i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> health officials are investigating. the normal rate of thyroid cancer is one in thousands. a panelist examining the impact of radiation on residents. health professionals are giving checkups to all 360,000 children aged 18 or younger at the time of the accident at fukushima daiichi. on top of the 18 minors they diagnosed they suspect 25 others may have the illness. members of the panel say they can't determine if the accident has affected the rate of cancer among children. they decided to set up a team of experts to look into the situation. workers at the nuclear plant have their hands full as they try to stop the flow of radioactive water. the operators say they will do more to monitor and control leaks from storage tanks. officials say at least 300 tons of highly radioactive water has leaked from one tank. it is the worst spill from a tank they have seen since the accident in march 2011. the tanks are surrounding by a concrete barrier. the attached pipes were left open to let ra

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. the alleged chemical weapons aattack in syria last week could result in military action by the united states and some european nations. some u.s. media report u.s. forces could strike syria within a couple of days. nbc news says senior u.s. officials told them missile strikes against syria could be launched as early as thursday. the sources say three-day strikes are planned and would be limited in scope. they would be aimed at sending a message to syrian president bashar al assad. white house spokesman says the u.s. response to syria has not yet been decided. >> the president continues to work with his national security team reviewing the options available to him. when he has made a decision he will make the announcement. he said the u.s. has a firm assessment that the assad regime has maintained control of the chemical weapons stock pile. carney also said the u.s. officials will release the findings of the probe within a week. >> translator: the chemical massacre of damascus cannot g

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. e 1yi79ians are seeing things many have seen before. the leaders launched a crack down after more than a month of unrest. at least 578 people have been killed. more than 4,000 injured. they say their forces will continue to use real bullets on groups that threaten peace. supporters of ousted president mohamed morsi demand he be reinstated. security forces stormed two sit ins in cairo and removed them. protesters elsewhere responded by taking to the streets themselves. they too have run into security forces. the state-run news agency said demonstrators set fire to the building near the capital. protesters occupied a building and a police station. >> you have to impose order on the ground. public order is very, very important. >> morsi supporters in the brotherhood are not backing down. they are calling for demonstrations across the country after friday prayers. members of the un security council gathered for an emergency session to discuss the situation. they are discussing possible response. u.s. president barack obama condemned leaders

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. the leaders of the government which are trying to restore order with crack downs on protesters claimed more than 235 lives. authorities on wednesday began with new supporters of the depos posed president morsi. they are exchanging sit ins in cairo. they bulldozed through barricades around the cabs and fired tear gas into the crowds. more than 30 people died. the bloodshed set off protests in other parts of the capital and the central city. they attacked gunmen at the facilities. they declared a month long state of emergency and imposed a night time curfew in 14 provinces. they gave security forces the power to detain people without arrest warrants. the authorities appear set to launch further crack downs on members of morsi's support base. the brotherhood responded by calling on supporters to launch fresh protests. the vice president can no longer serve in the government. they quit in protest over the bloody crack down. he tendered a resignation in the letter to the president. he said

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. edward snowden walked out of an airport in moscow after more than weeks inside. russian officials granted him a one-year asylum. it angered u.s. leaders and left relations up in the air. snowden arrived from hong kong in late june and has been holed up in the transit zone ever since. his lawyers say he is free to go. >> translator: snowden has left the airport anded hadded for a safer place. >> he wants to move on to latin america that offered him permanent asylum. he worked on contract as an intelligence analyst for the national security agency. he told the guardian newspaper and other media that agents collect private internet and phone data. they defended the surveillance programs saying they prevented terrorist attacks. spokes purposes for the russian presidential office said the decision grant asylum will not affect relations with the u.s. the white house press secretary was less clear cut. >> we are extremely disappointed that the russian government would take this step despite

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>>ed leeers of ja man and russia will meet face to face on a long standing territorial dispute. prime minister shinzo abe and president vladimir putin will talk next month on the sidelines of a summit of the group of 20 nations. they'll try to find common ground over four russian-held islands claimed by japan. deputy foreign minister sugiyama and igo morgolov met in moscow. japanese officials say they didn't make much progress toward resolving differences but the diplomats agreed to make arrangements for abe and putin to talk early next month at the g-20 meetings in st. petersburg, russia. the leaders agreed in april to restart negotiations over the islands. they said they would work towards finding a mutually accept solution and conclude igiing a peace treaty. >>> china's defense minister has warned others not to underestimate the chinese. chang wanquan issued the warning after a meeting with chuck hagel. china is caught up in a number of territorial disputes in the east china seas.

