impossible mission. u.n. observers in syria frustrated in the efforts to monitor a cease-fire as angry syrians turn on them. united nations leaders say u.n. monitors in syria may have to reconsider. they tried to reach a town believed to be the site of a massacre. crowds would not let them through. >> we were confronted by angry crowds. they stopped us from pro segd forward.

they started hurdling stones and metal rods at vehicles. >> some fired at cars as some tried to turn back. the u.n. team went to syria to see of the progress of a cease-fire. but they have been unable to prevent further casualties. human rights activists say more than 100 people were killed across the country over the past two days. government forces in the northern city of idlib attacked from the ground and the air. the fighting has brought homs into three separate zones cutting off many residents. assaults by air are relatively new tactic for syrian forces. secretary of state hillary clinton says u.n. officials are concerned that russia may be providing helicopters. >> we are concerned about the latest information that we have there are attack helicopters on wait from russia to syria which will escalate the conflict quite dramatically. >> clinton said russian officials claim everything they supply to syria is unrelated to

the fighting. she said this is patently untrue. united nations officials say syrian troops are torturing children. they accuse the military of using children as human shields. their annual report on children and armed conflict says the military has targeted children under the age of ten. the government says they were ordered to shoot protestors at random. it says the soldiers knew the targets included women and children. the report quotes witnesses that the government forces seized children aged between 8 and 13 from their homes. the troops reportedly used them as human shields. they place the children on buses carrying military personnel when raiding opposition bases. >> nauchlt officials are making an appeal for more humanitarian aid for north korea they say 16 million people are sufferi from food shortages and malnutrition. the u.n. officials made the call in their annual report on north

korea. they say malnutrition is having a serious impact on children, pregnant women and the elderly. nearly 20% of children are underweight. 32% suffer from chronic malnutrition. the officials called for 198 million dollars to address critical humanitarian needs this year. the u.n. has only collected about 40% of this amount. many foreign leaders are reluctant to provide the aid. they are concerned the aid doesn't reach those who are really in need. president ha mad karzai is calling for an end to international air strikes in afghanistan. he said the operations must stop to protect civilians. but nato commanders don't entirely agree. our report from kabul. hideki yui.

>> reporter: karzai told the news conference on tuesday that afghanistan and the united states have agreed to prevent the recurrence of such a tragedy. >> no bombardment of civilian homes for any reason is -- is allowed. it is completely banned. absolutely banned. absolutely. >> reporter: the announcement comes in the wake of last week's air strikes by u.s. and other international forces in the province that killed 18 civilians, mostly women and children. the international forces said they believe militants are hiding there. but u.s. lieutenant general, carlos scartopi says, u.s. forces can carry out air strikes in self-defense even on residential areas even if they think the areas are at risk. military officials are concerned that militants may try to hide among civilians if the air strikes are completely banned. hideki yui, nhk world.

kabul. afghan leaders are appealing for more support from abroad. they say they will need $5 billion a year after multinational troops pull out in 2014. government leaders are preparing a donors conference in tokyo have compiled a report on the plans for development. nhk obtained a copy of the report. it lists construction projects in lewding the bidding of international airports, and railways and other infrastructures. and natural resource products. it details a government plan for education and reduce corruption. a senior official at the afghan fince ministry says he hopes afghans will become less dependent on foreign aid. delegates will discuss ways to support afghanistan after the multinational troops withdrawal.

investors have seen threats from all sides over the last several months many of those risks from europe. now they're wringing their hands over spain. interest rates on government bonds hit the highest level since the euro was introduced in 1999. the yield on spain's benchmark 10-year bonds rose 6.8% in trading on tuesday. a higher yield means the bond prices goes lower. the yield has dropped on monday, investors reacted positively to a government decision to ask for financial aid from the eu. fund would be used to help struggling commercial banks. investors grew skeptical, because the conditions of eu support are unclear. one of the leading politicians in greece says he will stick by his pledge to tear up a bailout deal. he heads a left wing party that is drawing a lot of support ahead of parliamentary elections

this sunday. he insists greece will remain in the euro zone but on his party's terms. he leads the coalition of the radical left. he said party leaders would implement a plan for reconstruct, that would lead to economic growth. its candidates have attracted voters because their opposition to measures. policies have led to higher taxes, lower salaries and pensions and the loss of public sector jobs. conservatives worry if the next government drops the spending cuts the european union will cut off financial support and could force groes eece todon the

euro. the head of the international monetary fund is urging leaders to take steps to break free of the crisis. imf managing director christine legard warned risks to sta built fee have returned to the global economy with a vengeance. additional monetary easing is needed to boost demand. she called for more growth oriented policies to increase employment. legard suggested, strug egling economies should raise taxes on gasoline. that would help protect the environment and drive growth. an international economic forum is under way in seoul. 13 experts from around the world are making presentations at the

third world strategy forum being held under the title future of korean capitalism. south korea's economic policy is now drawing worldwide interest ahead of this year's presidential election. nhk world spoke with one of the speakers in the session on the role of government for sustainable growth. professor was the first person from the private sector to serve as commissioner of the statistics career. >> what do you think are some of the biggest problems facing the south korean economy? >> translator: the biggest problem is the economic slowdown. there has been a major debate in south korea on whether to focus on economic growth or on wealth distribution. but because the average income is only $20,000, we should focus on economic growth until the income figure reaches $30,000.

