the customs officials are expecting the second half of the year to be even better. and they say economies in industrialized nations are likely to keep improving. >>> japanese government officials are reaching out to some of the most vulnerable members of society. they're drawing up guidelines to break the cycle of child poverty. the officials are still studying how many children are struggling and they're trying to work out what percentage of young people from single parent families finish school and go on to higher education. the officials say they want to put more social workers in schools. they plan to offer more scholarships for high school and interest-free loans for college. the officials also want to higher experts to help single parents find work. they hope to get draft guidelines approved at a cabinet meeting later this month. >>> the president of the world bank has spoken over and over about the role the private sector can play in helping those in need. jim is leading a campaign to end extreme poverty by 2030. nhk world sat down with him to talk about pover

the recent talks in beijing, officials were described as being sincere. so i expect the investigation will proceed smoothly. to what extent should japan lift its sanctions depends on north korea's response. >> thank you for your insights. >>> this is our lead story breaking to us this hour. japan's prime minister hass made a diplomatic decision aimed at solving a long-standing and emotional issue. shinzo abe plans to lift some sanctions against north korea once investigators start a fresh probe into the abduction of japanese citizens. agents from the north carried out the kip kidd nappings decades ago. >> translator: on the results of the talks between japan and north korea, an investigation into the fate of all japanese nationals including the abductees will be held involving the north korean international defense commission and the national security agencies and other institutions. a body of decision make willing be mobilized to the forefront. we have decided -- we have judged this is an unprecedented arrangement. >> translator: now i have some reports t

the officials have admitted that high ranking government officials engaged in vote rigging. they say they'll carry out an investigation and then announce the final results. the two candidates draw their support from different ethnic bases and some fear a disputed result could widen the ethnic rift. >>> israeli commanders have launched air strikes on the gaza strip. their drone attacks killed nine people. leaders of hamas say israelis will pay the price. military officials say they targeted rocket launchers and other facilities belonging to hamas. the victims are all said to be linked to the group. a hamas spokesperson called the air strikes a grave escalation in violence. the military officials say the israeli forces were retaliating for attacks by hamas. they say at least 25 projectiles were fired into israel. there are no reports of casualties. palestinians have been protesting the murder of a teenager. they believe he was killed as revenge for the murder last month of three israeli teens. >>> japanese leaders have an update on the state of the economy ai uchida has more. >

against the the the official way against the official lead or at least to try to do to. put three more or less subjectively the picture of what is happening inside ukraine today so it is it is full fledged attack on the freedom of the media and of freedom of speech want to. refugee situation as well there's evidence thousands are fleeing the conflict zone in the east of ukraine by the un estimates numbers one hundred and ten thousand are those numbers accurate well. obviously the it is difficult to count but the. least number is closer to the real picture and you know that the russian the respective russian authorities they have estimated that almost half a million people have fled to russia but. leave the initial u.n. figures are much lower than one hundred of those the u.n. presence is in the eastern ukraine and obviously is not significant they don't have many wanted to and so they have i i do think the big figures obviously and all that there are much much. out the state department says that there is no evidence to back they un taken figures regarding their refugee f

nearly three months after the project began. officials with the plant's operator tokyo electric power company briefed members of the nuclear regulation authority about the additional measures, including instulg more pipes to carry refrigerants in and out of the tunnels. regulators have been skeptical about the feasibility of tepco's original plan. they've suggested other options such as filling the tunnels with concrete. workers are carrying out a separate project to freeze soil and create an ice wall around the four-reactor building. to prevent groundwater from entering the buildings. but a delay in efforts to freeze water in the tunnels could hold up that project as well. that's because the icewall in the tunnels will intersect at some points. >>> japanese government officials are looking into easing the country's strict anti-gambling laws. prime minister shinzo abe says he wants to allow casino-based entertainment complexes. now a panel of experts is studying how that might affect the country. officials from the economy and tourism ind

say the typhoon may affect tokyo. officials in one neighborhood are handing out sandbags to residents. people in northern japan are also taking precautions. farmers among them. they expect to feel the effects of the storm later in the week. >> translator: i don't want the typhoon to come before the end of this harvest season. >> reporter: he says he'll finish picking the cherries before the storm approaches. one of the strongest to hit japan this early in the season. >>> we also have a view of that storm from outer space. a u.s. astronaut aboard the international space station has tweeted images of the system taken from 400 kilometers above. reid weissman posted a closeup photo of the eye of neoguri and the clouds swirling around it. he attached a message, the interesting eye of the super typhoon. weissman posted another photo capturing it from a side angle. in an earlier tweet he said he hoped neoguri would soon go away and that everybody would be safe. >>> ukraine's leader is taking stock of his recent military success and pl

