♪ welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm gene otani. we start with the covid situation here in tokyo. the number of confirmed new cases on thursday is 339. it is over 300 for the first time in five days. total cases in tokyo now exceed 18,600. officials are urging residents not to travel to other prefectures, not to visit their

hometowns for family reunions, and not to go out for dinner in groups. experts met to analyze the situation in tokyo, they report the average number of new cases per day during the past week has been 256. they say that's lower than last week, but still high. >> translator: patients with severe symptoms tend to spend a long time in hospital beds including beds in intensive care units. it's vital to provide medicacal care for covid-19 patients while also providing other medical care. and we need to secure beds for covid-19 patients who are seriously ill. >> tokyo governor koike yuriko is urging residents to take thur row pro pre-caututions in every aspect of daily life. she says people living together should not share tableware, towels or toothpaste. >> infections are spreading among people of all age groups. elderly people are prone to becoming seriously i ill. they must protect themselves,

and other people must protect them. i want everyone to share this awareness. >> more than 60,000 people have tested positive for covid-19 across japan. over 1,100 have died. senator kamala harris has accepted the u.s. democratic party's nomination for vice president. she will take on president donald trump alongside her running mate, joe biden. >> today the country feels distant. donald trump's failure of leadership has cost lives and livelihoods. >> harris is the daughter of jamaican and indian immigrants. she is the first black woman and first asian-american to run as first asian-american to run as vice president on a major party ticket. her acceptance came on the third day of an unprecedented, virtual

democratic national convention. >> joe and i believe that we can build that beloved community. one that is strong and decent. just and kind. one in which we can all see ourselves. >> in her speech, harris referred to george floyd and other black americans killed in the u.s. she said efforts have to be made to overcome racism, because there is no vaccine for it. she said biden will unite the country as president. former president barack obama gave a speech in support of biden from the symbolic museum of the american revolution in philadelphia. >> f for eight years, joe was t last one in the room whenever i faced a big decision. he made me a better president, and he's got the character and the experience to make us a better country. >> on the final day of the

convention, biden is scheduled to give his nomination acceptance speech and effectively kick off the campaign for november's election. u.s. president donald trump has announced that washington will start the process to reimpose u.n. sanctions against iran over its nuclear program. >> today, i'm directing the secretary of state, mike pompeo, to notify the u.n. security council that the united states intends to restore virtually all of the previously suspended united nations sanctions on iran. it's a snap back. >> the state department announced that pompeo will travel to new york on thursday. washington accuses iran of breaching the terms of the nuclear deal. under the accord reached in 2015 between iran and six world powers, sasanctions were liftedn retuturn for tehraran curbing i nuclear program. the trump administration wants

to restore the sanctions using the so-called snapback mechanism that was approved with the 2015 deal.. the procedure alallows for the reintroduction of all u. sanctions in place before the deal if iran is proved to be in violation of its terms. washington withdrew from the nuclear deal in 2018 while most other countries involved have expressed the intention to keep it alive. russia and china are among the countries arguing that the u.s. has no right to invoke the snapback since it's no longer party to the deal. the united states has suspended or terminated three bilateral agreements with hong kong covering extradition and tax exemptions. it follows china's imposition of a national security law on the former british colony. the state department announced the move on wednesday. the accords cover the surrender

of fugitives, the transfer of prisoners and the reciprocal tax exemptions on income from international shipping. president donald trump signed an executive order last month to end hong kong's special status. under u.s. law to punish china, the new security law cracks down on anything beijing considers succession, subversion, terrorism or collusion with foreign forces. in a statement, the state department says its actions underscore the deep concern regarding beijing's decision to impose the national security law, which has crushed the freedoms of the people of hong kong. earlier this month the trump administration froze assets in the u.s. belonging to hong kong chief executive carrie lam and ten other officials from china and the territory. starting in september, washington will also require goods produced in the territory for export to the u.s. to be labeled as made in china.

opposition leaders in belarus are seeking a dialogue with the administration of president alexander lukashenko as turmoil continues following the country's august 9th election. lukashenko claimed victory in the vote to secure a sixth term as president. there have sincece been widesprd prototests and strtrikes amid cs the elecection w was rigged.d. the opposition leaders are demanding that lukashenko resign. they iterated their cause for a change ogogovernment a at a new conference in the capital minsk on wednesday, but lukashenko is showing no sign of backing down. on wednesday he announced plans to punish groups seen as siding with the opposition. moscscow has pledged military supppport to belarusus if neede. russian foreign minister sergey lavrov says he does not see a lack of readiness of dialogue by

the belarus government. the european union quickly convened on an online summit. participants agreed thatat the will not need to recognize the results of the election nor tolerate violence against the demonstrators. they called for an investigation into the election and agreed to shortly impose sanctions on individuals in line with an agreement earlier reached among foreign ministers. european commission president ursula von der leyen pledged 53 billion euros or about $56 million for assistance to belarus. the funds are to be used for coronavirus emergency relief as well as to support the bela-russian people, and freedom of the press. japanese authorities have ordered nissan motor to pay around $2 million in back taxes connected to carlos ghosn's time

in charge of the firm. sources say officials believe the automaker faililed to pay t on $9.4 million of income it wrote off as b business expense. that included expenses for a corporate jet used by ghosn and his family. nissan also paid rental costs beyond ghosn's housing allowance on his condominiums in tokyo and paris. the sources say nissan must now pay about $2.3 million in taxes. the company says it will deal with the matter in accordance with a notice from the tax bureau. authorities previously found similar failures by nissan involving another $1.4 million of ghosn's personal expenses. nissan filed a lawsuit against ghosn in february seeking about $95 million in damages over alleged irregularities. ghosn skipped bail in japan, and fled to lebanon last year. the former chairman is now on

the interpol wanted list. there is no prospect of his extradition to japan. apple has become the first u.s. company to have a stock market valuation of $2 trillion. the milestone reflects the importance of information technology, amid the coronavirus pandemic. apple shares rose above the historic threshold before holding -- before slipping back slightly on the new york stock market on wednesday. it took just two years after the company became the first publicly-listed u.s. firm with a market value of $1 trillion. apple is now the second company in the world to reach the $2 trillion mark. saudi arabia state-owned oil company saudi aramco achieved that feat shortly after going public last year. apple has been expanding services for its users, including mumusic, video

streaming and games, as wewell boostingng iphone sales, with a new model. the company seas stock price plunged in late march due to the pandemic. but it has recovered to more than double the low hit in march. in north korea, the ruling party plans to hold its first congress in over four years. it wants to boost the economy, amid worries of the coronavirus pandemic. the party newspaper reports that leader kim jong-un expects to unveil a new five-year economic plan at the gathering in january. kim gave a speech to party officials on wednesday. he said the country has been facing unexpected challenges this year. the party's central committee adopted a report saying the pandemic has dealt a blow to the economy, that comes as, even as pyongyang has claimed to have no confirmed cases of the virus. the reportrt says s internal an external factors have e delayed the nation's economic goals. the last party congress took place in may 2016. nhk has learned the defense

minister kono taro will meet with his u.s. counterpart mark esper in guam this month. sources say kono is planning to travel to ththe u.s. territory august 29th. he has not traveled overseas since february due to the coronavirus pandemic. kono and esper are expected to talk about activities in the east and south china seas amid the virus crisis and on the agenda, a response to north korea's ballistic missiles after japan scrapped a plan to deploy the u.s.-made aegis ashore ground-based missile defense system in two locations. sources say the talks will be held at a u.s. air force base with strict measures in place against coronavirus infection and kono will not need to self-quarantine after returning from guam. japan requires all those traveling abroad to self-isolate for 14 days.

♪ and here's a look at what the weather will be like in your part of the world. ♪ ♪

that's the news this hour. i'm gene otani. from all of us here at nhk "newsline," thanks very much for joining us. ♪ welcome to "newline in depth." i'm sub by yaki. what's big, bright and goes boom in summer? fireworks. here in japan, fireworks are a highlight of the hotter months. they draw huge crowds of people, all of them gazing up into the night sky as the night sky unfolds.

but this year things are different. the coronavirus is casting a shadow over many events we usually take for granted. that includes fireworks festivals and other big gatherings. it's also causing pain for the wider tourism industry. today we'll take a look at how a handful of businesses are adapting to an uncertain new world. first up, a report on japan's legendary fireworks makers. they face an increasingly insecure future m. have big stockpiles going to waste. now more than ever their dazzling displays are the tonic that many people need. >> in a sign of the times, fireworks craftsmen are meetings online to figure out how to safely launch simultaneous displays across the country.

hanabi is aimed at encouraging people struggling with the pandemic. one of the organizers in the successor of a 100-year-old fireworks maker in tokyo. >> translator: the goal of the project is to pray for the end of the pandemic. people say the earliest fireworks festivals were started in order to chase away evil spirits that cause epidemics. >> reporter: so that prayer is important for many of the fireworks craftsmen who have lost work due to this pandemic. among the events forced to cancel is the best known hanabi festival at the river. ogatsu has unused fireworks stored in his factory. if the situation does not change, he will be forced to destroy some of them. he and his team needed to find a way to hold the traditional

event without attracting large crowds. so they kept the location of the launch a secret and set a five-minute limit for each show. finally at 8:00 p.m. on junun t 1st. they launched a brilliant display with a prayer for the end of the coronavirus pandemic. >> translator: it was nice to see so many fireworks. >> translator: it gave m me a rl boost of encouragement to get me through this hard time. > reporter: m more thahan 16 fifireworks companies participad in the projecect, launching fireworks in every prefecture on the same night. >> translator: we won't let the coronavirus kill off the fireworkrks induststry. i think hanabi can continue to

