AP A car bomb exploded outside a mosque Sunday, killing at least 37 people and wounding another 141 in a mostly Shiite Muslim neighborhood in the southern Pakistan city of Karachi — the third mass-casualty attack on the minority sect in the country this ...
It's a dangerous, unpredictable world. Twice in January Chinese warships in the East China Sea challenged Japan's Maritime Self Defense Forces patrols in a manner deemed threatening. And on Feb. 12 came North Korea's nuclear test.
Here's an open secret: Japanese men have a bad international reputation on the romance front.
SELLING WOMEN: Prostitution, Markets and the Household in Early Modern Japan, by Amy Stanley. University of California Press, 2012, 282 pp., $49.95 (hardcover) In the vast cultural landscape, Japan fascinates the mainstream with manga and anime, the martial arts, Zen and kimono. Of course, ...
Kenta Maeda shook off worries about his form with five shutout innings as Japan beat China 5-2 in first-round Pool A of the World Baseball Classic on Sunday at Fukuoka Dome. Japan improved to 2-0 following a tough win over Brazil in Saturday evening’s ...
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Scientists have found traces of a micro-continent hidden underneath the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius, they said in a report published Sunday. The slab, dubbed Mauritia, was probably formed around 61 million to 83 million years ago after Madagascar split from India, but eventually ...
Sukayu, a hot springs resort area in Aomori Prefecture, registers the largest snowfall ever recorded by the nation's currently existing observatories.
The 38th annual Music From Japan Festival kicked off with a Japanese drum and flute concert in New York on Saturday, delighting the audience while paying tribute to residents of the area struck by the March 2011 disasters and ensuing nuclear crisis. Japanese-American musicians ...
Raul Castro announced Sunday that he will step down as Cuba’s president in 2018 following a final five-year term, for the first time putting a date on the end of the Castro era. He tapped rising star Miguel Diaz-Canel as his top lieutenant and ...
China is considering former Ambassador to Japan Wang Yi, who currently heads the Taiwan Affairs Office, to replace outgoing Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, multiple Chinese government-related sources said. The consideration of a seasoned diplomat well-versed in Japanese affairs as China’s next foreign minister appears ...
China’s official media said Sunday that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, during talks with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington on Friday, failed to secure explicit words of support for Japan amid its dispute with China over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. ...
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet has become the first to exceed the 70 percent support rate threshold since September 2009, according to a new survey.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is preparing to select Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda as his nominee to head the Bank of Japan, government sources reveal.
In the midst of an identity crisis, the Democratic Party of Japan adopts a new policy platform that fails to include any key points or doctrines differentiating it from its rivals.
The government may soon apply for permission from Okinawa's governor to begin landfill work necessary to relocate the U.S. Futenma air base within the prefecture.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s trip to Washington was interpreted by some political analysts as confirmation that his second stint at the government helm has gotten off to a strong start. On Friday, Abe agreed with U.S. President Barack Obama to bolster the bilateral security ...
The governors of Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures have warned they might start charging an admission fee to visit Mount Fuji in a bid to finance environmental efforts on the iconic mountain. Yamanashi Gov. Shomei Yokouchi said the two prefectures, whose borders are straddled by ...
A 114-year-old resident of the city of Osaka is expected to be recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest woman, according to people close to her. Misao Okawa, Japan’s oldest living woman, is expected to soon receive an official certificate from Guinness ...
Kenya's Dennis Kimetto sets a Tokyo Marathon record, winning the race in 2 hours, 6 minutes, 50 seconds on Sunday.
Nagoya Grampus manager Dragan Stojkovic insists he never considered quitting after a traumatic 2012 season for the former J. League champions, preferring instead to concentrate on reclaiming the crown over the coming campaign. Grampus went into last season with high expectations having missed out ...
A video clip of first lady Michelle Obama grooving with a dressed-in-drag Jimmy Fallon on his late-night comedy talk show went viral on YouTube on Saturday. In the video, the pair, each clad in conservative slacks and a cardigan, and Fallon with a long ...
A day after outplaying Japan in a tough loss, Australia cracked in a 10-3 loss in their World Baseball Classic warmup game at Kyocera Dome on Sunday. Kazuo Matsui of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles brought Japan from behind with a three-run triple and ...
On the surface, things look calm and placid. Just beneath the waterline, however, it’s a different story. Cars and sunken boats. Patio furniture. Pieces of docks. Entire houses. A grandfather clock, deposited in a marsh more than a kilometer and a half from solid ...
Michael Stern was prepared for a gradual real estate rebound after buying a New York office tower in December 2009, with plans to convert it to condominiums following a housing plunge that sent prices down 31 percent. Now, long before the final floor tile ...
As millions of migrant workers flowed back to cities and smog blanketed a large part of China, the nation Sunday celebrated the traditional Lantern Festival with fireworks and food. The Lantern Festival formally marks the end of celebrations for the Chinese Lunar New Year ...
A campaign of insinuation and insult has targeted Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, and in a country where all power flows from the top downward, his boss, President Vladimir Putin, has done nothing all winter to stop it. Medvedev’s failings get an airing in the ...
Pope Benedict XVI has reshaped the papacy simply by giving it up. But how? As the first pontiff in six centuries to step down, Benedict has carved a new path for his successors who decide they cannot or do not want to rule for ...
French actor Gerard Depardieu got a new permanent address in Russia — 1 Democracy St. — on Saturday, adding a final touch to his quest to get Russian citizenship. After receiving his Russian passport from President Vladimir Putin last month, Depardieu had it stamped ...
Britain’s most senior Roman Catholic cleric, who is due to vote on Pope Benedict XVI’s successor, has been reported to the Vatican over claims of inappropriate behavior, the Observer newspaper reported on Sunday. Cardinal Keith O’Brien, leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, contests ...
Protesters jeered the Spanish king’s son-in-law before he was questioned Saturday by a judge about allegations that he and a partner funneled away millions of euros through fraudulent deals. The investigation has deeply embarrassed the monarchy of a country hit hard by a financial ...
Outraged by ads urging women to bleach their skin, a spontaneous movement has emerged in Senegal arguing that black is beautiful — and to act otherwise is to risk one’s health. The campaign sprang up in response to advertisements that appeared in the capital, ...
With just days left in his five-year term as South Korean president, North Korea on Saturday unceremoniously bid adieu to Lee Myung Bak, consigning him to the “rubbish of history.” “Traitor Lee is the rubbish of history who cannot be buried in the territory ...
Japan and Bolivia have begun a full-fledged trial project to extract lithium from the Uyuni salt flats in the Andes, which experts believe contains around half of the world’s reserves of the soft metal. As the only foreign country involved in the extraction work ...
John McCain was excited. It was late January, and the following day, he and a group of bipartisan senators were set to announce their framework for comprehensive immigration reform. He picked up the phone and called an old friend in Arizona. “We got it ...
Even before she takes office Monday as South Korea’s first female president, Park Geun Hye’s campaign vow to soften Seoul’s current hardline approach to rival North Korea is being tested by Pyongyang’s recent underground nuclear detonation. Pyongyang, Washington, Beijing and Tokyo are all watching ...
One recent afternoon, Susan Beehler, who may be the only gun-control advocate in all of North Dakota, walked into VFW Post 762, a dimly lit, wood-paneled bar in downtown Fargo. It was, perhaps, the gun-friendliest place in one of the gun-friendliest states in America; ...
His name is drawn on the napkins and chopsticks at his more than 30 restaurants around the world, but chef and restaurateur Nobuyuki “Nobu” Matsuhisa prefers to stay out of the limelight. “Normally I am the chef. Today is a tie and suit and ...
In the season’s first 24 games, the Osaka Evessa, the bj-league’s first powerhouse team, collected five victories. They’ve now played 10 games under new head coach Bill Cartwright. Their record in that span? Five wins and five defeats. The Evessa snapped a three-game losing ...
Far from the courtroom drama that has gripped South Africa, the family of Oscar Pistorius’ slain girlfriend has struggled with its own private deluge of grief, frustration and bewilderment. The victim’s relatives also harbor misgivings about efforts by the Olympian’s family to reach out ...
A farm industry leader said Japan should not join the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade liberalization talks despite confirmation Friday by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama that the prior abolition of all tariffs is not a prerequisite. “We are opposed to Japan’s ...
It has been called one of the “open secrets” in the U.S. medical world — allowing patients to refuse treatment by a doctor or nurse of another race. In the latest example, a white man with a swastika tattoo insisted that black nurses not ...
If America is a nation of immigrants, it is also a nation of immigrants’ husbands, wives, parents and children — and their brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews too. That could begin to change under legislation being written in the Senate, where the nation’s long-standing ...
The head of the China-Japan Friendship Association, Tang Jiaxuan, told Keidanren leader Hiromasa Yonekura that he is confident bilateral ties will begin to improve, during a meeting in Beijing. According to Yonekura, chairman of the nation’s biggest business lobby, Tang told him Saturday that ...
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a rare acknowledgment Saturday night of the economic challenges his country is facing. “This was a very difficult year for our economy,” Ahmadinejad said during a live television interview in which he outlined his government’s budget plan for the ...
After Friday’s bilateral summit in Washington paved the way for Japan to join negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade accord, many domestic companies expressed hope that the abolition of tariffs would help drive up Japanese exports. Major business industry groups also voiced a positive ...
Since mid-November, the yen has weakened substantially against the dollar, the euro and other currencies. The rapid decline was fueled by aggressive policy announcements by Shinzo Abe, before and after he became the prime minister in December, calling for more fiscal stimulus and for ...
In an almond orchard in California’s Central Valley, bee inspector Neil Trent pried open a buzzing hive and pulled out a frame to see if it was at least two-thirds covered with bees. Trent has hopped from orchard to orchard this month, making sure ...
Reigning NHL MVP Evgeni Malkin is still undergoing tests following a scary crash into the boards during Friday night’s 3-1 win over Florida. The Pittsburgh Penguins star will miss at least one game. Penguins coach Dan Bylsma ruled Malkin out for Sunday’s game against ...
Ryan Giggs marked his 999th match as a professional by scoring in another age-defying, influential display to help Manchester United go provisionally 15 points clear at the top of the English Premier League on Saturday. A late goal from the Welsh midfielder followed a ...
Wrestling needs to overhaul its often mystifying rules while the sport seeks to retain its Olympic status, according to the new interim president of the international wrestling federation. Wrestling is partly to blame for the International Olympic Committee’s decision to drop the sport from ...
Bradley Wilson of the United States and Miki Ito won World Cup dual moguls events on Sunday. In the men’s final, Wilson beat Alex Bilodeau of Canada for his first dual moguls victory of the season. Joseph Discoe, also of the United States, was ...
Before he took a seat on the bench, LeBron James made sure to grab one more rebound. James had 16 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for his 35th career triple-double and the Miami Heat cruised to their 10th straight win, 114-90 over the ...
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday appealed for calm as he flew to Hyderabad and visited some of the 117 people wounded in twin bombings last week that killed 16 people. Singh also visited the blast site in Dilsukh Nagar, where two bicycle bombs ...
After producing his first hat trick in more than two years, Alex Ovechkin wanted to give some credit to Washington Capitals coach Adam Oates. “He’s that kind of person,” Ovechkin explained, “who gives me belief all the time.” So when Ovechkin texted Oates the ...
At least 33 fans were injured Saturday during a NASCAR race when a car flew into the fence at Daytona International Speedway, hurling a tire and large pieces of debris into the stands. The accident happened on the last lap of the second-tier Nationwide ...
England took a giant stride toward the Six Nations title by battling past France on Saturday, but defending champion Wales could push its old rival all the way after beating Italy to maintain its resurgence. The Grand Slam is still on for England thanks ...
In the annals of political redemption stories, it is hard to top the one that Republican Former Gov. Mark Sanford is attempting to write in South Carolina, the state he once headed. After a spectacular 2009 scandal that destroyed his marriage, spawned impeachment proceedings ...
Former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova won her first title in six months when she beat Sara Errani 6-2, 1-6, 6-1 in the Dubai Championships final on Saturday. Kvitova also beat the Italian en route to her previous title — her ninth — in New ...
Basque politicians have launched a nationalist party after Spain’s highest court ruled it could be established because it was not directly linked to the militant separatist group ETA. Sortu was launched formally Saturday, eight months after the Constitutional Court said it could come into ...
“Silver Linings Playbook” won the prize for best film at the Spirit Awards honoring independent movies on Saturday, as well as best actress for Jennifer Lawrence and best director. On the eve of the Oscars, director David O. Russell received a publicity boost for ...
Kei Nishikori was walking past Marinko Matosevic, ready to switch ends after winning the first set 6-4. The Australian stopped him near the umpire’s chair. Matosevic couldn’t continue, not with a bone bruise in his right foot making each step simply too painful. Matosevic ...
“The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2″ was picked as last year’s worst picture Saturday by the Razzies, an Academy Awards spoof that hands out prizes for Hollywood’s lousiest movies on the eve of the Oscars. The finale to the blockbuster supernatural romance ...
Pakistan Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry reprimanded airport security agencies Friday after a wealthy murder suspect managed to flee abroad, warning that lax procedures could allow terrorists to escape. Chaudhry is investigating how Shahrukh Jatoi, 20, managed to fly to the United Arab Emirates ...
A bloody sock worn by Curt Schilling while pitching for the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 of the 2004 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals was sold for $92,613 at a live auction on Saturday night at the Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion. Schilling had ...
Tuareg militias battled Arab rebels in northern Mali on Saturday, while French jets, U.S. drones and Chad’s elite desert forces were also in action in a major push to stamp out resistance from pockets of Islamist fighters. After recapturing the north’s cities from the ...
A Palestinian prisoner died in an Israeli jail on Saturday, sparking violence in the West Bank city of Hebron, his hometown, and a call from the Palestinian territories’ prime minister for a full inquiry. The Palestinian Prisoners’ Club, meanwhile, said the number of inmates ...
Road traffic in Japan is a complicated affair. Apart from those narrow, crooked streets that sometimes end without warning, you have to get used to unclear right-of-way rules and the national fetish for backward parking.
A total of 9.43 million tons of tsunami debris generated by the Great East Japan Earthquake had been disposed of in coastal areas of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures as of the end of January, the Environment Ministry reported. The figure represents 35 percent ...
Before the first shot of the Match Play Championship, and before the first snowfall, Hunter Mahan was asked for three players with the best reputation in match play. Ian Poulter was on his list. Now he gets to find out for himself. Poulter again ...
Authorities in China are looking to wipe out dingy public toilets with proposed rules to limit the number of flies and flush away bad smells, Beijing said. Public toilets in China are generally badly maintained, particularly at public transport locations. But draft regulations released ...
Indian software tycoon Azim Premji said Saturday he has given $2.3 billion to an education charity he controls, reportedly the biggest charitable donation in the country’s recent history. It is his second recent big donation after giving almost $2 billion to the charity in ...
Germany’s lower house of Parliament, the Bundestag, said Saturday it had halted public subsidies to the neo-Nazi party NPD over an unpaid fine. “The payments were stopped,” a parliamentary spokesman was quoted as saying by the online version of Der Spiegel newsmagazine, meaning the ...
An Oregon hunter has been found not guilty of manslaughter in the shooting death of a marine reservist from California, Christopher Ochoa, whom he mistook for a bear. Eugene Collier, 68, told jurors he was hunting with his 12-year-old grandson in October 2011 near ...
Manti Te’o walked into a crowded room of reporters Saturday, took a breath and settled in for 15 minutes of NFL scouting combine history. Again, the former Notre Dame linebacker explained how he had been duped into an Internet romance he had with a ...
Norwegian ski jumper Anders Bardal won his first major championship title on Saturday by taking gold in the normal hill event at the Nordic skiing worlds. Bardal had the longest jump of the day with 103.5 meters in the first round and finished with ...
Japan took the lead after the first half of the Nordic combined team event at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships on Sunday. The team of Akito and Yoshito Watabe, Yusuke Minato and Taihei Kato surged into the lead in the jumping portion on ...