what would be some of the solutions? >> translator: currely economic growth is about 4%. but the economy must grow to its potential gdp. until 1987 economic growth had been led by the government. until that year, they had been promoting the development of politics and the economy. only when the government hands over the economic role it has been playing to the markets, sustainable growth will be possible. to achieve this, south korea needs a process in which the market and government work together and come up with an appropriate system to deal with various issues. >> with the december

presidential election ahead of us, regulations targeting big businesses are one of the areas of key interest for the general public. how do you see that? >> translator: south korean people are very angry now. even if they try hard, they often can't can find work. the high unemployment rate among young people has become a major social issue. the issue of wealth distribution is becoming more serious. in the parliamentary session in april, the parties came up with policies for so-called economic democratization. from the economists point of view, imposing big control on big businesses is unlike low to improve the economy or wealth distribution. i think it is clear, however, the government will move in that direction. workers are looking another way to find the source of leaks at fukushima.

tokyo electric power company say the workers used an infrared camera to search for leaks in the suppression chamber of reactor number two. they hoped temperature differences between water and air would show up as different colors in the pictures. the photos revealed that the temperature was 38 degrees celsius in the upper part of the chamber and about 35 degrees in the lower part. but the difference was not big enough to allow them to identify the leaks. and the camera was unable to give them a more precise reading. the workers need to block the leak so they can proceed with the process of decommissioning the plant. they say they will fry try to c with another method. people forced to evacuate after the nuclear accident left behind homes and livelihoods. the biggest of all was giving up

animals, pets or livestock. the road ahead is about a caple farmer who refused to leave his herd behind. >> reporter: he is back in business sent into exile by a nuclear disaster. he is raising cattle again, 200 kilometers from his home town. and the herd came with him, a herd of japanese black cattle. he ran his farm in chiba prefecture, he had 120 animals when the accident hapned. his village was designated an evacuation zone. saving his herd was all that mattered. leaving the cattle with friend outside fukushima he searched for a new place to raise them.

>> translator: if it wasn't for the nuclear accident my life would have gone on just as before, normal and peaceful. >> reporter: kobayashi had help getting back on his feet. he is a stock breeder in chiba prefecture. when he heard of distressed farmers up north he started searching around for vacant homes and cow sheds. >> translator: i wanted to do all i could to bring the animals and farmers down here to join us in chiba prefecture. >> reporter: kobayashi relocated three months after the accident. the only one left from the village still operating a full cattle operation, breeding, raising and shipping. but radioactive material has been detected in pastures even outside fukushima prefecture. the straw kobayashi feeds his

cattle is all carefully screened. >> people are staying away from things grown or raised in fukushima. so i have been very carabe ablf give safe feed to the cattle. >> reporter: kobayashi made his first shipment in april. he was happy with the sale price which was close to the predisaster rate. here is where some of that shipment ended up. a temporary housing site in fukushima city. kobayashi wanted people from his village to be the first to eat the evacuated beef. kobayashi's wife joined the cook-up, offering her former neighbors a taste of home. >> translator: delicious. >> this tastes great. >> reporter: other doors are

opening up for kobayashi. this convenience store chain is supporting the recovery effort. they offered to sell his beef on the internet. >> translator: kobayashi's effort really moved us. so we offered to sell his beef on our web shop. and give many people a chance to buy it. >> reporter: but selling is only half the business for kobayashi. he says it is now his mission to keep the cattle breed alive. he is working for the farmers who had to give up raising cattle. >> translator: i really want these cows from the region to survive. i evacuated them all the way here to keep them alive. so i want to continue to take good care of them. >> reporter: good care and careful breeding. kobayashi has expanded his herd to 170, and is aiming to sell 40

head by the end of the year. >> announcer: people in japan's northeast are focused on overcoming the challenges of the '11 disaster. it won't be easy they have to rebuild homes, businesses entire communities. we'll show you their struggles and their successes on the road ahead, every wednesday at 1:00 p.m., japan time, here on newsline. people in japan live on some of the most unstable land in the world. thousands of earthquakes shake it every year. those tremors can trigger devastating tsunami like the ones last year on march 11th. since then, authorities have been working to better protect citizens. some people say it is taking too long. >> reporter: this couple love the beach. that is why they live just west of tokyo. the waves, the sand, the breeze,

they find it all beautiful and calming, but they are also aware of the dangers. >> i couldn't believe the ocean could be so destructive. >> on tv, it was unbelievable. it was like a wall. >> reporter: they are talking about this. march 11th, 2011. the earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern japan left nearly 20,000 people dead or missing. scientists say this disaster won't be the country's last. a worry for millions of people, including the kojimas. they live alone, but their granddaughter often visits. they fear they won't be able to care for her during an emergency. so they began searching for a solution and found this. a life-saving pod called noah. >> translator: inside the shelter, we always keep an emergency kit.

