>> aagreement between the u.s. and germany -- it could be the latest result of edward snowden's revelations about mass surveillance by the nsa. >> today, the man who oversees intelligence in angela merkel's government says washington offered this deal to try to allay german peoples fears that their text and phone calls are being spied spied on by foreign agency. he appeared for the second time in front of a lawmakers committee. >> it has been dominating the headlines just six weeks before national elections in germany. now the government is hoping this new pledge will neutralize the issue. >> the government's chief of staff was grilled for six hours on the nation -- on the nature of german collaborators with foreign intelligence agencies. he has been assured that neither the u.s. or britain rope protection laws. >> according to the nsa and british intelligence agencies, german laws have been observed. the rights of our citizens in germany are being safeguarded. >> he says the nsa and british intelligence agencies ensured him in writing that their activities had not been a regular trade in the wake of the spying program revealed by edward snowden, many remain skeptical, none more so than germany's opposition. >> there is no agreement which prevents -- which print -- which forbids americans from using these to monitor communications. >> the focus may have been on transparency but the meeting took place behind closed doors. he was chief of staff in 2001 when germany and the u.s. agreed with the deal on data sharing. he says he's willing to be issued -- to the question on the issue but was not. >> instead of turning the searchlights on, the government is simply putting up smoke screens. that's a refusal to provide explanations. >> as far as the opposition is concerned, the government has more explaining to do. for its part, the government stresses the willingness of the u.s. to make an agreement with germany that would prohibit the two countries from spying on each other. for many, that's too little, too late. >> for more, we go to our chief political correspondent. today's comment by the chief of staff brings some clarity to what has become dame major issue -- what has become a major issue in germany's campaign. >> if you take theand -- the spying agreement, he said that shows the u.s. surely has not been breaking the law because otherwise it would not be offering to sign such an agreement whereas the opposition says that shows there is clearly a response of them doing shady things in the past. let's take a brief look at what he did say. he quite unequivocally stated that the u.s. has not been conducting widespread surveillance of german citizens within germany. he indicated any data streams mentioned in this example must have related to data gathered by german intelligence and german military forces in their foreign activities trade for example, a country like afghanistan. a very clear statement from him, but whether it lays the matter to rest is how full, given this is an election year. >> do you think it will defuse if you do that the opposition? >> first of all, they clearly see an advantage continuing to press on this matter. in germany, there's a great deal of sensitivity about privacy and data protection issues and there's a lot of sensitivity about u.s. activities with drone strikes in pakistan. the allegations being made now this week have to do with the fact at this data provided by germany to the u.s. might have been used for strikes like that. i think the opposition will continue to try to play this card but it hasn't made much of a dent in public support for the christian democrats so far trade >> thank you very much. >> let's move onto other news. in three days, peace talks between israel a's and said palestinians are scheduled to begin. at robots are already in place. >> israel just announced plans for over a thousand new settlement homes in the west bank and east jerusalem. the palestinians say the move is meant to sabotage talks. >> at the same time, israel is releasing more than a thousand palestinian prisoners as a way to get the talks started. both sides are being urged to embrace the initiative. >> as they met with palestinian leaders, new challenges to the peace process were already living. palestinian authority president, but abbas, is outraged over the newly announced plans for 1200 new settlement units. the palestinian's chief negotiating unit has said it would pull out of the talks area >> why? who does these things? they are determined to undermine peace negotiations and force people like us to the negotiating table. >> but a stop to settlement building was not a condition to the talks. that is something that has been repeated. the minister called on both sides to keep the talks alive. >> it has become apparent there are forces on both sides -- let me put this diplomatically -- who are not enthusiastic about commencing direct talks. it is our job not to give way to them. >> already, there is cause for celebration at this home in bethlehem. this is one of the 104 palestinian prisoners israel is set to release as a precondition to the talks trade he could be home by tuesday. >> in egypt, judicial authorities say they are extending detention of mohamed morsi for 15 days pending a probe into whether he helped thomas stage a breakout in 2011. >> security officials decided to postpone plan to disperse camps into cairo saying they want to avoid checks. this comes as morsi supporters stepped up demands to reinstate the deposed president. >> the longtime president of zimbabwe, robert moog of a, has refused to back down in the ongoing confrontation over last month's election. it gave him a landslide in the polls. >> but local monitors say hundreds of thousands of people were unable to vote as they were not on the rolls. >> robert moog of a -- robert mugabe spoke in honor of those who died in the war of independence. he said they would never yield victory to the empty seat and was scathing in his contempt. >> those that are depressed about losing the elections can go and hang themselves if they so wish. but i tell them even dogs will not sniff at their flesh if they choose to die that way. >> but the zimbabwe opposition is not giving up yet. the ndc filed a legal challenge in the country's highest court. the country is believed by the fact that observers in the southern african development community stopped short of declaring the whole fair. >> the election was useful and free but not fair. our constitution says elections must be free, fair and peaceful. so one element is missing. >> observers give the challenge little chance of success. most of the constitutional challengers are considered loyalist. >> it has been a british territory for 300 years but spain has never been happy about it. tensions are flaring up over gibraltar. >> this began over access over fishing waters and spain retaliated with tighter border controls, causing delays. lex there is a legal action even warships on the way. >> the british warship illustrious is on its way to gibraltar. it's just one of three headed for the mediterranean. the royal navy says it's part of a routine deployment. but for some in spain, it's seen as the latest gesture in a simmering conflict. has been tension over gibraltar for centuries. it was ceded to britain in 1713, but spain continues to lay claim to the tiny territory. this time, it's a dispute over an artificial reef that has left them between a rock and hard place. spain says the reef is depriving its its fishermen. in return, madrid propose tougher border controls to prevent what they say is money laundering and smuggling. >> the line is four or five hours long. but people on the other side get stuck. >> i think it is disrespectful to the workers. there are 10,000 crossing every day to go to work. that's 25,000 people affected. >> and things could take a turn for the worse. the british government fired a verbal warning shot, threatening to take legal action to force madrid to loosen its border controls. spain says it might have a border crossing charge and ban planes from using its airspace to reach balter. >> not to southeast asia where almost 200 people dead and 140,000 are wooded. that's the toll since clashes broke out in may of last year. there has been tensions in the northwestern state. the latest came on a friday in villages outside the state capitol. >> the u.n. investigator met with a hostile reception on his arrival. demonstrators there accuse him of being biased in favor of the muslims who they refer to as bengalis very >> the muslims are rude and cause problems. the u.n. investigator is in favor of them and not the ethnic runtime. that's why i don't like him. >> it has left the government struggling to contain sectarian tensions. clashes broke out again after the body of a fisherman was last sure. rumors spread he had been beaten to death by a buddhist. two people died and several were injured. they are increasingly desperate here. many are segregated in camps for internally displaced people. they accuse the police of beatings and extortions. myanmar considers them stateless and considers them refugees from bangladesh. the u.n. envoy will present findings at the end of the 10 day trip and hand the full report to the u.n. general assembly in october. >> campaigning is heating up in norway ahead of september elections. the labour party is trailing in the polls and there is a pretty unusual campaign stunt. >> he got behind the wheel of an oslo taxi, acting up unsuspecting passengers and chatting with them about issues that matter the most. >> even in the caddy uniform, he had difficulty staying incognito. >> driving taxi part-time? >> you look just like him. [laughter] >> an ad agency plans this funds to show he can relate to voters. he and his passengers chatted about energy policy, education reform, and executive salaries. >> i'm in luck. i was planning to write you a letter. >> is john behind the wheel took place on friday after's weekly meeting with the king. >> are you going to vote? >> yes. >> that's good. it's important. >> his campaign is trying to attract more young voters. but when asked if he would consider driving a taxi full- time, he said norway and taxi passengers would be better off if he struck -- if he stuck with being prime minister. >> time for a short break. we'll be right back. >> stay with us. >> welcome back. today is the u.n.'s international youth day, this year with a focus on young migrants. >> millions of young people are on the move around the world, whether it's on the search for a new job or new life or simply safety from home. >> some 4000 young refugees have come to germany every year alone. strangers in a strange land, they need all the help they can get. >> she's in her new home in berlin. the 17-year-old would rather not talk about the reasons she fled her native kenya. she arrived here eight months ago without her parents. >> it was difficult the first. i didn't know anyone. i had no friends and i was always alone. >> she now goes to a german school and has found a circle of friends. some share a similar background as refugees. together, they pay regular visits to a youth worker with the organization that helps young people build a new life in germany. >> sometimes they only have a plastic bag with a few close it and nothing else. then we have to organize everything everything, furnishing the rooms, shopping, close. filling out forms. >> she found a room and shared accommodations and lives there together with jessica, herself a refugee from the democratic republic of congo. she says she feels more at home and is dreaming of the future in germany. >> i don't know if it's possible, but i'd like to be an actress or maybe a makeup artist. >> about her future remains uncertain. for now, she only has temporary resident status in germany. for comfort, she often reads her bible, the only possession she brought with her from kenya. >> let's get to business news now and one story causing a lot of grief in and around one german city. >> it's not something that makes for a happy summer. >> unions say it is high time for rail operators to get high. >> passengers stranded at the station -- evening traffic was paralyzed and now delays have extended to the morning commute as well. up to 40% of all trains have been canceled or