in conclusion the purchasing has drafted the resolution for the examiner being the official newspaper for the recommendation of the bidder who has the highest score. accident board of supervisors has the option to exercise it's discretion to inspect the examiner or if the board of supervisors wants to pilot the contract between the two newspapers awarding to both the examiner and the chronology california >> that's is that it. >> any questions supervisors. at this time open this up for public comment anyone wish to comment on item number 6. >> good morning, madam chair i'm diane of the san francisco chronicle i want to thank you for considering the san francisco chronicle of one type 1 and two of the none of record we take an active roll serving our community with the associate responsibilities. the san francisco chronicle is the most widespread newspaper we reach 57 percent of the san franciscans in the county we match the voting of the population. we enthusiastically provide entertainment and access for our fell resident we've sponsored the black and white ball and the opera in the

the malaysian officials say both devices are in good condition. the separatists said they agreed to a cease-fire in the area surrounding the crash site to allow international inspectors safe access. they have also allowed the transport of the bodies of the victims to the eastern city of car kharkiv four days after the crash. officials from the united states, britain, australia and germany have gathered in the city to inspect the remains. flight mh-17 was carrying 298 people from amsterdam to kuala lumpur. the majority of them were dutch citizens. >>> the separatists have faced international scorn for how they handled things. the crash has also created even deeper divisions between russian leaders and those in the west. nhk world's craig dale has more. >> reporter: leaders from the u.s. and other nations blame the separatists for firing the missile that brought down flight mh-17 and killing all 298 people on board, and they've also been criticizing the rebels for blocking access to the site. when pro-russian separatists stopped investigators from en

statement and the form and execution of the official statement relating to the sale of said bonds; approving the form of the continuing diskale you're certificate; authorizing and approving modifications to documents; declaring the city's intent to reimburse certain expenditures; ratifying certain actions previously taken; and granting general authority to city officials to take necessary actions in connection with the authorization, issuance, sale, and delivery of said bonds. ~ 2014 d. item number 23, resolution authorizing and directing the sale of not to exceed $57,840,000 aggregate principal amount of city and county of san francisco general obligation bonds, series 2014c; prescribing the form and terms of said bonds; authorizing the execution, authentication, and registration of said bonds; providing for the appointment of depositories and other agents for said bonds; providing for the establish ~ 2014 fees. item number 24, resolution providing for the issuance of not to exceed $400,000,000 aggregate principal amount of city and county of san francisco general obligatio

in conclusion the purchasing has drafted the resolution for the examiner being the official newspaper for the recommendation of the bidder who has the

that's the biggest increase in nearly six years. officials at the bank of japan say the increase in april in the consumption tax pushed up prices on a range of products. and the fighting around oil fields in iraq has driven up the price of crude. so businesses are paying more now for gasoline and diesel. bank officials looked at what prices would have been without the hike in the consumption tax, and they found prices still would have risen 1.7%. many companies pass increases on to consumers, so people could soon see some changes when they get to the checkout counter. >>> now despite that news, japanese shoppers seemed to feel that the economy is recovering. consumer sentiment is up for the second straight month. officials at the cabinet office say the condition assumer confidence index stood at 41.1. this survey covers 8400 households and asks consumers about their spending outlook for the next six months. officials attribute the rise to an improvement in wages and the job market. the cabinet office revised upward its overall assessment of c

but it seems they're not the right jobs for those who are looking. officials at the internal affairs ministry say the unemployment rate rose 0.2 points in june to 3.7%. the figure went up for the first time in ten months. labor ministry officials say the ratio of job offers to seekers edged up to 1.1. that means for every 100 job-seekers there were 110 positions available. the officials say there were more jobs in medical and public welfare and in manufacturing but these fields aren't necessarily a good fit for those looking for work. >>> families across japan are making more and more cutbacks. they've spent less on household items for three straight months now. officials with the internal affairs ministry say in june families of two or more laid out an average of about $2,600, down 3% in yen terms from a year earlier. many consumers went on a spending spree before the government increased the consumption tax. it went up in april from 5% to 8%. ministry officials say since then, demand has been stagnant. consumers spent 20% less on furniture and electronic app

