>> glor: tonight, a warning to iran, on his visit to jerusalem, mitt romney says he stands with israel in opposing iran's drive for a nuclear weapon. jan crawford has the interview. >> aleppo, a report from inside syria's largest city, under fire by the assad regime. >> breaking auto sales and lower earnings in detroit, rebecca jarvis on what comes next. and helping hand, meets a new generation of robot that gives back what illness has taken away. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news." >> glor: and good evening, everyone, i am jeff glor, after a rough first stop on his seven-day overseas trip, mitt romney was hoping israel would go better than britain, the day

was not error free. in jerusalem, voicing strong support for israel's right to self defense, romney also had to back off an aide's suggestion he support an israeli strike against iran's nuclear program. political correspondent jan crawford is traveling with the campaign. >> between meetings with israeli officials, romney visited the holiest of jewish sites the western wall where he was besieged by well-wishers. >> before he walked to the wall and left a prayer. >> in visits with senior officials, romney got a warm welcome, including from prime minister benjamin netanyahu who called romney -- >> a personal friend of mine and a strong friend of the state of israel. >> but it wasn't all smooth sailing in the often bumpy seation of mideast diplomacy, earlier sunday senior advisor dan senor caused a stir when he

seemed to say he would bomb the, support it israel's bombing of iran. >> from developing that capability, the governor would respect that decision. [ applause ] >> that is stronger language than what the white house has used and for that matter mr. romney, who has said he won't criticize american foreign policy abroad. this afternoon i asked him to clarify. >> would you or would you not then support israel's bombing of iran? >> we should use every diplomatic and political vehicle that is available to us to keep iran from becoming a nuclear capability state. if all those options fail, then we do have other options and we don't take those other options off the table, but that is as far as i am willing to go in discussing this matter while on foreign soil. >> but in a speech tonight before supporters and donors, romney appeared to take an indirect shot at the president, where he criticized on the

campaign saying he is not a strong enough defender of israel. >> we cannot stand silent as those who seek to undermine israel voice their criticisms, and we certainly should not join in that criticism. diplomatic distance in our public, between our nations edge bold dense israel's adverse swears. >> now romney may not have directly criticized the president but he sure came close in his words were what a lot of people here a wanted to hear but the question, jeff, is how that will impact jewish voters back in the united states. >> glor: jan crawford tonight, jan, thank you. >> inside the civil war in syria tonight the assad regime declared victory in a battle with rebels in the capital city of damascus and also the ongoing fight in aleppo, the biggest city and commercial city. >> stewart ramsey of the british sky news is in syria this evening and joins us now on the phone. stewart, what are you seeing inside aleppo tonight? >> the artillery that usually

starts about now has started, though it is very sporadic. last night it was very, very heavy for a long period of time, consistent with the syrian government's strategy, they failed to take that stronghold in the southwest with ground troops, so they withdrew and have been bombarding it with artillery and with helicopter gun ships firing. >> glor: stewart, from the best information we have been able to gather, the opposition controls between a third and the half of the neighborhoods inside aleppo, does that sync up with what you are saying? >> i would say maybe. it might be a little on the optimistic side. also they don't have the numbers that they led me to believe. you do get that sense from the people involved in the revolution they don't think they won't win now, it is just really a matter of how long it takes them to do that. > what about the casualties in aleppo? >> it really is difficult to

know. i think the latest figures for yesterday in the country were about 186, i am not sure how many were in aleppo itself. we noticed before, i have been in homes and in hama very much the same, it is often the civilians who are trying to leave that are having casualties. >> is the city still functioning or essentially shut down now? >> it is pretty much coming -- shut down, i think this is what is critical about this is the part of aleppo tha that is still functioning is getting worse and worse, if you consider the commercial importance of the city, the damage that is being caused to the infrastructure and the damage that is being caused to the people there, it will undoubtedly have an effect on the government and their support. >> sky news, thank you. >> elizabeth palmer is watching syria's civil war from neighboring lebanon, she is giving insight from well informed syrian source sources. liz good evening to you, does the battle in aleppo indicate

that rebel fighters have grown in either strength or organization? >> not really. you can see by the pictures that they are very poorly armed, considering the military might they face. and, in fact, some of the senior strategists inside the free syrian army didn't want them to go into aleppo at all because they felt they were bound to lose not only territory but maybe hundreds of fighters. >> liz i am wondering what your sources are saying about how the assads are holding up right now. >> well, that may, they may see syria as a legacy, family legacy from the current president's father and they will defend it at almost any cost. they are also not running out of money. there have been reports that they are pretty much broke, but i am hearing they have about six months worth of money left to keep the money ticking and to pay salaries not just to civil servants but follows the military, so that doesn't indicate a quick end to this

