>> you are watching "the journal" on dw-tv. >> and i have the business news. >> the syrian government crackdown on protesters. the united states threatens to sanction it. box -- in germany, an end to war and nuclear power.

in syria, tanks are on the streets in what appears to be a major government crackdown on protesters. witnesses in one city say that soldiers are firing indiscriminately at people. the u.s. has called the move deplorable and is threatening sanctions against syria. there is the epicenter of the crackdown, and 5000 troops have reportedly been deployed in the city. in two other cities, there are reports of security forces storming home and shooting people. >> there was little anti- government protesters could do as the regime tanks came in. overnight, the syrian army took control for demonstrations. the regime appears determined to crush the uprising.

around 3000 troops are reported to have entered. soldiers are said to be targeting civilians. witnesses described the violence. >> they killed them. my family is dying. bodies were on the ground. my family is dying. >> snipers are everywhere. whoever looks out the window is shot. they can do what they want. they are simply ignoring the rule of law. >> they say nearly 400 people have been killed in clashes between security forces a protesters. many others have been injured.

>> we had some new just returned from this problematic country. you were there for about one week and returned beckert -- returned. were you scared, afraid for your life? >> afraid for the lives of the younsyrians. i met some young demonstrators on saturday who told me they had seen 15 people get shot at the demonstration on saturday. they were going to have them even if accosted their lives. >> what are you hearing? is it worse than we hav been hearing? >> i have found no information,

so it is like that is not getting out. yesterday morning, someone said they saw five people shot, one after another. not part of a demonstration, so it feels that some of these deaths are not getting reported, and at the same time, it is really hard to tell. whether it is what the syrian propaganda say and there have been incidents of a general and nephews being stabbed. who did that, and it is very hard to understand what is going on. >> the fact that you are, or when you mention the word secret police to them, everything changes, and they want to open up to you. >> they look over your shoulder. if someone said "do not say that to the secret police, where they

will know that you are not a tourist," but they were sayg quite frequently what they were experiencing, whether they thought it was foreign tourists. you get very different views. >> are you planning on going back to syria? >> absolutely, absolutely. a lovely people. >> thanks so much. >> there has been more violence in yemen, where the violence continues. forces crackdown on demonstrators in two cities, fire and water cannons and tear gas to disperse protesters. two people were killed. there was a deal with him giving up power in 30 days, but then he said he would not step down until a presidential election.

it was said that moammar gaddafi was not harmed after a strike hit his comund. fighting between rebels continue. there was fighting over the weekend. >> at least two rockets in the center of tripoli. a libyan government spokesman said 45 people were wounded. one of the destroyed buildings serves as the library and office of gaddafi. twisted metal and broken stansell's. a short time later, libyan television showed footage of godolphin himself, along with members of his government. -- footage of gaddafi himself.

hospitals are treating dozens of wounded. >> the shelling started 1:00 this morning. one family was killed. their bodies were completely charred. >> and another of the hospitals sustained a direct rocket hit. staff had to evacuate the gynecological department. >> the taliban says it has orchestrated a majored jailbreak. it happened overnight. the inmates were great -- able to break free for a tunnel from the outside. >> this prison is considered one of those moderate and secure in

afghanistan. nevertheless, militants spent months digging under the walls to reach the comrades and side. once outside, they were quickly ushered to vehicles that then sped away. officials called the brink of a disaster and launched a major manhunt. >> the servant and prisons staff failed. some have already been recaptured. this is calling for government troops within four years. >> this is very bad news for the people of the afghanistan. it shows a great vulnerability in the afghan government. >> it is not the first time they have attacked. suicide bombers blasted open the prison walls, enabling more than 900 prisoners to escape.

the second-largest city has long been a stronghold for the taliban. it was their de facto capital when they ruled there before 2001. the militants have stepped up their attacks again, as they do every year after a long afghan winter. nato says the insurgents tried to regain influence over the region. >> iran says it has intercepted a second cyber warfare attack targeting government computer systems. the head of the civil defense organization says they are investigating and the malicious software. last year, a virus affected computers. but they say it was minor damage, but there was a section that has been out of business ever since.

all rit, the golden lady is here to talk about gold. >> exactly, gold and silver are on a rise. gold is that it's 1300 -- sifting hundred $13 per ounce, -- $1513. it is an attractive investment not only because of their mineral wealth, but also of the prices in europe, and the u.s. the austlian dollar is at its strongest against the greenback in 29 years. let's get a closer look at the markets right now. the dow jones industrial average at midday is about 12,479, and

the euro will give to $1.45. a canadian company is putting your rose on the table for a copper producer, equinoxes the.-- equinoxes economy -- equinoxe. >> mines and africa, europe, and elsewhere around the world are producing a maximum amount of copper possible. demand for copper is high. its prices have been soaring ever since the recovery from the global downturn kicked in. in recent weeks, gold hit $10,000 per ton before falling back slightly. it usually takes a number of years for copper deposits to be located in for the mine to begin, but for the canadian corporation, acquiring the

australian company gives it instant access to mineral rights. the metal is used for power lines and electron components and industrial applications. it is not surprising that a chinese company was also trying to sweep uip -- up equinox. >> portugal has released its 2010 budget deficit figures for the second time in one month. an audit has increased it to 9.1%. this is a setback, as lisbon negotiates a deal on the bailout between the eu and the imf. portugal has to repay 5 billion

euros in debt. it is the third country in the euro zone to require a bailout, following greece and ireland. a large mobile telephone provider is being hit with a fine, a penalty which is 10% of the company's assets, the legal maximum. they have ordered the company to stop overcharging competitors. there was an investigation that began in 2006. the parent company is studying options for an appeal. leading japanese car makers have, as expected, reported a big drop in output after last month's earthquake and tsunami, cut by over 60% due to a shortage of parts in the devastated region. that could mean that the world's top-selling on a maker loses its title as number one. >> things are rolling again at

toyota but not as fast as before. march was the worst month for toyota, with production slashed as much as 2/3, and that might just cost the automaker its prime plays and the ranking. it is reckoned that general motors will sell the most units this year, more than 8 million. germany's volkswagen is second with 7 million, and toyota wld and lag behind in the third spot with 6.5 million. production plummeted in march at nissan, as well. the company turned out only half as many units as in march of last year. on top of that, many japanese have been scared off due to the nuclear problem. they have been checking to make sure that they are safe. >> and we have more from japan. >> that is exactly right.

