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October 13, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
October 13, 2025
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A Red Cross vehicle transports hostages, held in Gaza since the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack, following their handover as part of a ceasefire and hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Gaza City, in the Gaza Strip, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Hamas begins handing over hostages in Israel ceasefire deal
Hamas was set to release all surviving hostages the same day in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
A Red Cross vehicle transports hostages, held in Gaza since the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack, following their handover as part of a ceasefire and hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Gaza City, in the Gaza Strip, on Monday.
As horse-trading and speculation surge over who will be elected the next prime minister in parliament — the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's Sanae Takaichi or a possible candidate put forward by a unified opposition — Japan’s next leader will be confronted with a quick succession of key diplomatic events.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
A frenetic diplomatic schedule looms for Japan’s next leader — whoever that may be
By Jesse Johnson
Japanese diplomacy has landed in a precarious position following the exit of Komeito from the LDP-led ruling bloc as a spate of summits and meetings loom at the end of this month.
A Self-Defense Force plane loads emergency blankets, cardboard beds and other supplies to be flown to typhoon-hit Hachijojima on Sunday.
JAPAN
Water outages persist on Tokyo’s Hachijojima as second typhoon approaches
By Jessica Speed
Approximately 2,700 households on Hachijojima have been without water for several days after power outages halted supply facilities and landslides damaged key water sources.
After a run-up marked by apathy, organizers soon found they had the opposite problem as crowd control became a concern.
JAPAN / FOCUS
As the Osaka Expo comes to a close, what will its legacy be?
By Joel Tansey and Tomoko Otake
The mega-event was a resounding success, taking in some 25 million visitors over 184 days. But how its legacy will look in the decades to come remains a question mark.
Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building
By Patrick St. Michel
A surge of new arenas from Chiba to Yokohama reveals how Japan’s cities are betting big on live entertainment.
Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.

JAPAN

Inna Ilina, vice president of the Ukraine Pavilion, says she is grateful her country was able to participate and send out a clear message: Ukraine and its democratic values are not for sale.
At Osaka Expo pavilions, staff recount ‘life-changing’ experiences
By Joel Tansey
Nearly 160 countries and regions participated in the Osaka Expo, with each bringing staff from overseas to help run their respective pavilions during the six-month event.
Fukushima Prefecture's Tsuruga Castle in the city of Aizuwakamatsu. The castle's stone walls, with plants growing out of the cracks, face the risk of collapse if left unattended.
Fukushima hopes to preserve historic Tsuruga Castle and boost tourism
Battling limited resources, the public and private sectors are banding together to pass down the iconic symbol of the prefecture's culture and history.
Sales of Expo mascot Myaku-Myaku goods to continue through March
Many public school teachers pay out of pocket for work-related costs
Thirty people enter Ito Municipal Assembly race over controversial mayor
Osaka Expo androids to be moved to Kyoto

BUSINESS

U.S. gross domestic product grew in the second quarter at the fastest pace in nearly two years.
World economy faces triple risk of tariffs, AI bubble and soaring debt
By Enda Curran
Such concerns will dominate the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington this week.
U.S. President Donald Trump gives a thumbs up while boarding Air Force One, as he departs for Israel, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Sunday.
Trump and Vance open door to China deal as trade spat drags on
Remarks by the two suggest that the U.S. wants to keep up the pressure on China to reverse its most recent trade moves, while trying to reassure spooked markets.
The politics premium is punishing bonds from Paris to Tokyo
Xi’s red line on Trump’s export curbs threatens to upend truce
China’s new weapon in U.S. trade talks: Batteries
By Coco Liu, Tope Alake and Lili Pike
China markets under threat from risk of renewed U.S. trade war
By Dave Sebastian and Tian Chen

WORLD

U.S. President Donald Trump greets Russian leader Vladimir Putin as they meet at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 15.
Trump may approve Tomahawks for Ukraine if Russia continues war
U.S. President Donald Trump’s comments signal an openness to expanding the range of weaponry provided to Ukraine but also that he remains focused on a ceasefire.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet during the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in November 2024.
U.K. ministers criticize Starmer’s China policy amid spying row
By Alex Wickham
Several Cabinet ministers are concerned the prime minister has taken too generous an approach to Beijing and want him to commit to prioritizing national security.
Macron appoints new French Cabinet in bid to quell crisis
By Nayla Razzouk and William Horobin
How a quiet Dutch retiree helped uncover Nazi-stolen art in Argentina
By Leila Miller
Snatched: How ICE raids are shattering Chicago's immigrant world
By Michael Mathes
Pakistan-Afghan border crossings closed after heavy clashes

Sports

Mariners pitcher Bryce Miller pitches against the Blue Jays in the first inning during Game 1 of the ALCS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs in Toronto on Sunday.
Mariners beat Blue Jays to open MLB AL championship series
Mariners pitching mystified the hosts, allowing only two hits and none after the second inning.
Double Olympic champion Kinjo announces retirement
Chiefs rebound with NFL win over Lions, as Ravens lose again
World No. 204 Vacherot in shock after 'crazy' Shanghai triumph
By Rebecca Bailey
Zidane confirms ambition to coach France

Opinion

A screen outside a Tokyo securities firm shows the Nikkei 225 Stock Average on Oct. 6. As Japan's financial markets reacted to Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party presidential win, much of the media's focus was on the falling yen, downplaying the surge in equities to record highs.
Sanae Takaichi gets 'the Abe treatment'
Edo Naito
Given that she is frequently labeled a "Shinzo Abe protege," the media coverage of her so far reminds me of how they reported on Abe himself throughout his second term.
Putin is taking his hybrid warfare to the sea
By James Stavridis
What if everything we think about obesity is wrong?
By F.D. Flam
Europe can build its own social media
By Sebastian Vogelsang
Machado receives the Nobel Peace Prize as Trump’s attempts to secure award fall short
By Andreas Kluth

