welcome to nhk world "newsline." a u.s. military helicopter has crashed in japan's southernmost prefecture of okinawa. police say some of the crew members sustained injuries in the incident. american officials have confirmed that the aircraft went down during an exercise. the crash occurred shortly after 4:00 p.m. within the perimeter of camp hansen, a u.s. military base in the northern part of the main island. u.s. officials have confirmed at

least four crew members were on board. they say they don't have any details about injuries. there are no reports of casualties on the ground. local officials say they've been barred from accessing the crash site. the accident involved a u.s. air force hh-60 based in kaneda. it's a type of helicopter used in rescue operations. >> translator: this accident is an extremely regrettable manner. we've asked u.s. authorities to disclose information quickly to investigate the cause of the crash and to take measures to prevent a recurrence. >> residents near camp hansen have expressed their concerns over safety. >> translator: it would be a disaster if an aircraft crashed in the area. that's why we keep asking the

u.s. military to take safety first. >> i feel upset because the u.s. military don't take our opinions into account. >> okinawa officials say u.s. military aircraft have been involved in 44 crashes in the prefecture since the return of its administration from the u.s. to japan in 1972. one of the latest incidents occurred at a university near the u.s. marine corps futenma air station. a ch-53 helicopter crashed on the campus and burst into flames in august 2004. in 1999 a helicopter of the same type crashed into the sea off the northern coast of okinawa's main island, causing four fatalities. hassan rouhani has used his first speech as president of iran to reach out to the world. now leaders in other nations are waiting to see if he'll follow words with actions, especially when it comes to his nation's nuclear program. >> translator: we seek respect

based on equality and mutual trust. we want to establish constructive relationships with nations of the world. >> rouhani said in his inaugural address that transparency is the key to the door of trust. he stressed his country does not desire war with other nations. afghan president hamid karzai and north korea's number two leader were among the representatives of at least 50 countries at the ceremony. in tehran, iranians have been expressing their hopes and frustrations. >> translator: i hope rouhani achieves what he has promised. then the economy will improve and we will have a better society. >> translator: inflation has been hard on our lifestyles. if prices remain high, people will be left helpless.

white house spokesperson jay carney says rouhani's inauguration presents an opportunity for iran to act quickly to resolve concerns about its nuclear program. he said iran will find a willing partner in the u.s. if the new government meets its international obligations and finds a peaceful solution. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu says a new leader doesn't erase his country's concerns about iran. >> translator: the president in iran may have changed, but the goal of the regime has not. iran's intention is to develop a nuclear capability. nuclear weapons, whose purpose is to destroy israel. iran poses a threat to the world. >> he said israel will not hesitate to take military action if iran continues with its nuclear program. many western countries are watching to see how iran will act under rouhani after the hardline policies of his predecessor, mahmoud ahmadinejad.

from the institute of energy economics japan gives his take on the new iranian president's inauguration speech. >> during his speech, dr. rouhani made it clear he would like to implement what he said during the presidential campaign. he would like to modify and also moderate the iranian foreign policy, that's for sure. and he would like to tackle the economic problems that the iranians are facing today. a day earlier, dr. rouhani was greeted or received by supreme leader ayatollah khamenei in a ceremony. during this event, ayatollah made it clear that the president and also iranians should not be too optimistic in dealing with the foreigners and they should not have high hope with them, since the foreigners, especially the west or maybe the americans, do not understand the logic and they do not talk in a way that the iranians are willing to deal with. dr. rouhani made it clear he would like to form a broad-based government and has asked for various political factions to support him.

