syrian town 5 kilometers south of the turkish border. it lies north of aleppo. the scene of heavy fighting between the rebels and regime forces. rebels seized the town last month after a string of bloody street battles. traces of fighting can be seen everywhere. burned down gas stations, shop fronts damaged by shells and abandoned homes. this is the place where the fiercest battle erupted. in front of this mosque, there remains several tanks and armored vehicles burned down. children smile as they pose on top of the tank, but life for the residents is a continuous struggle. food and gasoline are scarce.

many people line up at a shop run by the rebel forces. it provides bread at half the market price. >> translator: there's no food or gasoline, and i have no job. >> translator: i want the assad regime to go and syria to become a safe place. >> rebels set up a makeshift checkpoint and keep a close eye on intruders. they say the residents who fled are coming back, but as many as 20,000 have yet to return. rebels may have won the battle in this town, but for residents the fight for survival

continues. nhk world in northern syria. the former prime minister of syria says the government is falling apart. he's the highest ranking official ever to defect. he is the assad government is crumbling under the pressure of the fighting. he's now in jordan, and he said forces loyal to assad control no more than 30% of syrian territory. he said the regime is collapsing, morally, materially and financially. he stressed the need to stop the bloodshed. he urged officials to break away from the regime. he was prime minister until earlier in month. he quit the government and fled to jordan with his family with the support of anti-government forces. assad has appointed a new head of government in place of him. officials with the united nations refugee agency say more and more syrians have fled the

country. aid workers with the u.n. high commissioner for refugees have registered more than 150,000 syrians who have crossed the border into neighboring countries. u.n. officials say the number of people escaping into turkey has doubled since last week. about 10,000 have fled in the last ten days ago. turkey has taken in about 60,000. jordan has 46,000 and lebanon 37,000. aid workers estimate the actual figure may exceed 200,000 once they finished registering all those on the run. they say turkey and lebanon cannot accept any more. the agency plans to set up new refugee camps with cooperation from other countries. world war ii ended 67 years ago this month, but there's unfinished business left over from the conflict. government officials from japan and north korea are preparing for talking about one issue, the

repate yags of the remains of japanese that dies on the korean pence ala. they plan to meet later this month. the discussions are scheduled for august 29th. they follow a two-day meeting last week in beijing between japanese and north korean red cross officials. the groups discussed the return of the remains and possible visits by relatives to the graves of their loved ones in north korea. both sides aagreed on the need for government help to settle the matter. the repate yags talks later this month are the first intergovernmental dialogue since 2008. the last discussion was on the sensitive issue of abductions of japanese nationals by north korean agents. >> translator: the governments of japan and north korea need to address pending issues that lie between them. these include the abduction

issue. >> more than 34,000 japanese are believed to have been died on the korean peninsula at the end of world war ii. the remains of more than 20,000 have not been returned to japan. the mentor and uncle of kim jong-un is on a mission to do more business with north korea's closest ally. he's visiting china. he met with the chinese commerce submissioner and they developments near the chinese border. they agreed to speed up inf infrastructu infrastructure. north korean officials place top priority on improving the standard of living. they say they hope to rebuild the economy. a record heatwave in the united states has led a nuclear plant to shut down after the water used to cool down the turbine became too warm. the operator of the millstone

power station in connecticut says it shut down one of its two reactors on monday morning. the utility says the temperature on seawater used to cool the turbine and other equipment rose beyond the safety limits 23.8 degrees celsius. it's the first time the reactor has shut down due to excessively warm water since the plant began operating in 1975. u.s. retail sales were up in july. that's a gain for the first time in four months. the rise was due to stronger personal spending across all sectors. this suggests an improvement in the u.s. economy together with july's jobs data that came in above most forecast. the u.s. commerce department said on tuesday that total sales at u.s. retailers amounted to under $404 billion last month. that's up 0.8% from june and

higher than the prediction of about 0.2%. gasoline sales rose half a percent after showing a declining trend. sales of cars and auto parts were up 0.8%. department store sales rose by 0.6% while sales at furniture and home improvement centers rose 1.1%. japan's move to raise its consumption tax is seen as a slight positive factor. an analyst at a u.s. credit rating agency says the tax bill is a step forward, but it will not lead to an upgrade in the country's rating. at standard & poor's they said even if the tax hike brings in $130 billion in extra revenue a year, social security costs will also continue to grow as the population ages. he also pointed out the government bonds that japan issues. they amount to $500 billion

every year. >> translator: japan needs to pave the way for comprehensive reform on both its spending and tax revenue. it will be very important to keep both under control. >> ogawa added the unstable political situation is the biggest risk to fiscal restructuring. he said that as the government changes almost every year, japanese lawmakers cannot implement drastic reforms. last friday the bill on the higher consumption tax was passed. it will raise the rate to 10% by 2015. fashion retailer uniqlo has more than 1,000 stores worldwide from fifth avenue in new york to shanghai. its founder hopes to make it the number one retailer in the next decade. nhk world spoke with him about how he plans to achieve that goal.

