welcome to nhk world "newsline," i'm gene otani in tokyo. here's a look at some of the stories we are following this hour. the world braces for a possible military strike by the u.s. and allies against the forces of syrian president al assad. nuclear regulators in japan officially raise the level of the leak of radio active water in fukushima and now consider it

a serious incident. and 50 years after his "i have a dream" speech, martin luther king jr. continues to inspire people in the u.s. and around the world with his message of equal rights for all. britain is working to lay the groundwork for international action against syria over allegations the military there is behind a deadly chemical weapons attack. david cameron says his country will draft a resolution to the u.n. security council to protect civilians from this type of attack. cameron says the resolution is based on chapter 7 of the u.n. charter which stipulates how to deal with threats against peace. he will condemn the regime of president bashar al assad for an attack that happened last week. it will be put to the security council in new york on wednesday. britain has urged council

members to live up to their responsibility and that they have an opportunity to do that now. syria's long-time ally russia is one of the permanent members of the security council and has the power to veto resolutions. russia is aposing any military intervention in syria. cameron and other leaders say they have no doubt assad's forces carried out an attack involving chemical weapons. u.n. inspectors are still working to gather evidence. they are investigating areas in the suburbs of damascus, they left a hotel in the capital and believed to have headed for a second site in a nearby hospital. the alleged chemical attack reportly killed hundreds of people including children, government and opposition forces blamed each other. u.s. president barack obama hasn't made a decision on whether to launch a military strike. he's working with his national security team to review the options available to him. a member of the

anti-government forces in damascus told nhk that assad supporters are fleeing the capital to areas firmly under government control. this person also says syrians are stocking up food and water. the u.s. and allies say the aim of military action in syria would be to stop further use of chemical weapons, not topple the assad government. the u.s. navy is deploying four destroyers in the mediterranean armed with tomahawk cruise missiles. the u.s. would likely use the missiles in a military action. they may also use long distance bombers deployed at bases in neighboring countries to attack syrian military facilities. the british military may fire cruise missiles from submarines and support u.s. operations from the bay in cypress, the new york times is reporting the u.s. may

target syrian units that have used chemical weapons as well as missiles capable of carrying such arms. the paper says that the direct attack on storage facilities for chemical weapons could harm nearby residents and the environment. experts on syria are outlining different scenarios to describe the impact military action could have on the syrian conflict and region. he's with the tokyo university of foreign studies. >> unlike leaders enallies, i'm not convinced government forces were behind this attack. it would be strange for them to use chemical weapons just as u.n. inspectors arrive in damascus to investigate other attacks of this nature. the site is only 5 or 6 kilometers from the inspection team's hotel and under rebel control. i believe it's too early to say who carried out the attack. we need to wait for the outcome

on the u.n. inspection. but collecting evidence on the ground will be difficult. there's a possibility we may never know who was behind this massacre. the u.s. led military action could make the situation in syria more confusing or even worse. troops loyal to president asaad got the upper hand on the ground after the battle in early june. they also controlled the city of homs. they could reverse the action but i don't think it will stop the civil war. the battle between government and rebel forces may be reignited staen reresult in a growing number of casualties. islamist militant groups will get a firmer grip on the areas they control. any military strike against syria will also have an impact on the region. sectarian tensions between

sunnis and shia muslims are already high. suicide bombings have killed dozens of iraqis this month. the violence could increase after the military intervention. so by all possible means, we must achieve a cease fire. the only framework we have is the geneva conference. representatives of the assad regime and rebels must sit down at the table with those of the u.s., russia and other nations. they need to end this war. there has been too much death and destruction over the past two and a half years. >> that was the professor at the tokyo university of foreign studies. >> nuclear regulators officially changed their assessment of highly radioactor water.

they say it's the most serious incident at the facility since the initial accident in 2011. last week plant workers discovered the leak in a storage tank. they estimate 300 tons contaminated water escaped. some of it may have flowed through a ditch and into the ocean. officials with the nuclear regulation authority decided to raise the leak's severity rating by two meters. they took into account the massive act of radioactive substance believed to get into the environment. it consists of eight levels. regulators initially ranked it at level one, defined as a radio logical anomaly. a level three is defined as a serious incident. that classification is given in cases of severe radiation contamination with effects that would be nonlethal. level seven represents the most serious, major accident.

it indicates a significant release of materials with potentially widespread health and environmental effects. the initial meltdown and explosion at the plant was classified as level seven. the chernobyl disaster was given the same assessment. international atomic agency supported the rating change on the contaminated water leak. they say the incident can be looked at separately even though it took place within the larger context of the fukushima crisis. the radioactive water leaks prompted fishermen to suspend test catches off northern fukushima prefecture. about 60 representatives of six local fishery groups made the decision. they concluded the safety of the catch from the area would be difficult. a senior executive from plant operator tokyo electric power company apologized for the repeated leaks of tainted water into the sea.

fishermen started test catches last june and wanted to work towards resuming the commercial fishery which has been suspended since 2011. >> translator: we're concerned that the setback in cleanup work after the accident is hindering consumer understanding. >> the fishery group will assess the impact of the leaks until at least mid september before making a decision on whether to resume the test catches. >> i have a dream, with those words martin luther king jr. inspired people ieverywhere to join him in his civil rights for all. people continue to reflect on the importance of his vision.