they're waiting for the official outcome of the presidential election. >>> well, tokyo government officials looking to the u.s. now, and they're seeing a way to raise some money. they're calling on american executives to invest in their city in the lead-up to the 2020 olympics. the officials hosted a seminar in new york for dozens of investors and businesspeople. they said more and more opportunities are popping up in their city in the years leading up to the games. they said many international companies have head offices in tokyo. they said it's a safe place to do business, and many people seem to be getting the message. >> we'd love to, you know, open an office there that would serve the larger asia population as our business grows. >> i think a lot of foreigners feel a lot more comfortable looking at tokyo and a lot of the incentives, the english-speaking infrastructure that's being put in place i think would make people consider tokyo more carefully than in the past. >> some, though were less enthusiastic. they said it's difficult to access the market in japan and they say corporate tax

the u.s. evidence after a u.s. official said there is no proof of the russian president's involvement in the plane crashed. the u.s. media is looking for another face to put on that tragedy the leader of the playing russian rebels the suspect in this crime seems defensive even amused by it all rolling using is that the question of accountability one of the bodies to get the suit. it's fantastic story you have to the thing is that as soon as the members of the c.e.o. arrived they notified us that if we start moving the bodies then we will be responsible have new source information tonight from u.s. government sources about this strange shadowy character who leads pro russian rebels the jean jacket black t. shirt of the eyes he comes across like a sixteen year old being lectured by a parent while the real investigation is only beginning in eastern ukraine the media are hungry for quick with salt quick accusations and quick verdict in washington i'm going to check on our team. collected the various theories about why the malay

the officials say the ground operations israel started one week ago have killed 583 people. when cash casualties from the previous ten days of air strikes are added, the death t officials say most of the fatalities were civilians. the israeli military blames hamas for the civilian deaths. they say the islamist group that controls gaza is launching attacks from houses, mosques, and schools. israeli security forces shot and killed one palestinian during a clash with protesters near the west bank city of ramallah on thursday night. israeli authorities are sending security forces to the old city of jerusalem ahead of friday prayers when thousands of muslims gather at mosques. >>> authorities across the russian far east and siberia are battling firefighters. they say dry weather could spark even more. 34 wildfires are raging in the saca republic. they've charred more than 700 square kilometers. over 2,000 firefighters are battling the flames. the local government declared a state of emergency. forest fires are also reported in two separate places. meteorologists in japan say the

the midwest. check out this video. officials say the stormed downed trees and damaged a couple homes. national weather service officials are working to confirm exactly how many tornadoes touched down but spotters reported at least 11 of them in one day. >>> three suspects confess to killing a palestinian teenager in jerusalem. an official says the men re-enacted the crime for the police. re-enacted kidnapping and burning him alive. palestinians claim it was revenge murder after the killing of three israeli teenagers. israeli officials arrested a total of six jewish men in the palestinian teen imagery's death. the attack sparked violent protests and israeli security forces arrested the american cousin of the murdered palestinian teenager, saying he took part in the protests outside of jerusalem. the boy's parents said he was there but didn't throw rocks and daytona do anything bad they say police brutally beat him. this video shows who masked officers -- look at that -- kicking and hitting the boy, who actually lives in florida but was over there. israeli authorities say the footage isk

the sales tax went up in april from 5% to 8%. officials at the central bank say the cost of corporate services is also going up. it increased in june by 3.6%. the officials pointed to a labor shortage. they said it was becomin for ma hire temporary workers. they said the government is spending more on public works and redevelopment projects, and they said that's adding to labor costs. prices for corporate services have gone up for 11 straight months. >>> and the labor shortage is hitting restaurant chains in japan. sales fell in june for the first time in four months. some pubs were forced to close because they were unable to find enough staff. officials of the japan food service association say sales at major restaurant changes last month slid 1.8% from a year earlier. pubs and taverns reported a decline of 7.6%, and fast food restaurants a 3.2% drop. bad weather in early june also contributed to falling sales. >>> japanese government officials have released a report saying the country's economy is recovering moderately, even after the co

the officials say ghani has more than 56% of the vote. they say former foreign minister, abdullah abdullah, has just over 43%. abdullah got the most votes in the first round of the election but he fell short of an outright majority. he's accused electoral officials of fraud. he says he won't accept any result unless there's a full investigation. the officials have admitted that senior members of the security forces and high-ranking government officials engaged in vote rigging. they say they'll carry out an investigation and then announce the final results. the two candidates draw their support from different ethnic bases and some fear a disputed result could widen the ethnic rift. >>> japan's prime minister is in australia seeking to open a new era in trade and diplomacy. shinzo abe has addressed members of article at, becoming the first japanese leader to do so. he explained japan's new approach to security and he called for closer cooperation with australian leaders. >> japan is now wanting to change its legal basis for security so that

investigation securing the area has even started. are kiev officials able to access this area? it is controlled by the rebels? >> the ability of kiev to react was very fast, immediately after the information on the tragic event, the president of ukraine ordered it, to create the commission for transparent and further investigation at what is very important, it will be the international commission, including the representative of the malaysian side and the international civilian organization. we are interested in effective investigation. of course, it will be necessary to have the access to the site. and the suspicious activity over the black boxes -- >> do we know where the black boxes are? >> we don't know, or at least we don't have the official information about it. but sudden resources already gave out the information that the black boxes were reportedly found by the terrorists and to be brought to russia. >> when you say terrorists, you mean the pro-russia rebels? that there are reports they may be in possession of the black boxes? >> they are not

the sea of japan. north korea also fired rockets last week. south korean government officials believe the north koreans are trying to develop guide missiles with an extended range. they fired short-range ballistic missiles into the sea of japan. the latest launches come a day before the chinese president, xi jinping is scheduled to visit south korea to meet with park geun-hye. the latest launches appear to be an attempt to pressure china's leaders. >>> that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. we'll be back with more of your updates at the top of the hour. >>> good evening from los angeles. i'm tavis smiley. tonight, first a conversation with ron capps director of the veterans writing project about his memoir serious li not lrt fooy not all right five wars in 10 years which takes a look at how the trauma of war continues to plague our soldiers. a veteran of afghanistan. >>> then we will talk to arturo sandoval, from north america and we're pleased he will join our studios and a performance from arturo sandoval coming up right now. ♪ ♪

and many of the employees will make recommendations to the senior officials we're talking about in the ordinance which they will do what you do with staff which is rely on it without looking further and as a result the ultimate outcome is the lobbyist has an influence over these people that are covered by the ordinance whether it was intended or not. >> thank you. >> good evening commissioners. please excuse my voice. i have a cold and i can't read as quickly as i would like so please bear with me. number one, determining the number of contacts. based on prior rules when the contact test was used to determine a lobbyist under state law it would be less burdensome and easier to administer san francisco's law if the determination of number of contacts needed to qualify as a lobbyist was based on the number of officers contacted and not the number of issues discussed with the city offices. it appears excess itch base the number of contacts. >> >> and the number of individuals in that meeting. staff pointed out that regulation is imcompatible but this is with the reporting requirement. thi

so the local officials have to go to the families many times to get the fines. each time it would will be a conflict between the people and the government." >> zhou yinghe is a father living in exile. he has come to his brother's home in a town outside of guangzhou, to celebrate his brother's birthday. zhou refuses to return to his hometown in hunan province, where he says family planning officials have led a campaign of abuse in the name of the one child policy. >> "in order to implement the family planning policy, the government has sent people from the (criminal) underworld, together with the police and the family planning committee. the life of each household is disrupted. everybody lives in constant fear. we are very miserable. >> zhou and his first daughter zhou qing, help prepare the birthday meal. he is separated from his wife, and alone provides for his 10-year-old. zhou also has a second daughter, one he has not seen since she was seized by local officials eight years ago, and likely sold into adoption abroad. in 2003, when zhou was away working, famil

will do the same with officials in kiev. the point is how much influence the two big powers have and whether the ukrainian government and pro-russian forces can find common ground. i think these discussions will take place behind the scenes. >> ohara says cooperation between the big powers is essential to prevent another such attack from occurring. >>> u.n. security council members will meet face to face on friday for an emergency meeting. secretary-general ban ki-moon is calling for answers about what caused the crash. >> there is a clearer need for a full and transparent international investigation. >> ban says he's closely monitoring the situation along with officials at the international civil aviation organization. >>> israeli soldiers are fi fighting their way through parts of the gaza strip in an operation against the islamic group hamas. their ground invasion into the palestinian territory has already come with a cost. reuters news agency says one israeli soldier and 11 palestinians have died. nhk world's craig dale i

