♪ welcome back to nhk "newsline." here is the latest we have f fo you at t ts hohour. hong kong police arrested the founder of a newspaper criticac ofof beieijing and eight other people for suspected violations of the territory's new national security law. police say jimmy lai and the other suspects colluded with foreign forces to harm national

security, but they did not elaborate on the alleged violations. he is known for his work to raise international awareness of issueses facing hong kong. he visiteded the united states july of last year r to meet wit secretary of state mike pompeo. he is also being tried for his involvement in an unauthorized event in june, commemorating the 1989 tiananmen square incident. he and a dozen others have been charged with inciting people to take part. hong kong police have been stepping up their crackdown on foreign activists since the law took effect at the end of june. next to taiwan and the highest level u.s. visit in four decades. the u.s. health secretary met the president on monday, tsai-ing-wen, and the landmark trip comes amid rising tensions between washington and china. >> translator: by v visiting

institutions in person, the delegation will gain a better understanding of taiwan's approach to the coronavirus. the visits also provides a chance to speak directly on the important issues. and find a direction for future cooperation. >> it's a true honor to be here, to convey a message of strong support, and friendship, from president trump to taiwan. >> alex azar offered his condolences over the death of formerer taiwanese presidentnt teng-hui last month. washington says azar is the first cabinet member to visit taiwan in six years. the u.s. broke off official ties with taipei in 1979. u.s. president donald trump's administration is bolstering its relationship with taiwan at the same time it is toughening its stance against china. beijing says it will react sharply to the meeting. now to the latest on the coronavirus in the united states. the country passes another somber milestonene. ththe number of confirmemed cas there has reached over five million. johns hopkins university also says more than 160,000 have died

in the country. those totals are by far ththe largest in the world. by state, california has been worst hit, followed by florida, texas and new york. the spread has slowed in new york but continues in other big cities. university researchers in washington state expect that the death toll will jump to nearly 300,000 by december 1st, but they say that could be kept to around 228,000 if 95% of people wear masks when going out. the caribbean nation of saint kitts and nevis has become the 44th country to ratify the u.n. treatyn the prohibition ofof nucar weapons. this means six morereeeded to bng the treaty in force. ththe anununceme was madon sunday, e e 75thnnivererry of thu.s. atoc bombinof the japaneseity of nasaki. the reign mister mar brantley called the bombing of nagasaki the apogee of human cruelty and inhumanity.

he says his country sees no useful purpose for nuclear arms, and called on all nations to work for peace and mutual respect for mankind. this comes after ireland and ninigeria and niue ratified th treaty on thursday >> in a a message for a a memor ceremony i in nagasaki, , the u secretarary general anantonio guterrrres says he l looks forw to the treaty enentering into force e as a part of thehe nucl disarmament campaign. the treaty adopted three years ago prohibits the development, possession, and use of nuclear weapons. but nuclear powers as well as japan and other countries protected by the u.s. nuclear umbrella have not signed it. and now, an update on last week's deadly blast in beirut, lebanon, that so far has taken the lives of at least 158 people and injured about 6,000 others. representativeves from more tha 30 nations and international groups have agreed to provide about $300 million in emergency

relief. world leaders on sunday took part in an online donor conference organized by the united nations and france. the french preresident says emergency aid must come swiftly and be coordinated efficiently. >> translator: the objective of the conference is to bring our resources together to provide a substantial response in the coming days, the coming weeks, to meet the needs of beirut's residents. >> a statement from the french presidential office says that under the auauspices of f the ud nations, donors will deliver the aid in the form of medicine, food, and housing reconstruction material. the explosion's aftermath triggered anti-government protests in the capital. violent clashes between police and protesters were seen for a second day on sunday. many lebanese people have long held back their simmerining ang at a governmentt they accuse of being g corrupt. amid t the growing p public out

lebanon's information minister resigned in response t to the demand for change. media reports on sunday said the country's environmental minister also tendered his resignation. a city in west japan has come up with a novel way to lighten the mood in the face of the coronavirus. it's handing out colorful lanterns to brighten the streets after its famous festival was canceled. one million tourists usually flock to fukushima to highlight the festival, but the event was canceled this year to stop the spread of the coronavirus. instead, organizers are giving out paper lanterns so people can decorate the city. this shop has hung 20 of them. >> translator: it will be good if people could feel a little more cheerful.

well, high school baseball players in japan have started a series of friendly matches in the western part of the country. it's a replacement for the annual tournament that is one of the country's most popular sporting events. the baseball matchup was canceled this year due to the coronavirus outbreak. the 32 teams chosen for the spring tournament will play a game each in the series. to prevent the spread of the virus, the opening ceremony on monday did not include the usual march of the players into the stadium. only the teams playing in the opening game were on the field. while the other teams were introduced on a screen. entry to the stadium was lilted to backup players and family members. the friendlies will be held for the next three days and for another three days from saturday. across the country, 1,444 coronavirus cases were confirmed on sunday. that brings total infections to nearly 50,000. the death toll stands at 1,061. well, sports fans in the

u.s. will soon be able to watch japanese professional baseball games live on cable tv and the internet. the for the fans sports channel will broadcast more than 200 official pacific league games futuring six teams between august and november. among the pandemic, sports related groups around the world are looking at business models that do not include spectators present in stadiums. the marketing ceo of the pacific league says he wants to continue to explore new ways to promote japanese professional basebabal. and here's our three-day weather forecast. ♪

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and that brings us to the end of this edition of nhk "newsline." we'll have more for you at the top of the hour. thank you very much for joining us. ♪ japanan has one curious custom. in septptember,r, the c country cecebrates the day of the full moon. it's called o-tsuki-mi, or moon viewing.

