>> hello and a warm welcome to the journal here on dw. here are the headlines this hour. more than 30 refugees died in a new shipwreck tragedy in the mediterranean sea. breakthroughl no in the negotiations between democrats and republicans in the crisis in the u.s.. ireland at thets world cup finals in brazil.

european waters close to africa are turning into a cemetery, that is the reaction of malta us try -- malta's prime minister. onleast 30 people have died a ship after a boat sank. the boat went down 100 kilometers south of lampedusa and 110 kilometers off the coast of malta. said to be refugees fleeing the civil war in syria. the overloaded vessel had been carrying more than 230 people desperate to reach european shores. a search is underway still for victims of the disaster. >> about 150 people from the capsized boat were rescued. the coast guard also picked up over 50. but many others perished in the accident, including several small children. this child and its mother were lucky to survive.

athorities took them to hospital on the italian island of lampedusa. is about two years old. the mother is also young. both are so. we are trying to get them dry clothing and transfer them to the reception center. boatdia reports say the capsized in rough seas. it was trying to attention -- attract the attention of passing aircraft. this comes after just a week that 139 migrants drowned near lampedusa. it brings about questions of immigration policies. is on the line in rome. what has been the reaction to this new tragedy in the mediterranean sea? >> this tragedy involves the maltese government and the prime minister has said he will refuse to let the eu continue to ignore

the problem, as he put it. he wants a solution. he wants help from the eu. that is also the common message coming out of italian politics today. politicians on both sides of the spectrum have said they would like to see a greater crackdown on the traffickers who will quit these migrants onto very rickety vessels, which tend to run out of fuel or capsized partly because they are so overloaded. i think that is going to be -- problematic because it will involve rolling up sleeves and getting involved in law enforcement in north africa. quite a problem there. >> despite this week disaster with the high death toll, it seems the stream of refugees continues unabated. why is that? >> there are two reasons, one is nearing the end of the sailing season. the bad weather is coming. lots of people are waiting for

their turn to make the saving. they are hurrying up to get across while they can, otherwise they will have to put off their trip until next spring. secondly, in addition to the more typical ways of sub-saharan african migrants who are coming over, we are now looking at a large number of serious escaping the civil war. escaping the civil war. they are better off than the sub-saharan. they have more money to spend on the passage. they are coming from egypt as well. i have been told that a number of syrians who thought they would get away from the conflict i going to egypt quickly found his appointment, that things were not looking very good in egypt. then they were thinking about coming over to europe. rome, thanksfrom very much, tom. u.s.g onto other news, the

has concerned it has captured a senior member of the pakistani taliban in a military operation. he was arrested close to pakistan's order with afghanistan. he is a senior commander of the taliban and close to its leader. the pakistani taliban has led a 10 year insurgency against the government in islamabad and has also lingers possibility for a bombing in new york in 2010. -- an attempted bombing in new york in 2010. time is running out. republicans and democrats in the u.s. have less than a week to raise the debt ceiling. if they do not, the country could default on its bills. there were some signs on friday that president barack obama might sign a clean bill to raise the debt limit as long as no policy conditions are attached. obama had been holding talks with everyone from senate republicans to business leaders to try to find a way out of the deadlock will stop -- of the

deadlock. went toe republicans the white house friday to meet with president obama. withward, both sides spoke new optimism about the possibility of avoiding a fiscal crisis. but the president was not ready to accept the republicans oppose low. increase of the u.s. government borrowing power. >> the proposal of raising the debt ceiling for only six weeks, but hi to -- tied to budget negotiations puts us back to where we are today. >> congress has still failed to pass a budget on wages, so many remain at home. -- if theynot have cannot come to a resolution, the consequences will be widespread. a u.s. default could affect the global economy.

>> we have all made it clear that we cannot solve this one for the americans. they have to do that themselves. but we urged them to find a solution. it is in the interest of the u.s. and the world. >> u.s. lawmaker still have five ays to avert of -- avert default. republicans and democrats are said to still be in discussions and some have said there could even be a decision in the next 24 hours. >> german politics now, the chancellor angela merkel continues to size a candidate to join her in dublin as doing -- junior coalition partners. the democrat was back at her office on friday for more political bargaining. and the conservative partner was also at the meeting. it comes ahead of a second round of exploratory talks between bigger party delegations on monday. observers say a grounds coalition between conservatives

and social democrats is likely, though the chancellor has also been sounding out the green. argentina says it will not allow the remains of not see war criminals to enter the country. -- of a nazi war criminal to enter the country. his lawyer said he would be buried there next to his wife. he spent almost five days -- five decades in argentina until the 1990s when he was extradited to italy and convicted for his role in the 1944 massacre of civilians outside of rome. he died under house arrest in rome on friday after living to be 100. and romans where the man at the center of germany's latest church scandal is reportedly flee his case. he has been under fire. german media says he will be

meeting the archbishop to discuss the matter with pope francis next week. themselvesistanced publicly from the bishop of bloomberg. -- limburg. two storms over the philippines. one has claimed over a dozen lives. powerns remain without and there is flooding. thousands of people have been ordered to leave their homes as a massive cyclone approaches. authorities are expecting the cyclone to cause cents of damage on the coast. there are three major storms predicted. ready for winter? the official start may be more than two months away, but don't tell that to the folks in germany alpine foothills. parts of southern germany have been busy clearing away the season's first serious snows. take a look.