in this regard. ayatollah also emphasized that a day earlier. it's not clear how this would end. dr. rouhani has already presented his ministerial candidates list and they are going to check who is more suited for this job or not. it may turn out so that a couple of the potential candidates or potential ministerial candidates may be rejected and may not be able to earn a vote of confidence. but anyway, regarding the economy, dr. rouhani surely would have to have the consensus among the iranian community to have them

understand where he is heading. and he has mentioned clearly that he would like to lessen the degree of the government's involvement in the economy and other matters where the government shouldn't be interfering from the beginning. dr. rouhani will possibly proceed to the u.n. general assembly meeting in september. i have less doubt about that, but the problem lies in the vicinity. iran needs to mend its relationship with the gcc countries and the kingdom of saudi arabia, especially in particular. and in the nuclear front, he also would have to form a new negotiating team and then have the europeans and the americans and the russians and chinese as well to sit at the negotiating table. this might take time sometime in september or by october.

and i'm not that optimistic of how these negotiations would proceed from here. simply because in the past, it was not only iran who had stalled the negotiations, on some certain occasions it was the counterparts that had caused trouble for the negotiation itself to keep on going. so, we would have to see what's going to follow next in the coming weeks. relations between japan and china have steadily declined over the past year largely because of a dispute over territory. diplomacy has taken on a frosty tone. researchers in both countries wanted to know how citizens feel. they say their recent survey reveals more than 90% of chinese and japanese have negative feelings toward each other. staff with the tokyo-based nonprofit think tank npo and the state-run news for china daily have been conducting the poll

annually since 2005. they asked more than 2,500 japanese and chinese what they think about their neighbor. they carried out the survey between may and july. 90% of japanese said they have negative feelings toward china. that's up 6 percentage points from last year. 93% of chinese said they have negative feelings toward japan, an increase of 28 percentage points. the survey provides a snapshot of relations at present. but as nhk world's reporter tells us, events of the past weigh heavily. >> reporter: the new poll suggests between people in china and japan worsened over the past year. >> translator: i don't have a positive image of china. >> translator: the chinese people push too much about their views on historical issues.

>> translator: i especially hate japan. >> translator: we don't need good relations with japan. >> reporter: the researchers asked japanese and chinese why they have bad impressions of each other. the senkaku islands was the top reason. more than 53% of japanese cited the territorial dispute compared with nearly 78% of chinese. wartime history is the second highest reason for this ill will. nearly half of japanese surveyed say they don't like chinese, criticizing them over the past. 64% of chinese feel japan's apology for its invasion of their country isn't good enough. some respondents consider armed conflict in the future a possibility. nearly 24% of japanese believe compared to nearly 53% of t,

chinese. the leader of the japanese npo that conducted the joint survey said the results show relations have entered a critical phase. but he notes more than 70% of respondents on both sides consider the japan/china relationship important. >> translator: it's now a crucial time for both governments to start talks to resolve the deadlock. and the private sector should start taking action as well. >> reporter: the researchers say their studies suggest animosity is at its worst level since 2005. they say they want to seek ways to overcome the bad feelings with dialogue. they are scheduled to hold a joint forum in beijing this coming october. nhk world, tokyo. in los angeles, about 80

people from japan and the u.s. gathered together to remember victims of the atomic bombings in hiroshima and nagasaki. a local japanese group organized the annual memorial service. members include people who immigrated to the u.s. after surviving the bombings. participants lit candles and observed a moment of silence at a temple in little tokyo, a part of l.a. that's home to a large part of a japanese-american community. this man lived in hiroshima and was 16 at the time of the bombing. he says he was knocked unconscious after a flash of light and an enormous boom. when he regained consciousness, he found himself buried under piles of rubble. he says some of the bodies he saw later were so burned, he couldn't tell if they were men or women. >> translator: i want to share my experience with young people. we need to keep up our efforts and push for world peace. >> it's very important for people to understand that what took place there should not

happen again. >> he's now 84 years old. he says 68 years on, he recalls the day of the bombing as if it were yesterday. >> hiroshima, nagasaki, the atomic bombings killed thousands of people in an instant and left survivors suffering in the ruins. "newsline" is looking back on what happened then and what's happened since. don't miss our special coverage "war to peace lessons of 1945" starting tuesday, august 6th. a korean airplane has reportedly overshot a runway while landing at an airport. korean air flight 763 left south korea's international airport at 6:00 p.m. on monday and was

