at 18:00 (JST), October 26 (AI-CC by Clipchamp)

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20241026180000_english_1.mp3

Welcome to NHK Newsline. I'm Gene OTani in Tokyo. 

Israel says its forces have finished carrying out precision strikes on military targets in Iran. The move is believed to have been in retaliation for Iran's massive attacks on October 1st, involving more than 180 missiles.
Iranian media said military bases were targeted in the latest attacks. The extent of the damage remains unclear. An Israel Defense Forces spokesperson said the country was conducting strikes on military targets in response to months of continuous attacks from the Iranian regime. 

Like every other sovereign country in the world, the state of Israel has the right and the duty to respond. Our defensive and offensive capabilities are fully mobilized. We will do whatever necessary to defend the state of Israel and the people of Israel. 

Later, Israel's military said in a different statement that it had completed its strikes, but added that if Iran makes the mistake of carrying out another attack, Israel will have to fight back. Iran's state-run television reported that explosions were heard around Tehran shortly after 2:00 AM on Saturday, local time. Iran's FARS news agency said military bases in western and southwestern Tehran were targeted. Hours later, loud sounds were again heard in eastern and central parts of Tehran. Local media say they were related to air defense activity. A spokesperson for the U.S. National Security Council told NHK. They understand that Israel is conducting targeted strikes against military facilities in Iran as an exercise of self-defense and a response to Iran's ballistic missile attack against Israel on October 1st.

A US Defense Department official also spoke to NHK saying the United States was informed of the Israeli attack beforehand and that there was no US involvement.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel is not apparently targeting. Nuclear or energy facilities, citing information from U.S. officials. Depending on the extent of damage in Iran, tensions in the already fraught region could be ramped up further.

Meanwhile, negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza are set to resume in the coming days, but Israeli forces are continuing their strikes in the north of the enclave. Israel's military said on Friday that in the past three weeks it has forced the evacuation of 45,000 residents and has killed hundreds of Hamas militants in Jabalia.
Palestinian media reported that an airstrike in neighboring Beit Lahiya killed at least 20 people.

Hamas leaders have visited Egypt as part of their effort to resume negotiations. The Egyptians have been acting as mediators. Hamas delegates stress the need to immediately stop the genocide in the northern Gaza Strip. A leader of the Islamic group told the Lebanese media outlet that it rejects partial arrangements and is demanding a complete ceasefire and withdrawal. Prior to the attacks, Israel had announced that the head of its intelligence agency will travel to Qatar, another mediator, for truce talks on Sunday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been leading the resistance against Russia's invasion for more than two and a half years. He says his forces may soon be facing a new enemy. He says he expects troops from North Korea to appear in combat zones as early as Sunday.

Ukraine, the US and other Western countries say they have evidence that the North has already sent thousands of troops to Russia. Zelensky posted on X that he was briefed by a top commander about how those personnel will be used. He warned that their involvement should not be met with indifference, but with tangible pressure on both Moscow and Pyongyang. 

The North Korean Foreign Ministry issued a statement through the state-run news agency. It says any decision to send troops would be in line with international law. It stressed the ministry does not in there and not does not directly engage in the issue and does not feel the need to confirm it separately. Authorities in South Korea say they're sending a delegation to Belgium early next week to share information with NATO and the European Union. It will include senior officials from the National Intelligence Service as well as the defense and foreign ministries. Leaders in Seoul have not supplied lethal weapons to Ukraine, but President Yoon Sonol said that the Pentagon moves by. the North, officials will review the policy more flexibly.

Japanese, U.S. and South Korean security advisers have expressed grave concern about the dispatch of North Korean troops to Russia. 
John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, told reporters on Friday that U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and his Japanese and South Korean counterparts Akiba Takeo and Shin Won-sik held talks in Washington.

Kirby said the three officials agreed that the deployment is the latest in a series of concerning indicators of deepening military cooperation between North Korea and Russia. He added that the officials called on the two countries to cease such actions.

Tokyo's Shibuya Ward is beefing up crowd control for the Halloween party season, which is expected to peak Saturday. The popular district it has in previous years suffered a spillover of public drunkenness and anti social behavior. 
Municipal officials are on the alert for potential trouble from extreme crowding and outdoor drinking. There are concerned hordes of young people, including foreign tourists, may overwhelm the area around Shibuya Station. The ward on Friday night conducted almost three times the usual scale of street patrols. Staff picked up empty cans and bottles and informed people the ward has banned public drinking. Shibuya has also asked stores near the station to refrain from selling alcohol from 6 p.m. on Saturday through 5 a.m. on Sunday.

If you are counting on coming to Shibuya on Halloween, we'd like to ask you to cooperate and rethink your plans. It's expected to be very crowded.

Neighboring Shinjuku Ward will also ban alcohol consumption on streets around the Kabukicho nightlife district.

Japanese police say they have helped a number of job seekers who were tricked into easy work that turned out to involve committing crimes such as theft.
The perpetrators in a recent series of robberies in the Tokyo metropolitan area were found to have been recruited through social media posts that promised high pay for easy work. Some suspects told police that recruiters used their personal information to threaten them. The National Police Agency is calling on people to avoid applying for suspicious, high-paying jobs advertised online.

The police promised to protect the family members of those who have consulted us. Please turn away immediately with courage and peace of mind.

The agency has instructed police forces nationwide to offer appropriate aid to those who request help. This might involve temporarily evacuating those individuals and their families from their homes or stepping up patrols at relevant locations.

Those were the main stories for thishour.

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And that's the news this hour. I'm Gene OTani. From all of us here at NHK Newsline to all around the world, thanks very much for joining us.