>> no, this is not the right weather for a cup of coffee on a sunny terrace. temperatures at the foot of the alps have dipped to near freezing. and up to 35 centimeters of heavy, wet snow cover the countryside, making it extremely attractive, but many motorists were completely unprepared for the tricky conditions. alsoeight of the snow brought down numerous trees, blocking roads and keeping local fire departments busy for much of the day. >> there is enough work for today. cleanup efforts will take several more hours. then we will have to see what how much more damage there is. we have a lot of work to do. >> at least they were not any serious crashes on the roads. but authorities did close schools in the region, giving children a day off to play in the season's first winter wonderland. >> some sports news now.

soccer, germany has clinched its spot in next years world cup in brazil with a convincing win over ireland. they made it look easy on friday night, knocking in three goals, while keeping a clean sheet. >> the three points that secured germany's qualification never looked in doubt. the players gave their coach and easy night. >> it is a huge credit to the players that they kept pushing and and how motivated professional they remained throughout the qualifying campaign. i am proud of the team for the way they have a compost this. >> germany took control of the match early on, putting pressure on ireland in their own half. the strategy paid off when it became 1-0. there was an element of luck about the goal, a deflection took it back the ireland keeper -- took it past the ireland

keeper. the coach did not mind at all. playing in an unfamiliar role as a striker. >> it is not my favorite position, but that is what the coach decided. we talked about it a lot, and i think the team playing well. -- team played well. played well, but germany looked more dangerous as the match went on. >> germany was not the only european country to qualify for the world cup on friday evening. victory for belgium against croatia means they are headed for the finals as well. there was a giant screen in the city center and celebrations really took up after the final whistle. belgium has not qualify for a major tournament since the 2002 world cup. they are thrilled their team is

back among the world soccer elite and on its way to brazil next summer. and switzerland is also through after a 2-1 win against albania. you can find more news about the world cup qualifiers at our website, just go to www.dw.de /sports. in motorsports, it could be a fourth championship on sunday. but in qualifying for the japanese grand prix, it was his teammate at drove the fastest lap. he had to settle for second place in the grid. >> it is the first time this season that mark webber has qualified a teammate and runaway championship leader, sebastian petzel. the 26-year-old german came in just under 2/10 of a section -- of a second behind webber after struggling with a power boost system. however, petzel did not express

any disappointment. ,> i am not a big fan of without this, if this. it is always unknown. >> mark webber did not have any technical problems and was the fastest driver on the day. alonzo onlyt for -- made it to a place. if he finishes ninth or worse on sunday's race and sebastian petzel wins, then the german will claim his fourth successive world title. looked at a wicket the starting grid for the japanese grand prix. the red bull team makes up the front. mark webber is in pole position with sebastian fettle trading. behind them is lewis hamilton. followed by the lotus driver. and ferrari and mercedes.

side --s on our west our website www.dw.de and we are back with more news at the top of the hour. >> the organic farmers market in the german town of bellmore. every friday, farmers from the regions sell their fruits and vegetables straight from the phil -- from the field. it is as organic as eco-friendly grocery stores in the big city. it gives the opportunity to stock up on fresh produce before the weekend. and it is a high point of the week in bellmore. is followed by another tradition, the friday bonfire.

the turnout shows a healthy village life in a region otherwise characterized by a dwindling population. i am on the road in the state of brandenburg in eastern germany. region arees in the dying as more and more people move away. but val moore is an exception. the village shows it is possible to buck the trend. people who were born and raised here are staying, and are being joined by new arrivals. about 100ted kilometers from berlin, not far from the polish border. of the villages 300 residents, 70 our children. it is an unusual ratio for the region. what is their secret? communism,nd of

things were not very different here from other eastern and. many people lost their jobs, moved away, and the kindergarten closed. the village seemed destined for decline. ago, the firstrs exiles fleeing big city life in berlin discovered the village. houses, largeer plots, and room for creativity. -- room for creativity, imagination, and dreams of a like letting your kids grow up in the country. broughtn transplant with them environmental consciousness and a willingness to get involved. they set up a volunteer association and renovated the kindergarten. is the harvest festival and children from the kindergarten are decorating the village church. meet the clapton family. their father is a farmer. .heir three sons

