hello and thank you for joining us on this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan with the news from tokyo. we start with the new coronavirus pandemic in europe, where the number of cases continues to surge. pope francis has visited two churches in rome to pray for an end to the disease. the pontiff made an unannounced visit to the basilica of st. mary major. he prarayed before an icon of t virginin mary that wawas carrie a procession to stop the plague in the year 593. there have been about 28,000 cases confirmed in italy, and

more than 2,100 people have died. now, germany is tightening border controls with its neighbors. starting on monday, people from five nations, including france and switzerland, are barred from crossing the border. daily commuters are excluded from the ban. other european states, including poland and the czech republic, are also restricting entry. the virus is making inroads in africa, as well. the world health organization says the number of confirmed infections on that continent has topped 100. in kenya, at least three people haveve contracted the virus. the governmement now says it'll ban visitors f from all countri where infections have been confirmed. and in asia, the philippine government has imposed strict home quarantine measures across its main island. the move comes a day after authorities prohibibited all domestic travel to and from the capital manila. now, japan's prime minister has

called on leaders of the group of seven to unite in the fight against the coronavirus. shinzo abe spoke with his g7 peers on monday during a video conference. >> translator: the coronavirus is hard to tackle. but we agree that if the g7 members unite and work closely together with the global community, we can definitely win the battle against the pandemic. >> abe said he told the participants the first priority should be the development of coronavirus mededicines, as that'll ease people's concerns. he said he urged the leaders to send out a strong message to g7 countries will take all possible measures to combat the virus. the prime minister said the others supported his call for the implementation of economic and fiscal measures that match the magnitude of the economic fallout from the pandemic. abe also indicated the leaders back his plan to stage the tokyo olympics and paralympics as scheduled.

the coronavirus outbreak has stranded foreign athletes training in japan ahead of the tokyo olympic and paralympic games. their home countries are imposing travel restrictions to contain the virus, leaving them unable to return. eight runners and coaches from the mongolian national marathon team have been training in the western city since early february. the team was due to go home on tuesday, but cannot because mongolia has suspended all international regular flights to prevent further cases. >> translator: i i don't know wn i can return to my country. my biggest concern is if the olympics will be held as scheduled. >> he added he wanted to see his young daughter and wife in mongolia. a city official says the situation is totally unexpected, but the local government will support the team. and the coronavirus pandemic is also spurring speculation the

olympics and paralympics will be postponed or cancelled. but athletes are s staying focud on training for the big event, believing the summer games will go on. it's no different for japanese gymnast uchimura. the two-time defending champion has been sidelined by injury, but he's determined to make his comeback this year, here in tokyo. >> reporter: the 31-year-old uchimura took part in a training camp in australia last december. he focused on sharpening up core skills and strength work. >> translator: i don't think i will be stronger than i was at my peak. but i think i can develop something different. >> uchimura swept the individual all-around titles at both the world championships and the olympics from 2009. many in the sport, including legends, came to see him as the greatest gymnast of all time.

but his streak came to a halt when injury struck. shoulder problems and a poor showing at last year's nationals left him outside the qualifying spots for the world championships. >> translator: i didn't know how i should feel while watching the world championships last year. until then, i had always won the event and had always felt i belonged there. but that was not the case. i felt weak for not being able to participate just because of shoulder pain. >> uchimura now says he sees some positives in his timeout and that it gives him determination to return to the top. he is paying special attention to his vault. at the 2016 rio de janeiro

olympics, the notoriously tough technique helped him to a second all-around gold. but it let him down the following year when he suffered a serious injury on landing. he has not used the move in competition for more than two years. but thinks now it's tohe time t break it out again. >> translator: i want people to realize that i can get back to my former self, despite the injury. i want people to see that i'm still strong. otherwise, i won't be satisfied. making the tokyo olympics is probably the biggest goal in my life. all i want to do is surprise everyone, so i'm preparing for that day now. >> april's national championships will be uchimura's chance to announce his return to the world stage. if he does make the olympic team, all eyes will be on king

kohei. watchihing to see if he can add more hardware to his collection. moving now to other news making headlines here in japan. a former care worker has been sentenced to death for committing one of the worst mass murders in the nation's recent history. a district court found uamatsu guilty of killing 19 residents at a homee for people with intellectual disabilities four years ago. he injured 26 others at the rampage near tokyo. the presiding judge handed down the sentence and described uamatsu's crimes as malicious and incomparably grave. the 30-year-old had previously

worked at the home, and admitted in court to carrying out the murders. he said he targeted the victims becaususe he thought people wit disabilities, who are nonverbal, live unhappy lives. but the defense team argued uamatsu could not be held responsible for the murders because of a mental disorder caused by long-term marijuana use. the court dismissed the argument and sided with the prosecution in issuing the death penalty. the father of one victim injured in the attack says the trial ended with a lot of questions left unanswered. >> translator: i couldn't understand how uamatsu developed a mindset like that while helping people with disabilities. i wanted t to hear more of whate had to say. >> the mother of a woman who was killed at the age of 19 issued a comment saying the ruling could not take away her sorrow, but would at least help her move on. one expert says the disabled

