hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara. we begin in tokyo where a big change to japan's immigration law has cleared a major hurdle. the lower house is set to pass a bill that could end long detentions for asylum seekers stuck in limbo, but critics say it could cause other problematic practices. the main ruling democratic party, its coalition partner

kometo, and two opposition parties voted to support the bill at a panel meeting on friday. if passed into law people who have applied for refugee status three or more times and who can't provide sufficient reason to stay could be deported. currently japan suspends deportation orders for people whose applications are still being processed, but it sometimes leads to lengthy stays in immigration detention centers for some asylum seekers. immigrant right supporters say the new bill isn't the answer. hundreds staged a rally outside the diet friday to voice their opposition. >> translator: i thought we could scrap the bill, so i'm extremely disappointed. >> protesters argue it may lead to -- it may lead some people to be deported back to countries where they could face discrimination or violence. the main opposition constitutional democratic party voted against the bill.

they'd called for a third party body to be established to ensure proper oversight during refugee status screening, but it was left out of the final draft. it's expected to pass a plenary session of the lower house in early may before going to the upper house where the ldp and its partners also hold a majority. turning to sudan fierce fighting continues even after the warring parties agreed to extend their cease-fire for an additional 72 hours starting friday. the country's military and the paramilitary rapid support forces both announced the extension ahead of the deadline to end their previous truce, but clashes were reported even during the truce in the capital khartoum and the western state. sudan's health authorities say

more than 500 people have been killed since the violence erupted on april 15th. a growing number of people are fleeing sudan to nearby countries despite the cease-fire. egypt said on thursday that it fusa facilitated the crossing of more than 16,000 people from sudan. the u.n. immigration agency says more than 20,000 people have fled west to chad. many of them are in dire need of basic humanitarian aid such as food and water. meanwhile on friday a chartered plane took off from djibouti to ejae evacuate nearly 50 japanese nationals and their families. the aircraft is scheduled to touch down in japan on saturday. now to developing news out of ukraine. officials there say a number of people are dead after russian forces launched strikes on cities across the country. video shows the wounds of an apartment block hit by a rocket attack in the city of iman.

at least 11 people were killed. a strike in the south eastern city of dnipro killed a 30-year-old woman and 2-year-old child. air-raid sirens were also heard in kyiv and other areas. the wave of attacks comes as fighting rages in bakhmut. ukraine's military says it's secured supply lines in the western part of the city and has new units to prepare for a counter offensive. japanese officials say ranks are being reinforced with a large number of volunteers who are still being trained. that comes as moscow claims it's been able to gain ground using paratroopers. the battle for bakhmut has stretched on for months. much of the strategic city has been destroyed. meanwhile, experts from the international commission on missing persons are holding a fi five-day seminar in ukraine's capital kyiv through friday.

the icmp supports efforts to identify people who have gone missing as a result of armed conflicts and other events. ukrainian police said at least 2,800 deceased civilians remain unidentified. the group is working on a process whereby local health officials determine the gender, age, and other details of remains before police identify them through dna analysis and other methods. >> translator: identifying remains can take a long time because of problems such as severe damage to the bodies and a lack of reference materials. >> an icmp official says the workers in ukraine are dealing with an especially challenging environment. >> ukraine is unique in the sense that the authorities here have launched an investigation into missing persons cases whilst the war is ongoing. all we'd like to see is icmp

providing more hands on support. >> he added in many cases ukrainian officials cannot obtain the reference samples needed for dna identification as a large number of citizens have evacuated abroad. the invasion has spurred many countries to distance themselves from russia, but turkey appears to be going in a different direction. president erdogan joined his russian counterpart virtually to celebrate the inauguration of the country's first nuclear power plant. the ceremony on thursday marked the first delivery of nuclear fuel into a reactor at the plant. the facility was built by russia's state energy company. all four reactors are expected to be operational by 2028. >> translator: we are proud to be making the move that will place turkey among a nuclear power countries of the world.

>> translator: the nuclear power plant brings both mutual economic benefits and of course helps to strengthen the multifaceted partnership between our two states. it's based on the principles of good neighborliness and mutual respect and taking into account each other's interests. >> vladimir putin is trying to bolster ties with turkey amid major economic pressures. western nations have hit russia with numerous sanctions and other penalties over the invasion. erdogan is facing his own challenges as he runs for re-election. this was his first public appearance since canceling official duties earlier in the week citing ill health. turkey's presidential election is set for may 14th. the u.s. government says it's opening new processing centers in latin america to stem an expected surge of migrants trying to cross the u.s.-mexico border. >> this is a hemispheric

challenge that demands hemispheric solutions. working with our neighbors in the region we can and will reduce the number of migrants who reach our southern border. >> the biden administration announced on thursday that the united states and other countries will establish regional processing centers in several confrauntries cluding columbiand guatela. they're toe run b sele in t u.s. will be t screened at these facilities. if eligible they'll be provided assistce for eny. theumber o undocumented immigrants crossing the u.s. southern border hit a record 2.76 million in the year through septembe 2022. the rublica,meanwhile, are calling the situation a border crisis created by the biden administration. some people are predicting a spike in migrants trying to cross the border after may 11th when covid-19 restrictions will

be lifted. the government's latest move aims to quell such concerns. homeland security secretary alhawn draw mayorkas emphasized that the border was not open and will not be open after may 11th. the united nation's security council has uniinously condemned afghanistan's taliban government after it banned female u.n. staff earlier this month. the council is calling on the taliban to reverse course and to respect the rights of afghan women and girls.

the resolution adopted on thursday was drafted by japan and >> the full, equal participation of women and girls is indispensable if afghanistan is going to have a peaceful and prosperous future and enjoy long-term development. >> it was a rare moment of unity for the security council which has seen china and russia scuttle western backed resolutions including some on afghanistan. the ban comes after the taliban prohibited female aid workers last december hindering humanitarian missions. the group has also gradually restricted afghan women from studying or seeking employment since taking power in 2021. bangladeshi prime minister is asking for more international support to provide for rohingya

refugees. she spoke with nhk on thursday during an official visit to tokyo. hundreds of thousands of rohingya muslims fled myanmar in 2017 to escape deadly military crackdowns. she said about 1 million are still in bangladesh, but she says rising food and energy costs make running the refugee camps difficult and that international support has waned due to the invasion of ukraine. >> but how long we can be at this border. bangladeshicize you know is already an overpopulated country. 1 million people, it is another burden for us. >> she said bangladesh is talking with the myanmar military about returning the refugees. >> it has not materialized yet, but because now they agreed, let's see what happens. >> that raised concerns with

watchdogs. the united nations refugee agency released a statement saying the situation in myanmar is still not safe for the rohingya. they wrote that every refugee has a right to return home but that no one should be forced to go. the operator of the crippled fukushima daiichi power plant in japan says tanks storing treated water won't become full until later than expected, but there'll be no change to the plan. the utility says it'll release the treated and diluted water into the ocean by around this summer. the plant suffered a triple melt down in the march 2011 earthquake and tsunami. a major issue is managing the massive amount of water accumulating every day. water used to cool molten fuel mixes with rain and ground water. the polluted water is treated to remove most of the radioactive materials before being stored, but it still contains tritium.

tokyo electric power company says it will follow the government's policy to start releasing the treated water after diluting it to reduce the tritium levels well below national regulations. tepco officials say as of last week the tanks are holding 1.33 million tons of water. that's about 97% of capacity. they expected the tanks to be completely filled by around this summer or fall, but on thursday they said there's a significant decrease in the daily accumulation in part because of less rainfall. now they think the tanks will reach capacity next february or later. an award ceremony was held thursday for japanese philosopher, the winner of the 2022 prize for culture and philosophy. he's the first asian to win the $1 million prize.

the 81-year-old philosopher is well regarded for his critiques of japanese literature and carl markest philosophy. his works have been translated into many languages. the institute praised him as a wide ranging thinker whose ideas encompass philosophy, literary theory, economics, and politics. it says he has produced new philosophical concepts that delve into the nature of democracy, nationalism, and capitalism. >> translator: i think the institute recognized that my cross disciplinary approach, which is not bounded by specialization, presents alternatives to modern society. >> the institute established the prize in 2016. it's given annually to a thinker whose ideas have helped improve human self-understanding and

advanced humanity. sometimes in the midst of severe storms we get some interesting scenes caught on camera. our meteorologist jonathan oh has a look at one in world weather. >> hello. we've been talking about severe thunderstorms that have been moving through the southern united states. as we're watch out for these storms popping up as it pushes towards the east. where we typically get video from these areas we're focused on the storm itself. but this particular video you see the hailstones falling and these are pretty big one. look at the background there, you see a little cow running across the back there because it's trying to find some shelter in the midst of this storm. we have these super storm thunderstorms moving through central texas on wednesday, and aesident in dublin filmed this intense moment as hailstones pelted his backyard swimming pool, and i don't blame the cow because hailstorms in the area, the storms themselves some hit a diameter of 11 centimeters, so

they're quite large. thankfully the cow is safe. meanwhile while we have that same system now moving towards the carolinas, which is going to bring a chance of severe thunderstorms along the south eastern half of the united states, we have another cold front swinging down to the plains so we're looking at another day of severe thunderstorms for friday into the central and southern plains, same area that just got hit on wednesday and thursday, so be on the lookout for that. as we have high pressure on the west that should keep things on the calm and dry side coming up as we wrap up the workweek. 22 in seattle, so quite warm there. los angeles at 24 with partly sunny skies. speaking of warm, we're talking about hot weather continuing over into the iberian peninsula and marrakesh where thursday's high 31.3 degrees for the high. and the heat will continue for friday and start to see it drop off as we head into the weekend.

across japan it's definitely feeling warm and dry as well. and we are looking at some rain to pop up as we head toward the weekend, but then we get past that. we're seeing warm weather and then for the holiday wednesday through friday highs in the 20s in place. hope you have a good day wherever you are. and that's all for this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi going saw waw raw oga.

thanks for watching and do stay with us for more. ♪ this is "news line biz" i'm gene otani. market players have been waiting for the bank of japan's first meeting under its new governor. policy makers say they'll continue long held monetary easing for the time being, but they also plan a review of their measures. the central bank is keeping its short-term bench mark interest rate in negative territory, and it aims to keep long-term rates

around 0% by purchasing assets. the bank is also continuing its policy on ten-year government bonds preventing fluctuations of plus or minus 0.5%. that was set by the former governor. the bank has had to intervene multiple times to keep it within that band. the policy makers also say they'll launch what they call a broad prospective review. they say the process could take a year or a year and a half. the central bank adopted it's easing money policy after japan fell into a deflationary cycle, and it has been applied off and on for 25 years. ueda says it will take some more time until the bank can say it reached its inflation target of 2%. he also says he plan to reflect the results of the review in the bank's policy.

>> translator: when we average the figures we see prices are getting closer to 2%, but i want to be a little more patient and push ahead with monetary easing. we expect some findings from the review and will make the most of them in my remaining term. >> the bank also raised its inflation forecast for the fiscal year. they just started this month. in january it predicted prices would increase by 1.6%. now it is predicting 1.8%. this is 24 median forecast for the consumer price index and excludes fresh food, which fluctuates in price due to the weather. next, nhk world's john ledue is here with biz picks. >> every friday we bring you the latest in business with biz picks. let's go straight to the numbers for this friday, april 28th.

the nikkei 225 rose 1.4% to end at 28,856. the boj decided to hold steady and maintain its ultraloose monetary policy. the central bank inflation forecast was rather weak. this led the yen to tumble against the dollar. the boj meeting was a first under new governor ueda kazuo. for this week's featured biz pick we take a look at expectations for his monetary policies. ueda has repeatedly said that the central bank's easing measures are needed until there is a sustainable 2% inflation as well as wage hikes. and keeping the monetary policy is exactly what he's done. the chief economist at -- research believes, however, that

the bank of japan's inflation forecast is conspicuously low, which takes off some of the pressure to change policy. >> translator: the bank of japan seems to be remaining cautious and keeping its inflationary forecast low to show that it is not in a hurry to change its monetary policies. tokyo's consumer inflation for april was just announced. prices in general are rising including several service sectors. the bank of japan's forecast this time doesn't sit too well, and the inflation forecast on fiscal 2025, which was presented for the first time, doesn't reach the 2% target. so it is a message there is no need to ru to change the policy. >> kato says behind the boj's decision there is a lack of fiscal discipline. >> translator: uedo has indicated his stance that he'll

take a very careful approach. i assume that behind this is the fact that relationship with politics is very difficult. the amount of japanese government bonds issued is extremely large, and the bank of japan has bought a great deal of them to support the economy. it'll be difficult for the boj to change its policy from the current one unless it confirms that the economy and prices are quite strong. >> the boj's next moves under ueda will likely draw heightened attention over the next year or two. now let's take a look what's happening in the week ahead. on sunday china will release the purchasing manager's index for april. on wednesday the u.s. federal reserve will wrap up a two-day meeting where fed officials may raise interest rates yet again. finally, on friday the u.s. will release employment data for april. i'm john ladue, and that was this week's "biz picks."

as we've just heard the latest data on prices in tokyo were released on friday. consumer inflation in japan's capital accelerated this month for the first time since january. the internal affairs ministry says the consumer price index for the city's central 23 wards rose 3.5% year on year in april. the index doesn't include the cost of fresh food. inflation exceeded 4% in january. since then it has been hovering closer to 3%. tokyo's cpi is considered a leading indicator of inflation nationwide. the cost of food continues to be a source of concern. prices excluding fresh produce has shot up by 8.9%. that's the biggest increase since june 1976. gas bills jumped by more than

6%. household electricity bills have actually fell by nearly 8% due to government subsidies. sony group says its annual sales in fiscal 2022 hit a record high. key factors were the weakening of the yen and strong performance in its gaming and semiconductor related businesses. group sales soared to over 11.5 trillion yen or about $85 billion. that's up from the previous fesqual year by 16.3%. net profit up 6.2% in yen terms. but sony projects the fiscal year that started this month will see declines in both sales and profit. it estimates sales will drop by 0.3% and net profit will fall by 10%. it says that's partly due to an expected increase in development cost for its semiconductor business. sony group president says that

the outlook for the macro economic environment is not optimistic. he says the worsening condition of financial institutions as well as the situation in ukraine. he also says the company plans to cut costs especially for its businesses facing a tough environment such as tvs and smart phones. japanese government data show the nation pfsz ratio of employment openings to job seekers fell in march. it declined for the third straight month as soaring costs made it difficult for japanese companies to hire more workers. labor min sfristry officials sae ratio fell to 1.32. that means there were 32 job vacancies for every 100 applicants. there were fewer openings in the construction and manufacturing sectors inpler even though they face a labor shortage. ministry officials say companies in those sectors are leluckitant to take on more workers because soaring costs of raw materials

and energy are hurting profits. separately, the internal affairs ministry said the jobless rate rose to 2.8% in march, up let's have a look at the markets.

and from the news line biz team in tokyo, i'm gene otani. thanks for being with us.

>> biden is seeking presidential election next year. the campaign ahead is ugly to be unpredictable. what challenges does biden change's -- face and what do voters wants? this is "inside story". ♪ >> welcome to the program, joe biden is to run again for the u.s. presidency, saying he wants f