and the u.s. officials say the resolution was one-s now this conflict has gone on longer than the one in 2 not as long as the one in 2008-2009. but both sides are feeling the immaterial ---ism pact -- impact over the last several weeks. more international carriers have temporarily cancelled flights to israel because of safety concerns about the fighting in particular this rocket fire from hamas. >> craig dale for us. >>> in other news, japan's trade balance and every month they are finding similar results. ai uchida joins us with the details on that and more of our business stories. what's going on? >> people at the finance ministry say imports have exceeded exports every month for the last two years. the latest data is for the month of june. this fills in the trade data for the first half of the year. the numbers add up to another month in the red and the biggest half-year deficit ever recorded. officials say the preliminary figures for first half of 2014 show a deficit of more than $74 billion. that imbal

barbara raises the question, u.s. officials have not established on which side of the border where this missile originated. neither possibility is good. right? if it came from the russian side, that's tremendously bad. that could mean russian forces possibly or maybe without the russian okay from senior russian leadership but russian forces raises the game here, russian involvement attacking a plane, civilians possibly americans on board. even if it came from the ukrainian side of the border, certainly from the ukrainianen perspective these are pro-russian separatists supported by russia. in their ranks are russians. even if it came from the ukrainian side of the border, u.s. and ukrainian officials would still in many ways hold russia partly responsible for this. no matter which side it came from, there is a russian element to this which has tremendous ramifications for u.s.-russian relations, european-russian relations. this is an end to 20 years of warm post cold war relations between the u.s. and russia. >> we should note i

the official forecasts are a category 1. extending to the coastal areas. wilmington area and myrtle beach. we've extended it a little further into south carolina. this isn't just a north carolina storm. 75 mile per hour. anything above 74. 200 miles pretty much south of the wilmington area. the wind feels kind of small. i do not expect a lot of wind damage. this is where the damaging winds will be. that will be over the outer banks. the official forecast, the new one just outdoes bring up to 85 mile per hour winds right over the outer banks about 2:00 a.m. friday and then clearly off the coast by about 2:00 p.m. and as far as new england goes, cape cod is out of the cone of uncertainty but nova scotia will be hit directly by the storm late friday night. everything is as scheduled, not worse. >> 4th of july plans are going to be wet. >> a lot of people are switching their fireworks around. >>> over the next few days tighter security measures are expected to roll out overseas because of growing instability in the middle east. the department of homeland secur

in june, the official index climbed to 51, the best reading since december. people are also seeing some heartening numbers on industrial output, retail sales, and capital investment. they all gained momentum in may. let's find out what economists make of the data. dickey long is the executive director of research at kingston securities in hong kong. thanks always for joining us, dickey. how do you feel about the numbers? >> good morning. >> good morning. how do you feel about the numbers that we've been seeing? >> well, generally speaking the data definitely was improving. as we all know, signs of recovery. no matter the official pmi-51 is at a six-month high and also other data. hsbc market was over 50. basically if we talk about the pmi data alone, definitely was improving. even we take a closer look to like new orders, as you said, orders, economic data like retail sales, also property markets, i do clearly see the signs of recovery in chinese economy. >> what do you think could derail this recovery, dickey? >> well, i will not say the word derail, but def

the area. palestinian officials were staying at the campus, one official said they were putting them on buses atthe time of the blast. the fighting has displaced at least 100,000 gaza residents during the past two weeks. >>> jobs and big, top of the mind for president obama today. in los angeles, the president called on companies to engage in economic patriotism and stop shifting their tax addresses overseas. the president wants congress to enact legislation from getting around the law. he says it is legal but not ethical. >> they're renouncing their u.s. citizenship, claiming they're based somewhere else even though most of the operations are here. you know, some people are calling the companies corporate deserters. >> earlier in the day the president took a break for lunch at cantor's deli, a los angeles landga&-9ñ his date? four people who wrote the president letters about job training and careers, that is a nice lunch. >>> and still to come, a growing outrage over a plan that would make selling a home in san francisco even more expensive. >>> and stacked up and ready to go. later here the fi

