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Swimmer Takayuki Suzuki celebrates after winning gold at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
PARALYMPICS / Swimming
Aug 30, 2024

Swimmer Takayuki Suzuki wins Japan's first gold medal at Paris Paralympics

Suzuki, who has 10 medals from the past five Paralympic Games, added a gold to his already impressive medal cabinet.
China's Xia Zhou celebrates after crossing the line to win gold in the women's T35 100-meter final on Friday at the Paris Paralympics.
PARALYMPICS
Aug 31, 2024

China extends lead in Paralympic medals table after track success

The Chinese, who have topped the medal standings at every Paralympics since Athens in 2004, finished the second day of competition with 12 gold.
A washed-up boat on the shore of the city of Ibusuki, Kagoshima Prefecture, on Friday
JAPAN / Society
Sep 3, 2024

Typhoon-chaser's firsthand account of his pursuit of Shanshan

James Reynolds, who has built a career of venturing into the eye of nature's most ferocious storms, braved the elements as the cyclone bore down on Japan.
A woman uses her mobile phone while holding a placard reading "STOP 5G" during a protest against 5G technology, in Bucharest, Romania, in 2020.
WORLD / Science & Health
Sep 4, 2024

No link between mobile phones and brain cancer, WHO-backed study says

The findings even apply to people who make long phone calls or those who have used mobile phones for more than a decade.
The third straight annual rise in medical fees reflected Japan's aging population and the increased use of advanced medical equipment and technologies.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 4, 2024

Japan medical costs hit record high in fiscal year 2023

The third straight annual rise reflected the country's aging population and the increased use of advanced medical equipment and technologies.
Shunya Takahashi (center) and Nihon Fukushi University professor Toshihito Mitsui (right) during an event in 2019.
PARALYMPICS
Sep 4, 2024

From Koshien to the Paralympics: Javelin thrower realizes dream long in the making

Born in the city of Yonago, Tottori Prefecture, Takahashi developed a right arm impairment at the age of 3 due to myelitis and finished sixth in his event in Paris.
2024 Paris Paralympics taekwondo bronze medalist Palesha Goverdhan greets the crowd upon her arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on Wednesday.
PARALYMPICS
Sep 4, 2024

Crowds give Nepal's first Paralympic medalist hero's welcome

Palesha Goverdhan brought the nation its first medal in the Games after returning home with a bronze in taekwondo.
Chinese President Xi Jinping applauds as he delivers his keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the China-Africa summit in Beijing on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 5, 2024

Xi courts Africa with $50 billion pledge and military support

The support is a sweeping effort to deepen China’s relations with a continent seen as key to the Chinese leader's geopolitical ambitions.
The closed Dinh Vu port in Hai Phong, Vietnam, as Super Typhoon Yagi approached the Southeast Asian country.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 6, 2024

Super Typhoon Yagi threatens southern China and Vietnam

Yagi killed at least 13 people in the Philippines earlier this week.
Yui Kamiji celebrates after winning gold in the women's wheelchair tennis singles competition at the Paris Paralympics on Friday.
PARALYMPICS
Sep 7, 2024

Japan's Kamiji takes Paralympic gold in wheelchair tennis singles

Kamiji came back to beat longtime rival Diede de Groot of the Netherlands 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Fallen trees and debris cover the ground in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Yagi after it hit Vietnam's  Quang Ninh province on Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 9, 2024

Super Typhoon Yagi kills 30 in China and Vietnam; damage set to cost billions

The typhoon has caused 11.9 billion yuan of damage to Hainan’s agriculture, while in northern Vietnam, flooding destroyed over 120,000 hectares of crops.
Asahidake in Daisetsuzan is located in the town of Higashikawa, Hokkaido, which ranked as the most comfortable municipality in 2024.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 9, 2024

Small Hokkaido town ranked most comfortable place to live in Japan

Higashikawa, a small town with a population of just 8,000, was rated highly due to its friendliness and safe environment.
Kotozakura (left) defeats Tobizaru in a controversial finish to their bout on Day 3 of the Autumn Basho in Tokyo on Tuesday.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Sep 11, 2024

Thrilling bouts — and controversy — have Autumn Basho off to hot start

Often the first three days of a sumo tournament see little more than jockeying for position, but not this tournament.
The share of online brokerages in the publicly offered investment trust market rose above 20% for the first time at the end of June as younger investors do deals on their smartphones and laptops.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 11, 2024

Online brokers are taking Japan market share from bigger rivals

The popularity of an expanded tax-free investment account program called NISA has encouraged its users to do deals on their smartphones and laptops.
A survey showed the use of terminal care and attended deaths at home kept increasing after surging in April 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 11, 2024

Terminal care at home surged in Japan during COVID-19 pandemic

Cases of terminal care at home grew for clinics certified to meet standards for supporting home care, such as having doctors available to make house visits.
Job-seekers take a Japanese class at an employment placement company in Hanoi in October 2022.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 11, 2024

Is Japan an attractive option for foreign talent from Asia?