>> japanese people lovove the n moon, and they give it other names to fit its constantly changing shape. this moon is called mika-zuki, or the moon on the third night, when its light shines in a brilliant crescent. this moon is called nemachi-zuki, or the moonn whil sleeping. sincnce t the moon appears late night, people sleep as they wait for it. the moon itself is called o-tsuki-sama, the japanese and

h honorific term "sama" to the name to show their respectct fo the moon. >> let's t travel across japan find out about the deep relationship japanese people have with the moon. in this episode, we'll introduce various festivals that are held under the changing moon. our first festival is held in gujo hachiman, gifu prefecture.

the town is in a mountainous region in central japan. the gujo dance festival reaches its peak on august 15th, the day the full moon appears is called bon-no-tsuki, or the moon of the bon. japanese believe that in the bon season during summer, the spirits of ancestors return to their families, to spend time with them. schools and businesses close down for this holiday period. in this area, it's believed the light of the moon guides the ancestors back to their hometowns.

♪ people welcome their ancestors with this dance, called bon-odori. traditional drums and flutes create a lively atmosphere. in this town, this continues for a month. ♪ for four nights during this period, dancing called tetsuya-odori, goes on all night. the festival has history dating back 400 years. more than 200,000 people across japan flock to this event every year. there's a famous song that highlights the profound connection between the festival and the moon. the song is called "kawasaki,"

and it goes like this. ♪ >> they're singing about the beauty of the full moon. in the dance itself, dancers look up at the moon. people are wearing a traditional kimono called yukata. looking graceful and relaxed in her yukata is yuki goto.

>> the long evening of dancing all night under the moon has just started. ♪ >> this is a stage at the main venue of the festival. singing at the front is yuki's grandfather. he's a festival veteran who has been performing folk songs for more than 60 years.

♪ ♪ >> the folk song h he sings tel the story of a man and a woman one night.

it recounts the tale of a man who spends a night together with a woman, who he chaompares to t moon. >> dancing all night under the moonlit sky, the family and their ancestors draw closer together.

the next festival we'll visit is in the ancient city of kyoto. this moon-viewing ceremony was first held 1,200 years ago. locals offer potatoes, beans, and other bounties of the autumn haharvest to thee moon, to expr gratitude for the rich haharve. tourists board boats, but not to see the nighttime sky. they're here to see the moon reflected on the surface of the lake. it's one of many kinds of moonn viewing. this elegant pastime is descriribed in ththe classic 11 century novel "the tale of genji," and it's continued since ancient times.

we are now on the southern island of okokinawa, where the lunar calendar is still alive and well. ♪ ♪ >> in july, the waning moon becomes steadily thinner.

nijuroku-ya. on this day, people in the city of yonabaru hold a special festival. they're making a massive rope that will be used in a tug-of-war contest. it's 90 meters long and weighs 5 tons. >> uehara leads the west team of

the contest. they're making a female rope. the big loop at the end of the rope symbolizes the female genitalia. if they win, he will be promised an abundant grain harvest for the entire year. the east team is making a male rope. its end resembles a protruding male member. if thehe win, they'll be grante peace and prosperity. but they've lost five consecutive contests. even though their preparations aren't yet complete, the leader of the east team decides his side needs some refreshments. >> maybe if they drank less and

concentrated on the contest, they might win this year. they continue all night under the dim light of the moon to make the massive rope. during the battle of yolk that with -- okinawa, the end of the second world war, yonabaru was reduced to ashes. the first thing residents revised was this great tug-of-war contest.

>> it's the evening o of the 26 day after the new moon. the great tug-of-war is the next day. ♪ ♪

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♪ our next festival takes place on jusan-ya, the 13th night, just before the full moon. since a full moon will soon appear, it's considered especially auspicious. we're in the town of shioya, north of tokyo. children are walking in the moonlight on jusan-ya of october. they're carrying bundles of straw.

>> the children are casting an odd spell while striking the ground. this is to rouse the spirits of the earth and make them chase the pests out of the fields. >> having them do this is supposed to ensure a rich harvest the following year. >> for the children's mighty incantation, the adults give them some sweets, a modest reward. it is a different kind of o-tsuki-mi custom that's only

done in this town. however, the number of children in the town is decreasing, and the energy of the festival is fading.

♪ >> the opposition in belarus is causing -- calling for a recount after lucas" said to have 180% of the vote, -- lukashenko said to have received 80% of the vote. police in hong kong arrested media tycoon jimmy lai .