now we get the official confirmation. n happening is very obviouslily and publicly the current administration has been moving to detain yongkhan's previous power base there also in the oil industry. places where he had access to money and power. the investigation will follow routes already prepared. he was one of the most powerful men in china. he ran the police, paramilitary police, intelligence services internally and courts as well. very powerful figure. >> thanks very much. your picture has been coming and going. thank you. sorry about. that. >>> stay with us on bbc world news. much to come. >>> a brief rest for the muslim minority as they celebrate eid and guarded by international troops. yeah, i can fix that. (dad) i wanted a car that could handle anything. i fixed it! (dad) that's why i got a subaru legacy. (vo) symmetrical all-wheel drive plus 36 mpg. i gotta break more toys. (vo) introducing the all-new subaru legacy. it's not just a sedan. it's a subaru. surrender to the power of accomodation grooveland ♪ booking

now the fbi is on trial. officialsexecuted mcveigh more than a decade ago for planting the bomb in 1995. it destroyed a federal building and killed 168 people. it was one of the deadliest terror attacks ever on u.s. soil. the feds say mcveigh was alone when he parked the truck, packed with explosives, outside the building and detonated it. but for some time investigators said they were looking for another suspect, john doe number two, they never identified him. now one lawyer claims that manhunt led to his brother's death in federal prison. trace gallagher has more in our west coast news hub. tell us about the guy who died in prison. >> his name was kenneth trenedud, would was picked up on a parole violation after to the bombing and then brought back to a federal prison in oklahoma city. he had a very strong resemblance to john doe number two, same height, same weight, even the same dragon tattoo on his left arm. john doe number two was never identified. kenneth hung himself in prison but his body has dozens of bruises

this is something that the u.s. officials are used to, middle east diplomacy and intermediaries with hamas and through egypt or done in part in cairo, and the relationship between secretary of state john kerry and netanyahu is a good one according to the officials on both sides and they are continuing to talk regularly. but ultimately this is something that the u.s. has to do with turkey and convince both sides, convince hamas, assure hamas a cease fire is including what they need and assuring israel they are getting the time and the space to get done what they want to do and namely the tunnels and the israeli officials are saying they need more time and seeing the resince tense to have a cease fire right now. >> we are continuing to watch, thank you, nick. >> and as mentioned the palestinians in gaza using the cease fire to go through the buildings and this is the first chance to recover their dead. >> this means little, it means nothing to those that lost everything. we are in the area to the north and they are actually pul

the official results will come out in two weeks and the public will be kept waiting until then. and this is a test of indonesia's democracy on whether or not people can wait patiently and eventually accept the official results, whichever way it goes. >> right. but what are these two candidates picking out, the quick count result that suit them best. presumably there is a figure that says one or the other is ahead. >> the quick results are done by a number of polling organizations that have been certified by the election commissions. and these organizations lean toward one candidate or another for the most part. so certainly each candidate is using the results that have come from groups that, you know, give results that are more favorable from them. and so -- but india, we always knew this was going to be a close election, but, you know, there are some concerns that how divided this results are will, you know, possibly lead to, you know, uncertainty that could turn ugly. >> we wait for it to conclude. alice, thank you very much indeed. >>> some live pictures for you from the vati

now concludes the plane was indeed shot down. a senior u.s. official telling me this conclusion is based on a couple of key facts. u.s. has, the u.s. has been watching this all day. what they now believe is there was an intelligence gathering system tracking able to see when a surface-to-air missile system in the area turned on its radar and began tracking an object,' plane in the sky. that tracking was observed. at the same time, they now know that them have additional information. there was a heat signature, an infrared signature of a catastrophic event in the same area at the time that one could calculate the plane went down. so the they see it the initial tracking by a surface-to-air missile system. they see a catastrophic event of something hitting this object. it is a large infrared heat signature. they believe that was the crash of the plane. now, u.s. intelligence and military officials will work their way back. they have this information. now they will conduct an in-depth analysis. what was the trajectory. work their way back and try and deter

say the death toll could rise. officials in israel say the operation is targeting underground tunnels. they say members of the islamist group hamas use them to enter israel to carry out attacks. the troops appear to be concentrated in an area of 500 meters from their border with gaza. they say they've destroyed 20 rocket launchers and 9 t. >> translator: our major objective in the operation is to restore peace and security in israel. >> our reporter in gaza says israeli troops are attacking other areas by air and she from vessels off the coast. electricity has been knocked out in many areas. hamas remains defiant, saying occupiers will pay a heavy price. the palestinian death toll since israel began air strikes last week has passav wounded. israel last launched a ground assault against the palestinian enclave five years ago. that operation and preceding air strikes killed more than 1,300 people. >>> former thai prime minister yingluck shinawatra has denied a rumor that she may flee the country. she made the remark on friday