The uptick in young foreign workers is driven by growing interest in Japanese society and culture and difficulty in finding jobs at home.
Labor market reform will likely be a hot economic debate topic in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election, the campaign of which kicked off on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 12, 2024

Labor market reform becoming hot topic in LDP leadership race

Candidates differ in how they intend to tackle labor market issues, especially on whether to give firms more flexibility in the dismissing of workers.
Seven & I Holdings, the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores, was designated as a "core" company. The government requires any foreign entity to give prior notification of share purchases in a core company of more than 10%.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 13, 2024

Seven & I gets new designation, a potential hurdle for takeover

The new "core" category requires any foreign entity to give prior notification of share purchases in a core company of more than 10%.
Yukio Niiho (left) poses with a moped at his motorcycle shop in Tokyo's Adachi Ward on Aug. 8.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 22, 2024

Genchari moped users lament imminent farewell

For many bikers, they are seen as the starter vehicles that brought them into the world of two-wheeled motoring.
Japan's new speed limit on narrow roads in residential areas will be set at 30 kph in September 2026.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Sep 17, 2024

Raising awareness key to Japan's new residential road speed limit

Violations of the speed limits will be punished by up to six months' imprisonment or a fine not exceeding ¥100,000.
An Israeli naval officer holds the mooring rope of INS Tanin, a German-built Dolphin AIP class submarine, as it docks at a naval base in the northern city of Haifa after its arrival in Israel in 2014.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 19, 2024

Germany has stopped approving war weapons exports to Israel, source says

Legal challenges across Europe have led other allies of Israel to pause or suspend arms exports.
Typhoon Yagi approaches Huizhou, China, on Sept. 5.
ENVIRONMENT
Sep 19, 2024

Historic rainfall inflicts chaotic floods across four continents

Though different meteorological phenomena are behind the series of storms, climate scientists agree an underlying factor is global warming writ large.
Shohei Ohtani connects on his 50th home run of the season during the seventh inning against the Marlins in Miami on Thursday. Ohtani became the first player in MLB history to reach 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same season.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 20, 2024

Shohei Ohtani records baseball's first 50-50 season with huge night in Miami

Shohei Ohtani is the first player in MLB history to reach 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same season.
A woman passes an "akichi" (vacant lot) in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo. The capital is littered with such small lots in part because of Japan's aging and shrinking population.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Sep 21, 2024

Dealing with rising land vacancies as Japan shrinks

"Akichi," or vacant plots of land, are nothing new to the urban landscape. As the population decreases, however, the challenge is how to handle their steady increase.
Out of a total of 509,373 foreign technical trainees, 1.9% went missing in 2023, according to Immigration Services Agency data.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 27, 2024

Record number of technical trainees go missing in Japan in 2023

Of the total, 1,765 were Myanmar nationals who had fled conflict in their home country.
Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Friday. Koizumi stressed that the granting of the special residency permits to children subjected to deportation orders was a one-time measure.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 27, 2024

Japan fine-tunes issuance of humanitarian visas

The move comes amid a near-tripling of technical intern trainees from Myanmar going missing from their programs in 2023.
Debris from damaged houses and docks are pictured after Tropical Depression Helene hit Keaton Beach, Florida, on Friday.
WORLD
Sep 28, 2024

Dozens dead as Helene cuts destructive path through southeastern U.S.

The storm swamped neighborhoods, triggered mudslides, threatened dams and left more than 3.5 million homes and businesses without power.
An aerial view of damaged houses are seen after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Horseshoe Beach, Florida, on Saturday.
WORLD
Sep 29, 2024

U.S. southeast faces daunting cleanup from Helene as death toll rises

Damage estimates range between $95 billion and $110 billion, potentially making this one of the most expensive storms in modern U.S. history.
Waves close to a harbor as Typhoon Krathon approaches Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on Monday
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 1, 2024

Taiwan mobilizes troops as powerful Typhoon Krathon approaches southwest

The coast guard is racing to locate 19 sailors who had to abandon ship due to bad weather.
A man walks across a makeshift walkway across a damaged bridge on U.S. Route 64 after the passage of Hurricane Helene, in Bat Cave, North Carolina, on Monday.
WORLD
Oct 1, 2024

Recovery efforts hampered by 'post-apocalyptic' destruction after storm Helene

As many as 600 people remained unaccounted for, with flooded roads and toppled cellphone towers isolating devastated communities.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji