>> holly williams reporting from turkey tonight, thanks, holly. gene therapy is improving the vision of patients who were losing their sight. there's a verdict in the case of a woman charged with driving while wearing google glasses. and we're on board an icebreaker that is keeping the great lakes open when the western edition of the "cbs evening news" continues. at the dr.sct mapping center. then i got my number, which matched the custom fit orthotic inserts with the right support. find your closest foot mapping center at drscholls.com. i'm a believer. why let erectile dysfunction get in your way? talk to your doctor about viagra. ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain; it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach, and abnormal vision. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in

say the outside world is ignoring their suffering. >> pelley: more than two million refugees, holly williams along the border are syria and turkey. holly, thank you. today, two people were shot to death in antigovernment protests in ukraine. police were beating some protesters and tearing apart their camps. the demonstrations broke out two months ago when ukraine's president rejected an economic deal with the european union in favor of closer ties with russia. an american olympian tells his parents not to come to the winter games. subcompact cars get poor grades in new crash tests. and a fuel plant is blown to bits. when the "cbs evening news" continues. the rhythm of life. [ whistle blow where do you hear that beat? campbell's healthy request soup lets you hear it in your heart. [ basketball bouncing ] heart healthy. [ m'm... ] great taste. [ tapping ] sounds good. campbell's healthy request. m'm! m'm! good.® so i deserve a small business credit card with amazing rewards. with the spark cash card from capital one, i get 2% cash back on every purchase, every day. i break my back around here.

holly williams is following developments. >> reporter: russian police rounded up dozens of people today during a security crackdown in volgograd, the city rocked by two suicide bombs. in a new year's address to the nation, russian president vladimir putin said the attacks were inhuman and vowed to annihilate the culprits. no group has claimed responsibility for the bombs, but many in russia suspect islamic militants from chechnya and dagestan. the deadly blasts were just 400 miles from where the sochi olympics will be held in february, and for some u.s. athletes, there are frightening reminders that the games are a target for terrorists. snowboarder seth wescott said he might not attend the opening ceremony because of security concerns, and speed skater jilleanne roccard is also worried about safety in russia. >> reporter: in july, a chechen leader called for more violent attacks on civilians and urged his followers to use maximum force to disrupt the games. the russian government spent $50 billion preparing for sochi and has promised they'll be the safest olympics in history. but they'

by a whole variety of unpleasant means. >> pelley: holly williams is joining us from turkey. holly, more than a hundred thousand people have been killed in this civil war. what makes this report different than what we've heard before? >> well, scott, both the syrian army and the rebels are accused of atrocities during the civil war which they've been fighting now for nearly three years. but the scale of the torture and executions alleged in this report is really unprecedented. >> pelley: and no end in sight to this war. holly, thank you very much. a new nationwide poll has news for new jersey governor chris christie. the wife of an american held in iran tells us what he was doing there. and why are whales dying off the coast of florida? when the "cbs evening news" continues. [ male announcer ] if you can clear a crowd but not your nasal congestion, you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec-d®. powerful relief of nasal congestion and other allergy symptoms -- all in one pill. zyrtec-d®. at the pharmacy counter. [ ckchien caws ] [ male announcer ] when your favorite foo

the city is on edge after the attacks that killed 34 people, and as holly williams reports, so are somethletes preparing for the olympics in russia just 37 days from now. >> reporter: russian police rounded up dozens of people during a security crackdown in volgograd, the city rocked by two suicide bombs. in a new year's address to the nation, russian president vladimir putin said the attacks were inhuman and vowed to annihilate the culprits. no group has claimed responsibility for the bombs, but many in russia suspect islamic militants from chechnya and dagestan. the bombings were some 400 miles from where the olympics will be held in february and for some u.s. athletes, they're a frightening reminder that the games are a target for terrorists. snowboarder seth wescott says he might not attend the opening ceremonies and this speed indicator is also worried about it. i don't know if i necessarily trust russian securities. but the russians don't want national embarrassment either. i use some of that thought to relieve some of my worry. in july a chechen leader called for more attacks and

