Postal service and it controls a sea of a mail in vote in. Japans off as its worst Economic Contraction in decades with an annualized 27. 8 percent slide in 2nd quarter g. D. P. I was near the water kid in the bottle. 7 years old. Going all. Gone in a matter of seconds we need somebody residents have lost everything of what. A day after reaching out to russia for support the president of brothers has accused nato of deploying tanks and troops on the countrys western border i was on the lookout shank is facing unprecedented public protests as more than 200000 people joined a demonstration in the capital minsk calling for his resignation a wake up to his disputed reelection evidence is mounting that look his critics are being arrested and beaten protesters want to devise justice for the alleged torture but hes not backing down step balsam reports. They went from fear to. Defiance and from sadness to anger in just one week. Never before have so many people in bellows taken to the streets to protest hundreds of thousands marched through the main avenues of minsk to demand the president look up to step down. We wont forgive you de chant the accounts of torture and abuse of thousands of detainees has also angered look at shankar supporters and people who were never interested in politics were protesting here against the violence which is happening is the reason we acknowledge the people can have different political views and preference us but on the no condition can people be beaten up and raised in the Police Station as in eyes and ears and he must go away we dont need and as a blood with just me and peace and where. We want just honestly election whilst atlanta the kind of guy the woman many voted for in last weekends election has gone into exile the campaign amare her kolesnik over addresses the crowd. Cheered she was the more we go on expressing our dissatisfaction the sooner change will come. For the 1st time in 26 years we feel that we are a free european nation and we are together together we shall when. Im president and see him say i meant that i wont change into one we find only fighting words im sorry im going to think im. In a desperate attempt to show he still has support because shankar organized a progovernment rally earlier in the day a few 1000 people were brought in on buses and trains i need pretty much to say dont understand theyre tearing the country apart. There will be no bell or roofs the embattled president sounded emotional and once again that Foreign Forces are trying to destabilize belarus and you saw the i dont know tanks a jets are on standby within 15 minutes reachable border this is not for nothing nato forces a rattling tank tracks at our doors military power is building up on the western border of our country his words were lost on these protesters they call for a strike and to continue demonstrating for as long as the president clings on to power step fastened aljazeera minsk. The u. S. House of representatives will vote on legislation to protect the Postal Service amid claims President Trump is using it to suppress mail in voting u. S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has confirmed chill recall the chamber later this week the postmaster general who trump ally has also been summoned to testify before a Congressional Committee demonstrators have gathered outside newest to joyce home for a 2nd day accusing him of trying to sabotage the mail network the Postal Service has warned millions of mail in votes may not arrive in time to be counted observers mike hanna has the latest from washington d. C. Legislation has been drawn up by the chairperson of the House Oversight committee Carolyn Maloney who will be overseeing the hearing involving the postmaster general on monday next week but the bill assistance which states that the changes made by the postmaster general since he took over in may would be reversed effectively it says that the post office must go back to operating exactly as it did on the 1st of january 2020 and there can be no changes until january the 1st of next year this would affect the reverse all the changes that have been made by louis to joy in the months since he has been head of the Postal Service changes which many are arguing particularly democrats in congress could impact really heavily on the election later this year in particular on the mail in voting which many people are going to turn in turn to because of the ongoing pandemic. Somali Security Forces have ended a 5 hour siege on a hotel in the capital mogadishu. A suspected car bomb and shoot us at the elite hotel beach so at least 6 People Killed 40 others injured government officials are among the dead Group Alshabaab has claimed responsibility for the attack. On the feeling that i can buy a car full of explosives was rammed into the front gate of the hotel then attackers from alshabaab stormed into the hotel and started shooting at everyone they came across i saw many did bodies on the ground the situation in there is really miserable. New zealands Prime Minister has delayed its election by 4 weeks as the country looks to contain a 2nd corona Virus Outbreak she said our durned says she made the decision to push back septembers election after consulting with rival Political Parties and the Electoral Commission comes after new zealands largest city cortlandt went back into lockdown following a new hour break of cases and says their action wont be delayed for a 2nd time i have decided on balance to move the election by 4 weeks to the 17th of october. At the end of last