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. syrian opposition leaders are calling for prompt action into what they say was a chemical weapons attack. they say on wednesday government forces targeted towns with poison gas. humans of people were reportedly killed. u.s. government officials are urging syrian authorities to grant access to the sites. >> if the regime has nothing to do with these attacks, if there was not a use of chemical weapons here, there is no reason they wouldn't let the un team on the ground, available, happy to investigate in to do just that. >> she said the secretary of state john kerry spoke on the phone with secretary general moon and with french foreign minster. syrian opposition leaders claim that government forces fired rocks loaded with chemical weapons in i suburb of damascus. they demanded the allegations and say the claims are absolutely baseless. the authorities in egypt have released former president mubarak from prison, but he is not free. they went to the military hospital and put him under hou

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. japanese prime minister shinzo abe has skirted controversy. he's decided not to go to a shrine in tokyo on thursday to observe the anniversary of the end of world war ii. the shrine honors japan's war dead including leaders convicted of crimes after the war. abe himself has not disclosed whether he'll visit the shrine, but government sources say he'll stay away. they say instead he'll pay for a custom honored at the shrine and make an offering of the branch of the sacred tree. chinese and south korean leaders condemned visits to a place that honors war criminals. and the government sources say abe wants to avoid any further strains in foreign relations. but he says the 18 other members of his cabinet are free to visit the shrine. deputy prime minister aso, foreign minister and 12 others say they won't go on the anniversary. the other four members of the cabinet have not said what they'll do. >>> students and staff at a university in okinawa, southern japan are remembering a terrifying

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. stay with us. be back with more at the top of the hour.  >> good afternoon. i'm james harmon, president and ceo ceo of the wilson center. it has occurred to our speaker and me and maybe some of you that today is the second anniversary of zero dark 30. it was on may 2 at 12 :00 a.m. that the takedown of osama bin laden occurred. someone with my left had a lot to do with that. more on that later. a special welcome to the ambassador of

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo.hanks for joining us.  - coming up: an urgent call for sustainability. - if we're going to do what we have to do in the short window of time that physics and chemistry allow, then it will be through systemic change that it happens. - environmental activist bill mckibben explains the depressing state of climate change, and tells what governments and private citizens can do. that's just ahead on "global ethics forum." - few people have influenced our understanding of global warming quite like today's guest. though scientists first clued into the warming of our planet more than a century ago, it wasn't until the release of "the end of nature" in 1989 that folks like you and i began to take notice. the person who got our attention was bill mckibben. mckibben has since become one of the world's leading environmentalists. in addition to serving

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> authorities in egypt have released former president hosni mubarak from prison, but he's not free. the authorities moved him to a military hospital and put him under house arrest. a helicopter believed to be carrying mubarak left the jail in cairo then flew to the hospital. he's 85 years old and has spent the last two behind bars. but a court rule head could no longer legally be held. mubarak still faces charges of suppressing anti-government rallies and ordering the killing of demonstrators during the arab spring protests. those demonstrations led to his removal after 30 years in power. mubarak is also charged with receiving jewelry and other gifts from state-owned media. >>> militants in lebanon have fired four rockets into israel. the attack set off air raid sirens and startled residents but no ones with hurt. two of the rockets struck communities in northern israel, damaging buildings and vehicles. an anti-missile defense system destroyed another rocket. the fourth fell outside

