it's 10:00 p.m. in tokyo, welcome to "newsline," i'm michio kijima with the news at this hour. in syria a government website attacked by an international group of hackers to protest the country's six-month crackdown on anti-government demonstrators. in a statement on monday, the group, anonymous, said it carried out the attacks to support a citizens rebels campaign in the nation. the content of the syrian transport ministries website was replaced with caricatures of the country's president and

criticism of his government's severe monitoring of the internet. the home pages of major cities showed a map of syria with data on those killed in attacks by security forces. the government has not commented on the incident. it recently tightened control of the internet and arrested people who posted comments against assad's rule. the hacker group said in august it would take action until protesters were released. japan is getting ready to choose the next-generation fighter jet. u.s. and european manufacturers have presented their proposals to the japanese defense ministry. japan plans to buy 40 to 50 new fighters to replace the f-4s, that it's been using for 40 years. the candidates are the fa-18 from the united states, and the f-35 developed by the united states and britain, and the eurofighter developed by four countries in europe. the manufacturers submitted documents showing how fast the

planes go, their prices and data-processing capabilities and how they can be built in japan. the defense ministry plans to make its choice by the end of november. u.s. and european fighter jet makers believe that japan's decision on the next fighter jets will affect their ability to sell to brazil and other emerging economies. these nations are planning to introduce a number of new models in the future. nhk world's ichiro okawaza reports from washington. >> reporter: european makers are selling their eurofighter model. they think winning a contract with japan, which has used u.s. jets, would create a good chance for them to expand business worldwide. the united states, meanwhile, does not regard japan as just a customer. the u.s. attaches importance on orders from japan as proof of the bilateral strong alliance. >> we have an extraordinary alliance with japan. they are one of our closest

friends, our closest allies. >> reporter: the u.s. regards it indesirable that japan buys its fighter jets, the main players of japan's defense from countries other than itself. >> we have a pretty unique relationship with japan, and i think we want to see our allies having the same capability-type aircraft as we do. there will be a lot of political tension. >> reporter: all players are watching japan's decision. the next supply of fighter jets will play a main role in the country's air defense for days to come. for nhk world, washington. the heat is on one of japan's most powerful politicians and the country's ruling democratic party. a tokyo court has found three ex-aids to one time dpj leader,

ichiro ozawa, guilty of a political funding scandal. the ruling exposed the cozy relationship between ozawa's office and the general contractors vying for lucrative public works projects. lower house member tomohiro ishikawa, takanori okubo and mistsutomo ikeda went on trial for falsifying funding reports. the case concerned a land purchase worth $ 5.2 million. the defendants denied the allegations. the district court presiding judge found all three guilty on monday and gave them suspended prison sentences of one to three years. the judge said general contractors rigged bids for public works project in japan's northeastern region. including ozawa's constituency. he noted lawmakers office had decision-making power regarding projects. the judge also said contractors got instructions from the former aides represented intentions of ozawa's office. the judge determined two of the offenders took about $1.2

million from the construction firm in return for helping it win the bid for a dam project. he said despite denials, evidence show s two former aides did, in fact, receive the money. ozawa is facing an indictment in connection with this scandal. monday's ruling will likely affect his trial, which is scheduled to start next week. u.s. aircraft maker, boeing, has delivered its first 787 dreamliner passenger plane to japan's all-nippon airways. the mid-sized plane uses the latest materials and designing technology. and boeing says it's 20% more fuel-efficient than other passenger planes. japanese manufacturers made 35% of the dreamliner's parts, including the main wings. boeing signed documents for the handover of the aircraft to ana on sunday. the first delivery had

originally been scheduled for may of 2008, but it was delayed seven times due to design changes. the plane will be used first for a chartered flight between narita and hong kong in late october. it will then be put on domestic service beginning in november. toyota motor has started selling mini vehicles for the first time in an effort to capitalize on steadily-growing demand. the automaker put a four-passenger mini car on the domestic market on monday, amid flagging sales of regular cars. the model is mfrd by toyota affiliate, daihatsu motor. mini vehicles have been recording strong sales in japan, due to their low prices and energy efficiency. toyota decided to join the mini car market after dealers expressed hopes for wider product line-up. the car maker plans to add two more models in the future. the operator of the troubled fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant said energy-saving efforts by both households and businesses helped slash power usage this summer.

a legally-mandated 15% cut in the electricity usage took effect in summer in areas serviced by tokyo electric power company due to power shortages caused by the nuclear accident in march. tepco says power demand hit its peak on august 18th. when 49 million kilowatts of electricity were used, down 18% from last yeek's peak day on july 23rd. the utility estimates that major users, including factories, achieved a 29% reduction in power usage. small businesses showed a 19% cut. households held down power use only by 6%. tepco says this was probably because it was difficult to reduce the air conditioning in the sweltering summer weather. the power company also says it will have to ask for energy-saving efforts this winter to insure ample power supply. australia is looking to build a high-speed rail line, like the u.s., britain, india and vietnam. the line will stretch some 1,700

kilometers from brisbane in the east through sydney to melbourne in the south. japan is jumping at this opportunity to sell its shinkansen bullet trains. we report from sydney. >> reporter: at long-distance train leaves sydney's central railwayization for brisbane, another major city. normally, this train takes 14 hours to get to brisbane, while the shinkansen can do it in four hours. many people complain about the long trip. >> it takes too long to get from northern to queensland. >> tiring. very tiring. not fast journeys like japan. slow journeys. >> now, however, things are

about to change. in july, the australian government came up with a feasibility study with the high-speed rail plan to connect brisbane and melbourne, a distance of 1,700 kilometers. this will help slash the travel time between sydney and brisbane from 14 hours to just three hours. >> this would make an enormous difference to the way that the australian economy functions. to the way that our productivity occurs. to the way that we reduce our climate change emissions. >> reporter: japan was one of the first countries to show interest in this project. high-speed rail conference held in sydney in august provided japan with an opportunity to

pitch its bullet trains. safety was high on the agenda, after a high-speed rail accident in china in july. representatives from japan's railway company and transport ministry stressed the safety record of the shinkansen. >> no passenger injuries, not to mention any fatalities due to train accidents during its 46 years of operation. >> we have made every effort to keep the safety in all kinds of aspects. >> reporter: the japanese team also met with a political heavyweight, ralph brown. the head of the green party is trying to promote the high-speed rail project. >> the shinkansen has a wonderful safety record.

i have traveled from osaka to tokyo, it was a magnificent way to travel. hard jobs will be to decide between japanese and european technology. >> reporter: for japan's rivals, this project is also an opportunity they wouldn't want to miss out. >> the minister of transport has met the japanese. each technology has its technology and convenience. i think there could be a good competition. >> we believe that spain's experience in high-speed rail is interesting. >> reporter: as competition grows over australia's high-speed rail plans, japan is stressing the safety record of its shinkansen to try to win the project. >> our reporter, mari mukayi

tell us more about this project. >> reporter: japan's bullet train system draw as lot of attention. many participants knew about the japanese system. they referred to it as the shinkansen, using the japanese word. people were interested in safety issues. for instance, they brought up the accident in china and asked what level of technical support japan had given to china's high-speed rail system. japan is trying to stress the shinkansen safety record, pointing to its technological expertise. seminars, like the one in august, will play an important role for japan to promote the shinkansen. in fact, a conference was held in september for people working for australia's railway system. japan participated in this as

well. meanwhile, rivals like france are pushing hard, combining public and private-sector strength to sell their technology. some in the industry think japan needs to step up government efforts to promote the shinkansen, given the stiff competition from other countries. >> that was ma everyone i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. i mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures. ri mukai, from sydney. here are the latest market figures.

japan is likely to freeze a research and development project related to putting the fast breeder nuclear reactor into practical use. the move is due to uncertainty over the nation's future nuclear policy following the accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. the science and technology ministry is planning to ask that only 20% to 30% of the $130 million currently allocated for research and development of the project be included in the ministry's 2012 budget. the ministry is also to request about $260 million next fiscal year to maintain and manage the troubled prototype fafrt breeder monju reactor. the amount is roughly the same as that budgeted for the project this fiscal year. fast-breeder use spent nuclear material. japan has spent money for research to put a breeder in use

by 2050. in the wake of the accident in fukushima, the government has been reviewing its basic energy plan, making the country's future nuclear policy unclear. the ministry says it has concluded that it cannot proceed with the project unless the direction of the policy is clarified. prime minister yoshihiko noda speaking before a parlimentary budget committee has said his government will focus on rebuilding the areas devastated by the march 11th disaster. noda was speaking at the beginning of a two-day lower house budget committee session, the first since he took office in early september. >> translator: reconstruction, bringing the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant under control. these are the top priorities. >> the prime minister said the government is in the final stages of putting together a third supplementary budget to promote reconstruction projects. he said he will make every effort to consult with

opposition parties so that a bill is submitted to the diet at an early date. noda said the government will also implement measures aimed at reinvigorating the japanese economy. >> translator: we have to revive the japanese economy and respond to growing concerns over the global economic crisis. we will bring steady progress in dealings with the economic crisis. kenyan nobel peace prize winner and environmental activity wangari maathai died in nairobi on sunday, after a long struggle with cancer. she was 71 years old. maathai founded kenya's greenbelt movement in 1977. the program taught impoverished women traditional handicrafts and organized tree-planting projects as with a i of generating income and combatting deforestation. she became the first african woman to be awarded the nobel peace prize in 2004, for her

contributions to the advancement of women in environmental protection. maathai is well regarded by many people in japan, for her promotion of the japanese expression, moti-ni, which roughly translates as wasteful and is used to suggest that resources should not be squandered. she attached a key word to her campaign to protect the environment and encourage recycling. japan's government has held its second seminar on the fukushima nuclear plant accident to ease chinese people's concerns about radioactive contamination. more than six months after the accident, china maintains a partial import ban on japanese food products, and many chinese avoid traveling to japan. about 100 people, including chinese government officials, corporate representatives and journalists attended the seminar in beijing on monday. an official from japan's nuclear and industrial safety agency explained the current situation at the plant. he stressed the government's continuing efforts to cool the plant's damaged reactors and

prevent the spread of radioactive materials from the facility. the officials said conditions at the plant have been stabilized. a representative of agricultural ministry explained how japan monitors food products for radioactive materials and said products now in circulation are safe. >> translator: the japanese government has done well so far, but there may be a problem that hasn't been found yet. >> translator: something is still unclear. i want more explanation in the future. libyan's interim leaders have uncovered a mass grave believed to hold the remains of nearly 1,300 prisoners killed under ex-leader moammar gadhafi. the national transitional council said on sunday, the remains were found in a field of a prison in the capital, tripoli. human bones and pieces of clothing have been retrieved. this is believed to be the first discovery of evidence of an alleged 1996 prison massacre by

gadhafi's security forces. the uprising that toppled gadhafi began with a demonstration in february, calling for the release of a lawyer working for families of murdered prisoners. the national transitional council said it intends to identify the remains and uncover the truth about the massacre. time to check on some of the stories we've gathered from broadcasters around asia. we begin tonight with this item sent by ddi india. floods caused by heavy monsoon rains have killed at least 58 people in the eastern indian state of adisha over the past two weeks. most rivers have breached their embankments, resulting in an inundation of about 900 villages and leaving about two million people stranded. the release of an excess water from two dams has added to the misery of villages situated downstream. meanwhile, a top official of the state government conducting an aerial survey of the affected

areas. the authorities have deployed boats and helicopters to drop food and other essential items to the flood victims. mace malaysian prime minister joined about 5,000 children in a cycle race to rise funds for chinese schools in the northwestern state on sunday. this was his first bicycle ride in about 50 years. the race raised about $5 million. the money will be used for building repairs, infrastructure upgrades and support for academic activities in the schools. the prime minister praised the chinese community for their contribution to improving the country's education standards. about 24% of the country's 29 million people are ethnic chinese. >> chinese communities are in thailand have kicked off their annual vegetarian festival. the ten-day event that began on monday is aimed at cleansing the spirit by avoiding all meat and dairy products.

in turang devotees wearing traditional white garments erected a pole called tengo to mark the arrival of a god at a shrine. during the celebration, chinese temples across thailand are filled with colorful offerings, including giant incense sticks and candles. >> let's take a look at your weather conditions, starting off with asia. a couple of storms to talk about. let's start off with this one, this is haitang, a tropical storm moving slowly towards the center of vietnam. it looks like it is steadily heading towards central luzon in the philippines. and it makes landfall, maybe tuesday morning. all through tuesday, it will be moving through luzon and up towards the south china sea and heading towards hainan island. it looks like it's going to be bringing ample amounts of rain, as well as strong winds, gusts up to about 180 kilometers per

hour, almost up to 200 kilometers per hour. so those high waves are going to be picking up to five meters high in some eastern seaboards of luzon. so please do stay away from those coastal areas. we have another tropical storm, this is haitang, moving in slow motion, westerly motion. and towards central vietnam. it will go to. and by tuesday evening, it looks like it will be making landfall in towards laos. it will move inland. this one is also bringing lots of rain to come for you. in the next 24 hours. very short span. it looks like it's going to be bringing lots of rain towards central parts. so we're going to be looking at many, about 200 millimeters in some areas, as well as hainan, we'll be looking at about 100 millimeters or more. and as we talked about the typhoon. maybe about 300 millimeters, you can see it in the western seaboards, we see the red part. 300 millimeters or more. so please do stay away from

those coastal areas as possible. heading out to north america. this is hurricane hilary, now hilary is a category 3 major hurricane. it looked like it was going to be moving away from land. but it will be veering towards the baja, california peninsula. and it is going to be downgrading as it proceeds. no tropical watches or warnings are posted now. looking to the bigger picture, we have the system just over the great lakes, it will be meandering over the next couple of days, bringing strong winds as well as heavy rain. the bubble of heavy rain will be affecting indiana and kentucky. a few showers, scattered storms will be affecting the florida peninsula and up towards the pacific. we're going to be seeing gusts up to about 100 kilometers per hour. rain up to about 80 millimeters of accumulation. and pacific coast will be feeling the as well as. high waves we want to watch for that out towards the south and the west, we're looking clear, denver 31 for a high. we'll be dropping down to upper

20s for our tuesday as the cold air from the north will be brought in. here in north america, scandinavian peninsula, as well as finland will be seeing showers as well as gusts up to about 90 kilometers per hour. and here above mediterranean sea, we have an upper disturbance that will be disturbing italy for the next couple of days with showers and thunderstorms. british isles looking pretty clear and scotland will be feeling the showers. and much of west out towards the continental europe looking very clear. and sunny, warm weather for you. temperatures are as follows. vienna, 24 degrees. paris, 26. 30 in madrid, a little hot and lisbon at 29. here's your extended forecast.

once again, the top stories at this hour. in syria, government websites have been attacked by an international group of hackers, to protest the country's six-month-long crackdown on anti-government demonstrators. in a statement on monday, the group, anonymous said it carried out the attacks to support the citizens' rebel campaign in the nation. the content of the syrian transport ministry's website was replaced with caricatures of the country's president, assad and criticism of his severe monitoring of the internet. the home pages of major cities showed a map of syria with data on those killed in attacks by security forces. the government has not commented

on the incident. it recently tightened its control of the internet and arrested people who posted comments assad's rule. the hacker group said in august it would take action until protesters were released. japan is getting ready to choose the next-generation fighter jet. u.s. and european manufacturers have presented their proposals to the japanese defense ministry. japan plans to buy 40 to 50 new fighters to replace the f-4s it's been using for 40 years. the candidates are the fa-18 from the united states, the f-35, developed by the united states and britain, and eurofighter developed by four countries in europe. the manufacturers submitted documents showing how fast the planes go, their prices and data-processing capabilities and how they can be built in japan. the japanese defense ministry plans to make its choice by the end of november. and that's our broadcast for this hour on "newsline." we'll be back with more news in

half an hour. i'm michio kijima in tokyo. thank you for watching. bye-bye.