welcome to nhk world "newsline." i'm gene otani in tokyo. here's a look at some of the stories we're following this hour. supporters of ousted egyptian president mohamed morsi are calling for a mass rally to demand his reinstatement. policy makers at the bank of japan are upbeat in their latest assessment, saying the economy is recovering. >> and the fukushima accident

sparked anti-nuclear protests across japan ahead of the upper house election. we'll look at why those demonstrations dwindled. egyptians are looking ahead to the weekend and worrying more turmoil will engulf their communities. members of ousted president mohamed morsi's power base the muslim brotherhood are calling for a mass rally on friday in cairo. they are protesting against the military for forcing morsi out of office and rounding up their leaders. prosecutors ordered the arrest of ten senior figures of the brotherhood, including mohammed badie, he's accused of inciting violence in the capital on monday. more than 50 people were killed in a crash between demonstrators and security forces. members of the muslim brotherhood released an online message. they say they will reject the military coup and restore the peaceful resolution of 2011 and they pledge they are ready to sacrifice their lives to regain

their dignity. the military deposed morsi a week ago. the interim prime minister called on the political wing on the brotherhood, the freedom and justice party, to join a caretaker government, but the party rejected the invitation, saying it won't cooperate with a coup. senior government officials in the united states are calling on chinese authorities to end cyber attacks aimed at american targets. representatives of both countries are meeting in washington at the strategic and economic dialogue. a high-ranking u.s. official revealed the americans criticize the chinese for hacking into u.s. government and private sector computers. he said they demanded chinese leaders take action to stop electronic theft for commercial gain. it's unclear how the chinese delegates responded. chinese officials are thought to have raised their own concerns over the alleged hacking over computers in china by american agents. former u.s. intelligence

contractor edward snowden raised those claims last month. the delegates agreed to hold a working level meeting on the issue later this year. u.s. and chinese representatives were of the same mind on north korea. delegates agreed their countries should work together towards the denuclearization of the korean peninsula and confirmed the need to fully implement u.n. security council resolutions targeting the north's leaders. they held a special session on global warming too. delegates agreed to cooperate on five areas including cutting exhaust from vehicles, cutting greenhouse emissions and developing power grids using information technology. the two countries will compile a set of action plans. they aim to conclude a new international accord on climate change by 2015. the dialogue is an annual event. the delegates will discuss security issues on the second and final day.

a u.s. report says china has the world's most active and diverse missile program. they are increasing nuclear warheads that can reach the u.s. experts at the national air and space intelligence center compiled the assessment. the report says china has been deploying the dong fang 31a intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of more than 11,000 kilometers putting the u.s. mainland within reach. china also starting to deploy anti-ship missiles. the country wants to prevent u.s. aircraft carriers from getting near chinese waters. china is expected to deploy a new submarine launch jl-2 ballistic missile to target parts of the u.s. the report says china could raise the number of nuclear warheads capable of hitting the u.s. to well over 100 within the next 15 years. investigators probing the crash of asiana airlines flight

214 are focusing on the plane's speed control device. they're trying to figure out whether the pilots fully understood the settings of the automatic throttles. the crash killed two people and injured more than 180 others. the national transportation safety board's investigation suggests a significant loss of speed led to the failed landing on saturday at san francisco international airport. the captain told ntsb officials that the plane's auto throttles were not working as the crew expected. the system automatically provides thrust to the plane when its speed falls below a preset level. this helps the pilot to focus on the controls. ntsb chair deborah hersman shows data on the flight recorder show multiple auto throttle and pilot modes in the 2 1/2 minutes before the crash. >> we need to understand what those modes were, if they were commanded by the pilots, if they

were activated inadvertently, if the pilots understood what the mode was doing. >> a spokesperson for south korea's transport ministry says investigators will move the wreckage from the runway to another location at the airport. he says the team will conduct a detailed examination along with experts from the manufacturer boeing. a twin bomb attack in afghanistan has killed security officers and civilians. no group has claimed responsibility. the attack happened in helmand province. a.p. reports three civilians died when their car struck a roadside bomb. a second explosion went off as police arrived on the scene. two officers died. a provincial government spokesperson says they were members of the afghan national

civil order police. the unit receives special training from nato forces. taliban insurgents often use improvised explosive devices or ieds to target afghan and international security forces. u.s. defense officials say 70% of ieds contain chemicals smuggled into the country from pakistan. the pakistani military announced in may that its forces could start cracking down on the smugglers. a tie appears to be failing in two provinces. the two sides agreed last month to lower tension during the muslim holy month of ramadan. but an explosion yesterday injured eight thai soldiers. the soldiers were traveling in a military vehicle hit by a roadside bomb. the soldiers were assigned to protect school teachers. they've become targets for

militants who want children to receive an islamic education. the explosion came just one day after the beginning of ramadan despite an agreement both sides should lower violence during the muslim festival. separatists in the predominantly buddhist country have been fighting for autonomy for almost a decade. at least 160 educators have been killed during that time. policymakers at japan's central bank say the economic turnaround is official. they've upgraded their assessment for the seventh straight month, and they've used the term recovery for the first time in two and a half years. members of the bank of japan's policy board have wrapped up their two-day meeting. they said japan's economy is starting to recover moderately, an upward revision from their

previous assessment it was picking up. the board members cited a rise in exports and production as well as solid consumer spending. they said business sentiment is improving in a wide range of industries. they unanimously agreed to continue the monetary easing measures introduced in april. the goal is to achieve an inflation target of 2%. and decided to keep the current forecast that inflation will reach 1.9% in marge. karuda says policymakers seek a way in business investment. >> translator: companies have begun spending from their income, which in effect sets in motion a positive cycle of fund flows. >> he added the recovery has become evident not just in the upward trend in the markets but also the economy. he said the economy is moving in the direction the central bank had anticipated. when asked about anxiety surrounding china's economic

slowdown, he expressed concerns over the country's unsupervised capital transactions by nonbanking institutions. >> translator: i don't think significant uncertainties lie ahead for china's economy, but we need to closely watch developments in the country including shadow banking. >> business leaders had a mixed reaction to the b.o.j.'s upgraded assessment of the economy. >> translator: consumption is the main driver of the recovery. a weaker yen is driving exports. the b.o.j.'s assessment supports signs of an economic recovery. >> translator: as we see it, the

japanese economy has really just begun the process of returning to normal. >> translator: prime minister and his economic policies must have brought a positive mood, especially among consumers in urban areas. the problem is that the recovery has not trickled down to rural communities. >> japanese officials have some other figures to back up their economic assessment. the cabinet office reports that marine ri orders rebounded in may. the increase is better than analysts had expected. officials say orders came to about $8 billion, the largest amount since october 2008. compared to april, orders rose by 10.5%. the data exclude orders for ships and power utilities which tend to show significant fluctuations. orders from nonmanufacturing businesses led the increase jumping by more than 25%. the sector includes companies

involved in finance and insurance as well as transportation, postal services and telecommunications. orders by manufacturers rose by 3.8%. the figures a key indicator of capital investment by businesses. brazil's central bank has raised its policy interest rate. this is aimed at tackling inflation rather than stimulating the economy. policymakers at the central bank hiked the key rate by 0.5% to 8.5%. soaring food prices in the country have caused the annual inflation rate to rise to 6.7% last month. this tops the bank's upper limit of 6.5%. people took to the streets during last month's major soccer event. they demanded the government should take action to fight inflation. the brazilian real's weakness is also threatening to push up the prices of imports and fuel more

inflation. the real has followed more than 10% during the dollar over the last one month. here are the latest market figures. people in japan are ten days away from a vote that could alter their political landscape. they'll be casting ballots in an upper house election. prime minister shinzo abe and his ruling liberal democrats are campaigning hard for support.

they're trying to consolidate their power. abe and the ldp controlled the lower house, but opposition parties hold the majority of seats in the upper chamber. and that's created a divided diet where passing legislation can be tricky. in the days leading up to when japan decides, we'll be looking at some of the key campaign issues and hearing from voters about what matters to them. candidates from these nine parties are running in the election. the groups qualified for political party status. they include long-established parties and others that are relatively new on the scene. several groups that failed to meet the standards are still fielding candidates. in all, 433 candidates including independents are running in this election. now, if you ask people in japan to list the issues that will be on the top of their minds when they go to the polls, many will mention energy policy. the future of nuclear power has been a matter of public debate since 2011 when an accident

crippled a plant in fukushima. eventually all of japan's 50 commercial reactors were offline. citizens launched demonstrations last year against a decision to restart two units, but since then the passion for protest has faded. nhk world went to find out why. >> reporter: the aftermath of the 2011 nuclear accident prompted protest after protest against atomic energy. and plans to restart idled reactors. sometimes thousands of people gathered, sometimes hundreds of ousands. this man organized some of the demonstrations. he was thrilled people showed so much passion. >> more than 60% of the japanese people, especially these citizens of society opinion is very strong against nuclear

power plants. >> reporter: month by month he watched their passion fade as people shifted their focus to other issues. >> translator: reconstruction from the disaster is much more important than the nuclear issue. >> translator: nuclear plants are a complex issue because there are so many points of view. i don't have an instant opinion. >> translator: i would like to see nuclear power plants restart. electric bills are too expensive. >> reporter: he is trying to reignite a nationwide discussion about the use of nuclear energy. >> we lose opportunity really to shift our society to the nuclear power. >> reporter: he says he's

frustrated japanese seem to have forgotten about the risks nuclear plants pose. without nuclear power, utility companies are importing more oil and gas. they've started to pass those costs onto their customers. they've been pushing to restart reactors. so have the executives of big corporations. they say japan needs a stable energy source. prime minister shinzo abe and his ruling liberal democratic party have been making the same argument. they support the nuclear industry provided it's well regulated. power pla e pow. >> translator: power plants should be restarted with judgment. >> reporter: leaders of opposition parties all say they