holly williams, cbs news, kiev. >>> the nearly week-long talks to end the war in syria. describe the efforts as slow going. one has been searing demands that u.n. aid designated for the deceased people's homes does not end up in the hands of opposition fighters. peace talks could end on friday. >>> straight ahead your weather and in sports a northwestern football player sends a shock waive through college sports. orts. wow...look at you. i've always tried to give it my best shot. these days i'm living with a higher risk of stroke due to afib, a type of irregular heartbeat, not caused by a heart valve problem. at first, i took warfarin, but i wondered, "could i up my game?" my doctor told me about eliquis. and three important reasons to take eliquis instead. one, in a clinical trial, eliquis was proven to reduce the risk of stroke better than warfarin. two, eliquis had less major bleeding than warfarin. and three... unlike warfarin, there's no routine blood testing. [ male announcer ] don't stop taking eliquis unless your doctor tells you to, as stopping increases your ri

holly williams is in london following late developments for us tonight. holly. >> reporter: maurice, we've been on a conference call with the australian authorities who are coordinating the rescue. they're expecting it to begin very soon and say it could take anything from five hours to a full day. >> having a wonderful time. you can see we have this wonderful snowy wonderland. >> reporter: for more than a week now, expedition members have been reassuring worried families and friends via the internet that they're staying positive on board their ice- bound ship. >> brilliant! >> good things happening today! judy is giving us hugs of the day so everybody she meets in the corridor, big hugs. so that's a good thing. >> reporter: ice breakers from china and australia both attempted to free the vessel but they were also stalled by the dense pack ice, up to 15 feet deep. now the plan is to winch most of the team to safety on a helicopter from the chinese ship leaving just 22 crew members on board. one of the expedition leaders, professor chris turney, explained t

holly williams is in the capital, kiev. capital, kiev. >> reporter: anti-government protesters on kiev's central square have barricaded themselves in, determined to stay put after days of deadly clashes. at least five people were killed last week when riot police fired rubber bullets and stun grenades and demonstrators hurled rocks and molotov cocktails. now, the police have retreated, and today, the country's unpopular prime minister resigned but that won't be enough for many here who claim the government is corrupt and increasingly authoritarian and too close to russia. inside kiev's city hall, we met andre, an unemployed waiter. >> i would stay here, until the president will go, and the government as well. >> reporter: you want the president to quit? >> yes, of course, first the president and his team get out, please. >> reporter: these demonstrations began peacefully in november when president victor yanukovych turned his back on a free trade treaty with europe in favor of a $15 billion rescue package from russia. but a

holly williams met a syrian family on the turkish border who told her the assad dictatorship is using a new weapon against civilians. >> reporter: the haj ali family fled aleppo this week, walking and hitchhiking for two days to reach the safety of turkey. they told us that on the weekend their neighborhood, al hamra, was pulverized by barrel bombs, a new weapon in syria's civil war. this internet video thought to show the aftermath of the attack on al hamra, though we can't verify it. barrel bombs are cheap and crudely made. a simple container packed with explosives and sometimes scrap metal. juma haj ali told us they destroy everything for 200 yards in either direction. his daughter-in-law said the bombs rained down on them for two days. "there were dead bodies everywhere" she said. "the children can't take it anymore. they're terrified." her husband and the children's grandmother are both missing. unlike rockets or mortars which can be aimed, barrel bombs kill large numbers of people indiscriminately. this video, apparently captured by a syrian government soldier, shows how they're

holly williams has their answer. >> reporter: "we're not going home" shouted this man today from the barricades in kiev's independence square. ukraine's antigovernment protesters don't want the president's amnesty if it means leaving the streets and buildings they've occupied around the country. who sergei bondar is a beekeeper who has been sleeping in kiev city hall for weeks. are you going to leave? >> no. no. >> reporter: "we don't want a fight," he said "but we will protect our freedom." the protesters have stayed out here in subzero temperatures because they believe these demonstrations will decide the future of their country, and whether ukraine turns east towards russia or west towards europe. in november, ukraine's government backed away from a treaty with europe in favor of a $15 billion financial bailout from russia. protest leader vitali klitschko, a former champion boxer, hopes closer ties with europe will bring more freedom and democracy. democracy. >> reporter: now, in the midst of this crisis, president viktor yanukovych has taken sick leave. but demonstrators like olg

peace talks are scheduled to begin tomorrow, but as you will see in this report by holly williams, peace seems a distant prospect. >> reporter: some of the victims were beaten, some strangled and others starved. one of the report's authors described it as "killing on an industrial scale." the pictures come from a defector who worked for syria's military police as a photographer. he told investigators his job was to photograph the bodies of dead prisoners after they were taken to a military hospital. thousands of his images were legal and forensic team who found his account believable and concluded "there is clear evidence of systematic torture and killing of detained persons by the agents of the syrian government." over a two and a half year period during the syrian conflict, they estimate the photographs document the torture and execution of 11,000 people. we cannot independently verify the images, and the report was funded by the qatari government, which supports the syrian opposition, but the authors are experienced former war crimes prosecutors, including sir desmond desilva. >> that

holly williams reports. >> i've used needle and thread that we use to sew clothes to sew people backether. >> pelley: and who can save the big hockey event from california's heat wave? carter evans finds the puck stops here.