still face discrimination, and stresses the heavy burden of reresponsibilility for their ca borne by their relatives and care homes. >> translator: the whole of society should share responsibility for taking care of people with serious disaltst. disabilities. we must each take on the challenge of making the community in which we live one that can support such people. japan's education ministry says it plans to draw up guidelines for learning opportunities for all foreign children i in the country. a survey by the ministry last year showed nearly 20,000 children from abroad ageded between 6 and 14 may not be attending schools of any kind. a ministry panel of experts

compiled a draft report on monday. it asked the government to set guidelines incorporatiti measures to help get them into schools. the report calls on local municipalities to make lists of foreign children, just like they do with japanese children. it also asks municipal officials to visit the homes of the children to gain an understanding of their situations. the education ministry aims to create the guidelines based on the panel's report by march next year. the coronavirus outbreak has dominated a debate in the united states between the two front-runners in the race for the democratic party's presidential nomination. the event had been scheduled to take place in arizona. but as a precaution, it wound up being held in a tv studio in washington, d.c., without a live audience. foformer vice president joe b b emphasized he dealt with ebola cases when he served in office. >> people are looking for results, not a revolution.

they want to deal with the results they need right now. and we can do that by making sure that we make everybody whole who has been so badly hurt. in terms of their -- they lose the job. in terms of not having the ability to care for their children. >> senator bernie sanders said the outbreak highlights the need for universal healthcare. >> as a result of the virus here, the coronavirus, what we have got to do, also, is understand the fragility of the economy. and how unjust and unfair it is that so few have s so much and many have so little. >> both candidates also talked about who they would choose as a running mate. biden said he would pick a woman if he wins the party's nomination. sanders said h he would, likely do the same. the united states has never had a female vice president. ♪

next, here's a three-day outlook on the weather for selected cities around the globe. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ one more story to share with you before we go. people of a city in northeastern

japan devastated by the march 2011 earthquake and tsunami have been preparing for the arrival of the olympic flame, which will soon be flown in from greece for this year's games. the torch will arrive friday in miyagi prefecture. localsls gathehered along a cann monday to set up about 160 bamboo lanterns. the disaster left more than 1,0000 of the city's residents dead or missing. the same number of lanterns will be placed in three locations, including a monument in a park that was built to pray for the city's recovery. >> translator: the community was united in assembling the bamboo lanterns. i hope they help express the city's thanks to the rest of the world for its support. >> the lanterns are scheduled to be lit thursday evening. and that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan in tokyo. thanks for joining us.

welcome to "newsline in depth." i'm marie yanaka. going to the zoo can be a fun way to learn about animals. but the facilities actually do so much more than just provide us with entertainment. today, we have some stories about animals, as well as the people helping them to survive and thrive. now, zoos are always popular, especially with kids. but with japan's low birthrate and declining population, many zoos here are struggling. so some are coming up with unique strategies to attract

vivisitors. our first report goes to one such zoo in southern japan. >> the sight and sound of hippos crunching on watermelons has racked up more than 20 million video viviews worldwide. >> it's surprising. we really didn't imagine it would be this popular. >> kimitaka is in charge of making the videos for nagasaki bio park. with plenty of feathered and furry material to choose from, he turns out around eight videos a month. and he keeps a close eye on the stats they generate. the more popular the videos, the more income they generate from streaming. the zoo uses the funds to

improve facilities like this new feeding terrace for the tapers. it's good pr, too. since the hippo video went viral, visitor numbers are up. >> translator: i saw the zoo on social media and decided to comeme. >> foreign visitor numbers are up 20% yeaear on year. >> i've been here four times. >> kamichika is now looking for his next hit, and he is banking on some of the zoo's most popular animals. videos with soothing sounds are a big thing these days on youtube. so kamichika is trying to catch the sound of the animals under a trickle of water. >> sometimes it's difficult to capture the moment. but i try to make videos that look as natural and spontaneous as possible. >> eventually, kamichika h hope

to have the full zoo online so people everywhere can see the electi collection with one click. >> that hippo video was a lot of fun. now, this one shows guinea pigs walking in line to get home. only someone who spent a lot of time with the animals and knows their every move can capture the interesting moments for people around the world too enjoy. but zoos aren't just for enjoying cute animals. they also have a mission to protect rare species. one such animal is the giant panda. a breed native to china. in the '70s, there were only about 1,000 giant pandas in the wild. and, until a few years ago, it was listed as an endangered species. japan has ten of them in three different zoos, on lone from china for breeding purposes. pandas are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity. but one living at a zoo in western japan is famous for being father to over a dozen cubs.