want to abolish nuclear energy in the future, but so far they've failed to present concrete ways of achieving it. the fukushima accident exposed the risks and expense associated with nuclear power. but yoshioka says japanese have become complacent. >> day by day the memory of what impression of march 11th is going back. >> reporter: the company started the process of restarting nuclear power plants, but we must not let the memories of march 11, 2011 fade regardless of our personal views on nuclear energy, it's clear that more debates on how to power the country is essential. nhk world, tokyo. >> we'll be covering a number of different issues ahead of the

upper house election. on friday we'll examine the diplomatic challenges japanese leaders face from relations with the u.s. to ties with neighboring countries china and south korea. prime minister shinzo abe has worked to reshape japan's economy and get back to growth. now, he's setting his sights on amending the constitution, but his party must make a strong showing in this month's upper house election so it can push its policies forward. less than a year after putting abe in power, japanese voters have a chance to judge him on his record. don't miss our special coverage leading up to the july 21st election. right here on "newsline." the july grand sumo tournament finished its fifth day on thursday. our sumo reporter, hiro morita, has analysis of the initial stage of the competition. >> the main player is ozeki

champion first to make rikishi in 15 years. he was beaten on day three, so he can't afford to lose anymore bouts. he's also trying to become the first home grown rikishi in over seven years to win the emperor's cup. he gets aggressive. he overwhelms the yokozuna want-to-be. his chances of making yokozuna this tournament are out the window. more than anything, he failed because of the tremendous pressure on him to rise to the top rank. now, i know it's way too early to predict the championship winner, but yokozuna grand champion hakuho is definitely the man to beat. he's won each of the last two tournaments with no losses, and

he's 5-0 in the current competition. having said that, i could sense his winning streak may be coming to an end. let me explain my observation. here he got himself in a decent attacking position a number of times but kept struggling to put him away. i think he's out of shape due to a lack of quality practice sessions. in this bout the yokozuna knocks him out. hakuho's ability to quickly react and recover has enabled him to win 35 bouts in a row. it's very rare to see hakuho having difficulty. that's why i think his third consecutive perfect record championship will be hard to

come by. now, there's one more rikishi i would like to mention today. sokokurai from china. a bout-fixing allegation kept him out of ring for two years, but he's proved his innocence and returned to action. sokokurai lost his first two bouts but managed to win on day three. that was his first victory in 898 days. after five days sokokurai has two wins and three losses, it's tleer the 29-year-old chinese is still trying to get his ring sense back. let's hope he wraps up more wins to make a real comeback. a major typhoon is ready to hit japan's southern islands.

rachel ferguson is here with the details. rachel. so soulik is now heading towards taiwan as well. it's expected to make landfall in taiwan between friday and saturday overnight and then -- >> if it were a hurricane, it would be a category 2. so a very powerful system. the okinawa islands -- southern okinawa i should say, we're likely to see waves up to 12 meters and storm surge to 1.5 meters as well as the destructive over land winds that come along with it. you've got that storm surge that can cause flooding. and then also all of the rain

that's going to come off of the system. anywhere you're seeing in the orange about 200 millimeters is forecast in the next three days. you will see, i think, some adding to that as the system moves inland. after making way inland in china likely to become a tropical depression but even though the winds will die down, you're still likely to see a lot of rain. and it will be very unwelcome rain because china's already dealing with significant downpours, flooding and landslides. it's all to do with this front line extending out across the north. tohoku's had about 150 millimeters in the last 24 hours, portions of north korea as well. and into the next couple of days you're likely to see these daily rainfall totals of about 100, even up to 200 millimeters in some places sitchuan and china. not just the rain but also the heat. some very dry spells as well. now, the heat is extending in

southern japan in towards the shanghai region. we've got a couple of strong high pressure systems that are causing it. japan has been particularly suffering with that heat and some temperatures that recorded on thursday we'll show you just why that is nearing the 40 degree mark in places like hatoyama. into the weekend we are likely to see a little respite which is certainly good news from the mid-30s, upper 30s down to the low 30s in tokyo, nagoya as well as fukuoka. should feel a little more comfortable and alleviate that heat. into the americas, the eastern seaboard is likely to see thunderstorms all the way down in fact to the gulf states. we have another area of severe weather making its way along the u.s./canada border, alberta and north dakota are going to be dealing with that. you can even see tornadoes up here. it's this rain that's just developing there if you can spot it. and then down to the southwest we've got that monsoonal flow we've been talking about, thunderstorms here and the

potential for short-time heavy rain. that can cause flash flooding especially where it's been so dry and hot or even scorched where the earth has been scorched, just can't absorb that water and you can see flash flooding occurring. a lot of things to watch out for. the center of the u.s. down in towards the south still very, very hot here up to 36 degrees in oklahoma city. near the 30 degree mark up the eastern seaboard to new york city there looking settled and cooler up towards the northwest. now, quick look into europe and a quick look really because it's looking quite calm indeed. we're seeing some showers up towards the north and east here and the mediterranean still seeing those pop-up thunderstorms in the heat of the day. temperatures moderating, but it is still going to be absolutely scorching in madrid, 37 degrees. 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.

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