week i was advised that this date is achievable and presents no grace her risk then head we retained the status quo ive also been advised that im moving to a 17 october day the commission will be able to leverage and draw on much of the already undertaken to deliver the election. South koreas reported its highest daily jump a new cause of 19 infections since march there were 279 new cases on sunday most of which were in the capital seoul south koreas recordable than 15000 infections since it began 300 deaths their affairs this could grow into a larger outbreak hinduja to. The phenomenon we are now seeing appears to be the early phase of mass virus resurgence the food failed to control the spread that could cause serious damage through a nationwide virus spread in a spike in a number of patients the government is taking the Current Situation very seriously and making pan governmental efforts to prevent further spread of the virus. The majority of souls new cases have been linked to a church and officials are accusing its leader of violating self isolation rules reverend jim klein who was at this antigovernment protest on saturday city Officials Say theyll be filing a complaint against him and the churchs stuff also accused of obstructing Contact Tracing 249 infections have been connected to the church. As the koran a virus continues to spread across latin america so it is quarantine fatigue renewed restriction or this has sparked protests in the colombian capital as. Reports from bogota after a month. Business owners say theyve had enough. The streets have been cordoned off in this Commercial Area of central bogota as another 2 weeks long lockdown comes into effect in 7 neighborhoods of the city shops are closed but hundreds of informal vendors are still trying to sell their products. Police on foot and motorcycles pushing them away but i just cannot come here not that i havent received any help from the mayor we were promised 20. 00 a month and food aid i havent seen it we need to be outside working because hunger doesnt wait. On saturday dozens of shop owners took to the. Streets to protest against the new measures they dressed in mourning saying they were staging a funeral for the dying Retail Business in the city. The retail trade dies every day the corn team is killing off the retailers the retailers cant take it anymore we have to pay rent. 1000 fatigue is growing in this in other countries in latin america as authorities struggle to deal with persistent high levels of infection or well. As mayor said she hoped this will be the last lockdown before cases start to decrease in september she asked people to be patient as the city goes through the peak of the outbreak. Does improve also reinstated some stay at home orders mandatory lock downs are being imposed on sundays and family reunions have been banned as cases soar once again you know a country with one of the highest number of deaths per capita and where people advocate nor the rules. Sunday log on mrs fine but people dont listen they say sanction people but do you think those who have family gatherings are being sanctioned no nothing happens that in america has accounted for almost half of all the coronavirus related deaths in the world in the past 7 an alarming trend that has left most governments with few options but to reimpose restrictions which have become increasingly difficult to enforce i listened to. The coronavirus pandemic has had a huge impact on the worlds 3rd largest economy japan Just Announced its worst contraction in decades its economy is strong by at a stark 7. 8 percent in the 2nd quarter or as an annualized rate of 27. 8 percent analysts say the pandemic has caused a slump of personal consumption including in restaurants tourism and all the sect is its also resulting in a shop drop in exports of cars and car parts michael pen is president of the xing its 2 news agency he joins us live from tokyo by skype thank you for your time this contraction has been described as a start by some put into context for us is it historic. Well japans seen nothing like it since the country was destroyed in world war 2 so yeah id say you very much fits within the the bounds of whats historic and in the case of japan its not simply a function of the coronavirus so though this last quarter clearly was relayed that japans recession actually began in october of last year when the when the government raised the consumption tax rate from 8 to 10 percent so essentially it took a big hit in the last quarter of 2019 and then the coronavirus effect began to come in in 2020 so the japanese economy is in a world of hurt yeah so what does this mean for the worlds 3rd largest economy some analysts believe the country wont recover those lost ground until 2024 once he will take. I cant say how long itll take to recover but japan does seem to have had some particularly i would say somewhat unique features that make it harder for it to recover then perhaps some other advanced g 7 countries so for example you know the Japanese Business technologies were generally although japan you know you have an image of japans and high tech country probably in terms of the way that it functions in its daily Business Practices its actually been very low tech you know some decades behind you know uses a fax machines and and all face to face there was never really a chance a move towards digitization that was done here in a serious way and so i think that one of the major problems they faced is that when people had to move to teleworking and people had to move to more Digital Solutions japan was pretty unprepared for that compared to other advanced economies interesting what about we sort of mentioned it but what about japanese exports i mean how much does it rely on exporting things like cars and car parts. Sure well i think as you know no time in japan is a famous export and country you know this is how it built up its economy in the postwar era you know of course the the the car is the toyota is the leading element of that but you know the economy as a whole for example in the 1980 s. You may remember there was lots of trade friction between japan and other countries because of the size of the of the exports and japan sort of not having such a large domestic market its not its not as bad as it was in the 1980 s. But the you know tourism and other things are now bigger parts of the japanese economy but still yes the fact the borders are shut down in many cases and the fact that japan also relies on growth in surrounding economies and global economies is another factor thats thats hurting its ability to to do business at this time thanks so much for your time your analysis Michael Paine net president of the news agency thank you. So ahead on aljazeera a departure from tradition as the u. S. Prepares for a Democratic NationalConvention Like never before plus. Demanding a new election and constitutional reform how students of the course of change in thailand. Hello there plenty of trout across much of asia say history me east was as usual also more in the way of class skies much of central and Southern China much of the Korean Peninsula and indeed not too bad across areas of japan in fact so much so thats a people are flocking to the beaches in abuse and the temperatures of course nice and high some good summer weather what a difference of course as well a few weeks may just just a few weeks ago we had flooding of course across much of the somme but the rains will continue to likely lead to flooding through the essential west and as the china again through these eastern sections its clear and dry and very warm 36 in shanghai on monday the time is not really fluctuating on into tuesday the rain still out across the west and certainly some very heavy rain likely a pushing invade each of these southern areas of china so a wet day in hong kong with a high over 32. 00 then down across into india still plenty of rain in the full cost to the rains have been particularly heavy across the central areas Madhya Pradesh out towards the just on as well in the last few days and thats where theyll basically through monday but also back again in the fall costa rica drought and beginning to push across into the southern areas of pakistan as well but all the while the winds strong really funneling that rain up into bangladesh through the northern sections of the bengal and also on cheese day more heavy rain across much of the western ghats. Sweat tears and sometimes blood but for them its what their dreams are made of. Colleges their wild tells a story of a young moroccan boxes from humble backgrounds for training for the whites of their lives. Under former champion who gives his old friend that success casablanca by cop on how to 0. Were watching of 0 a reminder of our top stories this hour others to say the largest protests yet against a Alexander Lukashenko 7 days after an election in which he declared an overwhelming victory which the opposition says was rigged the longtime leader told supporters he wont be calling you addiction and accuse nato of mobilizing forces of the. U. S. And speaking as he for those he says the chamber will vote later this week on legislation to protect the Postal Service its mclains President Trump is using it to suppress a mail in vote thats as the postmaster general the trouble ally is summoned to testify before a Congressional Committee. Because of our spend there because a huge impact on the worlds 3rd largest economy japans Gross Domestic Product shrunk by a record 7. 8 percent in the 2nd quarter. The us Democratic NationalConvention Begins on monday and its said to be like no other event will officially see joe biden nominated as the democratic candidate for president normally thousands of delegates would be gathered in person to cheer him on because of the pandemic being held remote the john hendren has more from chicago. It will be the convention that was not it least not in person it was supposed to happen in milwaukee but for the 1st time ever due to the Global Pandemic the Democratic National convention will be virtual the event that has had democrats meeting in person by the thousands every 4 years even in wartime i say to this Great Convention tonight and to this great nation of ours i am ready to lead our country is not to beat but what some are calling the democrats revolution will be televised the convention itself will take place in dozens of locations unified only on screen which might or might not set a precedent for future conventions i have a hard time believing that this will be the death knell for political conventions the political conventions have amassed over time soon many deferent purposes. This year there will be no traditional balloon drop over a crowd of thousands. No thunderous applause. No delegates lined up behind 57 state and territorial signs pennsylvania a state that will help to reelect obama in the inevitable protests. This year and many will likely be posted online it was here in chicago in 1968 that Hubert Humphrey accepted the democratic nomination for president but what most people remember is anti vietnam protesters clashing with police here in grant park but this time protesters will have no single place to gather the partys standard bearer joe biden is expected to accept from a venue in delaware as always there will be big names just on the small screen there will be a keynote speaker a moderate. Here tonight a job that can carry an exceptional order to the nomination at the next convention all of the family the United States of america but theres something about all those people cheering together for their leaders something infectious that will be missing this time hard to be a really for the baby. But its also parents are curious in the surrounding area a particularly. May not know theyre going to well like so much else in this unique year filled with a president ial impeachment a Global Pandemic and protests across the u. S. This Democratic National convention will look less familiar john hendren aljazeera chicago thousands of people have joined student led valleys in thailands capital calling for political reform and the biggest antigovernment protest in years is a modern new election and an amended constitution when he reports. In big numbers they came to the center of bangkok to escalate their call to change the protest is gathered around democracy monument a symbol of what they say thailand doesnt have. A compact the fact that the government is so corrupt its been in power for far too long things on getting any better. After weeks of peaceful protests led mainly by students this was by far the largest and most diverse attracting tys from different sectors of society including other groups who have staged mass rallies in the past. But that im glad more people have come out today the pair of young people and students alone cant force change we need everyone to work together. The protesters say thailands entire political system needs to change including the monarchy its a dangerous and sensitive issue to take on because the royal family is protected by strict laws designed to prevent criticism demonstrators also want the government gone and on thursday thailands Prime Minister the army general who led the military coup in 2014 addressed the nation he urged unity at a time when the economy is being hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic only. Right now we must focus on the economic survival of the 10s of millions of people here lets get the economy going 1st get that done by working together then we can look at fixing the other issues collaboratively later but the protesters say the pen demick is proving and highlighting one of their points that thailand is an economically Unequal Society and must change tires that are well accustomed to political protests but there is a sense that this is Something Different a movement centered around a new generation making unprecedented demands and wanting something profoundly different for thailand. In recent weeks the government has warned the protesters to be careful what they say and arrested 3 protest leaders but if that was a tactic to try to scare them and bring an end to the movement it hasnt worked and judging by the size of this crowd it may be having the opposite effect wayne hay al jazeera bangkok was. Lebanon has reported a record day the number of new crowd of arson factions while still struggling with the aftermath of a massive explosion in beirut at least 439 new cases and 6 deaths were concerned over the past 24 hours. United nations says its 200000000. 00 short of donations to help lebanon repair catastrophic damage to beirut for the lebanese are counting on International Aid to rebuild many made homeless by the huge explosion of relying on volunteers charities and friends president Michelle Allen says all aid will go to the people who need it. And in need it needs are really covering very specific you know sectors the 1st one is a better education because we dont want to undermine the future of human and the children they really need to go back to school and to get the psychological Food Security and obviously we dont want to have any interruption in terms of food in terms of availability of the wheat or a flower bed to make sure that we start belies to do that nationally growing supply. Staff to care is that the portion of the latest on the investigation into the explosion. Well theres 2 parts to it lets say theres the forensic investigation and weve been seeing that going on behind us led by the lebanese we are also going to have the f. B. I. The americans the federal bureau of investigation joining them also the french but this is all under the lebanese investigation theyre here to help in that capacity so theyre going to try and figure out what exactly happened to cause the 2700. 00 tons of Ammonium Nitrate to explode in such a catastrophic way then you have the other side of it which is you had arrest 25 arrests that made these are officials in the board Customs Security officials they are due to be questioned tomorrow we understand but many people here will tell you that its not the smaller people involved that have to be held to account its the Bigger Picture its the bigger elite its those that they are sure that knew about this for years to have this amount of deadly highly explosive stored inside that any populated capital when people talk about the scale of this explosion they will say People Experts its down. On scale from a Nuclear Explosion it is that its one of the the worst most powerful nonNuclear Explosions in history and i can tell you weve been showing you this throughout the weeks even just looking behind every single building has been blown out apartments homes lost People Killed it is catastrophic and of course people one on cers and theyre hoping that that investigation now without that the f. B. I. And the french will lead to some monsters before the blast the people of lebanon who are already battling an economic crisis thats been smith reports from beirut smiddy of those left homeless by the explosion simply cant afford to rebuild. Like many other lebanese sealers always managed to get by no matter what was thrown at him being conflict or economic crisis but now its different measures to bend it could all mad i walked around 8 kilometers he says as he describes trying to get medical treatment in the aftermath of the port explosion that sent a devastating shockwave through beirut. I think he has 17. Counts. And there are new air use ion 70 year old antoine eventually found a hospital to treat the injuries to his head and arm now he relies on free help and volunteers stress that would after the explosion the whole story has changed ok as if the middle class has gone with explorers theres normally class at all so people are coming seeking medical support food clothes house cleanups whatever you think they need to just got bigger the blast destroyed or damaged around 50000. 00 homes affecting 300000 documents lebanons currency has lost 80 percent of its value against the dollar and there are tight restrictions on how much people can take out of the banks and inflation is running at almost 90 percent so what little money there is people need to spend it on daily necessities there is no spare cash rebuilding. Manana blood it from me from my head and one worked 35 years in a bank he saved and bought his own home this is whats left of it a dream of a quiet retirement with his wife andrea and their 2 daughters is in tatters nobody. This time from the government do it today what happened in iraq what. Do you want what do you have what nothing i bought near here in lebanon. I have to 70 years old were going to rebuild im 12 and tens of thousands of others need foreign donor help but cash will only likely be released when this country has a cabinet and Prime Minister acceptable to the International Community talks on who make up that government continue between the political elites who control this comes out a 0. Indias Main Opposition Party has called for a parliamentary investigation into facebook and whatsapp the Congress Party accuses the social media giant of favoring Prime MinisterNarendra Modis party b j p the allegation is based on a report by the wall street journal it says facebook ignored its hate speech rules benefiting a baby b j p legislator known for anti muslim remarks Facebook Says it forces its ban on hate speech without for god to anyones political position or party affiliation. Result is there are these the top stories by the rooster has seen the largest protests yes against alexander look schenker 7 days after an election in which he declared an overwhelming victory and which the opposition says was rigged but the longtime leader told supporters he wanted to be calling the new election and accuse nato of mobilizing forces at the border u. S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the chamber will vote later this week on legislation to protect the Postal Service its made claims President Trump is using it to suppress mail in voting that says the postmaster general a trump ally is summoned to testify before a Congressional Committee mike hanna has more from washington d. C. This would affect the very reverse all the changes that have been made by louis joy in the months since he has been head of the Postal Service changes which many are arguing particularly democrats in congress could impact really heavily on the election later this year in particular on the mail in voting which many people are going to turn in turn to because of the ongoing pandemic somali Security Forces have ended a 5 hour siege on a hotel in the capital mogadishu a suspected car bomb and shoot sas at the elite hotel thought at least 6 People Killed and 40 others injured Group Alshabaab has claimed responsibility for the attack the growth of virus pandemic as a huge impact on the worlds 3rd largest economy japans Gross Domestic Product shrunk by a record 7. 8 percent in the 2nd quarter analysts say the pandemic is calls a slump and personal consumption including in restaurants tourism and other sectors museums Prime Minister has delayed septembers election by 4 weeks is the country looks to contain a 2nd coronaVirus Outbreak comes after new zealands largest city all current went back into lockdown following a new outbreak of cases. Lebanon has reported a record daily number of new grown virus infections while still struggling with the aftermath of a massive explosion in beirut at least 439 new cases and 6 deaths were confirmed over the past 24 hours that brings a total of more than 8000. 00 cases and 56. 00 deaths. Well the news continues here on aljazeera right off the inside story which is coming up next. Could iran face renewed sanctions the u. S. President promises punishment after failing to convince the u. N. To extend International Arms embargo will this lead to the collapse of the 2015 nuclear deal this is inside story. Hello and welcome to the program on im wrong the u. S. President is vowing retaliation for the latest setback to his socalled maximum Pressure Campaign on iran donald trump threatening to reinstate International Sanctions that was scrapped in 2015