at 20:00 (JST), July 24 AS

Tokyo is marking exactly 2 years before the opening of the 2020 Olympics.

Japanese officials are warning people to take precautions against heatstroke, as the country continues to experience a heat wave.

A US research group says North Korea appears to have begun dismantling its missile testing facilities.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20180724200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : Tokyo marking
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180724_11/

Tokyo is marking exactly 2 years before the opening of the 2020 Olympics. Organizers face a host of tasks, including measures to deal with heat and humidity.

The 2020 Tokyo Games are set to officially open on July 24th and end on August 9th. A record 339 events in 33 sports are planned during the 17 days.

A rough schedule of the events was decided this month. The organizing committee will now begin concrete preparations with the governments of Japan and Tokyo.

Officials will study ways to tackle traffic congestion so that athletes and spectators can be transported smoothly. They'll also discuss security, including measures against terrorism.

Beating the heat will be essential for a successful Olympics, along with recruiting and training volunteers.
Organizers hope to enlist more than 110,000 people.

In September, the first test event at an Olympic venue is due to take place in Enoshima. An international sailing competition will be staged at the small island near Tokyo.

As host nation, Japan is also aiming for a record medal haul.

The Japanese Olympic Committee has set a target of finishing 3rd in the gold medal rankings, by winning 30 events. Japan won 12 gold medals in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Japanese athletes have done well in judo, women's wrestling, gymnastics and swimming. Hopes for medals are also high in table-tennis and badminton.

Key words : project mosques
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180724_16/

A project to develop "Mobile Mosques" is underway in Japan, as the country prepares to welcome visitors to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

The games' organizers say Muslim prayer rooms will be available at the athletes' village but not at stadiums or other competition venues.

The Mobile Mosques are expected to help address the concerns of Muslim visitors, who must pray 5 times a day, facing Mecca.

A group of firms working on the project unveiled a model on Monday in the city of Toyota, Aichi Prefecture.

The group renovated a truck by expanding the container on both sides.

The air-conditioned prayer room can fit 50 worshippers. Developers also plan to install a compass that points to Mecca.

The truck costs about 100-million yen, or about 900,000 dollars, but the group is aiming to lower the price.

Project chief Yasuharu Inoue says he hopes to provide a place where both athletes and spectators can pray.

The vehicular mosque was developed jointly with an automaker in Yanai, in the western prefecture of Yamaguchi.

The firm sought the advice of foreign Muslim students at Yamaguchi University who tested the truck.

The company's president Tetsuro Akimoto says he hopes the vehicle will be stationed at Olympic and Paralympic venues as a show of "omotenashi," a Japanese word for hospitality.

Key words : Insight climatic conditions previously hosted olympics
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Key words : Japanese warning people
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180724_24/

Japanese weather officials are warning people to take strict precautions against heatstroke, as the country remains in the grip of a deadly heat wave.

The Meteorological Agency says that by 3:30 PM on Tuesday, temperatures had topped 39 degrees Celsius in the central Japanese cities of Mino, Tajimi and Toyota. Highs in Tokyo were over 35 degrees.

Many people have been taken to hospitals for heatstroke. Some of the cases were fatal.

Weather officials are advising people to avoid playing sports outdoors, use air conditioning, and stay hydrated.

They are urging residents of areas affected by recent record rainfall to be extra careful. They say people in such areas are at a higher risk of heatstroke due to fatigue and disruption in their living conditions.

Key words : Japan only country sweltering
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180723_34/

Japan isn't the only country enduring sweltering temperatures. South Korea has had record highs, while heat waves are hitting Nordic countries and the United States, causing a drought and other consequences.

In South Korea, Monday's daytime highs climbed to 39.9 degrees Celsius in the southern province of North Gyeongsang, and 35.7 degrees in Seoul. The overnight low in the capital was 29.2 degrees, the highest for the period since record-keeping began.

South Korean media say some train tracks were heated to more than 60 degrees and that speeds were restricted to below 70 kilometers an hour for safety.

Sweden has had temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius for the past week.

The level is about 10 degrees higher than the average high temperature for July. The hot weather has caused a serious drought.

It also caused forest fires. The Swedish government has asked firefighters from France, Germany, and other countries to help put out the fires.

Damagingly hot days have continued in the western and southern parts of the United States. The mercury hit 52 degrees Celsius in Death Valley, California, on July 8th.

Some municipalities in the US have made shelters available for people who don't have air-conditioners, as there have been cases of people dying of heatstroke.

Key words : US research group
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180724_08/

A US research group says North Korea appears to have begun dismantling its missile testing facilities, in an apparent move to fulfill a promise made at last month's US-North Korea summit.

On Monday, 38 North released its analysis of the latest satellite images of the Sohae Satellite Launching Station in Tongchang-ri, in North Korea's northwest.

The report says that the imagery from July 20th shows a number of vehicles, including a construction crane, around a large square structure used to assemble what are believed to be ballistic missiles.

An image from 2 days later shows a section of the structure dismantled and its parts lying on the ground.

At another facility used for ballistic missile engine tests, the images show a large portion of a vertical test stand dismantled with only the base left behind.

US President Donald Trump said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un promised that he would dismantle major missile testing facilities, when the 2 met in Singapore on June 12th.

The images are the first observed apparent action by the North to dismantle such installations.

A 38 North researcher says the efforts represent a significant confidence building measure on North Korea's part, since the facilities are believed to have played an important role in the North's ICBM program.

The Sohae station has been used for engine testing and launching what appeared to be long-range ballistic missiles.

Engines for an ICBM and a long-range ballistic missile were tested at the site in April and September, 2016.

In March, 2017, Kim Jong Un visited the site to observe the testing of a powerful new engine.

North Korea began test-firing a series of long-range ballistic missiles from the site in 2012, though the country claimed they were satellite launch vehicles.

Key words : philippine
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180724_01/

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he will sign a law to grant greater autonomy to Muslim-populated areas in the country's south.

Duterte made the remarks during his state of the nation address at the Philippine House of Representatives in Manila on Monday.

He said he would sign and ratify it within 48 hours.

The law is aimed at establishing an autonomous region for Muslims on Mindanao Island.

Muslim militant groups in Mindanao have clashed with government forces since the 1970s in pursuit of independence.

A peace accord struck in 2014 between the country's largest Muslim rebel group and the government called for the establishment of an autonomous political entity.

If ratified, the law will likely bring Mindanao a step closer to peace.

Key words : Abe putting
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180724_22/

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is putting in motion a plan to allow more foreign workers into Japan from next April.

Relevant ministers held their first meeting on Tuesday, following the inclusion of an action plan in the government's basic economic and fiscal policy to create a new residency status for foreign workers.

At the meeting, Abe instructed the Justice Ministry to take the lead in drawing up comprehensive measures.

These include revising immigration law to establish a new residency status and other steps to make it easier for foreigners to live in Japan.

Abe said he wants to lay the groundwork for accepting more foreign workers from next April. He asked the ministers to act quickly on preparations, such as by submitting bills and selecting foreigner-friendly industries.

Earlier in the day, Cabinet members decided to give the Justice Ministry authority to coordinate with other government offices and agencies to create a climate for accepting foreign workers.

Abe instructed the ministers to consider establishing a new administrative system for foreigners in Japan.

The measures are expected to include enhancing Japanese-language education and offering counseling services in foreign languages.

Citing labor shortages, the government is planning to add the restaurant and manufacturing industries to the list of fields to open to foreign workers.

5 industries -- construction, shipbuilding, lodging, agriculture and nursing care -- are currently under consideration.