it has a radio, flashlight and portable oxygen tanks. when the disaster hits, we'll all get inside. close the door and we're set. >> reporter: noah is named after a tale from the bible. noah's ark saved the people and the animals during a flood. so they could repopulate the earth. the idea is the same, but smaller. noah can seal four people off from the tsunami. ceiling holes provide air. and there is a small window. people can get out once the waters recede. >> translator: we're not getting any younger. if a disaster hits and we're told to run up the hill, we might not be able to. having this gives me a better sense of security. >> reporter: the kojimas and more than 2,200 other families have ordered noah since last

september at a cost of more than $6,000. the supplier is struggling to keep up with demand. this man invented noah. he says it all started with a simple idea. never again. >> translator: if another disaster hits, our goal is to have zero victims. i can't do it alone, but if everyone has this goal in mind, i think we can achieve it. >> reporter: noah went through several trials. it can withstand ten tons of pressure. even if a house collapses on it, the 120 sent meter, fiberglass enhanced body should protect the people inside. designed to hold individuals and small families. government officials are thinking bigger. they're in the early stages of creating their own life saving vessels.

the design will be based on an emergency life boat like this one which can fit up to 50 people. a joint government panel from western japan started drafting a plan after scientists predicted a tsunami higher than 30 meters could swamp the region. >> translator: we will listen to opinions from people who would actually have to use them. they have to feel comfortable during an evacuation, otherwise, it will be useless. >> reporter: the hope is to place thousands of these vessels at schools and nursing homes across the area. government officials plan to finalize the design in the coming months and make a prototype by the end of the year. those who cannot wait will buy their own. this is giving the kojimas and thousands of other families peace of mind. they all want to be prepared

for the next great disaster. they say it is not a matter of if, but when. rina nakano, nhk world. >> in taiwan, landslides and floods triggered by heavy rain have left at least five people dead and thousands have had to flee their homes. torrential rain has been falling over a wide area of the island since saturday. total rainfall has exceeded 1,500 millimeters in some places disrupting traffic and flooding homes. the taiwan central weather bureau says heavy rain will continue into southern and central parts of the island until the weekend. officials have evacuated nearly 5,000 residents from areas because of possible mud slides. let's go straight to rachel ferguson at the weather desk for latest situation and what is to expect in taiwan. rachel. >> hi there. the long front that is bringing all of that heavy rain across taiwan has also been affecting the southern japanese islands and the southern coast of china. now unfortunately it does look like there is going to be more rain in store for taiwan.

in the last several days even brought about 500 millimeter of rain. the next couple of days we'll see continuing heavy rains, particularly down to the south. 100 millimeters at least is likely. into the weekend it is going to ease on -- off a little bit. there will be a little bit of time to recover. however, we do have a tropical storm here. now this one is -- is at the moment quite far from large land masses. it is moving at the moment west at 15 kilometers an hour. the wind gusts getting up to 90 kilometers an hour. but it is on the path towards the philippines. it looks like it will be coming quite close to central or northern locations by the end of the workweek. and strengthening as it goes. into the beginning of next week it has the potential then to move on towards taiwan. of course that is goi to be another thing to -- to be concerned about. certainly after having all of this rain, continued rain for the next few days.

a small break and then potentially more rain coming off this tropical system. so we shall keep a very close eye on the storm over the next few days. as we head into north america -- things are looking still very dry out toward the southwest. drought continues here, and of course, the fire problem as well. wildfires from new mexico up through the four corners and into wyoming and in fact wyoming is going to have the most severe threat for fire weather today. it doesn't look like there is rain coming in, looks very promising, but afraid it is going to be staying towards the north moving into central canada, rather than moving far down into wyoming or the four corners. severe weather -- thunderstorms, through the plains today from south dak difrom -- south dakota, into the region, unstable, on your wednesday daytime. things are drying out for easter locations on the continent.

and from the carolinas up into new england. lots of moisture coming in from the gulf. that's going to bring showers right through florida as well. here are your temperatures -- the northern half of the continent looking fairly mild. 23 degrees in chicago. and 23 in new york city. low 20s in toronto too. 32 in denver and then heating right up as we head down towards that southern tier, 31 degrees in oklahoma city. 42 in houston. and 34 -- in -- in phoenix, you can turn the last ones around. think you noticinged that. and let's head into europe next. it's been very unsettled here for the last couple of days towards central and western locations. low-pressure systems bringing heavy rain and storms. and within those storms, there was a tornado that touched down outside of venice in italy. you can see the funnel cloud very clearly here. it brought the roofs off of dozens of houses. and also brought down trees. it broke up boats in the harbor

as well. so very clearly for a tornado you can see there. fortunately there weren't any injuries reported. now, the heavy rain and thunderstorms, is going to be heading towards the east poland, i think you are going to get the heaviest of the rain as we head into thursday. staying mostly dry. very hot though down to the southeast for the black sea region. we're in a the the upper 30s. conversely. just in the mid teens in london and paris. here is your extend forecast.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ and that's it for now on this edition of news line.

thank you very much for watching.