thing. liz palmer, thank you. >> glor: in greece leaders tonight have reportedly breed to most of the austerity measures demanded of its creditors, the government needs to find savings worth $14 billion in 2013 and 2014 and so far they have agreed to a plan that will handle all but $2 billion of that. the crisis in europe continues to weigh on the u.s. economy, though. ford reported its earnings fell 57 percent last quarter, driven in part by weak sales overseas. u.s. auto makers had been one of the strong points of an otherwise weak economy up until now, business and economic correspond democratic rebecca jarvis is here with us now with more on all of this. rebecca, good evening to you, what is behind the weak ford numbers? >> essentially you said it, sportsdesk is not doing as well in europe as it was in the past. $404 million were lost by ford in europe in this recent quarter, they do 205 percent of their business overseas in europe, and with at least a dozen economies in europe right

now facing recession, those sales are way down. they project this year they could lose as much as a billion dollars in europe whereas they will be making about $2 billion in this country. >> gm's earnings come up this week, similar bad news are we expecting? >> well, we are expecting to hear more of the same as far as europe goes. but gm's business mix is a little bit more diversified. they are stronger in china, which has been a strong spot for auto sales in general and gm is the number one carceler in all of china. >> glor: does the news for car sales get any better in the six months ahead before the year ends? >> it is interesting to note that car sales have been relatively strong here in the u.s., we sold 12.8 million cars in the u.s. last year and expected to be 14 million this year and in part the cars on the road are older on average 11 years old and that means people want to g go pout and get a new car because it is more intensive to fix the old one plus credit is more available. >> glor: rebecca jarvis, always good to have you here. there is some encouraging news on the housing front. new home sales are up more than

15 percent in the past year. checked out the housing market in massachusetts and found it is building. >> unlike a lot of early homes we have good ceiling height and big rooms in this house. >> with their eye on retirement, bob and lisa shots have been looking to buy a house in new uryport along the massachusetts coast. >> we thought it would be nice to relocate to a cooler climb. >> the couple currently live in nashville, tennessee where this summer they have endured weeks of record heat, so they looked north. >> a little second bedroom. >> you have beautiful summer breezes even on the hottest days don't feel anywhere near as hot as it does in nashville. >> he re-did the bath. >> the shotz are part of a slow moving but encouraging trend. though sales vary from state to state, massachusetts saw its housing market jump in june by 18.5 percent from the previous year. >> and again the great windows. >> after looking for more than three years, the couple thinks

that now is the time to make a move. >> the prices are now at what i think is a reasonable level. >> reasonable because the median sale price of a single family home dropped nearly two percent over the last year. >> i think if we keep going the way we are going, it is looking good. >> tricia mccarthy, president of the massachusetts realtors association, is encouraged to see any signs of improvement. unemployment in massachusetts is six percent compared to just over eight percent nationwide. >> mccarthy believes confidence in the housing market is essential for a recovery, but tough mortgage requirements are a hurdle. >> years ago, if you could breathe into a mirror you could get a loan, so it was very easy. now the pendulum has, you know, gone completely to the other side and the regulations are very strict. >> the original foundation is in place. >> that is not worrying the shotz family who see the historically low mortgage rates

as a plus. >> it is the lowest rates that i can remember. >> right now is a great buyers time. >> so they are searching hard to find their massachusetts retreat from the nashville heat. seth doane cbs news, new york. >> glor: later, robots folding laundry, sorting socks, the new hand helping those in need. a challenging pension choice for public safety workers in california's capital, and is china downplaying the death toll after a crippling flood? those stories when the cbs evening news continues.

>> glor: a family of a pregnant mother wounded in the aurora, colorado theatre shooting says she miscarried as a result, ashley moser is recovering from surgery for wounds to the neck and abdomen, in addition to the unborn child, her six-year-old daughter veronica died in the shooting, a family member says she have not yet told very veronica of the

death. >> two climbers missing in the mountains of peru for two weeks have been located, ben horne from virginia and gill weiss of colorado apparently fell, they were spot bid a helicopter but conditions have prevented their recovery. a rare public view of a natural disaster in north korea tonight, state media reports floods have killed at least 88 people and injured 134 others. tens of thousands have been left homeless, the floods were triggered by heavy rains from a typhoon. parts of china have also suffered unusually heavy rains, beijing got the equivalent of six months of rain in one day. then came deadly flooding, and now critics is a torrent of propaganda, barry petersen explains from beijing. >> reporter: it was the worst flooding in 60 years. but a lot of chinese think officials at first downplayed the death toll to minimize the bad news. originally reported at 37, it suddenly changed after questions

on the internet and was raised to 77. and some don't believe that number either. and there were other questions. did city officials do a bad job planning the drainage system in this high end part of town with a lot of new skyscrapers? >> instead of an answer newspaper quad the criticism, a blogger said they only know how to turn on the tap of positive propaganda, that was quickly deleted by authorities. >> there are other questions about beijing's building boom beyond potential faults in the drainage system, mostly focused on the quality of so much going up so fast. >> even when people buy luxury condos in china, they joke about how they are not going to last very long because they haven't been built to last. one area that had no plotting was beijing around the forbidden city, once home to emperor's its drainage system was designed six centuries ago which makes it all

the more embarrassing an area with new buildings and new drainage technology couldn't deal with something as old as man, a rainstorm. barry petersen, cbs news, beijing. >> glor: next up, pension hardball, the choice one city offered to its firefighters and police.

