♪ >> helloand d welcome to the "journal" on dw-tv. i am shane fankhauser in berlin. >> and i am miranda with the business news. >> bombing and said that -- bombings at the swiss and chilean embassies rocks the italian capital. north korea threatens a holy war against the south as soltan the next military exercises. >> media reports say eurozone countries, including germany, of working on any financial stability rescue fund. ♪ >> hello, and welcome. italian police have been surging foreign embassies in rome after a series of explosions.

two people were wounded in separate blasts at the swiss in chilean embassies the italian foreign member -- president spoke of a serious threat. >> another bomb alert in rome. this time in the city's diplomatic quarter. the device exploded in the chilean embassy and was the size of the videotape and concealed in a yellow package. in an earlier incident, and member of staff at the swiss embassy was seriously injured when a similar parcel exploded in the mail room. >> the man is an embassy employee. he sustained injuries while opening a package, which blew up in his hands. he is being treated in the hospital. no one else was injured. an investigation is underway. >> investigators are thought to be following a possible

anarchist link to a group active in spain and greece. no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks so far. police have been conducting checks on all embassies in the city. there was also a false alarm at the ukrainian embassy. but the suspected bomb turned out to be a greeting card. >> earlier, we spoke with our correspondent in rome and asked if there is any indication who may be behind the attack. >> according to the interior minister in a tv interview that will be broadcast later tonight, he is going to say that the anarchist clue is the one that they're working on at the moment. there are similarities between what has happened here and what happened earlier in november in athens, where the chilean and swiss embassies were targeted

for postal attacks. it then it spread out to government outside greece. that said, the greek police have contradicted an earlier report from italy that they have been asked for help in the investigation into these latest incidents. >> thank you very much. russian president dmitry medvedev has welcomed the u.s. senate decision to ratify the start nuclear arms control treaty. the russian have said the first of three votes on the treaty for friday. the treaty was approved in washington wednesday night after a contentious debate in the u.s. and the vote represents a major victory for president barack obama. >> senate democrats mananad to persuade 13 republicans to vote with them to ratify the start treaty. for president barack obama, a major foreign-policy success. >> this is the most significant arms control agreement in nearly two decades.

it will make us safer and reduce our nuclear arsenals, along with russia. with this treaty, our inspectors will also be back on theground that russian nuclear bases. so we will be about to test and verify. >> it has been nine months since obama and his russian counterpart, dmitry medvedev, signed the treaty. obama pushed hard to have it ratified before a new congress convenes in january. under the agreement, the u.s. and russia commit to reducing their nuclear arsenals from 20 two hundred warheads to 1550. delivery systems for the missiles are to be limited to 700 for each side. now the russianower houseof parliament as to ratify the treaty. it will hold the first of three votes on friday. >> north korea has threatened to fight a holy war with its nuclear deterrent against south korea, which is conducting military exercises close to the mutual border. tanks, jets, and ground forces

are taking part in the drill, while naval maneuvers are being held at sea. tensions have been running high on the peninsula since november. >> it is all a 20 kilometers from here to the north korean border. the south lawn -- wants to send a clear message to the northwood -- with its maneuvers, that it will not be intimidated. p'yongyang has reacted to the drill with a new and dramatic warning it on state tv, the regime threatened a holy war and the use of nuclear weapons. a spokesman for the south korean foreign ministry tried to allay fears of retaliation. > my understanding is that this is a regular exercise and is taking place quite far away from north korea. >> the south korean president

met a point of visiting the troops to show his support. the military drills by south korea also of the full support of the united states. >> the united nations has condemned the killing of almost two hundred people in post- election violence in ivory coast. it accused the incumbent president's forces of caressing -- of harassing u.n. peacekeepers. the u.s., france, and regional powers are considering a move to reinforce troops. they have resisted international pressure to sit down. he refuses to recognize the winner of last month's election. >> we will have more on that situation on the ivory coast coming up later in the program. >> europe's sovereign debt crisis continues to concern investors. fitch downgrad portugal's debt, while hungary approved a budget for next year, just hours

after fitch downgraded the government's credit worthiness to not above junk status. the budget passed by a two- thirds majority of the governing center-right. the party aims to cut the deficit from 3.8% gdp this year to under 3% next year. it incdes new taxes on banking, energy, retail, and telecom sectors. the irish government is taking majority control of a bank as it struggles to stabilize the country's embattled financial sector. it is putting 3.7 million euros into allied irish bank. it was once ireland's biggest bank, but ongoing losses have driven the asset base below capital requirements. the government has already nationalized anglo irish bank and irish nationwide building society and others. a german newspaper said several

european countries, including germany, are working on a permanent european financial rescue mechanism which would include the creation of a new and independent institute a long sigh and european central bank. it would have the same independence as the ec bb. >> at the frankfurt stock exchange, christmas has seen investors the concerns about the eurozone debt crisis to the side for now. but behind the scenes, eu leaders are considering long- term rise of shielding the single currency from speculators. experts said of the german finance minister have drawn up proposals for european financial stability fund. officially, it is the case study, not a policy draft. but it could be floated at a january meeting of eurozone finance ministers. the fund would be a new institution, working parallel to and independent of the ec be. it would hold enough reserves to give emergency loans to

