early days, a time when fame and success were still just a dream. this auction is not just about the beatles. also up for sale or other pieces of rock-and-roll history -- photos of bob dylan, buddy holly, paintings by gamete hendrix, and elvis presley's first guitar. expect some spending from anywhere mementos. whoever gets them will have their very own piece of music history. bbc news. >> to a been watching "news the." -- you have been watching " newsday." >> you can catch all the stories on the bbc website.

>> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. and union bank.

>> union bank has put its global financial strength to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet los angeles.