Central and local governments in Japan as well as many companies started the year's first day of work Tuesday, amid growing fear over the omicron variant of coronavirus.
The highly transmissible omicron strain continued to spread in Japan during the year-end and New Year holidays, with 782 new COVID-19 cases reported nationwide on Monday. Tokyo saw its daily count surpass 100 for the first time in about three months the same day.
"I wasn't able to relax completely but had some rest nevertheless," a health ministry official said. "I want to get to work with a renewed feeling." A Tokyo Metropolitan Government official said, "We are determined to overcome the coronavirus this year."