under temporary political asylum in russia. >> translator: we must discuss the details about how we can interview mr. snowden in moscow. >> a member of the opposition party met with snowden last week. he said snowden wants to cooperate with german investigators and offered to testify in germany, but said the german officials want to interview snowden in russia. swiss forensic experts have add to claims that late palestinian leader yasser arafat was assassinated. they detected a high level of radioactive ploen polo nium in his remains. arafat got sick in 2004, then died. many palestinians have believed for years that he was poisoned. last year palestinian authorities asked for a forensic investigation. the al jazeera news expert says experts found levels of polonium

in his body that were 18 times higher than normal. they concluded that their results moderately support the idea that he was poisoned. >> i feel like i'm mourning him again. i was in shock. i felt anger, you know, shock and anger. and with sadness. >> she says she wants to know the truth about her husband's death. palestinian authorities have yet to comment b on the report. u.s. secretary of state john kerry is encouraging israeli leaders to put restrictions on the building of new settlements in occupied territories. he's trying to create a better climate for peace talks that resumed in july. abbas said this week that despite all the meetings, nothing has changed.

the construction of new homes in the west bank and east jerusalem is hampering negotiations. >> we consider, now, and have always considered the settlements to be illegitimate. >> kerry is doing what he can to shore up palestinian support for the peace process. he has promised $75 million of aid to improve roads, school, and other infrastructure. the head of tokyo electric power company says the utility is preparing a new report on the crisis at the crippled fukushima plant. the announcement comes as the company tries to gain understanding to start react tors in central japan. tepco managers released their first report on the disaster in june of last year. the evaluation was based on the company's own investigations. but many questions were left unanswered. tepco president says the company is preparing another report.

he told the lower house body that the new study includes nuclear power experts from the united states and britain and the report will be released soon. a technical team is examining the safety structures of the niigata plant. where the utility hopes to restart two reactors. tepco management decided a further probe into the nuclear accident in fukushima was needed to gain the prefecture's approval. a copy of the report will be given to niigata officials for review. workers at fukushima daiichi have been battling problem after problem. they have been battling leaks and struggling to build storage tanks for contaminated water. they're ready to move spent rods to a new location. >> reporter: the media entered

fukushima daiichi on wednesday to see the number four reactor building. the building contains more than 1,500 fuel units. most of them have been used. they're extremely hot, highly radioactive, and experts say they need to be kept cool for 30 to 40 years. the rods are stored in the pool about 20 meters above ground. the water traps radiation and keeps the rods cool. but a hydrogen explosion in 2011 weakened the building's structure. experts say the rods must be moved to a safer place. managers of tokyo electric power company have been preparing to start the job for the last two and a half years. they plan to lift the rods out with a crane. but the bidding was too weak to

support it. so workers built a steel frame. they will transfer the rods to containers that can seal in radiation. they had then move these to a storing facility within the compound and put them back into water. the job is far from straightforward. the workers have to maneuver the rods under water to prevent any radiation from escaping. and they will have to cope with high levels of radiation. up to 200 micro sieverts per hour. >> translator: the working environment here is more difficult and stressful than usually. therefore i want to devote every effort to safely transport all the fuel rods. >> reporter: tepco officials say it will take more than a year to remove all the rods from reactor number four. then they will have to do it all over again at the three other reactors. they haven't said when they

expect to finish. the operation is due to start this month. it's the latest hurdle in the long process of decommissioning the plant, a project that's expected to take up to 40 years. nhk world. four crippled reactors. a constant buildup of radioactive water, radioactive leaks threatening. the people of daiichi are struggling to control the place. how will they stop the leaks and decommission the facilities. get the latest on the aftermath of the nuclear accident with in depth reports and special

features. nuclear watch only on "newsline." social networking firm twitter has set the price for its initial public offering at $26 a share. at that price, the company will raise about $1.8 billion. twitter's ipo will be the biggest market debut for an it firm since facebook was listed on the nasdaq in may last year. the company's price per share was higher than what the firm disclosed earlier this month. at that time company officials said they would offer shares for $23 to $25 each. twitter officials say that they can increase the number of shares if necessary. in that case, they could raise a maximum of $2.1 billion. twitter will be listed on the new york stock exchange on thursday. the operator of the tokyo stock exchange says it will launch a new stock index next year to appeal to investors amid a strong rally in japanese shares this year. the japan exchange group says