holly williams reports. >> i've used needle and thread that we use to sew clothes to sew people backher. >> pelley: and who can save the big hockey event from california's heat wave? carter evans finds the puck stops here. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley.

holly williams is in kiev where demonstrators are camping out around the clock. holly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, charlie and norah. after ukraine's prime minister offered to resign this morning, parliament voted to abolish harsh anti-protest laws which have fueled angry demonstrations here in kiev and around the country. neither of those concessions are likely to appease protesters. they want the president to resign and then fresh elections. they are furious because the government rejected a trade and political agreement with the european union in favor of closer ties with russia. they also accuse their government of becoming increasingly authoritarian. these demonstrations began back in november drawing tens of thousands of people out on the street. they have turned violent in the last week or so. at least five people have been killed as protesters have clashed with riot police. u.s. vice president joe biden telephoned ukraine's president to urge him to pull back the riot police and seek a peaceful resolution. he warned that if a state of emergency

. >> holly williams thank you. >>> ukraine is dealing with a violent new phase in its political crisis a rally against laws banning protests turned kiev into a battleground sunday. officers responded with stun grenades and tear gas. dozens of hurt. the government and protest leaders plan to meet today. >>> new jersey governor chris christie is dealing with new allegations of political bullying. don zimmer claims a disagreement with christy cost her city millions. the governor spokesman calls her charges false. elaine good morning. >> good morning. mayor zimmer met with the u.s. attorney in newark yesterday and turned over supporting documents. her accusations hit directly at one of governor christie's signature issues his response to superstorm sandy. they surfaced as christy was crisscrossing this weekend raising money for republican governors. behind closed doors, governor chris christie rubbed elbows with wealthy donors. >> do you have a few seconds, sir? >> he dodged questions from the press and was dogged by democrats along the way. >> it's not every day we have a governor visit f

holly williams is in kiev where demonstrators are being offered amnesty in return for their cooperation. holly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, charlie and norah. ukraine's parliament voted to free arrested protesters if they leave the government buildings they've occupied in the next 15 days. the protesters say they will not do that. and in the midst of this dangerous crisis ukraine's president has gone on sick leave, which could make it even more difficult to resolve. ukraine's demonstrators are hunkered down and ready to defend themselves. they're sticking to their demands for the president's resignation and fresh elections, but now the government set a deadline for them to leave, many here fear the standoff could end violently. a member of parliament and a protest leader what will you do if the government sends the riot police back on the square? >> they did it a number of times. if the president decides to make another crackdown, or enforce the marshal law in case of emergency, this will be a disaster for my country. >> reporter: the demonstrators have stayed out in the bi

holly williams recently went down to the syrian border and joins us now from istanbul, turkey. holly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, clarissa and cha rly. the images in this new report are believed to show the bodies of tortured inmates in syria's government prisons, taken by a defected reporter. it could derail its peace talks and we should warn you, we're about to show you some very disturbing pictures. some of the people in the photographs appear to have been beaten, some starved, others strangled. cbs news cannot independently verify them and the report was funded by the government which supports the syrian opposition. the investigation was carried out by three respective former war crimes prosecutors with the help of other experts. they concluded that there's evidence thousands of people have been systematically tortured and executed in syrian prisons during the country's civil war. >> the picture presented by these images is one of utter and unbelievable horror. a picture of 11,000 people killed in one place, this may well be the tip of the iceberg. >> reporter:

william is the founder. and we have two students, holly and duncan. and 12th10th grade grade respectively. it is great to have a team here. one of the reasons i highlight this team is not only do they have this competition, but i want to complement their school district and their school. for thisived credit absolutely fabulous work and i hope that can happen to every team in the state, so let's give a round of applause to that team. [applause] on the people front, on health care, first of all i want to mention the blue cross blue shield reform i did with strong support from you, our legislators. it was not only strong reform, but we were able to create a health endowment fund that will improve health care for kids, seniors, cross containment and access to health care. that was great legislation. another item i want to mention in terms of great healthy michigan is about bringing health coverage to hard-working michigan residents who deserve health care coverage. and a special shout out to senator con, representative shirkey, representative lori, and the entire house and senate delegations f