it's tuesday, august 4th. in the news this morning, clinton's mission. the formerer president trals to nortkorea to bring two american reporters home. are ousands more u.s. troops going to afghanistan? itas a question that was considered at a supersececret meeting this past weend. and rough flight. >> i woke up when mymy hd hit the ceiling.

an ememergency l lanandiding af hitting turbulence over the atlantic. hitting turbulence over the atlantic. dozens are injured. captions paid for by abc, inc. good morning. thanks for joining us on this tuesday. we start with breaking news on the fate of two american journalists held in north korea. former president clinton has arrived on a surprise visit to north korea. >> mr. clinton is expected to return with laura ling and euna lee. >> reporter: good morning, vinita. it is an extraordinary trip that is being made by former president bill clinton. clinton's visit to korea as there's heightened tensions over the nuclear programs. he hopes to win the freedom of those american journalists, laura ling and euna lee. he was greeted by the country's

vice president and the vice foreign minister, who is also the country's chief nuclear envoy. this unexpected meeting is a direct one-on-one dialogue between the u.s. government and the north koreans. no third parties are involved. technically, there are no diplomatic relations between the two countries. but it is believed that washington has been working around the clock to use all means possible to get ling and lee released. clinton's unannounced visit may dicate there is a high chance that the two journalists are to be set free. and the incident is being used as an opening to smooth relations between the two countries. >> he presided at the high water mark of north korea's relationship with the united states. and the north koreans are invited him to go to pyongyang. he has acceptethat invitation. it is a very wise choice. and i'm sure that the journalists will accompany him on his return trip. >> reporter: the two journalists

were captured in march this year, whilst on assignment there. th had illegally crossed into north korean territory from china. and were sentenced to 12 years of hard labor for entering in the country illegally and for engaging in, quote, hostile acts. clinton had acknowledged possible wrongdoing in their having crossed into the country in such a fashion, saying the two had expressed, quote, great remorse for the incident. adding that everyone is very sorry that it happened. the hope is now that the two will not become political pawns in the ongoing standoff of the two countries over north korea's controversial missile tests. but that will be a genuine opportunity for the two countrieto enter into some kind of dialogue. >> sonia gallego, from london. thank you, sonia. from thailand. a bangkok airlines jet has

crashed into a control tower. officials say there were at least 70 people on board when the airliner skidded off the runway and hit the tower. now, to the fate of three american hikers beg held in iran. iranian authorities are accusing the three of being cia agents. a state department official says the charges against the three are ridiculous. friends and family says the young people are at eventual rouse and stumbled into the wrong place at the wrong time. the taliban is claiming responsibilior an early-morning missile attack on the capital of afghanistan. police say five rockets expleaded injuring a child and exploding buildings. ahead of presidential elections in less than three weeks. the worsening situation in afghanistan could soon lead to a call for more u.s. troops to the region. that comes after a secret meeting last week between the defense secretary and his top generals.

here's our senior foreign affairs correspondent, martha raddatz. >> reporter: in secret, they descended on to this military base in belgium. seven of the most powerful defense and military officials in the u.s. among them, defense secretary robert gates, chairman of the joint chiefs, mike mullen, centcom commander, david petraeus, and stanley mccrist tall, who was recently put in charge of troops in afghanistan. sources tell abc news, that mcchrystal's assessment team has suggested another dramatic increase in troops. four to six brigades during 2010. that's anywhere from 12,000 to 27,000 troops. that was be in addition to the more than 20,000 troops president obama already approved. also recommended, an increase in the afghan national army. >> i think we need to accelerate its development. and we need to grow it larger. >> reporter: but it is adding u.s. troops that would be the most controversial.

in the past, secretary gates said he would have to think long and hard about that. >> we have to look carefully at how our strategy is proceeding some months down the road before i would contemplate forwarding a recommendation for additional troops to the president. >> reporter: a u.s. military official tells abc that the drawdown from iraq would have to be accelerated in order to add more troops to afghanistan. but there may be no other choi than to do just that. july was the worst month in afghanistan since the war began, with 76 troops killed and already in august, 9 have died. there have been no decisions made about increasing the number of troops in afghanistan. this assessment by general mcchrystal is ongoing. martha raddatz, abc news, washington. the white house has tried to make it clear, a middle-class tax hike is not in the works. at his briefing yesterday, spokesman robert gibbs said

mr. obama is not backing away his campaign pledge to raise taxes on the middle class. it was response to the furor. president obama is spending another day trying to get the senate to extend the cash for clunkers program. it has been a big hit with coumers and car dealers. but time is running out to keep it going. for the latest we are joined by john hendren in washington. hi, john. >> reporter: hi, vinita. it turns outs this stuff helps car sales. this is the gunk they pour in your engine to kill it when you trade in your car under the cash for clunkers program. and that program is making dealers and carmakers very happy. the cash for clunkers program is driving stalled car sales upward. in july, down from last year, but up from june. the biggest winner, ford, reporting new vehicle sales at the highest level since november of 2007. >> this is great.

