welcome to "newsline i'm michio kijima in tokyo with the news at this hour. the unrest in libya is expected to get even worse in the coming hours. forces fighting to oust colonel moammar gadhafi have called for nationwide rallies on friday. the rally organizers are urging people to gather after muslim prayers. similar protests last friday were met by militia men who opened fire on the protesters

killing and wounding a still unknown number of people. gadhafi loyalists remain on the offensive against northeastern strongholds on friday. the fighting was intense around strategic oil facilities. they attacked opposition held town of ajdabiya, about 150 kilometers from benghazi. speaking to western media, gadhafi's son described the areas as the nation's life line and vowed they would never be given up. gadhafi's opponents have also taken to the airwaves to get their message out. a radio station in the stronghold northeastern libya is calling on citizens to rise up. nhk world has that story.

>> reporter: a local radio station in al bayda, the voice of free libya. it used to be a state run radio station but sided with anti-government forces beginning last month. the station director is ali ashour, who is 56. the station director is 56. previously he had not been allowed to broadcast anything other than praise for colonel gadhafi, for which he felt ashamed. ast -government demonstrations month, and security troops killed more than 60 citizens. at the time many staff members gathered in ashour's office. they all resolved to stop broadcasting government propaganda and to support the demonstrators.

>> reporter: the aspirations of freedom-seeking young people support ashour's belief. hanza, the second son of ali, took part in the demonstrations and suffered head and leg injuries after clashing with security forces. >> reporter: through broadcasting, ashour is trying to inspire people towards the decisive battle against the

gadhafi regime. >> reporter: citizens of libya have stood up in pursuit of freedom. they have been supported by a local station that has rebelled against the dictatorial government. nhk world, watanabe, benghazi. saudi arabia has become the latest country in north africa and the east to face a threat of anti-government demonstrations. the country's security forces have been put on alert after a call was put out for a mass protest on friday. the online call was made by minority shia muslims who are seeking the release of the

prominent cleric who was detained by authorities last week after demanding an end. there have been the call for small scale demonstrations recently in the country. now, the conflict in north africa and the middle east has created concerns about the global oil supply. the message from the united states, don't worry. >> there is still considerable spare oil production capacity globally and the united states and other major economic economies possess substantial strategic reserves of oil. >> treasury secretary geithner testified thursday before a u.s. senate committee. he said united states is ready to coordinate closely with international financial institutions such as world bank to extend support to middle east and north african nations. now to new zealand. the grim search for survivors of last week's devastating

in christchurch continued -- earthquake in christchurch continued on friday. authorities say the search is focused on the collapsed building where many people are believe to be trapped. 163 people have been confirmed dead in the quake. the number of dead and missing is expected to total about 220. police are trying to identify the remains of those recovered. a japanese rescue team along with teams from new zealand and china, continue search operations at the site of the collapsed ctv building. it housed a language school attended by international students, including japanese. a disaster relief task force says work to remove debris at the site is nearing its end. >> we expect the ctv operation to be completed within the next two to three days. >> meanwhile, many family members of the 28 missing japanese are returning to japan.

among the 28 japanese who remain unaccounted for in christchurch are a number of nurses. they were studying english there. why are japanese nurses going a abroad to study and work? nhk world found out. >> reporter: nhk world found out. >> reporter: noriko is one of the missing japanese who left for christchurch in january. after working as a nurse in japan for about seven years, she went overseas in the hope of acquiring english skills and becoming involved with international nursing activities. she had taken part in the activities of a nonprofit

organization in cambodia. a doctor, who also was a teammate, praises her. >> translator: she's cheerful and positive about everything. i think she is an excellent nurse. >> reporter: her school offered english for nurses who wanted to work overseas. many japanese nurses were in the school in christchurch when it collapsed. this woman has been a nurse for six years. just like others, she wants to work in developing countries or a disaster site in the future. >> translator: i want to help others.

hopefully my presence will make things better. >> reporter: now she's able to better communicate with the patients. >> do you think as a nurse you could have done something for this canadian girl? >> reporter: she's determined to learn english so she can take part in overseas activities. >> i think it's important to find the reason. >> translator: i have been interested in english for a long time. i have also been a nurse. i want to take part in activities by merging the two. one option is to work overseas through the red cross. >> reporter: four nurses in the hospital where she works have

sufficient nursing experience and english skills. they have taken part in overseas activities, including working at disaster sites. those senior nurses with overseas experience are her model. noriko has taken part in overseas activities and was dispatched to haiti after the massive earthquake hit that country. her first experience in working overseas came 16 years ago. she was sent to pakistan to treat injured refugees from neighboring afghanistan. since then she has been involved in rescue missions, including one in east timo. she says that the number of japanese nurses who want to work

overseas is increasing. >> translator: today there are many ngos and many ways to get information such as through the internet and television. nurses are now able to select the information they need. >> reporter: she is starting english in japan. she says seeing the damage caused by the recent quake in new zealand renewed her resolve to continue her effort. >> translator: a natural disaster just happens. it's no one's fault. people in the quake-stricken area are having a difficult time. someday i want to be able to help such people. the father of missing

student noriko otsubo is now in christchurch. he said it might take a long time to confirm his daughter's fate. he's going to stay in the city until saturday in the hope of getting more information. that was our report from osaka. china's military is about to get a whole lot stronger. the country is investing major money into its defense budget creating anxiety in asia and in the united states. this is what the breakdown looks like. china's military spending will jump by 12.7%. that adds up to an investment of $91.5 billion. some experts say the total could be even higher. the official spending announcement happened on friday, a day before the opening of china's national people's congress.

china's defense spending made double digit increases for 20 years in a row until 2009 but fell to single digit growth last year. while many nations are cutting back on their defense budgets because of tighter finances, china's military spending is set to more than double what it was five years ago. the u.s. government by far leads the world in defense spending with $708 billion set aside for fiscal 2011. britain is another leader in this area. its defense budget for 2010 reached nearly $60 billion. japan and france are each setting aside nearly $59 billion for 2011. let's go to beijing now. nhk world's lisa komiya joins us with more details on china's defense budget. lisa. >> reporter: now that china is the world's second largest economy in terms of gdp, it's apparently aiming to have strong military forces to match its economic power.

the national people's congress spokesman said china's military spending is rather low by international standards. he said it amounts to less than 2% of the country's gross domestic product. however, he did not disclose how much the chinese government has set aside for military research and development costs. china has been modifying an aircraft carrier purchased from the ukraine as part of its efforts to strengthen its naval forces. on top of that the military build-up includes the development of the j-20, a next generation stealth fighter. a prototype of the jet was test flown in january. china is also developing an anti-ship ballistic missile by altering an ordinary ballistic missile and anti-satellite missile. this will give it the ability to destroy the communication system of its enemies. observers say this military spending announcement is likely to spark more international calls for china to be transparent as it builds and modernizes its military. lisa komiya, nhk world, beijing. >> nhk junko joins us with the

japanese perspective on the story. what impact will china's increase in defense spending have on japan? >> the japanese government is more concerned with the right of china's navy. the waters around southwestern part of japan territories have become dangerous. last april chinese naval fleet sailed east passing between okinawa's main island and the smaller island. china has also carried out naval exercises close to japanese territorial waters. then last september a chinese fishing vessel collided with two japan coast guard ships near the senkaku islands. they're japanese territory, but china claims them as its own. >> so what is japan doing to counter china's growing presence in and around this territorial waters? >> the government is investing more in defending these remote islands. this was approved in its new defense guidelines in december. japan is also trying to

strengthen its alliance with the u.s., but with the majority of american military bases on okinawa's main island, local people are growing tired of shouldering the burden. the central government and the okinawa government are at odds over how to deal with the american military presence in the future. this is having an impact on the japan-u.s. alliance. >> is the u.s. also concerned about china's military might? >> yes. experts say they still have the dominant military presence in eastern asia but the country is anxious about china's intentions regarding its investment in military technology and personnel. >> what i just have not been able to crack is the why on some of these capabilities. whether it's this, whether it's anti-satellite, whether it's anti-chip. many of these capabilities seem to be focused very specifically on the united states. >> the united states issued its national military strategy report last month. the document said the u.s. will

maintain a strong military presence in northeast asia for decades. it also says it will strengthen military cooperation with japan and south korea. asean countries and india will get more attention. these nations share the same concerns about china's military build-up. >> are you saying the u.s. is trying to form some kind of coalition against china? >> it seems that way, but at the same time they are trying to maintain dialogue. u.s. and china officially agreed in january to rejoin military exchanges after suspending them for almost a year. chinese leaders were angry about the u.s. decision to sell weapons to taiwan. through talk and maybe a little pressure, the obama administration is aiming to encourage china to play a constructive role in asia. >> thanks. nhk world's junko noda. junko told us a couple of minutes about a chinese trawler

getting into trouble in japanese waters. the same thing just happened in south korean waters and it's not the first time. south korean coast guard officials shot a crewman as they tried to board a trawler that was suspected of illegal fishing in the yellow sea. the coast guard says it happened on thursday when seven chinese fishing boats were spotted operating illegally in south korea's exclusive economic zone in the yellow sea. coast guard officials say two chinese boats rammed into one of the patrol vessels as its officers attempted to board one of the boats. in the ensuing fight, one chinese man was shot in the leg. a south korean officer was beaten with a hammer. in december a chinese crewman died and another went missing after a south korean coast guard vessel collided with chinese fishing boat operating illegally in south korean waters. the coast guard questioned the crew, but later released them. south korea is also dealing with a hostile environment online. hackers have attacked websites belonging to its government in a number of its corporations

temporarily disabling them. south korean authorities are eyeing north korea as a possible culprit. 29 websites were simultaneously flooded with massive amounts of data twice on friday. the sites include those of the presidential office, the foreign ministry and major commercial banks. similar attacks occurred in july 2009 targeting government websites in south korea and the united states. computers in the u.s. white house and state department were among those affected. at the time, south korea's intelligence agency said north korea could have been behind the attacks. the agency says friday's activities resembled the 2009 attacks. they cannot rule out the possibility of north korean involvement. the south korean government is urging at-risk organizations to be on the alert against further attacks. the united states is talking with its allies about plans to get the u.n. security council to come down hard on north korea. it's in reaction to the uranium

enrichment program of the north. assistant secretary of state philip crowley updated reporters on thursday. it became clear last november north korea was operating a new facility in yongbyon. u.s., japan and other nations has urged security council to make a statement condemning the north. they say the facility violates past u.n. resolutions. discussions have been stalled because china remains cautious on the proposal. the u.s. statement is apparently timed to increase pressure on the chinese government. china holds the rotating president of the u.n. security council this month. a shocking story out of western japan. police have arrested a 20-year-old university student who is accused of abandoning the 3-year-old girl. the body was found at a supermarket. the victim became separated from her parents and brother inside a store. surveillance footage showed the

child entering the rest room alone followed soon afterward by a man. police apprehended a suspect who matched the appearance of the man in the video. they found the body in a ditch about 800 meters north of the supermarket. they later confirmed it belonged to the missing girl. investigators say the 20-year-old admitted he followed the girl into the bathroom and killed her. he's a second year student at a private university. now time to check on some of the stories we gathered from broadcasters from around asia. from a panda video that's turned into an online hit. you're going to love this. to a human trafficking. first this story from hong kong. unesco announced one of the winners of this year's women in science award is hong kong chemist. the announcement made on friday. the 47-year-old chemistry and energy professor was nominated for her contribution in developing light

emitting materials and innovative ways of tapping solar energy. the award is given to five outstanding female scientists around the world. the other four winners are from kuwait, sweden, mexico, and the united states. the prime minister says his government will take all measures to put an end to illegal immigration to australia via malaysia. he made the remark on thursday during a three-day visit to cambria. representatives from africa and south asia are using malaysia to enter australia at a transit point to enter on rickety boats. an australian plan to set up a detention center for refugees will be taken up at a meeting in bali next week. the meeting is devoted to combating human smuggling and related transatlantic crimes in the region and beyond. a video from china's cctv of baby pandas in an utterly playful mood is proving to be an

instant online hit. the cute and cuddly cubs are seen jumping up and down on a cot and sometimes limb locked in a rumpus. in just a few days the anonymously uploaded clip has become a popular choice for hundreds. hello again. time for another update on the world's weather. looks like it's going to be dry across much of continental eastern asia as we head into the weekend. a bit of cloud cover to the north, maybe even a few snow showers spreading across northern and northeastern locations of china. it's down to the south that we're going to see more significant precipitation. and this is going to be rain. it's going to be a bit heavy at times. and after that spreading up towards japan on sunday, but for the time being, japan's going to be very dry. in fact, snow moving out, temperatures on the up as high pressure spreads in. elsewhere is also looking pretty

settled on the korean peninsula. and down towards the philippines we will see more heavy rains, unfortunately, and gale-force winds. here are your temperatures. 31 degrees in manila, 35 in bangkok with thunderstorms, rain showers in hong kong, 21 for the high. you should see some good sunshine also. 20 in taipei, a cloudy day with 10 degree in tokyo, clear skies here and 13 in beijing. we go now to north america. our western storm is actually broken up a little bit. but there is another round of moisture coming in. so you won't notice too much of a difference if you're anywhere up the pacific northwest into british columbia. there's going to be weakening winds, so that is one thing on saturday. certainly more coastal rain and more snow spreading in, as well. let's look to the east and talk about what's happening here. the big storm developing is going to be pushing snow across eastern canada and the great lakes. you could see about 30 centimeters of it. and south of that from iowa up in towards new england, freezing rain for you. south of that, in the midwest,

we are going to be seeing the potential for flooding as heavy rain pours in. and then down towards the south, the potential for some severe weather. flooding rains, thunderstorms, damaging winds, large hail all on the menu, maybe even tornadoes as well. temperature wise, warming up a little in the midwest, 11 degrees in chicago, 5 in toronto, and 3 in new york city, 11 in washington, d.c., in the mid-20s for houston, miami, and mexico. 23 in los angeles, a cooler day in denver at 7 and minus 12 for you in winnipeg. going into europe then next, we have more heavy rain forecast for southern portions of italy. it has been a bad week for you. lots of thunderstorms moving through. you've had a lot of snow, as well. even in the lower lying areas. looks like there's going to be more heavy rain for you. elsewhere along the mediterranean should be drying up, though. into iberia, you'll see gusty conditions and rain on and off for parts of southern spain and southern

portugal. north of that, all the way through the midsection of the continent staying dry and settled. then we have the big system up to the north. this one is going to be pretty gusty and then lots more snow for you in norway as well as through the baltic states and into northern russia. temperature wise things are getting cooler. 2 degrees in moscow, 4 in warsaw, 2 in kiev. into sunday, expect those to dip down a little more. meanwhile, 9 in vienna, fairly moderate here. 12 in rome, 14 in athens, 6 in london, a little cooler for you, 10 in paris and 9 in madrid. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast.

>> and that wraps up for now on "newsline." we'll be back with more news in

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