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. residents of syria are shuttering themselves inside their homes. they're stocking up on food and water. they're waiting to find out whether u.s. forces and their allies will attack their country. western leaders believe last week syrian troops attacked civilians in the suburbs of damascus with chemical weapons. opposition activists say hundreds of people were killed. u.s. president barack obama and other leaders believe such action can't go unpunished. state-run tv quoted president bashar al assad as saying syria will defend itself against any aggression. he said an assault will only strengthen national unity. prime minister called a meeting of cabinet ministers. he said authorities need to prevent their enemies from disrupting state services such as electricity, drinking water, communications, food and oil. many residents are trying to flee into neighboring lebanon. those who have chosen to stay are doing whatever they can to prepare for a siege. the possibility of an attack from abroad has not stopped the fight inside syria. opposition activists

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks very much for watching.aptioning sponsored by >> ifill: the obama administration declared today the syrian government did use poison gas on its citizens and the u.s. will hold the assad regime accountable. good evening. i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, after facing sniper fire, u.n. inspectors arrived at the site of the alleged chemical weapons attack in syria.. we have the latest on the investigation, and look at options on the table for a u.s. response. >> ifill: a massive wildfire nearos

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. only two nuclear reactors are helping homes and businesses in the steamy days of summer. the people are set to shut them down for inspections in september. they are expected to be nuclear free for the first time in 15 months. nuclear plants across the country shut down for regular inspections after the accident two years ago at fukushima. last july officials with the power company were allowed to restart two reactors at the plant and set to submit an pication to the authority to shut down one of the reactors in early september and another two weeks later. the operators of six other plants have filed applications to restart their reactors. now the regulators are busy checking to see if the facilities are safe. the operator of the fukushima nuclear plant is still struggling to stop radioactive water from reaching the sea. tokyo electric power company learned that the efforts so far have failed. high levels of radio activity have been detected in monitoring wells in the plant site and ne

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks very much for joining us.tioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> ifill: attorney general eric holder announced sweeping changes to the way the federal justice system handles low-level drug offenders. good evening, i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight, holder said his aim is to "punish, deter and rehabilitate," not "to convict, warehouse and forget." we talk to a supporter and a critic of the move. >> ifill: then, russia's recent ban on expressing homosexuality has provoked growing backlash abroad. we examine the continuing controversy. >> woodruff: its eyech

it's thursday, august 22nd, i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. the people who operate the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant are wrestling with yet another challenge. they'd already confirmed that more than 300 tons of highly radioactive waste water has leaked from a storage tank. and now they say it may have flowed into the pacific ocean. workers with tokyo electric power company detected high levels of radiation inside a ditch. the ditch is about 50 meters from the leaking tank. and it runs into the ocean. workers have set up hundreds of tanks on a hillside near the reactors. they erected a low wall around the tanks, still the water seeped out. officials at japan's nuclear regulation authority said they're considering raising the severity rating of the leak. they rated it as a level one incident on the international scale that runs from zero to seven. they're considering raising their assessment to level three for serious incidents. previously tepco officials had said it was unlikely that contaminated water was reaching the shore. they said the le

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> the two remaining nuclear reactors still in operation in japan will be shut down for regular inspections in mid-september. the move will bring all reactors in japan offline for the first time in 15 months. kansai electric power company is set to submit an application to the nuclear regulation authority to shut down the number 3 reactors at the ohi plant in fukui prefecture on september 2nd. the number 4 reactor will be halted two weeks later. the nra implemented stricter safety checks in response to the 2011 accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant. but it allowed the two reactors at the ohi plant to stay online because they did not pose a serious safety threat. nra experts are currently screening six nuclear plants after utilities filed applications to restart reactors. but no clear prospects for restarting any of the reactors have emerged. >>> the operator of the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant is still struggling to stop radioactive water from reaching the sea. tokyo electric power company has learned that its efforts so far have failed