it's the first automaker in two years has posted an increase in month over month over last year. and it's helped the business tremendously. >> reporter: and ford isn' alone. sales are all up. but the cash for clunkers program is in neutral, after the $1 billion in funding ran out in about a week, the house approved $2 billion more. but senate leaders are scrambling to approve the new funding before their month-long break starts friday. >> if it ain't broke, don't fix it. it's working in every way. >> reporter: passage is more likely when some senators were concerned it didn't increase fuel efficiency enough became supporters. >> the best solution is to continue and extend the program as it is. >> reporter: but many republicans are putting on the brakes. >> this is a horrible policy idea. and the fact that people buy cars when you give them free money does not mean that that's

what the federal government should be doing. >> reporter: president obama has invited all 60 democratic senators to the white house today. and you can bet, he will be pressing them to back a program the white house hopes will put troubled carmakers back on the road to recovery. vinita? >> john hendren reporting this morning from washington. right now, let's have a look at this morning's weather from around the nation. severe thunderstorms in the midwest. with hail and gusty winds from missouri to ohio. scattered showers and thunderstorms in the northeast. and in florida, georgia and alabama. also out west. with lightning andightain in the rocky mountains. >> a sizzling 98 in phoenix. 98 in boise. and 97 in salt lake city. 79 in the twin cities high 80s for most ofhe t midwest. it climbs to 85 in boston. 89 in new york. and 92 in baltimore. across the south, dallas will hit 102. new orleans, 94. and miami, 92. when we come back this morning, australian police on the move. busting up an alleged terror plot.

they say the aim was to kill as many soldiers as possible. and you just heard about auto sales. ford unveils another option for buyers turning in th

overseas stock markets are mixed this morning after another strong day on wall street. tokyo's nikkei average rose 0.2% today. hong kong's hang seng is higher. in london, the ftse opened lower. the dow starts the day at 9286, after jumping nearly 115 points yesterday. and the nasdaq added another 30

points, rising above 2000 for the first time since october. cash for clunkers helped ford report its first monthly sales gain in two months. now, the company is hoping to build on that. the automaker is rolling out the new taurus today. the car has been completely redesigned. ford hopes to change people's perception that the taurus is found mainly in car rental lots. the timing of cash for clunkers is pretty good for anyone who has traded in a gas-guzzler. gas prices are on the rise, climbing another 5 cents this week, to an average of $2.56 per gallon. some major changes could be coming to your local post office. in fact, it could be shutting down. the postal service is considering closing or consolidating hundreds of locations across the country as a way to save money. it's expected to lose about $7 billion this year. the agency hasn't been able to make up for the drop in volume caused by e-mail. >> so many of us e-mailing nowadays.

you can get the latest business news at our website. the address is abcnews.com. and when we come back, the emotional war of words of lisa ling, as she awaits to see if her sister is bei

has arrived in north korea, to win the freedom of two morn journa journalists held in custody for bee than four months. there have been behind the aura s negotiations for laura ling and ling and euna lee. the >> the north koreans were dema demanding two things to free the journalists. onalpology from the u.s. and a personal visit from a high-profile representative. >> now, laura's sister, lisa li ing, says the family are on pins and needles. ea lingier in their captivity, ling

spoke poke to our bob woodruff about what what the cust ordeal was like for the two women. for the two women. >> these are good girls. they're not spies. it's my baby sister, you know? nd euna has this beautiful 4-year-old daughter, hannah. >> reporter: a 4-year-old yeah.ter. know h. he reporter: does she know young going on? >> i think she's just young nough that she can't fully comprehend what's happening. but she's gotten a sense. it's been almost three months. >> reporter: what's been really eemarkable, too, is what american people -- actually, verynd the world, hear this news. they're very deeply moved by it. > it's been so amazing to us, her face extrfacebook has been rootsrdinary. this grass roots movement has been born. e lateorn. i've been at home, like late at night. and just feeling emotional. nd i'll post something so inte

intensity personal on facebook. so so random. i' i'll just type, i miss you, and i don't know who is and i don't know who is reading r i hit but after i hit update, think to my myself, why did i just post that i thousands of people who i don't kn don't know to see? is i think the reason is port se there is no support gr group for this. and for some reason, when people don't even know send me a don't even know send me a you and we're trying for you, and we're behind you, somehow there is the strangest comfort in that. >> reporter: what do you think the moment will be like when they get out of north korea? >> it's a scene i've replaid over and over in my head. i hope they come home soon. >> lisa ling, speaking to bob woodruff back in june. police in australia say they have foiled what could have been the worst terror attack in their country's history. they arrested several people in

19 pre-dawn raids in melbourne yesterday. the suspects were allegedly part of a group planning a commando-style suicide attack on at least one army base. they are all australian citizens, believed to be linked to islamic extremists in somalia. the faa says new technology to better detect turbulence is were hurt on a kent only in flight. the jet had 179 people on board when it ron into severe turbulence as it was heading from houston to rio. the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing in miami, after passengers were violently hurled around the plan. >> all of a sudden, the plane justakes a dip and rises up. you see people going off their seats. people screaming. little kids crying. people saying please, ow, help. i can't take it. >> i woke up when my head hit the ceiling. there were screams and worries when it happened. it got dead-silent afterwards. >> i was scared, man. i was sleeping. i woke up when hi head hit the

ceiling. i didn't know what was going on. >> some passengers said they immediately thought of the fair france flight that went down in june, killing everyone on board. in san francisco, another accident, involving the city's historic street cars. an suv was squashed between two of the trolleys on market street, injuring six people. it's the second mishap on the old municipal railway within a month. there's a cash crunch for the wife of convicted swindler of bernie madoff. ruth madoff cannot spend the money without being reported. coming up on "america this g,moda" inta ha tt didn't end as planned. >> how did this car end upside down in the middle of the desert? dication to lower your

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his name. he's lost control of them twice because of bankruptcy. but trump and his daughter outbid competitors. trump says he will make atlantic city hot again. if you want hot, how about some nascar action on this tuesday morning. >> good morning. it was a day late. but certainly worth it. pennsylvania 500 rained out on sunday. they would run on monday. a beautiful day for racing at pocono raceway. points leader, tony stewart, started at the back. problems for the three-time champion, jimmie johnson. complaints of losing power. they would look under the hood. he fell down three laps. at lap 149, it got nasty. gordon takes damage and comes back out. gets it to the back of stremme. moments later, stremme gets into the back of gordon and spins him

out. both drivers are penalized by nascar. another big wreck this time. the 96 car, bobby labonte. ten laps to go, denny hamlin, driving with a heavy heart. his 91-year-old grandmother passed away three days ago. takes the checkered flag. an emotional hamlin, win for the first time in 2009. what a finish. brewers/dodgers. trevor hoffman on. james loney, into the corner. a ground-rule double. dodgers down 6-4. now, 6-5. runners first and third. andre either. getting the four on. that would load the bases for, guess what? manny ramirez. manny flies out to right. he was one for five. two strikeouts.

the brewers hold on and win 6-5. >> that's jonathan coachman at espn news reporting. now, to a bizarre accident in arizona. an offroad vehicle landing in a precarious position. >> the driver was on a desert trail north of phoenix when he overturned and got stuck upside down in a hole. emergency crews had to use ropes to hoist him to safety. they say the hole may have been an old mine shaft. lunging.way to go spe lunging. thursday, finally! dinner with the irls tonight. mmm... mexican, r italian?,

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morning, some women are no strangers to shoppingg malalls. but some a are now making their way through the long hallways to shed pounds instead of spending moneney. >> t i ideofofalll walking h he in thehe unitestates is no cacatchihing o on in the wealth persiagulf city ofof dui. here's abc's laura setrakian. reporter: when dudubai's summer heat kicks in, as high as 116 degrees and humid, lifife m mov inors. and so do thmall walkers. at 8:00 a.m. before any shops are open, an enterprising group of w womomen wk laps arounun the maf f the emates, exercising in the air conditioned cool. >> it's a controlled environment. it's always the same. you know it's always here. and it's a great supportive

group. >> reporter: some young ones join in, as mall walkers' kids. they start with a stretch and a warmup. ♪ then, they're off. the walking is brisk. these ladies move fast. for an hour, the mall turns into their personal gym. mall walker irene gray joined after moving here from latin america, last year. >> in the beginning it was a new concept to me. i've never done it before. but i think once you get into it, you just take it on. and do the best you can. and it's fun. >> reporter: the mall of the emirates sponsors the group. and reaps some benefit, bringing in much-needed shoppers during the retail downturn. come at a better time.n't have obesity is on the rise in dubai, when an estimated 74% of people are overweight. and one in five suffers from diabetes. and fast food chains are thriving in the gulf. last year, m