>> reporter: dominating the asian market is the key to the bid to become the biggest retailer in the world. that's despite a recent economic slowdown in china and other asian countries. >> translator: we plan to open 1,000 stores in china and another 1,000 in the rest of asia within the next ten years. we're already seeing a power shift from europe and the u.s. to asia. the age of asia has no doubt arrived, and this it trend will continue. this may not be so obvious in the short term, but in the medium to long term, we'll see a huge jump in asian growth. >> with labor costs rising in china, how will that affect the business model a low cost quality producer of fashion?

>> translator: even though labor costs are rising in china, production efficiency is still better there than in any other country. at the same time china is a major consumer of goods. the standard of living is on the rise. domestic demand is growing, and we want to be part of that market. >> he also confirmed plans to launch productionmyanmar. the nation is considered to be asia's final frontier. >> translator: myanmar is also a very good market. it's been under military rule, made in myanmar products used to invoke a very negative reaction and couldn't be sold, especially in the u.s. and europe. now na myanmar is on the road to democracy, i think we can start making our products there.

>> bringing g.u. into asia is another strategy for dominating the region. the label is now only sold in japan. >> translator: we also have plans to bring g.u. to asia in the near future. the products are around half the price of uniqlo and considered affordable even within asia. they're basic and fashionable, but we want to refine the brand further. we believe it's suitable for the asian market and will be well received by consumers. >> within the next decade he's determined to make it the number one global fashion retailer. how confident do you think -- are you of achieving that goal? >> translator: it's not so much about having the confidence to achieve this goal or not, but rather we have to take up this

challenge as a company. many japanese companies have lost that spirit of challenge. regardless of the chance of success, our mission is to continue betting on the future. or there will be no future to speak of. >> that was the ceo of fast retailing. hiroshima, nagasaki, the atomic bombings marked a brutal conclusion to a brutal conflict. world war ii ended 67 years ago this month. "newsline" is looking back on the lessons of 1945 from the fight to abolish nuclear weapons to the efforts of younger generations to promote peace. our special coverage "war to peace: lessons of 1945" continues until friday, august 17th. japan is marking the 67th anniversary of the end of world

war ii. people across the country are mourning those who died and praying for peace. about 6,000 people are expected to attend a memorial in tokyo. prime minister noda will speak at the ceremony. then participants will observe a moment of silence and the emperor will give an address. relatives will leave flowers to honor the memory of about 3 million war dead. the aatomic bombing offer hiroshima and the tsunami of march 11th 20shgs, 2011, two ve different kinds of disaster but they found a common lesson they had to express in song. we have more. >> this 80-year-old lives in los angeles. she survived the atomic bombing of shear sheem ma in 1945. she was 13 years old at the time.

>> translator: i felt this tremendous blast. he didn't know what it was. the blast knocked me down really hard. >> the explosion burned one-quarter of her body, her fingers were permanently dig figured and her neck left stick by protruding scars. ten years after the bombing, she still was recovering and got a chance to travel to the u.s. with a charity program organized by american citizens and doctors to help atomic bomb survivors receive plastic surgery. >> eventually she moved to america where she became a nurse. she later began traveling around the world invited to tell her personal story of survival and to make a plea for peace.

>> nature like an earthquake and tsunami, those things people cannot help. the tragedy. but war and the bombs, they're human doing. so we shouldn't do that. >> she has long sought ways to reach out with hermesage emphasizing the importance of human bonding in achieving peace. >> i think that the more that people invest in each other, the better off we'll be. that's exactly what i feel like she's saying. we need to love and give back, and that's how we grow. >> in 2009 she found the perfect partner to help spread her message. this well-known japanese singer has sang for peace throughout her career. when they realized they shared a common passion, they decided to

collaborate on a song. two years after they met, she narrowly survived the march 11th disaster in northeastern japan. she herself realized the importance of human connection in overcoming adversity. on july 24th this year, they performed their stoong for the first time in the united states. it was translated into english except one word that was left in japanese. >> it is a prayer for human connection in love and achieving peace in the world.

>> my experience of the atomic bo bomb, no, never repeat again. >> translator: when i think of these children and the world that aawaiwaits them, i can't s still. we are given this appreciatipre, so we have to stand up for the kids as long as we live. >> despite her advancing years she travels far and widespreading the message she heard after that fateful day, that everyone is connected and peace is moving forward. nhk world, los angeles.fateful connected and peace is moving forward. nhk world, los angeles.heard af that everyone is connected and peace is moving forward. nhk world, los angeles.after th everyone is connected and peace is moving forward. nhk world, los angeles.

people across northeastern japan have dealt with the trauma of the march 11th disaster in nir own ways. one young woman uses munga to tell the story of survivors. >> this shows what victims went flew in the disaster and how they're trying to recover. the author based the stories on actual conversations with survivors. this graduate student is the storyteller. she began posting the monga on her blog soon after the disaster so readers understood the ordeal. >> mom, someone, anyone, please help me! my mother's down here. >> her blog caused a sensation. she published a book.

an english version followed so people around the world knew about the tragedy. she volunteered to help clean up a hard-hit town. she spoke with disaster survivors about what they feel and about their future. >> translator: i thought about what i could do to stop people forgetting about what happened in tohuku. i decided to draw a monga that tells the story of each victim. >> she wrote "my hometown: field of cole." it's about a man who clears debris to plant cole flowers. he want the blossoms to encourage people not to give up. >> i'm not doing anything extraordinary, but if i can clean up this whole place, i

hope i can get everyone to smile again. if the town is covered by pretty cole flowers, smiles would return to people's faces. >> she returned to the town on may 11th. >> the area overflowed with color. after hearing about the man's passion, locals and volunteers helped plant the flowers. >> translator: how are you? you look well. >> once again, she found the man. his name is bunzo kaneyama. >> translator: the flower z are a symbol of everyone's love and

cooperation. one day a field of cole. >> the dream came true? >> yes, if we wish hard enough dreams do come true. >> the field of flowers became a place where survivors heal. after returning to tokyo, she put together another story about the field of flowers. she says she feels for the people waiting for the recovery. >> translator: one year isn't enough time. i want to tell my readers that recovery efforts are going much slower than we imagined, and it will take longer. >> people should never forget the disaster nor let it defeat them.

she hopes to continue telling her inspiring stories about the survivors' recovery and hope. >> all right. we've been following a storm approaching the philippines. many people there are already feeling its effects. we have the latest. >> yes, katherine. the tropical storm is getting very close to the northern half of -- northern philippines, and it's about to make landfall in luzon. here's the projected path. it's projected to make landfall in luzon this morning and make landfall in southern china by friday as a severe tropical storm status. in terms of rainfall, about 215 millimeters of rain has been recorded in the northwest coast of the philippines over the past 24 hours. of course, as the rain -- as the system approaches, more rev rain will be coming down over the

next couple of days, and later this beak drenching rain is anticipated for southern china. to flooding and landslides are going to be a very big concern. today high waves and rough seas are going fob a big issue for the coastal areas of southern china, the southern part of taiwan as well as the southwestern islands of japan. up towards the north yesterday we talked about excessive amounts of rain in western japan. here's the situation in kyoto yesterday. about 100 millimeters of rain per hour has been recorded. extensive floods and landslides have been reported. one person died and two people are still missing. the peak of heavy rain is over, but we are not out the woods yet because the next system is approaching our nation. right now this frontal system is producing drenching rain in the korean peninsula. south korea is expecting more

than 200 millimeters of rain over the next 24 hours. thunderstorms and gusty winds are also expected here. the system will move towards the east and affect northern japan. we're expecting about 100 millimeters of rain into tomorrow morning. to the south of front ample moisture coming in, so western japan will continue to see unstable weather in a short time heavy showers throughout the day. to flooding and landslides are going to be a concern even more as we head into tomorrow. the temperatures are looking like this. 31 degrees in tokyo and cooling down to 25 in seoul with heavy rain. all right. heading into the americas, widespread thundershowers are affecting the areas from eastern canada down through the southern plains. severe thunderstorms, large hail, damaging winds and even tornadoes are possible in some locations. the system will slowly make it's way towards the east coast. up towards the north, strong

thunderstorms and heavy rain in western canada will move towards the upper midwestern states and central canada over the next 24 hours. as for temperatures, excessive heat is still continues in the desert southwest as well as southern california. 31 degrees expected in los angeles, about 6 degrees higher than average and 43 in phoenix on your wednesday. all right. finally let's go over to europe. very stormy across the british isles and windy and wet across the british isles and the western continent but staying dry in most of the mediterranean countries. out towards it is east this pressure is weakening off but unstable weather in eastern europe will continue throughout the day and temperatures are below average in eastern europe. 17 degrees in kiev, about 7 degrees lower than where they should be this time of year. here's your extended forecast.

that's all for this edition

of "newsline." thanks for joining us. xnóx

er, >>@elo everybody. i'm huelho we are and he in sebastopol, california. and we're at ground zero aren't we? i found a local here at the atm machine. and i asked you if this was groq zero and what did you say? this block right here is the center of sebastopol, california. >> and all this traffic, where is everybody going? >> let's see, these folks are going out toward bega bay to the ocean. and these ones herare going towards santa rosa. and down on the main street, they're all heading toward 101 -- catabi and 101 south -- so this is the very center. >> boy, there's a lot of movement kgoing on here today. it's actually a saturday morning. things are hopping here in sebastopol. we're going to spend the whole day