struggling eurozone members. it would ensure that governments maintain a strict condition that would go with the loans. the institution would be modeled on the international monetary fund based in washington, which performs a similar role for its 187 member states. this year, for example, the imf help fund the bailout for eurozone members greece and ireland. >> european stock markets ended mixed on thursday as positive economic data from the u.s. failed to animate pre-holiday trading. for an update on the market, we spoke to our correspondent. she sends us this report from frankfurt. >> the german dax gained 1% throughout the week, a good sign of the new year begins shareholders are still confident. the severe winter weather also played a role in the stock market. live danza -- live dance the

shares could recover. and scandinavian airline could be taken over. shares of deutsche bank ended excuses talks over the sale of a company. finally a solution for this problem, traders said. >> taking a closer look and market numbers, in frankfurt, the dax closed slightly lower. the eureuro stoxx 50 close lowe. in new york, positive did have had little affect on stocks. the dow is trading down. in currency markets, the bureau is steady against the dollar after china said it would help struggling eurozone countries. the hero is trading for $1.3110. a mining group has met a takeover bid for an australian company. the deal is worth some 3 billion euros and has been recommended by the company.

rio tinto is the world's second- biggest iron ore producer. it would give control of a major coal mining project in africa. shareholders may hold off for a rival offer. the heavy snow appears to have that many germans in a christmas buying. retailers say the season the shipping of to be the best in five years. despite the snow and freezing temperatures, consumers are eager to depart with their money. i research association expects turnover to rise to 77 billion euros. big gift items are winter clothing and sporting the women. other items are available despite transfer delays due to the snowstorm. arab opec ministers began arriving in cairo thursday, ahead of talks, oil prices hit fresh two-year hhs. it rivals that of 2008, when oil strike a record high. it was after the deep recession

of last year that oil began rising again. brent crude hit a two-year high of nearly $94 this morning. that is making its way to the gasoline bombs, were the uighur euro is making gas even more expensive. -- for the week bureau is making gas more expensive. >> christmas travel has been slowly getting back to normal. after days of heavy winter conditions. frankfurt airport reported only a few dozen cancellations thursday, but it is a different story on the audubons. there are numerous accidents because of the conditions. >> roads in a north german state were blocked with fresh snow thursday morning. a new cold front moving down caused massive problems for road and rail traffic. further south in lower saxony, motorways became treacherous and slippery as a rain froze to i

said as it hit the ground. another area, just walking to the tram was a risky business. on thursday, there were no problems, but traffic was heavy. roads in and around munich filled up with travelers heading for alpine regions. >> anyone wanting a relaxed journey would be best off traveling on christmas eve, assuming the weather plays along. motorways another major roads will be pretty empty. hopefully the weather gods will not let it snow too hard. >> taking to the rails instead of risking the roads is not much of an alternative. on many lines, there is standing room only as people tried to get to their destinations before christmas. >> about 500 christians from the gaza strip have traveled to the west bank to celebrate christmas in bethlehem. the israeli military loosened its blockade of gaza to allow the trip as a gesture of goodwill. christians form a small minority

among the 1.5 million palestinians in gaza. >> this family is decorating the christmas tree. they are among the 3500 residents of the gaza strip who are christians. they are not among the privileged ones allowed to leave the blockaded gaza strip before christmas. >> it is especially hard for the children. i wish they could have got to know bethlehem and seen where jesus was born. i wish they had the chance to learn about their country. >> in bethlehem on the west bank, children held the traditional christmas parade for peace. calling themselves children without borders, they are urged people to live in harmony in the holy land. i injures a limb, shimon peres welcome to a children's choir from nazareth. the northern israeli city with the predominantly arab population.

>> i would like to see the support community and send my -- [unintelligible] >> they expect more than 90,000 pilgrims in the country over the christmas time. >> now to soccer and to thee lat 16 of the german cup. the top managers had than all bundesliga shutdown. it was packed with drama. nine goals from two records from a one missed penalty. later, winners. -- bayern was the winner. >> bayern the lead after six minutes. gomez made it 2-0. bayern look like they were going to win, but stuttgart had other

ideas. this player claude went back. just before halftime, the big russian added his second, and stuttgart equalizer. bayern took over the lead early in the second half. bayern then got lucky. stuttgart hit the ball and then had the penalty phase. the home side fought on to make it 3-0. bayern kept their cool. the clothes are added two more. -- the clothes are added two more. the final score was 6-3, bayern got through to the quarter finals. >> sticking with soccer, inter milan have sacked their coach, who was only in charge for six months.

he will be replaced by a brazilian coach.

