glad you could join us here on "newsline." here are some of the stories we're following this hour. militants with islamic state and syrian government forces are locked in a fierce battle trapping thousands of refugees. red cross officials are preparing medical supplies and aid workers for yemen, after days of fierce fighting. japan's chief cabinet secretary and okinawa's governor have met face-to-face but still don't see eye-to-eye over plans

for a u.s. air base. and baristas share their techniques for making coffee taste and look good. militants have seized most of the palestinian refugee camp in syria's capital damascus. they've set off an intense battle with government forces. and they've trapped thousands of people living in the camp. fighters with the group islamic state and an al qaeda affiliate defeated another armed group and took over the camp. syrian government forces fought back using fighter jets to drop barrel bombs. palestinian refugees are trapped in the middle of the battle. >> the man says there's not enough food for the people remaining in the camp. he says supplies of water, food and medicine have stopped since the militants launched their attacks.

government officials say the air raids have forced some of the islamic state militants to withdraw. but members of the al qaeda affiliate nusra front remain in the camp. egyptian authorities are on alert after a second bomb attack in as many days. an explosion in central cairo sunday killed a policeman and injured two people. the attack happened at a police checkpoint on a bridge leading to a neighborhood hosting embassies. authorities say the bomb was planted under a chair. members of the group, soldiers of egypt, claimed responsibility. another bomb exploded saturday near a police station in a residential district. no injuries were reported. extremist groups have been targeting security forces since 2013. that was when the military overthrew islamist backed president mohamed morsi. red cross officials are preparing to deliver humanitarian aid to the people in yemen.

the saudi-led coalition conducting air strikes in the country has granted permission. a red cross spokesperson said they have approval for two planes to fly in to the country. they'll be carrying emergency medical staff and supplies. red cross officials have been calling for an immediate 24-hour cease-fire. they're hoping to send aid in to sanaa on monday but it's still unclear whether shia muslim houthis controlling the capital will agree. government forces and houthi militants are still fighting in the southern city of aidan and an al qaeda affiliated group that attacked a military base in the south has clashed with local tribes. saudi arabia and other sunni muslim arab nations have been bombing houthi militant strongholds in yemen since late march. the u.n. says the fighting has killed at least 500 people and injured 1700 others. japan's chief cabinet secretary and the governor of

okinawa are trying to find common ground. they met to discuss plans to relocate a u.s. military base but they remain far apart over the issue. nhk world's kurando tago reports. >> reporter: okinawa residents are making sure their voices are heard. they gather outside a hotel where representatives of their local and central governments were meeting. they host more than 70% of the u.s. military facilities in japan, and they're opposed to controversial plans to relocate one. inside a hotel, takashi onaga met chief cabinet secretary yoshihide suga for the first time since he became governor. the two talked about moving futenma air station from an urban area to the coast. onaga said the people of okinawa never volunteered to host military bases. >> translator: i understand the security treaty between japan

and the u.s. is important. but the burden of national security should be shared by all japanese people. >> reporter: suga said abandoning the plan could mean the base would permanently stay in the densely populated city. >> translator: i would like you to go forward with the relocation to maintain the deterrence capability within the japan/u.s. alliance. >> reporter: he said the central government will work with okinawa to reduce the burden to host u.s. military facilities and promote the economy. the u.s. military has been present in japan since the end of world war ii. but a crime nearly two decades ago turned public opinion against hosting american soldiers. in 1995 three u.s. servicemen were charged with the rape of a

12-year-old girl. people in okinawa took to the streets to show their anger. japan and united states were forced to agree to abolish futenma base and they decided to relocate it to han oka, a less populated area. okinawa's former governor gave the go-ahead for the plan. and just before leaving office in december he approved land reclamation work for the base. onaga vowed to take every measure to prevent the facility from being built. the central government wants onaga to understand the plan. onaga says he needs to speak to prime minister shinzo abe about the issue. the meeting came to a standstill. >> translator: today's meeting was the first step for discussion between the central government and the prefecture.

