at 20:00 (JST), September 09 AS

Japanese seismological authorities say the northern prefecture of Hokkaido has been jolted by more earthquakes since a major quake struck 3 days ago.

North Korea has staged a huge military parade to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the country's founding.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20180909200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : more earthquake jolted
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_05/

Japanese seismological authorities say the northern prefecture of Hokkaido has been jolted by more earthquakes since a major quake struck 3 days ago.

A magnitude-6.7 earthquake hit the region on Thursday. The epicenter was located in Iburi. The highest level of seismic intensity, on the country's scale of 0 to 7, was recorded in the town of Atsuma.

The Japan Meteorological Agency says that more than 140 tremors were felt in areas close to the epicenter before 4 AM on Sunday. It says the jolts are believed to be aftershocks.

The agency is urging people in the affected areas to be careful, as quakes with an intensity of up to 7 may continue to occur until around next Thursday.

Rain is expected in the Iburi region from Sunday afternoon through Monday.

The agency says that the rain could increase the risk of mudslides in areas where quakes have loosened the ground.

Key words : authorities death toll
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_18/

Authorities in Hokkaido say the death toll from Thursday's powerful earthquake has risen to 39. More than 650 people were injured.

The magnitude-6.7 quake struck early Thursday morning. The epicenter was near the town of Atsuma where many of the fatalities were caused by massive landslides. Rescue operations are continuing.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has visited the town to offer his condolences. He was briefed by local officials on the damage from the quake.

Abe earlier visited Hokkaido's largest city, Sapporo. He inspected the city's Kiyota Ward...where ground liquefaction caused houses to tilt and roads to cave in.

Authorities in Hokkaido say that as of Sunday afternoon, there were about 5,800 people in evacuation shelters.
The number of destroyed buildings is at least 70.

Public transport is gradually being restored. Some inter-city express trains went into service early Sunday morning. The distribution of goods is expected to improve as freight train services also resumed on Sunday.

But residents may have to cope with an unstable power supply. Hokkaido Electric Power Company was forced to shut down the largest thermal power plant in the prefecture after the quake, and says restarting it could take more than a week.

The Agency for Natural Resources and Energy is calling on households and companies to conserve power through measures such as turning off lights and unplugging household appliances.

Key words : international flights resumed near Sapporo suspended
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Key words : north military parade to celebrate
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_14/

North Korea has convened a military parade to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the country's founding. It invited representatives from more than 100 countries, including a high-ranking official from Pyongyang's strongest ally, China.

The Associated Press has supplied this footage of the parade in Pyongyang.
The country's leader Kim Jong Un stood on a grandstand to watch, along with Li Zhanshu, the third-highest-ranking government official in China.

At an earlier parade in February, the North showcased intercontinental ballistic missiles it claims can strike the US mainland. But analysts believe this parade did not feature such weapons.

The anniversary celebrations come amid a stalemate in denuclearization talks with the United States.
And little progress has been made in realizing Pyongyang's demand for a formal declaration that the Korean War has ended.

On Wednesday, Kim Jong Un met a South Korean delegation to reaffirm his commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. He reportedly briefed them on North Korea's efforts toward denuclearization, including shutting down a nuclear test site and asked South Korea to relay those efforts to the US.

Analysts say Pyongyang might be somewhat cautious about how Washington sees the parade, given the deadlock in the denuclearization talks.

Key words : Naomi won played well
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_10/

Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka has won the women's singles title at the US Open. She defeated Serena Williams of the United States.

20-year-old Osaka is ranked 19th in the world.
Williams was once ranked number 1 in the world. She was also the runner-up at Wimbledon this year.

In the first set, Osaka played well. Williams made many mistakes. Osaka won the set 6-2.

In the second set, Williams broke Osaka's serve, but Osaka broke Williams back and won the set 6-4.

She beat Williams 6-2, 6-4. Osaka is the first Japanese singles player, male or female, to win a Grand Slam tournament.

Key words : Gifu
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_15/

Officials in central Japan's Gifu Prefecture have begun culling hogs after confirming the country's first outbreak of swine fever in 26 years.

The officials say they found about 80 dead hogs at a pig farm in the city of Gifu from Monday through Saturday.

A government test confirmed the animals tested positive for swine fever virus. The disease is also known as hog cholera.

Officials started culling 610 hogs at the farm on Sunday morning. That includes animals that had already died due to the disease. The officials say the work will be finished by Monday morning.

Prefectural authorities have banned the shipment of hogs from within a 10-kilometer radius of the farm to prevent the virus from spreading.

They have also set up 5 sites in the areas for disinfecting livestock vehicles.

Key words : voter Sweden
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_19/

Voters in Sweden are casting their ballots in a general election, with attention focused on how many seats an anti-immigration party will win.

About 6,000 polling stations across the country opened on Sunday morning.

Sweden has traditionally adopted tolerant policies on immigration. But a key campaign issue is whether to keep its doors open to immigrants and refugees from Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere.

The rightwing Sweden Democrats are gaining support with their argument that immigrants are putting social welfare and the nation's security at risk. The party, which has its roots in the neo-Nazi movement, has pledged to stop allowing immigrants into the country.

The governing Social Democratic Party is facing an uphill battle after allowing the entry of a large number of Syrian refugees 3 years ago.

Prime Minister and party leader Stefan Lofven told a campaign rally on Saturday that the hateful forces are agitating people against each other.

Opinion polls show that the Social Democrats have an average support rate of 25 percent, with the Sweden Democrats at 18 percent.

Polling stations will close at 8 PM, local time. Preliminary results are expected by Monday morning.

Key words : gathered
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180909_16/

Crowds have gathered at a Pacific saury festival in Tokyo to sample the autumn delicacy from northern Japan.

The annual event was held on Sunday in front of JR Meguro station. The organizers brought in a fresh catch of about 7,000 fish from the city of Miyako in Iwate Prefecture.

The fish was served free of charge. People waited in line as the aroma of grilled saury filled the air.

Pacific saury prices have been rising in recent years. They fell recently because of improved catches, but the hauls have begun to dip again.

A woman in her 40s said the fish was delicious, and the event reminds her that autumn has arrived.

The head of the Miyako fisheries cooperative, Hisashi Shimaka, says the saury are larger than usual this year. He says he wants people to enjoy the tasty fish from Miyako.