they selected the issues out of about 3400 on the tokyo exchange. the index to debut on january 6 will be called jpx nikkei index 400. the selection will be reviewed every august. japan exchange group reminded reporters that new tax incentives for private investors will also be introduced next year. he says he wants investors to make full use of the index as a new indicator. japanese government officials say they'll continue to promote deregulation as a pillar of the growth strategy. supporters are criticizing the officials over their decision to propose restrictions on online drug sales. the government announced rules that restricts online sales of some over-the-counter drugs for three years due to concerns over side effects. but critics say this runs counter to prime minister shinzo abe's reform policies. internet sells of nonprescription drugs have been regarded as a pillar of abe's growth strategy. the president of an online

retailer says that removing irrational restrictions should have been one of abe's basic policies. the chief cabinet secretary said the rules were for the safety of consumers. he added that 99.8% of over-the-counter drugs will still be available online. the government will continue promoting deregulation in sectors such as health care, agriculture and electricity. now when people in japan go shopping for appliances they usually do for the big name brands that bring quality and reliability. but there is a price and it's usually a pretty steep one. that's started to change recently as smaller more agile firms aim to make life a little more affordable. nhk has the story. >> reporter: a tokyo electronics store. shoppers used to have two choices. high-end japanese or cheaper foreign brands.

recently, a third category has appeared. generic japanese brand. this top of the line oven costs 1,000 u.s. dollars. and here, this is a generic model. it has only a few settings, but it costs $100, one tenth of the price. >> i prefer the cheap one, as long as it works fine. >> reporter: the generic microwave is made by this company. the company sales were $300 million last year. up 50% over the last two years. its secret is outsourcing. it subcontracts its manufacturing to smaller companies all around japan. this firm used to supply a top brand electronics manufacturer. the workers here have years of

experience. by utilizing their skills they can avoid costly r&d on new products like microwave ovens. this is a key component. it produces electromagnetic waves. high-end manufacturers compete fiercely to boost power and efficiency, but not this company. they use a slightly outdated component. it still meets national energy savings standards, and that's enough for most consumers. usually the older part is cheaper, 1/10 its original cost. >> translator: most japanese appliance manufacturers think that basic technology is already outdated, but we believe that there are a lot of things that can still be used. experienced sub contracting firms can use these technologies, allowing us to create products right away.

>> reporter: company officials like to highlight the reliability of japanese-made appliances. in that way, they can differentiate their products from cheaper, foreign made goods. the marketing staff safety and performance. in durability tests, the products go through 10,000 hours of continuous use. staff are always on the lookout for new product ideas. they pick up many leads on the shop floor. >> translator: when i stand near a salesperson and a customer, i hear all kinds of opinions. that tells me a lot about what the consumer is interested in. >> reporter: a product developer thinks he has identified a new need among customers. he's proposing a multi-media player. this one will transfer music

from cassette and cds onto a memory card. he said some consumers want to enjoy their own music selection collections on a superior sound system. >> translator: our target is 10,000 yen. >> translator: 10,000 yen retail? >> translator: yes. i hear a lot of people say that men need their wife's approval if they spend more than that. >> reporter: high-end technology or budget price? this is giving consumers more choice. they may also prefer japanese rather than foreign competition. nhk world. diners sitting down to a korean meal usually find a dish of kimchi.

dish or fer meanted cabbage and other vegetables. but another fermented dish is starting to tickle the pallets of people worldwide. >> reporter: i'm in a town in the southern part of korea. they are famous for a traditional fermented hot paste. it was first made here in this town in the 18th century. and this is what it looks like. it is made of powdered red pepper, fermented soybeans, glutinous rice, salt and soy sauce. local people mix these ingredients into a paste. it ferments in these crocks for over a year. so they have different kinds inside. so let's go in and have a look. the makers sometimes add

ingredients like plum, over here, and bali. to vary the flavor. this woman has been making this for over 30 years. [ speaking foreign language ] i asked her what's so special about this made here and she said they use all the fresh local foods, and they have the best climate for fermentation which deepens the flavor. the unique flavor is now gaining fans beyond korea. this is korea's most famous dish.