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. do join us again.tioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> woodruff: the merger between american airlines and u.s. airways hit some turbulence today. the u.s. justice department and several state attorneys general are suing to block the deal. good evening. i'm judy woodruff. >> brown: and i'm jeffrey brown. on the newshour tonight, the surprise legal challenge claimed the merger would increase air fares and cut services. we explore the fight over creating the world's largest airline. >> woodruff: then, north carolina joined a growing list of states to pass a voter i.d. law. we debate

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> health officials are suspicious about a trend they're seeing after the nuclear accident there two years ago. the normal rate of thyroid cancer in children is 1 in hundreds of thousands. but 18 children in fukushima prefecture have been diagnosed in a population of 2 million. a panel is examining the impact of radiation on residents. health professionals are giving checkups to all 360,000 children aged 18 or younger at the time of the accident at fukushima daiichi. radioactive substances released in the accident can accumulate in children's thyroid glands, possibly increasing their risk of developing cancer. health professionals had tested 210,000 children by the end of july. on top of the 18 minors they diagnosed, they suspect 25 others may have the illness. members of the panel say they can't determine if the accident has affected the rate of cancer among children. they decided to set up a team of experts to look into the situation. workers at the nuclear plant have their hands f

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> u.s. leaders and their allies are gearing up for possible military action against syria. they believe syrian forces were responsible for a chemical weapons attack last week on opposition neighborhoods. some u.s. media report they could launch a strike within days. opposition activists say last wednesday, government forces used poison gas in an attack on the suburbs of damascus. they say hundreds of people were killed. senior u.s. officials told nbc news that they could launch missile strikes against syria as early as thursday. sources say they're planning three days of strikes. but they say they don't want to topple syrian president bashar al assad, or cripple his military. rather, they say, they want to send assad a message. >>> the white house press secretary says president barack obama is still considering his options. jay carney says the president has not made his decision. >> the president continues to work with his national security team, reviewing the options available to him. and w

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> the two remaining nuclear reactors still in operation in japan will be shut down for regular inspections in mid-september. the move will bring all reactors in japan offline for the first time in 15 months. kansai electric power company is set to submit an application to the nuclear regulationut

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks very much for joining us.  ♪ >> the wilson forum is the living memorial to our first internationalist president. chartered by congress in neck and 68, the u.s. key, nonpartisan non-policy form -- 1968, the u.s. key, non-partisan policy forum. our goal is to create the next generation of leaders for the policy challenges ahead.

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. the alleged chemical weapons aattack in syria last week could result in military action by the united states and some european nations. some u.s. media report u.s. forces could strike syria

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. japanese prime minister shinzo abe has skirted controversy.'s decided not to go to a shrine in tokyo on thursday to observe the anniversary of the end of world war ii. the shrine honors japan's war dead including leaders convicted of crimes after the war.

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. u.s. president barack obama said officials concluded that syrian forces used chemical weapons on civilians. in an interview he said they looked at the evidence and determined the syrian government is responsible, but he has not decided whether to order a military strike. >> we do not believe given the systems using rockets that the opposition could have carried out the attacks. we have concluded that the syrian government in fact carries out and if that's so, there needs to be international consequences. >> obama said world leaders have to make sure when they break norms on chemical weapons they are held accountable. he be backed up leaders who said last week forces attacked their neighborhoods and hundreds were killed. they are ready to launch strikes if president obama orders an attack. the program warned them not to. he told them and allies that syria would be their grave yard. the world remembers how the west started the war on iraq years ago and said they possessed weapons and guided

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> u.s. fugitive edward snowden has walked out of an airport in moscow after more than five weeks inside. russian immigration officials have fwrabted him a one-year asylum. the decision h angered u.s. leaders and left relations up in the air. snowden arrived from hong kong in late june.