the family moved here from a western state of coastline. -- from a western state. i asked her what is different here. she says it is the beautiful countryside that makes the region so special and natural splendor. people.o about the she says the people are unique, and that especially here they get along well. a good mix of old and new. and i can say is there are a lot of newcomers, but they interact -- she says there is a lot of newcomers, but they interact with those who have been here. she says they complement each other. later i learned that this intermingling has not always been smooth and continues to cause for chin for some locals. but here in the church, it is a

harmonious -- and continues to cause friction for some locals. but here in the church, it is harmonious action. the motto of the association credited with saving the village is "nice and sweet in the region peer cap i have an appointment with the town isirman to ask why this town blossoming. she says there is a magic formula. it's civic minded residents combined with a large amount of creativity and imagination. what it really comes down to his involvement. and that is what comes together here. i'm going to meet up with sonia again later. but first, i want to get to know some of these creative people. i don't have to go far. right next-door is a construction site. the builders are all members of the village association.

older, aildren got private school was set up. now they are adding to it. this used to be a horse stable. , franksociation member schroeder, said now they are turning it into a giant space for the kindergarten. it is covered by a roof so the kids can run around a bit even when it's raining. the school and the kindergarten are the biggest employers in the village. are allitect plans drawn up in cooperation with the village association. and that means with the builders. it is grassroots democracy, even if it is not always easy. frank says you always have an idea of what you want and you try to get as close to that ideal as possible.

he says it all started with children's day care groups that were first held in people's homes. then they found a small room in the village, and then a larger site. but still, it was not ideal. once they finish them i will be pretty close to perfect. year,e they finish this it will be pretty close to perfect. the community center used to also be a stable. hosting a used clothing swap. the girls are having fun. but i'm a little perplexed. this is not how i imagined life in the country. like i'm ineel berlin. the mothers look the same. aren't there any native syria code -- any natives here? i put the russian to the chair of the -- i put the question to the chair of the civic

association. she said it is only the newcomers who use the civic center. a long-standing residents are reluctant to come here. it is a matter of feeling out of place. they have a mindset of being afraid, or unsure of themselves. , we have toor other find ways of changing that. one place to start might be the village pub. back in the time of communist east germany, it was at the heart of community life. today, schnitzel is on the menu. it is said to be a popular night for the locals. but none of them want to talk in front of the camera. the next morning, i try again, this time in front of the village store. but i sense of unease. the many here say they have had negative experiences with the media.

says there have been reports that the newcomers and the natives like him do not get along. andays that is not true that words are always being turned around. which is why he says he is not prepared to make statements, and that is the end of the conversation. the village store has the same name as the shops back in east germany. it is more than just a small grocery store. it is an institution that helps keep the town together. nowadays, there are an equal number of local residents and those who have moved here. many people come by every morning for a cup of freshly brewed coffee. residents do not always make new friends here. but they do learn to respect one another.

ramona has been running the store for 20 years. people here are lucky. many people in other villages have to drive far for even basic groceries. makea even helps shoppers sure they have not forgotten anything on their list. this customer needs to go back for milk. she has to watch her inventory and expenses closely, with particular care not to order too many fresh products that will go bad quickly. says she just barely get by from what she sells, but she's ok with that. benefits foralso not having to grab -- to drive for groceries. so she is content with her situation. there are not many alternatives. jobs are few and far between in the economically depressed region. one in six is unemployed. or work, people have to move to the big city.

work, people have to move to the big city. once you leave the city limits -- the village limits, it becomes apparent the surrounding countryside is not doing any better. abandoned houses and deserted villages. it starts the businesses closing, then schools and then doctors offices. all that remains are ghost towns. rural exodus is forecast to continue. set tos say germany is lose another seven percent of their residents by 2030. policy -- politicians speak of natural decline. it is something that really gets on the nerves of sonia pinto from the volunteer association. she says she thinks it goes against nature. country life doesn't mean uneducated or ignorant. she says you cannot forget it is the countryside that has always said the cities. politicians cannot go saying we

can let the countryside die out and in the end we don't care. all of the special regional funds that get set up and then canceled again are always just a drop in the bucket. there is no clear commitment to a policy of saying rural areas are important, and so are their living standards. let's work together to try to do something about it, she says. which is what people are doing here. that way, the village survives. friday afternoon and the bonfire gathering in front of the grocery store is in full swing. they are all here, young and old, the you -- the doers and the skeptics. these two locals say it is a nice chance for people to meet up and chat with one another.

where else do people come together like this in the open? in italy, perhaps. not just in italy. also in germany in places like

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