♪ >> hello, welcome back. is civil war looming in the country once viewed as one of west africa's most stable nations? the standoff in the ivory coast but it's the incumbent laurent gbagbo against alassana quattara, who actually won the election, according to official response -- results. alassana quattara's supporters saying force may be the only solution. the army stand united behind laurent gbagbo. years of intense national pressure to step down. the u.s., u.s., european union, and african union, and the west african bloc have all recognized alassana quattara as the winner. meanwhile, the u.n. is taking steps to extend the mandate of peacekeeping troops in ivory

coast. in recent years, ivory coast had been considered a relatively stable african country. but the fragile balance between north and south, muslim and christian, locals and economic migrants, now looks precarious. eight years ago, the balance was thrown into disarray when a part of the army rose up against the government and seized much of the north. this is the area were presidential contender alassana quattara has his support base. most followers of the incumbent laurent gbagbo live in the south of ivory coast. the hope was that the election would help heal the wounds of the civil war. but even though laurent gbagbo lost the vote, he is clinging on to power, defying the international community. economic repercussions from the conflict have already been felt in what is the world's biggest producer of cocoa.

but ivory coast can no longer guarantee that it will deliver its biggest earner. >> the turmoil has profound economic implications. ivory coast is the world's top cocoa-producing country and has been one of west ever does most promising economies. the standoff has raised the sector and fighting could disrupt exports by blocking transport and shipping, leading cocoa prices to shoot a bit of the world bank froze funding to ivory coast on wednesday to squeeze laurent gbagbo financially. but if he is feeling to the pain, it is not visible. he and alassana quattara offering material rewards to supporters. >> free petrol. that is not enough -- that is not an offer that will be turned down. the have been lining up but the filling station for hours. they want to get to the main city of the ivory coast that is 400 kilometers away. there will be many roadblocks, but that does not deter them.

chrysler had nothing to eat and no jobs. the country cannot go on like this. we have to do something. >> two governments, two presidents. it cannot work. ivory coast is not a banana republic. we can change things. >> the men who donated the fuel was alassana quattara, recognized internationally as the winner of the presidential vote. news the figurehead of the economically deprived in north of the country, where he has many supporters the road to the well-off south with its cocoa plantations have been blocked off for days. drivers have to wait. only bass' with alassana quattara supporters are allowed through two thousand seven meeting at the demarcation line that has divided the north from the south. it was drawn eight years ago, after the civil war. the motorbikes position themselves at the head of the convoy.

they do not know how far they will get in their visit -- a mission to support alassana quattara. protected by some 800 u.n. peacekeepers, he is camped out in is a luxury hotel. it has been converted into a stronghold surrounded by barbed wire. alassana quattara garnered 54% of the vote and the presidential election three weeks ago. that is according to the independent electoral commission. alassana quattara and his newly named the ministers are however only save on the grounds of the hotel. the incumbent, laurent gbagbo,, seems determined to keep his job and has made his own cabinet. you rule for the last five years without an electoral mandate as reliable the military and state media for support. on top of that, laurent gbagbo knows how to play the more than 60 different ethnic groups against each other.

a mutiny within the army calls for civil war, and a petitioning of the country eight years ago, many people from ivory coast became displaced by the conflict. among them, christine, who grew up in the north. now she struggles on here. >> the politicians do not care about us. they make a big fuss and act as if they do. they are all like that. >> even so, i voted for laurent gbagbo. you have to vote for someone. >> she has to provide for five children. her husband is little help. he is not recovered from the civil war. used to have a good position with an insurance company, but now he is jobless. every day, there are new headlines about the battle

between the two presidents. christine just seized two well- off man in retirement age. she cannot see a difference in their politics, and she's not alone in thinking the two are just in it for the power and influence. >> what i want is peace. the two men should sit down and talk. all that counts is peace. >> alassana quattara supporters want to avoid bloodletting. this one works at the taxi. you voted for alassana quattara at the elections, for no other reason than that he comes from the north as well. >> partition of the country is overshadowed everything. not just the presidential vote. since the civil war, militias of

the onetime rebels run the show in the north. while in the south, it is the rb -- army. >> this is a neighborhood where nearly everyone voted for alassananauattara. among them, immigrants. the parents came here to work on plantations. their children are now mostly unemployed. this person also lives here. he came to the city as a child with his parents and that lucky when a relative that in the texas job. he does not think it unusual that most of the top politicians are millionaires. is africa, he says. but it really upsets in the ordinary people become pawns in their power games. >> politicians always think of themselves first. their children and relatives, or their ethnic groups.

it is all that interests them. they deny care about us poor people. >> last thursday, laurent gbagbo give orders to the army to stop rebels and for the thousands who supported alassana quattara from getting to the state tv channel. a heavy fight ensued. un troops caught up in the exchange of fire and had to seek cover. the attempt to take over the tv station failed, but several people were left dead and wounded. the convoy from the north has slowed down to a trickle. in the business district on friday, the shops were shut, the streets amid -- abandoned. intermediaries that the scene tried to find common ground. alassana quattara met with the catholic bishops of ivory coast. laurent gbagbo met representatives of the african

union. the u.n. peacekeepers wait, hoping to present -- prevent violence from happening. but anything could happen. >> that is it. good bye for now. ♪ captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- ♪

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