ENVIRONMENT

A worker feeds shrimp in Pandeglang, Banten province, Indonesia, on July 29.
Indonesia says no to scrap metal after shrimp radiation scare
By Chandra Asmara
Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq said the pause aims to ensure that the local steel-recycling industry meets radiation safety standards.
Europe's bees and butterflies at risk, conservation body says
U.K. spearheads polar climate change research as U.S. draws back
By Joe JACKSON
Trump calls climate change a con; science braces for more
By David Sherfinski
Global renewable power output overtakes coal for the first time, report says

CULTURE

In "Weathering," 10 performers create a sculpture composed of bodies, sounds, scents, liquids and objects.
Autumn Meteorite stages a month of inventive theater in Tokyo
By Jessica Kozuka
The inaugural performing arts festival brings a variety of shows, from monodramas to 20-people, multivenue ensemble productions.
“Ghost Nation” puts Taiwan’s history in present context
By Athena Tong
Oscar-winning actress Diane Keaton dead at 79
Iyo Sky takes flight: How the ‘Genius of the Sky’ turned risk into art and fear into fun
By Adam Davidson
Hungarian 'master of the apocalypse' Laszlo Krasznahorkai wins Nobel Prize in literature

LIFE

This year’s World's 50 Best Bars list features bars from 29 cities worldwide, including debuts from Eastern Europe.
Tokyo earns three spots on World’s 50 Best Bars list
By Weiwen Lin
Bar Benfiddich climbs ranks, but Hong Kong steals the show with Bar Leone making history as the first bar in Asia to be named No. 1 in the listing.
Nara inn offers room, board and an ancient burial mound
By Kimberly Hughes
From straight to curly: Getting your hair done in Japanese
By Mishu Callan
Roasted green tea gets a milky makeover
By Simon Daly
Eat your balloons: The culinary theater of Grant Achatz comes to Tokyo
By Weiwen Lin

COMMUNITY

Shrunali Ranade moved to Japan in 2015 and has carved a niche for herself as both an engineer and a cricket player.
Shrunali Ranade: ‘Stepping back isn’t failure but another form of strength’
By Megha Wadhwa
As an engineer and member of the women’s national cricket team in Japan, Shrunali Ranade has carved out her own niche over the past 10 years.
Student groups nurture Japan-South Korea dialogue and cultural ties
By Moe Shimizu
Linda Joyce: ‘We hope people recognize the benefits of exploring rural areas’
By Louise George Kittaka
Stirred, not shaken: Kyoto business platform blends local and global
By Samantha Seghers
Tax-advantaged investments no lost cause for U.S. residents of Japan
By Gendel Gento

Editors' Picks

LIFE
Ghost of Yotei’s bloodstained fun sidesteps Ainu identity
By Owen Ziegler
Ghost of Yotei, the follow-up to 2020's smash hit Ghost of Tsushima, is a violent, vengeful and engaging romp through 17th-century Hokkaido that fails to stick the landing on its most sensitive cultural material.
ENVIRONMENT
At Osaka Expo, gas giants promote a greener future. But is it a lot of hot air?
By Joel Tansey
The Gas Pavilion had welcomed around 500,000 visitors by the end of August, making it one of the most popular exhibits at the Osaka Expo.
BUSINESS
‘Takaichi trade’ starts unwinding as political calculus upended by Komeito exit
By Kazuaki Nagata
Less than a week ago, Sanae Takaichi seemed set to become Japan's first female prime minister.
JAPAN
‘Save the Ring’ calls intensify as Osaka Expo’s end nears
By Tomoko Otake
Visitors lounge on the grassy hill on the top of the Grand Ring during the 2025 Osaka Expo in the city of Osaka in May.
CULTURE
A Japanese comedian walks into an Aussie bar … and stays there
By Zoria Petkoska
Takashi “Waka” Wakasugi stopped by the Tokyo Comedy Bar in Shibuya Ward last month following his stint at Edinburgh Festival Fringe performing his show “Comedy Samurai.”

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building
By Patrick St. Michel

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.
We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.

COMFACTS

New Food Products Utilizing Tsunan Sake Brewery’s Sake Lees Unveiled at “TORANOMON JUST RIGHT NEW FOOD” Tasting Event
New Food Products Utilizing Tsunan Sake Brewery’s Sake Lees Unveiled at “TORANOMON JUST RIGHT NEW FOOD” Tasting Event
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY

WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
University of Tokyo lands its highest spot ever in global higher education ranking
By Elizabeth Beattie
The University of Tokyo in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward
LIFE
Ghost of Yotei’s bloodstained fun sidesteps Ainu identity
By Owen Ziegler
Ghost of Yotei, the follow-up to 2020's smash hit Ghost of Tsushima, is a violent, vengeful and engaging romp through 17th-century Hokkaido that fails to stick the landing on its most sensitive cultural material.
JAPAN
After ruling bloc breakup, CDP and Komeito eye unified PM candidate
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda speaks to reporters at the Diet in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
As the Osaka Expo comes to a close, what will its legacy be?
By Joel Tansey and Tomoko Otake
After a run-up marked by apathy, organizers soon found they had the opposite problem as crowd control became a concern.
JAPAN
Why Japan's coalition collapsed — and what's next
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi enters party headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday.