the longest serving leader in the modern arab world has been killed ending a 43 year dictatorship in libya. welcome to "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. libya's national transitional council says its forces have killed deposed leader muammar al gadhafi and one of his sons. rebels are celebrating in the capital of tripoli. the leader announce they are

captured the dictator in sirte. sirte was the last stronghold for gadhafi loyalists. gadhafi disappeared in august. while reportedly hiding in a suburb of sirte, he used satellite tv to call on his supporters to fight until the bitter end. crowds of libyans burst into songs of jubilations after the demise. to put an end to eight months of civil war. moous ta fa jaleel is expected to hold a conference on saturday and declare all of libya liberated. disagreements within the ntc are dlae ii ining launch. >> this marks the end of a long and painful chapter for the people of libya. who now have the opportunity to

determine their own destiny in a new and democratic libya. >> people in libya today have an even greater chance after this news of building themselves a strong and democratic future. >> france was also one of the leading countries. called the demise a milestone in the nation's battle to free itself from more than four decades of dictatorship. moon says it marks a shift for libya. >> the road ahead for libya and its people will be difficult and full of challenges. now is the time for all libyans to come together. >> muammar al gadhafi was the longest serving head of state in the arab world. >> reporter: gadhafi is said to have been born in 1942 to a family in northern libya. he took power in 1969 at the age

of 27 when he led a bloodless coo against the king. during his earliest years in power, he opposed the west. this led the united states to see him as a state sponsor of terrorism. in 1988 libya was blamed for the bombing of an air bomber over lockerbie. in which sanctions were imposed on the country. in 2003, libya accepted responsibility for the lockerbie bombing and said it would abandon its program of weapons of mass destruction. libya's relations with the west improved in later years thanks to its oil and gas reserves. gadhafi is known for his eccentric speeches and behavior. when traveling abroad, he brought along his own tent to sleep in. when he addressed the u.n.

general assembly in 2009, he criticized the international body and threw a copy of the u.n. charter on to the floor. in the wake of the fall of egyptian president hosni mubarak, antigovernment demonstrations began in libya in february. the protests gained momentum and were supported by senior military officers who had defected from the government forces. the government then deployed mercenaries to crack down on the protesters. >> reporter: by august, forces led with the traditional council had taken control of the capital. but the leader remained unknown and the troops remained to fight.

in other news, debt ridden greece has approved an austerity package. the country's parliament passed the bill and the firing of 30,000 civil servants. set by the european union and the international monetary fund in order for greece to receive additional loans. as parliament voted on new austerity measures, protesters filled the streets and staged a general strike. >> reporter: today is the second day of the massive strike. angry greek people is gathering in front of the parliament to protest against the austerity plans. the 48 hour strike continued on thursday involving transport and other public sector workers to

protest the introduction of further austerity measures. demonstrators carrying banners filled the main streets of the capital city of athens from early in the morning. >> translator: i can't pay the bills anymore. this country has zero future. >> translator: the government doesn't care about us. i won't stop until they drop the new bill. >> passage of the austerity legislation will likely fuel public anger toward the greek government. following the passage of an austerity bill in greece, eu leaders will decide on comprehensive measures to contain the credit crisis at meetings scheduled for this coming sunday and monday or

rather wednesday. that's sunday and wednesday. officials will discuss whether to further bolster the facility following an agreement to fund earlier this month. they will also talk about ways to boost the capital base of eurozone banks which have been suffering from price drops in some bonds. the eu leaders hope to present comprehensive measures early next month in order to win support from other countries. attention is focused on to what extent eu leaders already able to decide on details of the new measures. speaking of the eu summit, we speak to our business desk. original lu there was one summit scheduled now there's two. tell us about that. >> looks like there's been little progress made so far. that's why they need another meeting. eu leaders will hold a second summit next wednesday following the first one over this weekend.

a spokesperson told nhk on thursday that the sond meeting is to follow up the outcome of the sunday meeting. earlier nicolas sarkozy and merck el released a statement. it says -- to halt the european debt crisis. it's rare that two summit meetings are held with a short period of time. following the latest developments, let's get a check on the markets. the dow jones average edged higher after news of more progress on the eurozone debt problem. to see how things are kicking off in tokyo this friday morning, we kick it over to ramin. what can you tell us? >> very good morning to you. we did see the dow gets a boost there following the positive eurozone problems. as well as a strong figure for the philadelphia manufacturing index which came in above most forecasts. so that was a bit of a boost

there. but having a look now at the opening levels for the nikkei and the topix. we're down just marginally. the nikkei now down for the week. and market players maybe a littleesitant to make any big moves ahead of that key meeting of european leaders this weekend. but markets also aware as you were just saying about a second meeting and the results of that due next wednesday. so we might see some range trading or hesitant trading ahead of that. again, the currency markets will be affected there. but having a look at some of the levels there with the euro/yen, and dollar/yen. 76.84-86 at the dollar/yen.

you can see there's some hesitancy paying into the markets as well. as far as stocks, we're going to keep track of the auto sector here with the three japanese companies toyota honda and nissan which were all lower yesterday. and they're still hampered by the flooding in thailand which has hampered their production. also auto parts and suppliers going through the same. many of them have their production facilities in thailand making parts for the three big japanese auto makers. cannon, toshiba, pioneer which are all in thailand have seen disruption due to the flooding. now also markets gearing up for major japanese earnings reports next week. and no major economic data out of the u.s. today. so we'll be looking forward to those meetings regarding the european leaders and how that effects markets. back to you. >> thanks for that, ramin.

now in other news, the japanese government will keep a close watch over crude oil prices following the death of libya's muammar al gadhafi. the industry ministry says the death of the ousted leader will lead to a more stable crude oil market. if it brings law and order to the oil rich country. global oil prices have been volatile due to concerns over supplies as the ongoing social unrest in middle eastern and north african countries continued. however, the situation may cause further volatility if a power struggles. may delay the recovery of oil production facilities. let's get a recap of the latest market figures.

>> that's all for this hour is business news. back to catherine now. >> thanks very much. the governor of bangkok has expanded the areas on flood alert as the river starts to threaten the capital. central thailand has been hard hit by record heavy rain. and it's feared the flood waters will reach the capital on friday. on thursday night bangkok governor called on people in the capital's two northern districts to prepare for evacuation. this follows similar warnings issued to seven other districts earlier in the day. some have already been

inundated. the area includes an airport where the thai government has based its flood task force. the government plans to open flood gates and reroute water to the eastern part of the city in order to prevent the center of bangkok from being flooded. however, the plan would raise the risk of flooding in the eastern districts. officials earlier projected there would be no flooding in the capital and citizens are now criticizing the government for its lack of foresight. japanese prime minister yoshihiko noda stressed that identifying the kaucause of the nuclear accident and disclosing to the world is japan's duty. >> translator: our country experienced a massive accident. the lessons we learned must be shared with the international community. that is the biggest contribution

we can offer. we have been implementing technological renovations. as a result of the accident, we have to improve the safety of the technology. we would be glad to provide technological cooperation to the international community to offer our knowledge and contribute to the safety of nuclear power plants around the world. >> noda also said the government will try to decide on the best mix of nuclear and renewable energy by next summer. this plan is based on the idea of decreasing the country's dependency on nuclear power. regarding a u.s. led trade pact, the prime minister has made a new push to join multilateral talks in order to revive japan's economy. eliminates tariffs in the farm sector. and some in the country strongly a pose the tpp.

>> translator: farming is a very important industry and the base of japanese society. at the same time we are a trading economy. we have to maintain a balance between the two and take into account improving the global situation. there have been many discussions, but we shouldn't prolong them. at some point we have to reach a conclusion. once the rules are decided, it's possible that the hurdles may be too high for us. >> nhk world's political commentator nakajima joins us now. thank you for joining us. it's rare for prime minister noda to participate in a live interview. as if to avoid making inappropriate comments and getting criticism from the media. what changed noda's mind? >> noda has tried not be a show man. rather he tried motives. after one and a half month in office, many japanese have realized that he has done almost nothing except push for a tax

increase to cover the reconstruction of northeast japan. so he needs to sell his policies to the public. especially concerning the nuclear issue. even if he risks criticism from media. he must stop the disapproval rating. he knows if he loses more public support, getting help will be difficult. and in that case he would eventually be forced to resign or call a general election. in which his democratic party would likely lose. >> making a decision to get involved in the trade agreement or tpp has been very difficult for the japanese government. why is noda pushing it now? >> well, japan's population is ageing and shrinking. so the country needs to look overseas to rekindle growth. japanese businesses already

hampered by a strong yen. worried that they're competing less will further -- if the country left out of the trade impact. south korea which competes directly with japan has the trade agreement with the eu. while that pact was approved by the congress. >> the prime minister is facing strong opposition from the farming sector. but noda still aims for an early decision on the tpp. why is that? >> noda hopes to make the decision before november where he is supposed to hold summit talks with u.s. president president barack obama. noda wants to improve relations with united states. which former prime minister strained due to his thoughts on u.s. air base issue in okinawa. noda wants to convince people that join withing the tpp is the

