nhk's craig dale is tracking developments for us. >> reporter: it doesn't appear to be related, but it's another reminder for europeans of the threat posed by radicals education specially those from syria iraq. >>> that fire fight you mentioned was caught on camera. this amateur video shows the gun battle between special forces of the town. authorities say an investigation that started well before the attack was poised to launch a large-scale operation targeting police officers in belgium. >> suspects immediately opened fire on the police and opened fire during several minutes before being returned fire. the thor sills say the terrorist cell they were investigateing involve people returning from syria involving growing concerns from canada to the u.s. to across europe. thousands of people go abroad to join the milltist group. >>> what these individuals do when they return home, battle-hardened and a sharpened ideology. possibly by getting him weapons. and french investigators are exploring the links between cuolabali and the radical islamists who carried out the terrorist actions working

nhk world craig dale has more on the terrorist attack and reaction. >> reporter: residents in paris turned out in the thousands. shocked, saddened, but resilient. je suis charlie, their sign said, i am charlie. another said i prefer to die standing than live on my knees. people around the world stood with them. they rallied in london. chanted in madrid. lit candles in geneva and bowed their heads in buenos aires. a global reaction to a bold attack against the media. these images show the conclusion of the assault. the gunman wounded a police officer making their escape. then as he lay defenseless on the sidewalk they shot him again. moments earlier they stormed the offices of the publication "charlie hebdo" and opened fire. they killed journalists and the guards hired to protect them. others were wounded or survived by taking cover. it was a slaughter inside said this police union official. french authorities say the suspects abandoned their escape car. one of them had spent time in jail on terrorism charges. the authorities say one suspect shouted "god is great" and "you are avenging the

more from nhk world's craig dale. >> reporter: family friends and colleagues came together to honor three police officers gunned down by three radical islamists. president fran swoi holland read out their names saying they died so france could live free. he gave them the country's highest honor. memories of what happened last week are still painfully fresh. new video shows two gunmen moments after the massacre at the weekly "charlie hebdo." they said they were avenging the prophet mohammed with a satirical newspaper lampooned even though muslims are deposed to his depiction. the gunmen fired at police as they made their escape leaving behind 12 victims, among them journalists and two police officers. an accomplice later gunned down another officer before murdering four hostages at a jewish supermarket. the attacks have put france on high alert. thousands of police and soldiers are on patrol. authorities are also hunting several suspects they say were part of the same terrorist cell. >> translator: we're tracking down people who could have designed armed and financed the attackers, says th

craig dale, nhk world. >>> the islamic state militant group has released at least 200 members of the minority yazidi sect. they had held them captive for five months and iraqi officials say most of those freed are ill or elderly men and women. one person released said they were held in the country's second largest city mosul, and said they were transported to an inspection point by buses between militant and kurdish forces held areas. the extremists attacked yazidi villages in northern iraq last august and abducted several thousand people. they insist yazidis worship the devil. the senior kurdish official says the militants likely freed the captives because keeping elderly yazidi men and women became too much of a burden. it is unknown whether the remaining several thousand people will be let go. islamic state militants claim that they have sold the yazidi women and girls as slaves. >>> troops from chad arrived in neighboring cameroon on sunday to help fight the islamist group boko haram. officials in cameroon asked chad to take part in a joint military operation in areas along the b

nhk world's craig dale reports. >> the senate will come to order. >> reporter: u.s. vice president joe biden ushered in a new era for american politics. one that could prove even more divisive. >> please raise your right hand. >> reporter: he swore in lawmakers in the senate a chamber the republicans now control. senator mitch mcconnell's leadership. >> we recognize the enormity of the task before us. we know a lot of hard work awaits. we know many important opportunities await, as well. >> reporter: the republicans also control the house of representatives. john boehner won a third term as speaker, despite a challenge from within his party. 25 more conservative members voted against him, some believing he hasn't done enough to fight president barack obama's policies. boehner appeared unfazed. >> the battle of ideas never ends, and frankly, never should. as speaker, i'll ask, and frankly expect is that we disagree without being disagreeable. >> reporter: he spoke of finding common ground between republicans and democrats, as did obama. >> there will be some pitch bat

nhk world's craig dale is track developments. craig?> reporter: well, french authorities have mounted a huge search effort for the suspects who they say are armed and dangerous. they're looking for cherif and said kouachi, french-born citizens with algerian roots and radical islamist views. we've learned they were known to authorities and on a u.s. no-fly list. one of them reportedly trained with al qaeda in yemen. police are scouring towns and villages north of paris in their search for the brothers. they've gone house to house in some places. they believe the suspects could be holed up in a residence or even hiding in the woods or in caves. the men are accused of killing 12 people in their attack on "charlie hebdo" including a police officer who was wounded and then execute. he was muslim by the way. a "charlie hebdo" reporter who survived told french media he saw a lot of blood. "i saw horror," he said. the victims included editor in chief stephane chonnier or charb, a famous cartoonist under police protection. and his colleague geor

nhk craig dale reports. >> reporter: the memorial keeps growing outside the newspaper "charlie hebdo." >> i'm still a bit shocked at everything. >> reporter: most people feel the same way and officers patrol the capital protecting jewish mosques and sensitive spots all to avoid a repeat of this. two brothers both french citizens and radical islamists killed 12 people at "charlie hebdo" and about the prophet muhammad" considered and insult. all three died in standoffs with police. investigators are working to establish links between the two attacks and to figure out how the men planned and financed their plots. rep representatives of the al qaeda peninsula based group said they are responsible for the attacks. they planned every step of the way. that hasn't been verified but the source of the video has. >> we have verified the video is authentic and likely came from a krksak aka's aka's -- aqa's media wing. >> police arrested a man they say was planning to carry out an attack in washington. they say christopher cornell sympathized with the islamist military group and planned to use a s