>> translator: we have exchanged views frankly. that should be valued as the beginning of discussion. >> reporter: members of the diet and local assemblies in okinawa gathered on monday near the place that could host the new base in protest. but the central government officials are pushing ahead. they're continue their drilling survey over hanoko and start to claim land in the summer. kurando tago nhk world. the pilot of a japan airlines flight was forced to abort his landing at tokushima airport because a maintenance vehicle was on the runway. a controller at the airport in western japan gave the pilot clearance to land on sunday without noticing the car. the boeing 767 was carrying 67 passengers and crew. it narrowly missed colliding with the car, which was changing lights on the runway. the flight from haneda airport in tokyo eventually landed and

no one was injured. officials of the maritime self-defense force are responsible for flight control at the airport. they say a person in charge gave the jetliner permission to land without noticing the vehicle. controllers are supposed to order people working on the runway to get away when an airplane approaches. officials say it's possible the person in charge failed to issue such an order. the japan transport safety board called the incident critical, as it could have led to an accident. investigators at the airport are trying to find out the cause. now here on "newsline" let's see what's happening on the business and financial fronts. there have been some negative indications concerning japan's economy as gene otani tells us. gene? >> well, james, a key index of japan's economic health fell in february for the first time in three months. but officials at the cabinet office insist the economy is still improving. the officials say the coincident index of economic conditions in february stood at 110.5.

that's down 2.8 points from january, and the biggest decline since the consumption tax was hiked last april. the index is based on a range of data from factory output to consumer spending. officials blame a fall in the production of large equipment for chemical plants and lcd panels for export to china. they say assembly lines that use the lcd panels in smartphones stopped during the chinese lunar new year holiday. the leading index which projects the health of the economy a few months ahead also fell 0.2 points to 105.3. it is the second straight month of decline. checking the markets. tokyo stocks ended lower following weaker than expected u.s. jobs data last week. the bench mark nikkei average was down 0.19% closing at 19,397. the stronger yen also weighed on exporter shares. moving on to south korea's kospi index, it extended its winning streak to a third day.

it closed at its meest level since last september edging up 0.05%, at 2,046. the index was boosted by samsung electronics and other electronics shares. over in the philippines, the main index has ended above 8,000 for the first time. it has now risen for seven straight sessions and finished the day up 0.76%. analysts say some investors believe the federal reserve may hold off from raising interest rates following that weak u.s. jobs data. and looking at other markets in the asia pacific region, indonesia ended up by 0.43%. some markets are closed for holiday today. most asian markets will reopen tomorrow. people at the japanese environment ministry see hydrogen as a promising energy source for the future because it doesn't emit carbon dioxide. they're conducting an experiment that uses excess energy generated by wind power to produce hydrogen.

ministry officials launched a trial project two years ago in southwestern japan to generate power with a floating wind turbine. it produces,000 kilowatts of electricity. that's enough for about 1800 households but power cables in the area can't handle all that electricity. the people conducting the experiment used that surplus to produce hydrogen. they store it in tanks in liquid form. workers took the liquid hydrogen by ship to a nearby island. it will be used as fuel to heat water. >> translator: developing our technology could promote introduction of reusable energy reducing carbon dioxide emissions so that we can help curb global warming. >> ministry officials are looking into the possibility of some day using hydrogen to power automobiles and ships. fuel efficient and affordable mini vehicles dominated japan's car sales in

the business year that just ended. industry officials say toyota's hybrid compact aqua was the best-telling car for the third straight year. it sold over 228,000 units. tanto was second with sales of nearly 215,000 units. honda's n-box came in third. all but three of last year's top ten cars were mini vehicles. they accounted for more than 40% of japan's new car sales a record share. industry officials point to last april's consumption tax hike as the reason. that prompted consumers to turn to mini cars which are taxed lower and have a maximum engine size of 660 cc. japanese stone masonry boasts some ancient tradition but demand for high quality domestic granite is plunging amid an influx of cheap ones from overseas. so a group of stone masons in western japan are launching a project aimed at expanding the market.

>> reporter: modern vases. rough hewn book ends. all these items are made of a fine type of granite from takamatsu city. they were created as part of the agi project, a years ago by ten stone masons and local chamber of commerce members. >> translator: this is a stone tray. and that's a knife and fork rest. >> reporter: the team is producing new products made of agishi to try to expand demand for the stone. agishi has long been quarried in the suburbs of takamatsu. due to its fine pattern and remarkable hardness it has been used primarily for grave stones.

the 1964 tokyo olympics cauldron was made of agishi. but it's been losing ground to cheaper stone from china and elsewhere. this area once had about 400 masonry businesses but now half have closed. aji ota is a core member of the project. he's a master carver of gravestones. but recently he applied those skills to create a table. >> translator: i'm excited because a stone mason like myself rarely has a chance to do something new. >> reporter: ota had never produced furniture before so he teamed up with two industrial designers from tokyo. >> translator: we want our table to look good when it's displayed

next to tables made of other materials. >> reporter: the designers suggested a simple design that would suit any room. but executing it required great skill. to keep the table light, its top couldn't be thicker than two centimeters. stone cut that thin however, is easy to break during tooling. also, while ota's gravestones are highly polished he wanted to give this surface a different treatment. it took him six months of trial and error, but finally, a suitable table was delivered to the designers. >> translator: it's really beautiful.

>> reporter: ota adjusted the usual polishing process to create a less shiny surface. >> translator: the possibilities for this stone are expanding. and that's what we stone masons had hoped for. >> reporter: master craftsmen are bringing a fresh shine to traditional stone masonry. they continue pursuing new directions in stone. >> that's it for business news. i'll leave you with the markets. people from a town near

japan's fukushima daiichi nuclear plant are a step closer to returning home. they've gotten permission to stay overnight in their own houses for the first time in four years. japanese government officials have given people in naraha the go-ahead. about 7500 of them have been living in other areas since the nuclear accident. most of the town is still designated as an evacuation zone. but officials plan to lift the order later this year. this man and his wife have been living in temporary housing in another part of fukushima. they brought alock food water and other daily necessities for their first night at home. >> translator: we finally have come this far after four years. i don't know what will happen from here on out. but we've taken half a step forward. >> officials say just over 180 out of about 2700 households

have applied for permission to stay overnight. many people have expressed concerns about radiation. they also want local infrastructure to be rebuilt. officials say they'll hold a series of meetings to explain what the government plans to do. then they'll set a date for lifting the evacuation order. now for some physics. the world's most powerful particle accelerator is back in action after a two-year shutdown. scientists hope research at the upgraded facility in switzerland will provide further clues about the origins of the universe. the european organization for nuclear research cern restarted its large hadron collider on sunday. prior to the upgrade the large collider was used to prove the existence of the higgs boson particle that gives mass to matter. the lhc consists of a 27 kilometer ring with two separate tubes inside.

high energy particle beams inside the tubes move in opposite directions. almost at the speed of light before colliding. the collision generates a massive amount of energy. the temperature is equivalent to the big bang that brought the universe into being. scientists hope the more powerful accelerator will contribute to the study of the dark matter. believed to make up about one quarter of the universe. now baristas may agree that brewing a quality cup is an art. but more and more are taking that sentiment quite literally, as they turn their coffee into a canvas. nhk world has the details. >> reporter: a cafe in tokyo does it with, well, coffee. the owner is hiroshi sawada a well-known artist. he has mastered the free pour technique, making images about milk over espresso.

in 2008 he became the first world champion from asia. first, he sends a fine stream of milk over the espresso. when it reaches the bottom of the cup it floats back up. making as you pour leads to a beautiful image. >> wow. it's like magic in a cup. success depends on milk that is 60 to 62 degrees celsius. that also happens to be the ideal temperature for milk to make a tasty caffe latte. a steady hand comes in handy. i practiced many times, but as you can see, this is really hard. it looks like just a swirl.

>> translator: this is not art for art's sake. it was developed to show that the latte is delicious. you have to turn the milk into a fine froth before you can begin pouring. >> reporter: this is art for taste's sake. a match made in a cup. a toy company has gotten in on the zest for latte art. it's aiming at cuteness. even if you're not an expert you can be an amateur latte artisan. just place a sheet of gelatin over a warm drink. it also makes a good souvenir. and then there's 3-d latte art. milk is poured and frothed. as it builds up a picture

emerges. this product has only been on sale a few months. but it's already become a popular way to make 3-d latte art at home. >> translator: after i've seen the japanese barista's 3-d latte art i created this product. i was excited to turn the concept into a toy. >> reporter: the cup of creativity is constantly being refilled. marie yanaka, nhk world. well it seems like the weather here in tokyo can't make up its mind whether to warm up or not, as sayaka mori from the weather desk tells us. >> it feels like may here in japan. but tomorrow, yes, it's a different story.

it's going to be more like wynton. japan is at the boundary of cold air, and also summer warmth. and the cold air will likely shift to the south so we'll see lower than average temperatures on tuesday in tokyo. and also we are going to be seeing some showers. to the north of the front there's cold air, so even snowfall in northern china. take a look at some footage coming out of the area. winter weather is still covering the northern portions of china. this area is often 9 centimeters of snow. this led to traffic disruptions for residents, which included the suspension of about 180 intercity buses. temperatures in the region also dropped on average between 6 and 10 degrees celsius. so we have snow alerts posted for northern china, but also we are seeing some heat advisories posted in southern china, so temperatures over 30 degrees on monday. and in between, there's severe weather happening over central china into western japan. there's a chance for

thunderstorms, gusty winds, and even hail going in to your tuesday. now temperatures are going to be as follows in asia. nearly 40 degrees in bangkok. and 32 degrees in manila. but to the north only 10 for the high in shanghai and about lower than what it should be doing this time of year in chongqing on tuesday. severe weather in bangladesh killing at least 24 people on the weekend. the severe weathermaker has pulled away but still we're expecting an additional 80 millimeters of rain to fall within the next 72 hours or so. so flooding is going to be a high risk. and also eastern india, you could see some scattered showers. flooding, and also mudslides are going to be a continued risk. now across the americas you can see swirling cloud right here. this is starting to produce some rain over oregon and washington. and rain will likely shift the south to northern california. this is actually not bad news because much of california has been continuing with lack of rainfall over the past four

years. and also mountains will be covered by heavy snowfall. the sierra could see up to 30 centimeters of snow in to your tuesday. 20 centimeters for the northern rockies. dry air continues over the four corners region so there's a critical risk for fire weather over this location. temperatures are going to be quite warm. oklahoma city nearly 30 degrees. 23 degrees in denver. but to the north, extremely chilly for this time of year only one for the high winnipeg. 6 degrees for the high in toronto. but to the south, 17 for the high in chicago. so warmer than average temperatures for you in chicago on monday. and across europe severe weather is still gripping italy. the balkan peninsula in turkey. because of this low pressure system thunderstorms, and also risk of hail and even some tornadoes are likely in to your tuesday. however, across the west dry and calm conditions over the british islands and south as well as the northern portions of the iberian peninsula. some scattered showers for the south, though.

temperatures are going to be cooler compared to where they should be during this time of year over this year 13 degrees in london. 12 degrees in paris. much colder than average in moscow. 6 degrees the high with snowflakes on the menu on monday. all right. now here's the extended forecast around the globe.

and that was this hour's roundup of news from our studios here in tokyo.

stay with us. there's more to come here on nhk world. ññ>>>>>>>>

' hter jets, this is the nation continues to mourn. 148 students shot dead at a university. preparing for a mercy mission. two emergency aid flights into yemen. fighting intensifies. hundreds of palestinian refugees in syria where clashes continue