scheduled to land at 7:55 p.m. the boeing 737 stopped with its nose outside the runway. airline officials told nhk that 106 passengers were on board. a local fire department says no injuries have been reported. transfer ministry officials are investigating the details. freshwater eel is a popular summer dish in japan. enthusiasts say consuming it on hot days helps beat the heat. but eel prices are rising on a weaker yen and as demand grows abroad. nhk world's reporter has more. >> reporter: eel is a staple of the japanese diet. a traditional way of enjoying it is this style where the fish is split open, dipped in a sweet soy sauce glaze, and grilled.

it's seen as a summer delicacy that provides stamina as it's rich in vitamins. >> translator: i crave it in the summer. >> translator: i'll keep eating it as long as i can afford to. >> reporter: freshwater eel is becoming an expensive habit. much of it is imported from china. and the weaker yen is putting pressure on buyers. domestic producers are also facing challenges that stem from the weak currency. the feed imported from south america is now more expensive. the fish is also becoming popular outside japan. demand is particularly strong among wealthy russians and americans. and now japanese buyers have to

compete with them for eel from china. this eel restaurant in tokyo was established 140 years ago. the price of a domestic eel dish here is now more than 3,000 yen, almost $30. its owners don't want to raise prices and are trying to compensate by reducing kitchen staff. >> translator: if we raise prices, we'll lose customers. we need to make more cuts to cope with our suppliers' price hikes. the eels cost us about $5 more per kilo than last year. >> reporter: many consumers are turning to eel's substitute when they can't get their hands on the real thing. chicken is stepping in to fill

the gap. they are made to look like kobayaki grilled eel. one company offers another option, shark. the spiney dogfish is a common variety of shark that are readily available around the world. this company processes 500 tons of the fish every year. they decided to offer this alternative. they say spiney dogfish tastes just like eel and has a similar texture. that comes with an affordable price tag. the manufacturer hopes the new product will be a hit with eel lovers. >> translator: let's say you feel like eel, but there isn't any available. that's where the dogfish comes in. i'd like to make this a bigger

business opportunity. >> reporter: as eel prices soar around the world, businesses are dreaming up more products that can satisfy customers' cravings without breaking the bank. daisuke azuma, nhk world, tokyo. people are scratching their heads about what to do with the wild animals that ruin their fields. boars and deer, for example, cause more than $200 million of damages a year. about a million of these animals are culled in the same period. people then dispose of the carcasses, but some communities are turning the creatures into a source of income. nhk world's hiro morita has more. >> reporter: these may look like traditional leather products, but they're actually made with boar hides. they are starting to make a positive impact on this village.

the town of misato is home to 5,000 people. half of them work in agriculture. farmers grow pumpkins here. it takes months to cultivate the crops. here's what the wild animals did to the crops. >> translator: it's so shocking, it makes me regret even growing them. >> translator: my rice paddies were a total mess. i had to pull out all the seedlings and plant new ones. >> reporter: the critters responsible for most of the town's damage are boars. they wander the town at night and root through vegetable fields. people have set up over 200 cages in this area, and they capture these wild boars every day. the residents crap about 300 of them every year. they are tired of having their hard work undone by the animals

and have been trying to control their numbers. boar meat makes its way onto residents' plates, but the skins are thrown away, until now. this man who works at the town hall wants to do something about waste. he thought the skins would be processed into leather. >> translator: i think we should appreciate the boar as a gift from nature. we should use every part of the animal. >> reporter: the operators of a small-scale tannery in tokyo stepped in to help. they receive animal hides from communities all across japan with the same problem. and process the skins at a discounted price. >> translator: we're not just trying to sell products as a tannery. we want to be of use to these communities. our work seems to be in line with their needs, so we're happy to be collaborating with them.