only way for japan to survive even though it could hurt farmers by opening the door to cheaper products from overseas. the farm bureau, lobby remains a tough task for him though. >> we'll have to wait and see what happens there. thank you very much. nhk world's political commentator. "newsline" is the place to turn to for the latest on japan post-march 11th. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the earthquake and tsunami. "nuclear watch" brings you insight and information on the impact of the fukushima daiichi crisis. and "the road ahead" examines japan's efforts to recover and rebuild. don't miss "nuclear watch" and "the road ahead" on "newsline. sophie giem. critics say she's the best

ballerina of the era. she kicks off hope japan to aid victims of the march 11 disaster. she brought down the house at her opening performance. she says she'll give special performances at cities in the quake hit regions. ♪ >> at 46 years old, giem is still a major presence in today's theater scene. she became the youngest top ballerina in the ballet at age 19. now she dances with the companies around the world. she's well known for one pose. in this technique one leg is straightened up above her head while the other is on the ground. her passion for dance has inspired many artists to create works.

giem decided to dedicate the well known ballet to people affected by the disaster. she held a conference to tell reporters why she decided to undertake this tour. she is known for her reluctance to appear on television. >> translator: i was following the news on the march 11th disaster on the internet. i was shocked to see the situation worsening. i felt powerless. i started to think about what i could do. >> guillem says she will be in two in iwate prefecture and one in fukushima prefecture.

>> translator: i wanted to go there to meet with people who were suffering. to offer mental support so they could move forward. guillem has visited japan over 40 times in her career. she says she wants to empower people through her dance. >> translator: i came to japan because it's facing a difficult situation. it's good to be with the people at times like these. i've come here to hold their hands. that's my wish. hope and duty as a human being. >> she is touring the country until november 13th. she hopes to help restore hope to people throughout japan.

now let's take a look at the global weather forecast. >> hello. welcome to your weather update. in japan, sunny weather has finally come to an end. we're facing wet weather from the west. humid air continues to blow into western japan and is creating thundershowers. we're expecting over 150 millimeters of rain in a wide area. but shikoku will be seeing as much as 250 millimeters. so definitely stay on the watch for flooding and landslides. the rain will move to central japan by tonight. as for the korean peninsula, it's wet to the south. the rain will move to the north into saturday. meanwhile, some light to moderate precipitation can be found across inland china. the rain will spread to central china in the next 24 hours.

down towards the south, it's still thundery across theina pe philippines throughout the day. temperatures are shaping up like is. tokyo is expecting to be 21 degrees. in bangkok, 33 degrees and overcast with the chance of thundershowers. heading over to the americas then. a large low pressure system continues to bring wet and windy conditions across the eastern great lakes region and eastern canada. things are getting drier here, but instead eastern canada will remain wet throughout friday. out towards the west, another round of rain is effecting much of british columbia as well as parts of oregon. otherwise it's dry across much of the u.s. and central canada. temperatures looking like this. we are expecting 12 degrees in vancouver and 14 in seattle.

houston will return to a seasonal 28 degrees and 22 in oklahoma city. finally let's go over to europe. a system is moving through the northern british isles spreadine southern scandinavian peninsula. cold winds expected. down towards the south, severe weather can be found throughout italy as well as the balkan peninsula. the west peninsula will remain wet throughout friday. on the other hand it stays dry and settled across continental europe. we're expecting 11 degrees in paris, 10 in berlin, and 8 in warsaw. but 20 degrees in madrid and 25 in lisbon. here is your extended forecast.

our lead story this hour, libya's national transitional council says its forces have killed deposed leader muammar al gadhafi and one of his sons. citizens are celebrating in the capital tripoli. the ntc leader announced that its fighters have killed gadhafi and his fourth son. that was in sirte, central libya. sirte s the last stronghold for gadhafi loyalists. he disappeared when the council

took control of tripoli in august. while reportedly hiding in a suburb of sirte, he used satellite tv to call on hitz supporters to fight unti the bitter end. crowds in libya burst into songs of jubilation. the demise is likely to put an end to eight months of civil war. jalil is to declare all of libya liberated. however, many challenges remain before a democratic nation can be established. disagreements within the ntc are delaying the launch of an interim government. and that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. do stay with us. we'll be back with more of your updates at the top of the next hour. hope to see you then.