zookeepers are hopeful for more to come despite the panda's age. 80 in human years. >> adventure world in wakayama is home to six giant pandas. the largest family in the country. 25 years ago, when the panda became one of the world's most endangered species, the large-scale zoo joined forces with a breeding center in china. the result has been a black-and-white success. 16 cubs. a record number outside china. and a male named amae has played a starring role in this affair, ever since china offered him on loan to the zoo in 1994. he has sired 15 of the cubs born at the zoo.

as part of the conditions of eimei's loan, pandas bred here are relocated to china. his most recent offspring came into t the world in 2018 when eimei was 25, making him the world's oldest captive panda to father a cub through natural breeding. the average lifespan of pandas living in captivity is between 25 and 30 years. does 27-year-old eimei have it in him to become a father again? yuka, who has been taking care of him for over a decade, is dedicated to keeping him titipt towards that end. >> translator: since he's aging, we are giving top priority to eimei's health, and we really hope the breeding g goes smooth.

with his age, though, i can see that he doesn't have the stamina as before. >> staff record eimei's every move. they carefully check the images to see if he's's scent marking commununicating vocal lovove cu indicacating feeling amorous. as part of his regular checkups, blood samples are taken every two weeks and his blood pressure once a month. keepers use incentives like food to get eimei exercising. keeping his lower legs strong is vital to successful breeding. special attention is also paid to diet. eimei, like most pandas, eats

around 20 kilograms of bamboo every day. but the breeders here collect three times that amount, which they sort manually for quality, to suit eimei's finnicky palate and mood on any given day. >> we tend to pick bamboo with a abundant quality leaves. it's a bit tricky to find bamboo to his liking and his preference differs day to day and by season. so you never really know until you feed him. >> his mate is rohine. the 19-year-old was born at the zoo to a different male. the two seem to click and chemistry is key in successful panda breeding.

they have produced nine cubs so far. eimei may very well break his own record of the oldest male panda to produce an offspring. >> translator: i think he still has the spark. as long as he has the will, i hope he goes for it. >> translator: we just try to follow the daily health maintenance program to keep eimei fit. i just hope another cute baby panda will be born and loved by everyone. >> spring, when females come into heat for two to three days, is mating season for pandas. will eimei have the stamina to keep up the romancing? >> if eimei fathers another cub, it'll eventually be returned to

china, as all panda babies born in japan are. that way, they can help grow the panda population in their home country. in our final story, we meet a japanese woman working at a breeding center in china, who's dedicated her life to the panda cause. >> china province, the birthplace of the panda. 200 of the animals live at this breeding facility. experts hope some of them will, one day, be released into the wild. a japanese worker at the site, abe -- panandas as a child. we went to china in hope of getting closer to the animals and work at the center. she scored her dream job back in

japan. becomiming a panda keeper at a te tokyo zoo. but her joy would eventually turn to despair when a baby panda in her care died six days after its birth. >> translator: i was devastated. it was so hard. i never wanant to go through something like that again. >> abe eventually returned to the breeding center in china to brush up her skills. a few times a week, she works overnight to feed the cubs milk and rub them to help with their digestion. sometimes it's a challenge to get the little ones to breastfeed from the mothers. abe imitates a cub's cry in an effort to stimulate the process. but it doesn't always work.

30 minutes later, abe tries again. this time, with success. one of her responsibilities is keeping the pandas in good shape. for meal time, she has devised a contraption that gives the animals a little workout, not just for their bodies but, their minds, too. to get the food, they have to reach up into the basket. >> i think it's good for the pandas. they have to find the food, which stimulates their brains. >> abe keeps a detailed record for her observations and notes everything her co-workers t tea

her. >> translator: i iant to absbso evererything and keep trying to improve. my dream is to help grow the number of giant pandas living in the wild. >> the effort to revive this once-endangered species is one of the great success stories of conservation. but abe and her colleagues know there is much work to do before pandas are flourishing once again in the natural habitat. takeo baba, nhk world. >> thanks to the kind of efforts we saw today, giant pandas are no longer classified as endangered. and their number in the wild is not far off, doubling from its low point. but there are about 8,000 other animal species around the world, still, listed as endangered or critically endangered. and humans are said to be behind the current high rate of species extinction. there is still much to be done to protect animal life so that

all creatures can thrive and prosper in their natural habitat. and that's all for today's "newsline in depth." thanks for tuning and make sure to do so next time, too.

>> the french president says we are were as he places his country under lockdown, telling people not to leave their homes, and drafting in the army. ♪ this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up. >> we have a simple message for all countries. test. test. test. >> the world health organization says the current response is not enough to stop coronavirus pandemic spreading. ♪