welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm gene otani in tokyo. here's a look at some of the stories we're following this hour. the president of egypt is vowing to protect his democratically elected government as his supporters and opponents continue to face off in the streets. the only two nuclear reactors operating in japan will stay online as regulators say

they conform to new safety standards. will free subway rides be enough to ease the morning rush hour? the president of egypt is standing his ground, even as it shifts beneath his feet. mohamed morsi made a vow on television to protect his government. he rejected the army's ultimatum telling him to work with opponents to end a crisis that has immobilized the nation. >> translator: it is a crime to undermine the legitimacy of the elected president. i am ready to give my life to defend this legitimacy, if necessary. >> morsi has asked the public to stay calm. he says it will take time to clean the nation of corruption and remnants from the former regime but morsi's opponents say he's had enough time and they say he needs to quit now. many backed the top generals who

say they'll intervene if the crisis isn't resolved by wednesday evening. >> translator: we're waiting for the military to take action. the military is our leader. >> the president's supporters want him to stay. thousands of them gathereded in central cairo, some wearing helmets and carrying sticks. >> translator: the military should respect the decision the people made. they did this through the national vote and the presidential election. >> state media reported 16 people dead in cairo since tuesday night from violence between morsi's opponents and supporters. earlier i spoke with koheitzuji. >> reporter: accumulation and frustrations and anger built up to stage the anti-morsi

demonstrations. they had perhaps naively expect that had with old regime gone the country will be able to grow with more investment from abroad and more freedom from economic activity and that they will be able to enjoy a better life. the reality was actually different. there are more blackouts, more traffic jams, and they have to wait in long lines to get fuel for their cars, and grievances go on. morsi pushed through an islamist constitution and made political appointments of islamists in central and local governments. this led morsi's opponents to say he has lost legitimacy. they now think that the military is behind them and seem ready to continue their protests until morsi resigns. >> tell us about if the military is really behind the opponents what will they do if the president does not heed their call by the said deadline late

afternoon cairo time? >> reporter: army helicopters flying the egyptian flag have nine over the anti-morsi rallies, and the supreme council of armed forces has reportedly declared they are willing to sacrifice their blood for the country and its people. these actions in the war seem to indicate that the army is standing by the protesters and is warning the president to meet their demand. egyptian media has reported that if the army's ultimatum is not met, the army's high demand will suspend the constitution and dissolve the islamist dominated legislature and set up an interim administration. >> does the army have the power to enforce this? >> reporter: wel that's difficult to say. morsi's government is crumbling. six ministers have left the cabinet and the spokesperson has quit since the demonstrations started. islamist parties once seen as an ally have called for other elections but morsi said he will

stake his life to defend his legitimacy. a senior member of the muslim brotherhood backed ruling party says morsi supporters are ready to be martyrs. this could mean this this is heading for collision. clashes between morsi supporters and protesters have already resulted in death. with the military entering the fray, there could be further violence ahead. that was nhk world's kohei tsuji from cairo. china may be building a national gas rig in the china sea. representatives from both sides five years ago agreed to jointly develop gas fields near area but the chief cabinet secretary said chinese crane ship appears to be working on a new marine platform without japan's involvement. it's just 26 kilometers from the

line that divides the countries' exclusive economic zones. >> translator: if china is unilaterally developing resources in the area, it would not be tolerated as borders remain undecided in the sea. >> chinese foreign ministry spokesperson told reporters there's nothing to dispute. she said china is working in waters under its own jurisdiction. >> a u.s. drone strike in pakistan reportedly killed 16 suspected militants but caused outrage in islamabad. patchari raksawong is following the story. the drone attack looks to further strain u.s. relations. this was the second since the prime minister took office in may, promising to oppose the u.s. military strategy. ap says four missiles hit a

house in north waziristan and 16 suspected militants were killed. that would make it the deadliest drone attack this year. the targets were thought to belong to the afghan network, supposedly loyal to the taliban. the attack drew a quick and angry response from the pakistani government which called it a violation of sovereignty. pakistani prime minister won the election in may in part because of his opposition to u.s. drone activity. even so the obama administration has refused to change its policy and says that drone strikes are illegal under domestic and international law. a deadly strain of bird flu claimed another victim in cam bode ya. nine people died from the virus so far this year. a 6-year-old girl from a village in southern comport province died last friday. the girl was likely exposed to

infected poultry. the health ministry says cases have been confirmed in the country this year. the world health organization says 20 people were infected worldwide between the start of january and 4th of june. 15 of those cases resulted in deaths. the who says the virus is indemic among poultry in c cambod cambodia. children seem to be most vulnerable because they like to play in areas where poeltry also graze. >> the transport authorities are now offering free fares for people who travel early but not everyone is planning to set their alarm clocks. here is the report. >> reporter: it's just before 9:00 and there's a huge crowd coming out of the station. with the new scheme, singapore is hoping to see changes.

singapore's population had swollen 30% over the past decade thanks to steady flows of immigrati immigration. subways in the city are packed to capacity, especially during capacity. especially during rush hour. the operator thinks it has a fair solution. travel will be free of charge for passengers who disembark at downtown stations from the first train until 7:45 a.m. >> i want to save some of my money for my future. >> the train has been a little less crowded. i got a seat today which was lovely, i could read my book. >> some passengers say a free ride just isn't worth jumping out of bed for. >> it's too early. i rather sleep in and wake up at a later time and deal with the

crowd. >> congestion peaked between 8:00 and 9:00 a.m. has fallen by 7%. they hope reduce overcrowding before the trial ends. some businesses are considering moving to flexitime so employees can travel to work for free. early birds may think that sounds like a dream come true. nhk world, singapore. that wraps up our bulletin in bangkok. >> thousands of residents are still waiting to go home. vast tracts of land are still waiting to be restored. and more than half of the fishing ports on the pacific coast must be rebuilt.

people in northerneastern japan still face challenges following the 2011 disaster. but step by step, they are moving forward. see their stories every wednesday on "the road ahead" right here on "newsline." japan's nuclear regulators have given the green light for two reactors to stay online when stricter rules come into in effect next week. the number three and four reactors are the only two operating in japan. officials from the nuclear regulation authority inspected the plant to see if it conforms to the new requirements. they concluded there is no immediate serious safety problem. >> translator: we've decided that there's no need to halt the two reactors at the ohi plant. >> the reactors will keep running until their next maintenance check, scheduled for september. now the fukushima daiichi plant

continues to be plagued with problems. engineers there say chemical corrosion is the likely cause of a leak last month of contaminated water from a new filtering system. the system is designed to remove radioactive substances from the water. workers at the plant found a leak in part of the stainless steel tank that had been welded. when they emptied the tank they found two holes and more than ten dents inside. each dent was with two to five millimeters in diameter. officials of tep co-company say a chemical used to remove i am purities likely reacted with the vessel. about 400 tons of contaminated water at the plant due to ground water seeping into the reactor buildings. the people of the tsunami hit area have a branching symbol of hope for the future. artists have restored a lone

pine tree. they saw the tsunami wipe out majestic pines except one. it became a symbol of reconstruction until it died. city leaders decided to restore it so the symbol could work on. locals appreciated the work and artisans preserved the original trunk and added branches and leaves of res inand placed the restored tree in the exact same spot. >> translator: i hope the pine tree will watch over the city's recovery and continue to be loved by the people. >> people from all over japan helped pay for the monument. now they can see it light up every evening for one year. picking up your life after an earthquake and tsunami and nuclear crisis is a daunting task. but that's exactly what a japanese school dirl did in 2011. instead of letting the triple disaster get her down, she was inspired to devote her life to

helping people in her hometown. i could never get a good night sleep, i worry i might be exposed to radiation. >> reporter: she evacuated from fukushima prefecture. at a meeting in a local high school she describes the moment when she and her parents have to leave her grandparents behind in fukushima. >> translator: when life is normal, we don't experience things like that. it was heartbreaking.

>> reporter: her troubles began after her junior high graduation ceremony. on march 11th, 2011, the day of the earthquake. the kato residence sits eight kilometers from the fukushima daiichi power plant. the family decided to set out for nearly 200 miles away. but it meant she had to give up her dream of enrolling at a local high school and becoming a nurse. she and her family stayed at this evacuation center. local high school volunteers visited her and other evacuees. some had hearing impairments, than would have a bearing on shizuka's new life. meantime, she enjoyed getting together with her new friends. >> translator: for two or three weeks after the disaster, i didn't have many opportunities

to speak to anyone, so being with the volunteers was fun. i even laughed for the first time in quite a while. >> reporter: later, she went on to attend high school where she joined a volunteering club. now she leads it. because she befriended hearing-impaired people, she is keen to master sign language. she has given up her dream of becoming a nurse, but she is determined to become a speech therapist. >> translator: my dream is to get two national certificates. it may be too much, but i'll study to be a speech therapist first and then to be a nurse. >> reporter: and she is clear about where she will practice. >> translator: fukushima. i can't abandon my birth place.

i'll return there. it's only normal to want to go back to the place where i was born and raised. i will return. >> reporter: because of the 2011 disaster, a young girl has set out on a different career path. eventually, it will take her back to her hometown, where residents will benefit from all her health care skills. bolivian officials are furious that the hunt for edward snowden ended up grounding their leader. the plane of president evo morales had to be grounded because there was suspicion that former u.s. contractor was on board. snowden is wanted on he is pea onnage charges. bolivian foreign minister david choquehuanca says the president was on his way home from russia.

authorities in portugal and france wouldn't let morales's plane fly over their air space or touch down to get fuel. they made an emergency landing at an airport in austria. >> translator: there were unfounded suspicions that mr. snowden would be on the plane. we do not know who invented this lie. someone wants to hurt our country. >> snowden has requested asylum in about 20 countries. italy, switzerland and other european nations have refused his applications but bolivia says it would consider granting asylum if a request was filed. officials in portugal and france refused to kmnt on bolivia's claim. they say they are nervous about straining ties with the united states. >> japanese people don't know when the next big quake may help but the self-defense forces hope to be ready. they invented a new drill and

trying it out with their u.s. counterparts. about 3,000 sdf members and military personnel started a five-day exercise on monday. their test case is a massive quake and sue namny. such a quake would be deadly. navy vessels and aircraft to survey damage. >> translator: with help from the u.s. military, and other municipalities, we can proceed effectively with search and rescue. saving lives is the priority. >> japanese defense ministry officials want to draw up a ting entcy plan. they hope they won't need to use them.

trade officials have wrapped up a second round of talks on a free trade deal. they failed to narrow their differences but agreed to continue the talks. the two sides ended the ten days of negotiations and the eu negotiators urged japan's to use safety standards on autos and regulation on food and drugs. japanese officials explain that they working to ease restrictions in those areas but both sides fail to strike a deal. the two sides also discussed how to proceed with negotiations on removing or lowering tariffs on japan's industrial products for export to the eu. the japanese negotiators hope to continue working level talks before the third round of discussion scheduled for october. the tokyo district court has given a three-year prison term suspended for fives years to the president of olympus.

he and other executives set up funds overseas and shifted investment losses to window dress the firm's accounts. they were convicted on charges of concealing over $1.2 billion in losses at the optical equipment maker. the presiding judge said the former president bears grave responsibility for having authorized the cover-up of huge losses. only a limited number of olympus executives gained access to key information. they said they were not performing their supervisory role but the judge added it cannot be ruled out that the former executives had to inherit the losses from their predecessors. the court also ordered olympus to pay a fine of $7 million. the humanoid robot famous for walking on its legs of the now famous for its ability to interact with people. at a science museum in tokyo,

hon do wants to test the ability to make its own decisions on what to say and how to move. the robot is installed with cameras and sensors and can recognize the positions and movements of people around it. it can ask people to respond to a question by raising their hands and presume their intentions and then explain things according to the given response and point to whoever raised his or her hand first as well as answer questions. >> translator: asimo can make its own decisions and shows computers are evolving rapidly. >> i hope asimo's ability will assist people with daily lives. >> it hopes to install the robot in train stations or airports to direct or point people to their destinations. there's a strong storm over japan. robe

robe robertspet a is here with more. >> heavy showers across western japan and western portions of honschu. here's video where a lightning strike there caused power outages there earlier in the day upwards of 100 millimeters are reported in the past 24 hours. 80 millimeters reported in just a one hour period in about 100 kilometer per hour winds also out of this area. we're still seeing the threat of flooding going there into thursday, not to mention the risk of landslides and even the possibility of tornadoes in some of these stronger cells. a very complex storm system, nothing tropical related. i know we've been talking about the storms further down south. this one running along with the rainy season and typically a stationary boundary and that is going to be one of the problems here because going into thursday, the showers are not going to be letting up.

we're still going to be seeing it continuing to linger here. even into tokyo, don't be surprised if you see a lingering shower or two. along the sea of japan coast line, it will be impacting until saturday. by then we'll start to see this high pressure ridge in from the south that will lift to the north. what it's going to be doing is clearing up the sky cover here but ushering in warmer temperatures. tokyo at 29 but by the weekend, saturday into sunday, it's going to be some of the warmest temperatures thus far this year up to about 34, maybe possibly 35 degrees as that high pressure continues to pull in all of the warmer temperatures. relatively cooler though than what we've been seeing out here to the americas, especially the southwest temperatures continuing to climb in the 40s due to the dome of high pressure continuing to domestic nation and also have the trough dipping all the way down here. it pushed farther west so now

we're seeing heaviest rainfall into the florida panhandle across southern portions of alabama. you could be seeing 90 millimeters in the next 24 hours. this is where you'll see the risk of flash flooding going through wednesday and possibly towards thursday as this continues to gather moisture. this area not just the heat and the dry weather but you have these burn scars out here offsome thunderstorms popping up bringing the risk of flash flooding. especially on the dry land, immediately it turns into a flash flood. not to mention the storms will be dropping lightning or producing lightning and this will bring the risk of more wildfires out across much of that area. here into europe, we're still watching this frontal area pushing through, 30 to 40 millimeters to france and germany. even some areas in some flood watches in effect. and thunderstorm advisories but that's still going to roll off

to the east. weaken out and that's going to usher in some warmer temperatures here as well. take a look at london. above average, much more summer like for you. sunday up to 26. madrid nearing the 40 degree mark here by your sunday. that's a look at your wet weather. here's your extended forecast.

that's "newsline" for this

hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo. from all of us here at nhk world thanks for joining us. have a great day wherever you are.

♪ from the four winds and the scent of the earth, come the color of the seasons. exploring the four seasons of japan. thick clouds of steam rising from the depths of the earth. hot water welling up in an endless stream.