a giant bowl was a big hit at this spice festival. and no diet is complete without a helping of this. the festival attracts visitors from all over the world. it doesn't just titillate the taste buds. the spices in the paste prevent obesity and improve digestion and appetite. >> i'm sure they would like it on a lot of dishes. >> they were all pretty good. i've never had any before. but they taste pretty good. >> reporter: that's one reason why it is catching on among foodies around the world. this is an institute for companies that make gochujang. the traditional paste can be too spicy and salty for nonkoreans. so the institute is trying to make gochujang less salty.

researchers want to isolate and identify microbes in the paste so they can mass produce gochujang. one of the companies has introduced the paste at international food fairs to find out whether people from other countries go for gochujang. this isn't a cooking class. it's the company's laboratory. chefs add ingredients like parmesan cheese and wine to make it less spicy. they are using it with different types of cuisine and testing the results. >> translator: we must develop many different products that use

gochujang paste so it's given international appeal. >> reporter: exports have risen threefold in the past ten years. but gochujang makers won't be satisfied until the paste is as popular as kimchi internationally. anna jong, nhk world. all right. time now for the world weather and the latest on that powerful typhoon. here's our meteorologists, sayaka mori. we've been watching a typhoon. clouds from the storm are starting to cover the southern half of the philippines. now things are getting stormy in the philippines. now it is packing sustained winds of over 215 kilometers per hour. it's actually the strongest typhoon on earth this year. now the system will likely hit the mid section of the philippines by friday morning

local time as a violent typhoon. wind gusts could be 300 kilometers per hour or even more. a catastrophic wind damage could occur. trees could be uprooted and many houses could be destroyed. power outages to last for weeks and even months. this area was hit by a tropical depression. so the land is really saturated. on top of that last month an earthquake occurred. so still thousands of people in shelters. so catastrophic disaster could happen, i'm afraid. so please evacuate if you haven't. the system will likely move out to sea and then move to the indochina peninsula. it will likely hit sunday morning as a strong typhoon. not good news. this area was also hit by the remnants of a typhoon the other day. so lots of things are happening across southern parts of asia. so up towards the north peaceful weather. but stormy conditions will occur in northern japan this evening.

very high gusts, very heavy rain likely, and even tornados cannot be ruled out in northern japan. as we go into tomorrow, december-like air will flow in from the north. that's going to provide blowing snow in hokkaido. your high could be only 5 degrees on friday. you may see some snow flurries tomorrow. freezing temperatures throughout the day on your sunday in harbin. and minus 13 for you. please keep yourself warm. now into the americas, a series of lows is coming into the coastal northwest. that's creating snowfall for the mountains. they may get as must as 50 centimeters of snow. meanwhile, we had a lean of rain from the south up into eastern canada. and to the north of it wind

whipped snow are causing some driving conditions. dangerous driving conditions in parts of quebec. temperatures are going to be in the high teens in atlanta. going down by about five degrees compared to what we saw yesterday in chicago as well as toronto bustill heating up to 28 degrees for you in l.a. all right. finally across europe them there are two significant systems, one over the east. meanwhile, this one is producing very heavy wind and strong rain. here's your extended forecast.

and that's all for now on this edition of "newsline." i'm yuko aotani in tokyo. thank you very much for joining us. tavis: good evening.

from los angeles, i am tavis smiley. tonight a conversation with dennis haysbert. the documentary looks at the war .hrough documents and artifacts then we will turn to a conversation with scott adams "how to failalled at almost everything and still win big."

dennis haysbert and scott adams coming up right now. ♪ >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. tavis: the next two years to commemorate the end of the civil

war, the smoke finian -- the smithsonian is dedicating a including aat time, program called fight for freedom and hosted by actor dennis haysbert. take a look at the clip from the series. >> every ship had a list of all the goods and he was on the ship. this one is taking 83 people from virginia to natchez to be sold in the cotton and sugar plantation. documenting the people. it has people's names, their

coloring, their age, where they are from. sometimes people were sold multiple times. i'm going to make an assumption. i doubt you have done any project where you learned more. i could be wrong. further.d go a step artifact iow what was going to be discussing until the cameras were rolling. >> they cap you in suspense? can understand how that would have an emotional impact on what i was doing. it's really interesting

shooting. this is going to be a fascinating show. i was watching ashley judd last night. i was happy go lucky. a lot of this was kind of dour for me. it hurt, and i was kind of liberated in my thinking of all the people that came together to try to stop this and try to end , so i have a whole new outlook on the people who tried to exacerbate the situation. dark period ina the nations history.