25,000 troops have launched a new search for the victims of last month's earthquake and tsunami. 12,000 people are still missing. soldiers are moving through debris that has been exposed after engineers were able to drain large pools of mud and sludge. tepco says it is cutting executive salaries by have to help absorb the costs. other staff will take a 20% reduction in pay. the fukushima problem has given effort to some movements. there were thousands of people, demanding an exit from nuclear power. >> loud and clear. the demonstration at the plan is

is one of numerous countrywide nuclear protests over the holiday. environmental organizations and initiatives called on people to attend rallies at a total of 12 nuclear facilities. several thousand came to the plant on the river to voice their concerns. this has not dampened opposition. by >> we want to tell them they have to stop lying about the safety of nuclear power plants. we know that they are dangerous. a meltdown cannot be ruled out anywhere. >> the protesters' demands are motivated not just by the recent nuclear disaster in japan but also the chernobyl disaster, marking its 25th anniversary this year. >> all right, stay with us. when i come back, i will have

more on the written word. reading. , to do we read to our kids, and do our kids still read? we will answer that in one minute. stay with us.

>> all right, welcome back, everyone. when is the last time you bought a book? chances are if you're in germany, it was recently. the country hosts a two book fairs, has prices, and has extensive reading programs for children, but the page could be turning when it comes to reading habits. half of the repopulation only reads five books a year, and the number of new readers is actually falling. so how best to read german

readers? we did our own survey. >> i have got too. -- two kids. i am so tired in the evening that i can just manage one or two pages and then just fall asleep. >> i find inspiring, and i like losing myself in fantasy and stories. >> i have not read a novel in years because i am studying. >> i read on the subway. i get through a lot of books. >> it is a great way of escaping everyday life and learning new things. >> i just watched dvd's. >> i prefer reading to watching that. i do not like the noise. >> about three-quarters of the population regularly reads books, and that has been

constant for years. in some places, booksellers have noticed a bit of a booming lately. >> we have seen that there are a lot of people who read aloud, who always want to get ahold of the latest book, and then there are families to encourage their kids to read. >> but there are some worries, because the number of books sold and read is lower than it was a few years ago. fe boo a yeais prey muc the limit for 45% of the people in germany, and reading in middle classes is declining, which means fewer " books. some average 10 or more books per year. summery more than 100 books per year.

the figures seem to suggest that the popularity, for reading in =ermany is in decline. >> how do we encourage children to 46 laptops and mobile telephones for the printed page? or could e-books be the key? or would they find them too boring? what about multimedia content? let's take a look. >> video games and notebooks. but a new ipad application encourages children to read, by combining text with sound. the applications al sadr pretexting out loud. the creators of the actual books want to show children that reading is fun. >> i never read before. the ipad is the only thing i read on. >> these two have seen to have

discovered a new market. for the last couple of years, they have been developing applications for an age group. >> educational and high-quality content is at the center of our ap. we wanted them to have good animation and be good for children. that is what was good for us. >> there is a team of graphic designers to ensure the quality of the programs, and it never strays far from the original. >> that is what makes it all worthwhile. >> the animations and the sound versions are all made in one building.

the action books unfold worldwide. an international market for the readers of tomorrow? >> of course, there are situations where you want to have an actual book in your hand, but that is not a contradiction. we are reaching kids to maybe do want to have a book in their hand. >> at the moment, this is still a luxury. how many children have an ipad, after all? but it is the value of the applications, and maybe that would change. >> the summer holiday season fast approaching. we the materials and books that you have wanted toead, but you just have not had time this year. most people use the best seller list as some part of a guide.

is it a list of books that sell a lot of copies, or is it really a marketing strategy? >> chances are, it a good read, and everybody wants to read what everybody else is reading. it is the psychology of buying, and that is what makes bestsellers. the publishers are always keen to talk about their best sellers. >> if a book is on the bestseller's list, it does not just mean that it gets more and the press. it gets a prominent display in the bookshop. customers come in, and they are confronted with its straightaway. >> the books that are lined up here are guaranteed to sell more, but how many copies does one need to sell to be a bestseller?

>> it has to be 30,000 to 50,000 copies in order to be considered a best seller. >> then the film studios started getting interested, too. the novel "eat, pray, love" is an example. julia roberts took the lead role. it took the sales even higher. in germany, one company bought the rights to the novel, and there were huge billboard advertisemts, and on television. >> that is the sort of advertising we do not normally used as a publisher. you can sometimes see the sales for the ball double or triple as a result of the advertisement

for it. >> so the question they ask themselves, which books might become best sellers? which of all that it published will grab the attention of potential readers? creating interest in a particular book and turning it into a must read? and then, there are the newspaper reviews. a good review can translate into higher sales. >> we do take notice of the reviews, because the customers to take notice of them. they want to buy the books they write about? >> but, of course, some books that are never even reviewed sometimes make it to bestseller status. one of the mysteries of the trade.

the only rule at all that applies is that it has been readers to decide what becomes a hit. >> all right, that has been our in-depth report, learning to love it. thanks for watching. we will see you next time. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--