♪ it's the top of the hour here in tokyo and this is nhk "newsline". i'm ross mihara. security officials are on high alert. authorities in turkey arrested two men they suspect were members of the islamic state group, they believe the men were

in the area of ankara. officers raided an islamic state location near ankara. they confiscated suicide vest, bomb making materials and explosives packed with ball bearings to make them more lethal. local media report that both were turkish nationals. authorities in the belgium capital of brussels have cancelled their new year's festivities. the mayor said they called off events including a fireworks display. they're investigating whether authorities describe as a serious threat to police, soldiers and popular attractions. brussels has been a hot spot for anti-terror investigates since the deadly attacks in paris last month. islamic state fighter captured in syria has spoken to nhk. he said air strikes have dealt the group a heavy blow. and he suggested members will lodge more terror attacks outside of their areas of

control. the man said air araids by the u.s.-led coalition and russia are prompted many fighters to flee to turkey. >> translator: it was too dangerous to go out during coalition air strikes. we had to hide in buildings for as long as nine hours. >> he said leaders told him, after the attacks in paris that they were next targeting russia. islamic state fighters pulled out of the northern iraqi city of sinjar last month. they gave up the western city of ramadi this week. authorities are showing signing of dwauing from demarcus. ten member countries of the southeast asian nations launched an economic community on thursday which promotes trade liberalization. asean leaders signed a declaration in malaysia last month to establish it.

♪ a government-sponsored event to celebrate the launch of the aseen economic community or a.c.e., was held in the thai capital of bangkok. it has a population of 600 million. they will also allow freer movement of skilled workers such as medical doctors and architects within the region. they expect the economic community will help accelerate the pace of growth in the region. however, economic differentials in the region pose a challenge for the single market. the per capita gdp of singapore the most advanced asean economy is about 60 times that of myanmar. member economies also have domestic regulations against foreign affiliated companies to protect their own industries. they are expected to discuss how to ease such regulations in the future.

the white house press office says u.s. president obama will host a meeting in february of the leaders of aseen. a white house statement says the summit will take place at the sunnylands retreat in california on february 15th and 16th. the gathering will be the first with asean loaders to be hosted by the u.s. the obama administration believes it will further advance efforts to rebalance asia and the pacific. the leaders are expected to discuss issues, including china's development of artificial islands in the south china sea. observers say u.s. efforts to strengthen ties with asean are an attempt by washington to keep china in check over its territorial claims and secure u.s. influence in the asia-pacific region. china's leaders have scrapped the country's

decades-old one-child policy this year to establish more economic growth. under the old law, people who had a second baby had to pay a fine. but the new law comes at a cost. as nhk explains. >> reporter: this company in beijing produces educational materials for toddlers. through its online store, the firm sells kits for learning things such as english as well as traditional chinese poetry. it also has imported baby products and developed special apps for mothers. company officials are hoping that the new family planning policy will boost their business. >> translator: a survey of about 10,000 customers shows more than 30% of mothers want to have a second child. there's limitless potential in the education market. we'll be setting our sights even higher due to the new policy.

>> reporter: this woman lives in beijing with a 3-year-old son. her husband lives away from home because of his work, but he plans to come back soon. the 31-year-old mother wants to have a second child, who she believes will teach her son to be more mature and responsible. >> translator: my son is a bit spoiled. if we have a girl, he will probably take care of her and learn to think more about other people. >> reporter: wu is vice president at the school for arts and study. the couple's combined income is about $47,000. it is higher than what the average beijing household makes. ♪ if you're happy and you now it, say amen ♪ ♪ amen

>> reporter: wu thinks education is the most important part of raising a child. her son goes to a private winter garten that teaches english to kids. the monthly tuition is about $700, almost triple the cost of a typical education. she's also planning to buy a condominium next to a school that has high academic standards. >> translator: that will be a heavy financial burden, but we have to overcome it for our two children. >> reporter: but for some couples, the idea of having a second child remains just that, an idea, because of financial difficulties. this is a stay-at-home mom with a 1-year-old daughter.

she quit her job as a manager at an advertising agency after she became pregnant. her family's annual income fell 50% to about $16,000. the money the couple used to spend traveling and pursuing hobbies now goes to their daughter's future education. they feel one child is more than enough. >> translator: if we have two children, we would have to spend less on education for each of them. i'd rather have just one child and give her a better education. >> reporter: she and her husband are the only child in their family. they would eventually have to care for both parents when they get old. >> translator: we need more money if we want to have another child. it would put pressure on us. there's no way we can support all our parents, plus the children. >> reporter: china's one-child policy is now history, but

couples need better chance for benefits if they choose to have another baby. the question is whether the government will be able to come up with such measures to set changes in motion. nhk world, beijing. in this segment we feature women in japan who are challenging prevailing ones and influencing societies. today, we take you to the racetrack. she's not letting gender steer her away from her career of choice. she's one of very few female drivers racing in competitions. nhk world talked to her about her success and how she's also mentoring others who want to follow in her tracks. >> reporter: this is what the

world looks like at 300 kilometers per hour. she is one of the top drivers in endurance racing, working in a team of three to complete six hours of total time. the winning team is determined by the number of completed laps. ehara's initial vit to the circuit, however, was in a different role. she landed a job as a pit girl. >> translator: i saw everyone working with' tremendous sense of responsibility and urgency. the driver could feel once the crew was not properly fitted i thought i want to be working to the best of my ability. first, she had to get a driver's license. and her race in japan at age 25, she found herself on the podium, though she had a hard time winning support.

>> translator: i went to ask companies for responsership, but people there would tell me i'll probably get married and retire. or that i didn't have the physical ability to succeed. >> reporter: so ehara moved to europe, the homeland of motorsports. she made it to the f-3 races a gateway to the top formula 1. but then she had to put the brakes on her career. >> translator: i competed against male drivers. i didn't have the same physical strength, i was exhausted. i went through more than 200 days in the year with a fever of 38 degrees. my mind became weak a. and my nervous system became unbalanced. >> reporter: ehara spent five years rebuilding her health. then she made her comeback.

the world endurance championship requires tactics and resilience. ehara's abilities caught the attention of teams around the world. >> it is the perfect, but because she's fast enough, never were a mistake. >> reporter: last year, ehara and her teammates came in third. at 41, she became the first woman to stand on this podium. ehara wants to pay forward the opportunity she's had. she started the women in motorsports project this years were a japanese carmaker. she coaches 26 women, including a housewife and a doctor.

some have tried racing before, but given up. they come from across the country to train on the weekend. ehara wants to help them participate in races in japan. >> translator: ehara is tough and strong-minded. i want to be like her. >> translator: my experience taught me that people can overcome barriers of nationality, age and gender if he work with others who share the same passion. i want to create a social movement of doing what i can, step-by-step. >> reporter: racing has long been considered a man's sport. requiring physical strength that women don't possess. but ehara is proving that strength of spirit is just as important, on and off the track.

minori takeo, nhk world. japanese mung airports have a huge following around the world. one area where they're finding new things is in the classroom and they're helping to bring history alive. >> reporter: a crammed school in tokyo. a student is preparing for high school entrance exams. but it's not a textbook he reaches for. it's monga, part of a series of comics covering japanese

history. the students are required to read them between classes and they don't need much encouraging. teachers say even those who had a difficult time with history are now eager to study. >> translator: i've crowded munga because nigoticed how easy students memorize story lines. >> reporter: book shop managers report a shop rise in sales with history comics. one reason is the quality of the drawings. the publisher of this series launched in june recruited leading talents in the monga history. the artist of this cover works for a study award winning studio. and figure, drawn in the same hip style as fiction mongo. and battle themes come alive in graphic detail.

in its first month on sale, this series sold 700,000 copies. as unprecedented amount for this type of book. but style alone doesn't complain their popularity. creators of monga is stressing substance. this publisher has done extensive research on helmet and each artist has a different style and the artists are required to portray that in their drawings. >> translator: characters are shown from the side or from behind. the artist will have a difficult time, unless they know how to draw them from different angles. >> reporter: and it's not just armor. publishers scrutinize to make sure each is accurate. >> translator: the most difficult about studying mongo is to be faithful to the fts

and entertaining at the same time. >> reporter: that kind of attention to detail gives this genre of monga a broad appeal. this 41-year-old homemaker is one fan. she was bitten by the history buff after buying an ebook monga for her young daughter. >> translator: it could be more enjoyable to read these as an adult because we've learned many things since we last studieded history. in this sense, i'm more into reading monga than my daughter. >> reporter: monga has already made its mark in world culture. if they stay true to history publishers of this particular arm form say they can do the same in education. a gripping talef power and betrayal has the stage from dancers of japanese traditions what could have been a clash of cultures turned out to be a smooth collaboration. nhk world has more.

>> reporter: whether murder or suicide, tokyo audiences this week experienced the betrayal of a warlord. you encounter him. he plays a power-hungry warrior. the collaboration was born in 2010 when a russian dancer visited japan. >> translator: i was very impressed by how fujima expressed himself onstage. i could feel his strength behind his quiet movements. it really made me want to share the stage with him. >> reporter: when he heard of the russian dancer's wish, he

proposed to collaborate to highlight their different artistic styles. >> translator: i think true collaboration is when people bring their best abilities together. you share and learn from each other. and in that way, you create something new. >> reporter: the two styles could hardly be more different. traditional japanese dancers stay low to the floor and move their feet. but ballet dancers are energetic. they stand on their toes and reach for the sky. the two dancers combined the two forms. iwata danced a ballet.

he was the first nonrussian soloist. he applied the japanese concept known as ma. it means something by creating space in time. the performance moved through their own steps, but started and finished together. >> translator: the point is for two different stage techniques to harmonize as each dancer performs. you could say an interesting chemical reaction takes place. ♪ >> reporter: the dancers' graceful energy creates a pattern to the japanese song. when they danced together, their synchronized movements created a powerful harmony.

♪ >> when they started dancing and moving at the same time, each of them like their traditional feet, their own dance. >> translator: i almost forgot that they were dancing in different genres. >> translator: the audience seemed happy. i could feel how everyone was open and warm-hearted. >> translator: whoever we are, we have the same ma of breath in our bodies. when people like us steeped in tradition come together and use our intuition to create something, it often comes out really well. >> reporter: this unity sprang from a respect for differences. on the heels of their success, the three artists plan to take

the show on a world tour starting in russia. nhk world. it's time now for the world weather with our meteorologist. people along the mississippi valley are dealing with one of the worst floods in history. watts the latest? >> they're experiencing the worst floods in decades, the rivers have crested and historic levels with days of heavy rainfall. now, these are pictures coming out of missouri on wednesday. the floods occurred due to record-breaking heavy rainfall. several people have been killed and authorities have issued a state of emergency. the rain has let up across many areas along the mississippi river basin. however, floodwaters should flow downstream. that means we still have a risk for floods across many areas. heavy rain is falling across the deep south and into the

mid-atlantic. and rain will continue for the next couple of days. now, as for temperatures for the next three days, new york will see higher than average temperatures. 11 degrees for the high on december 31st. that's 5 degrees higher than normal. los angeles, mild weather and sunny weather will continue into the weekend. now, across the uk, flooding is taking place with days of heavy rainfall. we have some significant flooding image coming out of the area. so, take a look. t the uk has been experiencing extremely difficult weather this month. into a lake tuesday. and in the scottish unit of dess the river swelled and surrounded the surrounding area. and in the english town of penzance the rivers rised.

and a more potent system is moving into the british isles starting friday. there's going to be a continued risk. meanwhile, a winter storm is affecting much of the black region and total snow up to 60 centimeters in the higher elevations of turkey. very low temperatures can be found across the east. moscow, the high will be minus 14 degrees on saturday, as well as sunday. and warsaw, it should be around 2 degrees, but the high could be only minus 10 degrees on sunday so, please, please bundle up. a very different story across the southern hemisphere. it's summer and quite warm. quite heavy rain across south australia. about 100 millimeters. and 200 millimeters could fall. flooding is going to be across this area. meanwhile, sunny weather will continue across sydney and melbourne, will you see showers

on friday. but weather should improve as we go into the weekend. now, finally over asia, calmer weather can be found across much, good news for many, however not good news for northeastern china. hazy conditions will develop over this area on new year's day. and the weather will come back across the korean peninsula. and snow will continue to fall across the northwestern flank of japan down towards the region. and tokyo can enjoy the first sign of the year tomorrow, 12 degrees for the high. and temperatures going up to 16 degrees on your saturday. have a happy new year. here's your extended forecast.

people in central japan are welcoming 2016 with an offering of a huge rice cake to a shrine. the ritual is intended to wish for good health and abundant harvest in the coming year. about 300 people carried the rice cake on the 200 meter of the shrine. fachlers and other residents of the prefecture offered a two-layer rice cake weighing 250 kilograms. the bottom has a diameter of 1.5 meters. they have been presenting a large rice cake for the new year to the shrine, since 1946. in addition to regular offerings of rice and vegetables. >> translator: i felt the weight, as well as the history. a prayed for everyone's good

health. >> the rice cake will be displayed through january 7th. and it will be distributed to visitors to the shrine the next day. that's all we have this

>> welcome back to the "france 24" newsroom. we are broadcasting live from paris. i'm aurore dupuis. annual fireworks in paris and brussels have been canceled. york, madrid, and moscow have boosted security. storm frank keeps battering the u.k. hundreds of homes have been