evolve and do more amazing things. >> r reporter: he andnd his colleagues hope to create even more ways to help people enjoy the traditional form of entertainment. >> it was interesting to hear that in the early days fireworks were tended to fend off evil spirits and diseases n. a sense, these nighttime spectacles are still serving their original purpose. with so many fireworks being canceled, people are looking for other ways to support the industry. one group launched an online competition that's linking craftsmen directly with fireworks fans. they invited ogatsu and other makers to submit their work. over 100 pieces were submitted and the displays were posted on social media for people to vote. next, i'm not muchh of a gae player, but i have to admit this

looks like fun. it wasas developed by a japanes game company, and it became a worldwide hit as lockdowns were going into effect. now a struggling tourist site in singapore is hoping to build on the success of the game to revive its own fortunes. >> centosa is just 15 minutes away from the city. thee islsland is rimmed on one e by white sandy beaches and packed with attractions. nearly 20 million people visit each year. but these days it's empty. in preparation for the time when borders reopen, the island has turned to this best-selling game. in "animal crossing" players can build houses, plant greenery and decorate a deserted island to

create their ownwn personal paradise. they can alslso visit each othe. sentosa's development company came up with the idea of creating a virtual replica of the island for the game. the firm invited players for a virtual experience. the idea is to entice them back for the real thing after the restrictions end. the design team faithfully recreated the hotel where the u.s.-n-north korea summit was hd two yearsrs ago. the beaches and popular tourist spots are also featured. it captured the smallest details, like logos and signs. the virtual experience ran from may 9th to june 1st. 15,000 applications flooded in. about 450 weree selelected.

>> when i w walked in, i felt like, wow they set this up, looked like a wonderful place, like something i'd like to visit one day. >> one couple even walked down the aisle together. the current restrictions forced them to cancel their wedding plans, but with the development company's help, they were able to invitite friends to theirir virtrtual wedding on the date ty had originally planned. >> we realized we were the only ones, the lucky ones to be given this opportunity. i don't think we'll ever forget it. >> reporter: they and other players posteted their experiens on social media, and more people around the world got t to k kno sentosa. >> i think that was a very pleasant surprise for us is actually receiving requests to play from the global players. >> reporter: as the world

prepares for a n new normal, people are exploring various platforms of communication. video gamames justt mightht hol key to bringingg life back to te tourism industry. nhk world, singapore. >> wow. you can really see how people get drawn into these elaborate virtual worlds. in japan, too, people in the tourism industry are trying to think outside the box. a case in point is the area around the izumo g grand shrinen western japan's shimon any prefecture. it's said to be sacred. legend has it t that all of the shinto gods gathered once a year. it's also a popular destination for tourists. local businessess traditionally welcome visitors by serving up regional specialties such as saki and soba noodles.

these days they have to do things a little differently to keep the money rolling in. >> a saki brewery in shim manny freeskt. the staff are about t to s star ononline tourr that shohows the brewing process. about 50 participants from around the country are taking part. broadcasting from her smart phone, the brewer enters a room dedicated to cultivating yeast. she reenacts the production process, but as this step t tak place in the winter, the participipants are shown a vide of it. >> reporter: the participants are sesent saki ahead of time. as the tour wraps up, it's time for a toast.

>> translator: learning how much care goes into making this s sa has given me a deeper appreciation for it. it definitely tastes different than bottled saki from the supermarket. >> reporter: during the 3 1/2 hour tour, the participants get to see five facilities that produce local specialties. the tour is free of charge, but they're asked to purchase the manufacturer's merchandise. the project was created by shim hani's government and a startup in tokokyo. >> translator: we hopee initiative will help shops and restaurants that have been struggling amid the huge drop in tourism. >> reporter: at this old soba restaurant, a chef demonstrates how to make the noodles, a specialty.

the participants receive uncooked noodles from the restaurant before the tour. bon appetit. participants a are now e encour to dig in. >> translalator: the food taste different because i can see the person who made it. >> online tours have become a new way to travel amid the covid-19 pandemic. they offer huge potential for both travelers and the tourism industry. >> she recently overcame her shyness in front of the camera and started making online videos about her saki. each clip focuses on one saki and comes with a detailed explanation of its characteristics and origin story. she says it's not just to help her own businessss. she also wants to help the liquor stores and resest raunts that have supported her over the

years. we've seen how the tourist industry is starting to think beyond physical limitations and embrace the limitless possibilities of the imagination. the result is a whole range of unique experiences. that's all for this edition of "newline in depth." we'd like to close to day's program by showing you some scenes from one of japan's biggest fireworks displays. this year's event has been canceled, but with any luck, the fireworks will be in full bloom again next year. thank you for watching and see you soon. >> russia's most prominent

opposition leader fighting for his life after a suspected poisoning. the latest on his health coming up with our correspondent in moscow. harristic senator kamala makes history becoming the first black woman candidate for vice president. she is on the ticket with joe a against donald trump inn november. the international community reacting to the coup in mali. reacting to what they see