>> glor: one measure of the weak economic outlook comes from moody's which estimates states and cities across the country have $2 trillion worth of unfunded pension liabilities. john blackstone takes a look at how california's state capital is handling it. >> reporter: jennifer bland gave up a career in veterinary medicine to become a cop. >> i really felt a call to help people. >> at this sacramento firehouse, todd filbrun echoes that sense of duty. >> firefighters put their lives on the line every day and make sacrifices. >> the sacrifices of public safety workers in sacramento were rewarded with generous pensions, which are now crippling the city budget says marsha fridge of the california foundation for fiscal responsibility. >> $500 million we are in debt

on these pensions. public safety in cities is what is driving the pension costs increase. >> so sacramento gave its public safety workers a stark choice pay more for their pensions or face big job cuts. i am trying to make a mortgage and put my wife through law school and pay the every day bills, i could be without a job, i could be losing my home. >> sacramento firefighters agreed to pay a bigger share of their pensions, 44 jobs were saved. it was a very tough decision. they wanted to do the right thing, but yet at the same time it was coming at a great personal cost. >> the police union rejected pension reform, 16 officers were laid off, including jennifer bland. >> good lord, how am i going to pay -- feed my kids? >> turning in her badge added to the pain. >> you work so hard for it, you work so hard, and then when you take that oath, of, you know, that is the hardest moment and

when it is taken away from you, really? i didn't do anything wrong here. by taking somebody's badge away from them just because they can't make ends meet that is very difficult. >> reporter: it is a hard decision cities across the country are facing as those who often sacrifice so much are asked to sacrifice more. john blackstone, cbs news, san francisco. >> glor: at the olympics today, two more americans picked up gold medals swimmer dana vollmer won the 100-meter butterfly in world record time and kimberly rhode won gold in skeet shooting. also in a big upset the u.s. four by 100 relay team that included michael phelps swimming strong finished in second after ryan lochte lost the lead. france takes gold. it does appear an olympic miss i have has been solved tonight.

a woman in a red jacket obviously out of place was somehow able to march with india's athletes in friday's opening ceremony, not part of the delegation. india protested. today organizers said the woman was a cast member from another part of the ceremony and that she posed no threat. ahead, up close and personal with the next generation of robots. all multivitamins give me the basics.

they claim to be complete. only centrum goes beyond. providing more than just the essential nutrients, so i'm at my best. centrum. always your most complete. so i'm at my best. for many, nexium helps relieve heartburn symptoms caused by acid reflux disease. osteoporosis-related bone fractures and low magnesium levels have been seen with nexium. possible side effects include headache, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. other serious stomach conditions may still exist. talk to your doctor about nexium.

>> >> glor: finally tonight there is a group of scientist whose want you to forget the big chunk can i robots in the science fiction movies of old, instead say hello to the updated model, designed to help people who need help the most. here is priya clemens. >> close your right hand. >> closing right hand. >> in a lab deep in silicon valley robots are being programmed to do household chores like folding laundry and sorting socks. and to act a little more human. >> hello. oh, high ten. >> i think the ro robotic technology is awesome. >> leila takayama worked at a garage that designs and tests

personal robots. making them less intimidating. >> i have never been hugged by a robot before, oh! >> and more practical. but it is not housework that is placing these robots on the cutting edge. it is what they have done for people like henry evans, who he age of 40 suffered a severe stroke, it left him a quadriplegic, able to understand, unable to speak. evan's wife jane. >> i didn't know what was going to happen. i didn't know. he was literally trapped in his body. >> but evan's recently became one of the first to test a personal robot donated by willa garage to a team of scientists at georgia tech. >> with eye movement and his limited use of one finger, evans can program the robot to help him shave, help him scratch and to get a towel. it all takes a lot of work and time for this clunky 400-pound machine. >> why not just hire someone to

help henry as opposed to having a computer help him? >> it is the difference between asking someone to do it for you versus doing it for yourself, and one thing we found is that people really want to do things for themselves. they want that independent democrats. >> for henry, doing anything independently was once unthinkable. >> when you see that sense of satisfaction in his face, i mean, there is no words to describe it, it is amazing. i love the robot. >> the robot has helped my husband emerge into this person that i never dreamed possible. >> and opening up a world of endless possibilities. priya clemens, cbs news, menlo park, california. >> glor: that is the cbs evening news tonight. later on cbs 60 minutes. i am jeff glor, cbs news in new york, scott pelley will be here tomorrow. good night. captioning sponsored by cbs