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks very much for joining us.  >> i'm the executive vice president of the wilson center. i want to welcome all of you today. the wilson center was chartered by the congress as the official memorial to our 28th president. it is the nation's key nonpartisan policy form for tackling global issues through independent research, open

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> authorities in egypt have released former president hosni mubarakfrom prison, but he's not free. the authorities moved him to a military hospital and put him under house arrest. a helicopter believed to be carrying mubarak left the jail in cairo then flew to the hospital. he's

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.  - coming up, new technology and new moral challenges. - these are questions we need to think about before we have the technologies. so, we have to engage in what i call prophylactic ethics. we need to think about what this means for us. - nasa's paul root wolpe talks mind-reading, cerebral privacy, health in the space station, and more from the cutting edge of bioethics. it's just ahead on "global ethics forum." - today's guest has spent his career examining the ethics underlying tomorrow's scientific breakthroughs. as one of the nation's most prominent bioethicists, paul root wolpe encourages scientists to reconsider not only what they can do, but what they should do. dr. wolpe is the asa griggs candler professor of bioethics and the director of the center for ethics at emory university.

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. western leaders have been trying to convince l lmakers a aut syria. they believe syrian forces killed hundreds of civilians in the suburbs of damascus with chemical weapons. british prime minister david cameron went to parliament hoping to get approval from military action, but failed to convince enough lawmakers. members of the coalition government proposed a motion that would have authorized british forces to join a strike. the majority of lawmakers rejected the motion. >> it is clear to me that the british parliament rejecting the views of the british people does not want to see british military action. i get that and the government will act accordingly. >> they appeared to all but rule out british involvement. barack obama hopes members of congress will be more receptive to his plans. they are consulting with lawmakers on whether to attack syria and hope to prove to forces to use chemical weapons. a spokesperson said secretary of state john kerry and other senior officials are exp

it's thursday, august 22nd, i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. people who operate the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant are wrestling with yet another challenge. they'd already confirmed that more than 300 tons of highly radioactive waste water has leaked from a storage tank. and now they say it may have flowed into the pacific ocean. workers with t

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks very much for joining us.  - coming up, thinking rationally and behaving ethically. - i think of myself as like a social engineer. people have lots of interests. my interest is the things that we do wrong that we should fix. - duke professor dan ariely discusses behavioral economics, and what beer and vinegar have to do with the israeli-palestinian conflict. that's just ahead on "global ethics forum." - as one of the world's leading behavioral economists, dan ariely has taken direct aim at conventional economic theory. he argues not only that our decisions are often irrational, but that they are predictably irrational. dan ariely is the james b. duke professor of psychology and behavioral economy at duke university. he has not one but two ph.ds under his belt, and is the author of two "new york times" bestsellers,

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. e 1yi79ians are seeing things many have seen before. the leaders launched a crack down after more than a month of unrest. at l

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. japanese prime minister shinzo abe has skirted controversy. he's decided not to go to a shrine in tokyo on thursday to observe the anniversary of the end of world war ii. the ne

i'm catherine kobayashi. >>> more than 30 people were killed. at least 13 civilians, including 7 children, were killed in an air raid on friday in the northern city of racka, where rebels are mostly in control. an intense bate

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. u.s. president barack obama said officials concluded that syrian forces used chemical weapons on civilians. in

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. syrian opposition leaders are calling for prompt action into what they say was a chemical weapons attack. they say on wednesday government forces

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. the leaders of the government which are trying to restore order with crack downs on

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> health officials are investigating.the normal rate of thyroid cancer is

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> u.s. leaders and their allies are gearing up for possible military action against syria. they believe syrian forces were responsible for a chemical weapons attack last week on

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> health officials are suspicious about a trend they're seeing after the nuclear accident there two years ago. the normal rate of thyroid cancer in children

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> managers of the crippled fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant say ten of their workers have been exposed to radiation above the safety limit. they say a machine spraying

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. edward snowden walked out of an airport in moscow after more than weeks inside. russian officials granted him a

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> united nations inspectors are pressing lead in syria even after coming under attack. they're looking into allegations about the use of chemical

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>>ed leeers of ja man and russia will meet face to face on a long standing territorial

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. western leaders have been trying to convince l lmakers a aut syria. they believe syrian forces killed hundreds of civilians in the suburbs of