rerouted. for some, delays have added almost half a day of travel time. the problems began after more than half of the stations 15 dispatchers were sick or on vacation. labor unions are up in arms after dispatchers were asked to call off vacations early. >> they have been on duty for weeks. i encourage anyone to break off their holiday to put up with what these workers have to put up with. the workers are at the end of their tether and need some time to rest. >> the rail giant needs to hire the dispatchers to keep the trains rolling. staff shortages are threatening to affect other regions as well. the government is calling for a quick resolution to the crisis. >> there's a clear shortage, which is why i support the leadership in their efforts to improve readiness through further hiring and training. >> they will meet on wednesday to discuss how and when to get the trains rolling again. >> germany is one of the only companies in europe where car drivers don't pay highway tolls. that's something the head of angela merkel's bavarian sister party wants to change. >> they're calling for tolls on the autobahn, but only for other countries. if the opposition has redundant -- has rejected the charges. who should pay for germany to go green? there is a massive shift underway for fossil fuels and nuclear and redeemable like wind and solar power and it has a lot of public support. but the way it is funded is controversial. >> german families are paying 70 euros more on their -- every year because heavy industry is being exempted from the cost. consumer groups say it's not fair. >> german politicians approved a major reform for energy generation with the aim of 60% of power produced comes from renewable resources. most consumers support that, but putting the change into practice is proving tricky. the new consumer rights report says they are subsidizing big is this. >> companies that face international competition or say they are are exempt from paying surcharges and that is what german citizens don't accept. >> consumer advocacy groups say german citizens are losing out. they calculate by that consumers are already paying the second- highest electricity prices in the european union. even so, most german consumers are in favor. >> it helps shut down nuclear power and is a step in and limp -- in eliminating fossil fuels area that is important to consumers. >> but the study concludes consumers still want the costs of clean energy to be divided up fairly. >> now to a european debt crisis you hear less about than the troubles of greece and spain. hungary had to be bailed out in the turmoil of 28 -- of 2008. >> now budapest says it has paid back the imf in full. and ahead of time. it could be abused to their controversial prime minister as he looks ahead to elections. >> for budapest, the payment marks a return to economic sovereignty after years of slow growth. hungary took a loan to make ends meet. hungary has paid back every penny. >> the government is able to finance itself. in the past applet years, for better or worse, we had to do it differently. but now we no longer need any foreign assistance. >> hungary's economy is not out of the woods yet. they forecast they will experience little to no growth this year. they've raised taxes on residents and foreign business owners, and that has scared away investors. the imf no longer has any say on economic policy. analysts expect the prime minister will take the opportunity to pump more capital into state infrastructure projects. elections are this year want more government spending. >> germany's economy has repeatedly -- unemployment here is much lower than most of europe great >> but it doesn't necessarily mean you can make ends meet. people are now having to work two jobs to get by. >> kicking back and relaxing at the end of the working day. for many in germany, it's no longer the norm. they have to go to their other job and the last 10 years, the number of germans with a second job as doubled. last year, over 2.5 million people supplemented their job with another job. but there is little agreement as to what is actually driving germans to take on a next or job. the government says people want to earn more to spend more, but critics don't buy that. they say wages in many industries are so low that many people can no longer live on one paycheck alone. >> time now for a look at the markets. kaiser tells us how germany has stared this month. >> some gdp data has been in focus on monday. for example, japan. the economy rose in the second quarter. this was a little better than expected. in greece, the economy decreased 4.6%, a little better than anticipated. there was irritation and speculation whether greece needs other bailout or not, cued by the german central bank. the bank is of the opinion that reese needs another bailout soon but finally, it rose only a little bit. >> let's have a look at the numbers in detail. not a lot of change, just a quarter of a percent of gains. the euro stoxx 50, pretty much no change at all grade -- at all. they look at the dow jones, still flat on the day. the euro losing a little bit. currently just over one dollar 30 three cents. >> struggling smartphone maker blackberry says is exploring the possibility of selling the company or engaging in a joint enter. >> the blackberry was for many people the original smartphone and helped to create a culture of users glued to the company's devices. but many have since moved on to makers offering newer technology. finally, the brother of the dutch king has died in hospital after spending more than a year in a coma. >> prints --prince friso was critically injured and doctors pronounced him brain-dead soon after his rescue. the prince, who is 44, survived by his mother, former queen beatrix of the netherlands, his wife and two young daughters. that is it for today. check out more of our stories on our website. >> mornay's right here in half an hour. -- more news right here in half an hour. > you are watching france 24, lets the the most overwhelming image of the day, the scenes from the philippines. a torrent of water coming through. uncertain, wins over 200 kilometers an hour and a major damage. ♪