>> the reverend was born in atlanta, georgia and became a leader who dedicated his whole life to fighting racial discrimination. he delivered his i have a dream speech at the lincoln memorial in washington, d.c. on august 28th, 1963. >> i have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. i have a dream -- >> his historic speech electrified millions of americans fighting for civil rights. he received the nobel peace prize the following year for his tireless work. but during a visit to tennessee in 1968, he was shot and killed. he was just 39 years old. on saturday, thousands gathered

in washington to commemorate his historic speech. 50 years on, some americans feel king's dream of racial equality is just that, they say discrimination still exists in the u.s. and they point to controversial policing tactic in new york as a prime example. nhk world has the story. >> 25-year-old nicholas pert was one of the members of class action lawsuit. they took the department to task over a tactic known as stop and frisk. >> it's a hostile experience to be stopped and frisked. you have every right to be upset. >> reporter: one of millions of new yorkers stopped and questioned by police on pt basis of reasonable suspicion and frisked for weapons and drugs. last year alone, officers made

more than 500,000 stops. roughly 85% of the targets were either black or hispanic. peart said it happened to him as many as ten times. >> i remember feeling hopeless and anger that this is happening. >> reporter: a federal court judge ruled in august that the nypd application of the stop and frisk tactic violates the constitutional rights of minorities. she said the nypd has an unwritten policy of racial profiling and called for a federal monitor to oversea resee forms, including officers wearing body worn cameras. mayor michael bloomberg has appealed the ruling. >> she ignored the real world realities of crime. we go to where the reports of crime are. those unfortunately happen to be poor neighborhoods and minority

neighborhoods. >> reporter: police in arizona are testing out cameras in a pilot program that began last october. they aim to report an officer's interactions with citizens. the glasses i am wearing have a camera attached to the side. when i press this button, it records everything that i can see. the video could backup or refute a complaint that an officer acted inappropriately. police say that those wearing the cameras have received two-thirds fewer complaints than those who are not. >> is this your vehicle? >> yes. >> do you have insurance and registration? >> when you're on tape and being recorded, you're more careful about what you say and how you present yourself. the wins to me are endless. >> reporter: but public policy expert heather mcdonnell suggests it will not put an end

to concerns about racial profiling. >> it's not what happens after the stop but what precedes the stop. i don't really see how a body worn camera can capture the factors that a police officer takes into account in deciding whether to stop and question somebody. >> reporter: the stop and frisk tactic does have its supporters but a number of americans feel it is how true racial equality is still a far off dream. nhk world, new york. u.s. secretary of defense chuck hagel has joined a meeting of defense ministers from the association of southeast asian nations. here are the details from bangkok. >> hagel's presence at the meeting comes amid the obama's administration so call rebalance to asia policy. the region contains a number of security challenges, including south china sea mare rit time

disputes. but the meeting agenda was overtaken by events in the middle east and talk of possible u.s. military action against syria. the obama administration has identified the asia pacific region as an area of increasing strategic importance for the united states. hagel attended the asean meeting on wednesday and he will also join a wider discussion on thursday when ministers from china, japan and other countries join their counterparts from asean. it will be the second meeting of the so-called asean defense ministers meeting plus. former u.s. defense secretary robert gates attended the first one three years ago when he stressed the u.s. pivot to asia policy but the global security picture changed dramatically in

three years. a military coup has plunged egypt into formal turmoil and the war drags on with bash ar al assad suspected of using chemical weapons. analysts say the obama administration may have to repivot the focus back towards the middle east. countries in southeast asia are watching closely how the u.s. responds to these various security challenges. some asean members have disputes with china over the south china sea and view the u.s. focus on asia as critically important to counterbalance china's expanding power. at least seven people have died in india and dozens more feared trapped after two adjacent apartment buildings collapse. the failures underline concerns about shoddy construction and lax regulations amidst the rush to build new homes and

businesses. the first of three story apartment building collapse in the early hours of wednesday morning. the next door building collapsed 20 minutes later. rescuers are hurrying to find people who may still be trapped under the debris. >> translator: i was asleep when suddenly there was a loud noise. i thought it must be a blowout in an electric meter. but when i went downstairs, i saw the whole block had collapsed. >> the two buildings were part a 30-block housing development constructed by the government for low income households more than a decade ago. local news reported that residents had complained the building was unsafe. several structures have collapsed in india in recent months, including a three story hotel in july and eight story building in april. the country's rapid economic growth has boosted demand for

buildings but many are poorly constructed. constructed often without permission or safety checks. pakistani teenager was shot and seriously injured by islamic extremists last october for advocating education for girls. less than one year later her native country has begun to witness positive changes in the arena of women's rights. nhk world reports. >> reporter: the swat district is where mu la la used to live. it was also here that in may pakistan witnessed the first ever female community assembly. these decision-making councils are traditionally dominated by male tribal elders but this consisted of entirely ordinary

women. in one meeting, they decided to continue its campaign to increase the number of schools open to girls. >> translator: women should know their own rights and learn to become capable of making decisions about what they want to do in their lives. >> reporter: mu lal la's call started to resonate in pakistan's entertainment industry too. this animation series was screened in the capital istanbul earlier in august. >> avenger. >> reporter: children are glued to the screen as they watch the avenger. pakistan's first animated television series. the lead character is a female school teacher. the bad guys conspire to shut down the school for girls.

>> the heroin changes into a super hero hiding her identity. in pakistan, they are sometimes seen as a symbol of female oppression because the taliban in neighboring afghanistan forced women to wear them. but in the animation series, a heroin has a power to take on social problems, including education for women. the animation was created in a quiet area of islamabad. many are welcome here in trying to produce various moves of the characters. the director hopes the animation will help make children aware of

social problems in pakistan. >> i just thought it was a great way to do a -- something which would be fun and entertaining and also highlight important social issues like education. >> reporter: annie jeffrey is the actress who provides the voice of the heroine, she went to a university abroad. she was deeply shocked at the news of the attack on mulala. >> very sad. it was horrible. the whole country was shocked and upset that people can go and shoot a 14-year-old. it was shocking and horrible, a big tragedy. >> reporter:effr say she haspecl feengsor the first episode in which the avenger uses a book and pen to de the enemy trying to shut down the school for girls.

jeffrey is a popular actress in high demand but she's also thinking what she can do to advance the cause of women's education. >> i definitely think that every effort that we can make to actively get involved in -- in with an empowerment or fighting for girls educationill definitely make a difference, yeah. it might be slow, the change but it's definitely achievable. >> reporter: the small signs of change seem to show pakistan is reondi to the ca o mulala for greater rights for women. nhk world, islamabad. >> that wraps up our bulletin in bangkok. india has been dealing with severe floods for a couple of

days. for more we turn to meteorologist robert speta. what can you tell us? >> well, yeah, let's first start off talking about what is going on out here in northern india. the monsoon has been strong. another surge of rainfall. we can see the cloud cover spinning off the bay of bengal, towards northeastern india, this past week alone, 300 to 400 millimeters have accumulated. this was the past week. you see that big line where the heaviest showers have come down. this has resulted in some flooding out here. i'll show you this video out of northern india. the floodwaters from the river in the northern state of uttar failed to bring life to a stand still. waters have started to flow in the streets causing spread about water born diseases. electricity and drinking water are scarce. these are very dirty flood waters and when you have that,

it's very hard to find good clean drinking water. unfortunately the next 72 hours looks like heavy rainfall is still expected a very dangerous situation. something to continue to watch here. let's look what's going on in eastern asia. two storm systems on the map here that are keeping our attention full here on wednesday. it's this one to the north to northeastern china and alsohe severe tropical storm down here towards the south. it is expected to intensify to a typhoon going into thursday morning. main threat fo this into taiwan and northern luzon, improving towards luzon but taiwan is the heavy rainfall, 200 to 250 millimeters expected going throughout your day on thursday. also the southern japanese islands, about 100 millimeters. the main threat will be the high waves and wind. tyoon warnings in effect for the waters around the southern japanese islands off eastern taiwan. you could see waves up to 8

meters high. very dangerous indeed but also we're going to be see dangerous rip current along with heavy rains. also look to the north. we have the heavy rainfall across much of japan into the forecast. it's because of this storm system that i mentioned pulling out of northeastern china, it's going to bring heavy rainfall into the korean peninsula. already dropped 160 millimeters in the past 24 urs there. that same threat will pull to the east. some strong to severe thunderstorms possible and hail coming out of it. let's look ahead into the forecast. that gets absorbed up with the tropical storm down there to the south and widespread showers across the southern japanese islands, most of japan going into friday and towards saturday up towards northern japan. it does look like a sour weekend indeed for most of japan into the forecast. on thursday though, 32 for t high in tokyo. shanghai at 36, warm air ahead of the cold front. 26 in seoul and 29 in beijing.

it will bring cooler temperatures. in europe, the main threat is this large low pressure area spinning here in central and eastern europe. it's bringing rain showers and thunderstorms out here. northern balkans 85 millimeters reported in the past 24 hours. in spain you could see severe thunderstorms popping up. we do have a few showers into northern portions of the u.k. but this is the topic if you're out there into berlin, 24 for your high, paris at 24 as well. even london at 22. it's expected to cool down into the weekend. here's your extended forecast.

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

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