>> reporter: the operators then send the letters back to misato. elderly residents then turn them into products for daily use. the town's major industry back in the 1970s was sewing. and many women worked as seamstresses, but they started losing their jobs in the '80s as the local fabric industry slowed down. and now the women are once again putting their leather sewing techniques into practice. they transform the leather into purses and pencil cases. each showcased the unique handiwork of the women who made it. the women then sell what they sake. >> translator: i like doing this together with my friends. that's why i come here. it's more fun to work with them than to stay home by myself. >> reporter: the women come here to make the leather goods once a

week. they say it's a great way to reconnect. >> translator: we tend to consider wild animals a problem, but it's encouraging to see people enjoying the process of making these items. and that livens up the community, too. i hope the positive effects of our project will spread throughout the town. >> reporter: people from towns dealing with damage by wildlife visit misato almost every week to learn from the residents. by changing the way these animals are perceived from pests to resource could help revitalize struggling communities across japan. hiro morita, nhk world, misato. flood caused by heavy rain along the border of pakistan and afghanistan have killed more than 100 people. local media say rain on saturday flooded rivers in northwestern pakistan, causing at least 45 fatalities. many of the victims were buried under collapsed houses. the floods washed away thousands of homes in afghanistan. the a.p. news agency says at least 58 people died, and about 30 are missing in the eastern part of the country. people in the area have suffered a series of floods. in 2010, massive flooding killed 2,000 people and destroyed the homes of more than 20 million on the pakistan side alone. authorities in the country are cautioning residents as heavy rain is feared to continue. floods are also affecting

people in india. rachel ferguson from the weather team has the details. rachel. >> absolutely. in india as well, very heavy rain has led to extensive flooding. we'll show you the picture on the ground here as well. people making their way through sky-high floodwaters. very intense rainfall brought by the southwest monsoon hit

central india last weekend, claiming 20 lives and displacing 8,000 people. the floods inundated roads across the region by cutting off travel and communication. this year india has been hit by numerous floods, the worst being in northern india in june where hundreds were killed, mostly pilgrims, and thousands actually are still missing. many experts believe that mass deforestation has led to soil erosion. and that has led to the resulting increase in flooding in the country. so a really serious situation at the moment. the last week has brought some very heavy rain. you can see it here. those reds are popping up, up towards the northeast as well and coming in towards indochina, very heavy rain as well. we get this every year. the southwest monsoon, of course, arrives across india this time every year. and it continues to bring that heavy rain in.

but the flooding this year has been particularly severe. and into the next three days, you can see central india here. and again, up towards the northeast, you're going to be seeing continuing totals upwards of 100, maybe even 200 millimeters in some places. japan's also going to be seeing the likelihood or at least the possibility of flooding as we head into tuesday. some places picking up more than 100 millimeters of rain in the next 24 hours. we've had already some very severe totals in the last 24 hours. some places expecting about 50 millimeters of rain just in the space of one hour. very short-time heavy rain. thunderstorms for japan as well. down here just towards the west of the philippines in the south china sea, a tropical depression likely to see some strengthening. and it's going to be bringing in heavy rain into southwestern china. we could even see it become a named storm. and it comes just after jebi last week. you remember the other storm

that came through. this is rain falling on already saturated land. and there will be a high risk of flooding here, too. at the same time as we have all these floods going on, drought conditions prevail in eastern and inland china. and those temperatures still absolutely soaring, near the 40-degree mark. tokyo tomorrow looking for 31. a bit cooler with the rain coming in as well. on into europe and things are wet and very unstable across the british isles now. we've got a frontal system bringing short-term heavy rain. could bring 60 millimeters in some places. in the uk, that's certainly enough to cause extensive flooding. the lows headed up towards southern scandinavia. you have the rain there. then thunderstorms along the cold front as it heads on into central portions of europe. things are going to be cooling down to the west as well as that front passes. you'll see quite a marked drop in temperatures. although it will be a gradual one over the next four days. you'll be seeing temperatures fall as much as ten degrees.

paris at 31, falling to 21. and finally things are starting to look a little cooler. more manageable for you in madrid by the end of the week. here's your extended forecast.

that's "newsline" for this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo.