honeymoon couple. the country s president is calling it a heinous crime. japan s prime minister is facing a number of challenges as he gets down to business for the new year. shinzo abe touched on some of the work ahead in his first news conference of 2014. he s calling for dialogue with china and south korea to improve relations. abe s faced criticism after his visit last month to yasukuni shrine in tokyo. the shrine honors japan s war dead, including military and political leaders, convicted of war crimes after world war ii. translator: because there are challenges, and problems, i believe we should be open to dialogue with no preconditions. i would like to explain directly to the leaders of other countries my true intentions in visiting yasukuni shrine. for my part, the door to dialogue is always open. abe says he will continue to try to revitalize the economy. he says his goal is to take offensive moves to boost business across the country, and end years of deflatio
china, and south korea are working together to trace the source of tiny pollutants that s making the air hazardous to breathe. north korea s young leader is thought to be celebrating his birthday. but it seems to be a low-key affair. foreign observers have not detected any official ceremonies to mark the occasion. kim yong un is believed to have been born on january 8th. his exact age is not known, but he is thought to be 31. the north has not officially acknowledged the date as kim s birthday. but foreign officials in pyongyang say people on the streets seem to be aware of when their leader was born. associated press footage shows no special decorations in the capital. citizens seemed to be going about their lives as normal. translator: i went to work at the factory as usual. i finished my shift and i m on my way home. former nba basketball star dennis rodman is visiting pyongyang. he and his american team practiced with north korean players for an exhibition game said t
we offer expertise and tailored solutions for small businesses and major corporations. what can we do for you? and now, bbc world news america. this is bbc world news america. hard enough being a syrian refugee in normal weather. it is miserable in this. the worst winter storm in decades sweeps across the middle east, delaying aid supplies. north korea says it has executed chang song-thaek, the once- powerful uncle of the leader. the man hired to sign nelson mandela s memorial speaks out after sparking a global controversy. angels. welcome to our viewers on public television in america and around the globe. snow was falling in the middle east tonight, and millions of for millions of syrian refugees it is deadly. the worst winter storm in decades is sweeping through the region. the united nations has already delayed one airlifted a into syria and says it is particularly concerned about the risk to children. the valley in eastern lebanon, with 125,000 refugees livin
active and to ensure that this isn t just a senseless tragedy. this is my way of honoring dylan and the others that died, and providing him a legacy. ifill: those are just some of the stories we re covering on tonight s pbs newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and. this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. woodruff: a hard-fought deal to set the federal government s spending for the next two years moved toward approval in congress today. newshour congressional correspondent kwame holman has our report. the house will be in order. reporter:
angels. welcome to our viewers on public television in america and around the globe. snow was falling in the middle east tonight, and millions of for millions of syrian refugees it is deadly. the worst winter storm in decades is sweeping through the region. the united nations has already delayed one airlifted a into syria and says it is particularly concerned about the risk to children. the valley in eastern lebanon, with 125,000 refugees living in tentes, tens, has been one of the hardest-hit by this storm. our middle east editor sends this report. winter came in a hard and fast. more snow is forecast and more war a few miles away in syria, which means more refugees, more people in tents, more cold, more misery. two week ago it was still warm enough in lebanon to not have to worry about having a jacket. some syrian children are still virtually barefoot. turning the camps to mod. the lebanese government does not allow aid agencies to build properly-run camps. they don