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British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks to journalists following an election campaign event at Melksham Town F.C. on Friday. Sunak apologized after skipping events to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day in France to return early to the U.K.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 8, 2024

The moment the Tories have long dreaded is finally upon them

With Labour so far ahead in the polls, few Tories expect to stay in power after the election.
Israeli soldiers operate in the Gaza Strip in January.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 8, 2024

Diminished Hamas switches to full insurgent mode in Gaza

The militant group has been reduced to between 9,000 and 12,000 fighters, according U.S. officials familiar with battlefield developments.
People sit by makeshift shelters near Awlala Camp, Amhara region, Ethiopia
WORLD / Society
Jun 8, 2024

Attacks leave Sudanese refugees stranded in Ethiopian forest

About 8,000 people have left the Kumer and Awlala refugee camps, set up by the United Nations in Ethiopia's northern Amhara region.
With a number of elderly people living alone increasing in Japan, the welfare ministry plans to conduct a survey of municipalities' responses to unclaimed bodies and remains.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 9, 2024

Japan to conduct first survey on unclaimed bodies

The number of unclaimed remains stored by municipalities stood at some 60,000 as of October 2021, according to an internal affairs ministry survey released in 2023.
People wait for the main act to begin at Summer Sonic, which holds simultaneous music festivals for those in Tokyo and Osaka.
CULTURE / Music / Longform
Jun 9, 2024

Can Japan's summer music festivals adapt to a post-pandemic reality?

Soaring temperatures, the cheap yen and a dearth of headline options may require reshaping the outdoor concert formula.
French President Emmanuel Macron during U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to the Elysee Palace in Paris on Saturday
WORLD / Politics
Jun 10, 2024

Macron and Scholz get trounced by far-right in EU elections

Far-right parties made gains that could sway the European Parliament to take a harder line on migration and upset work to protect the environment.
Russian officials have increasingly been threatening not to extend the visas of African students and young workers unless they agree to join its military and fight against Ukraine, sources say.
WORLD
Jun 10, 2024

Russia is sending young Africans to die in its war against Ukraine

Moscow has also been enlisting convicts from its prisons, one source said.
Travelers in a departure hall at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on April 26. For environmentalists, the resurgence of tourism will be met with dismay as it drives an accompanying surge in carbon emissions, but for the oil industry, the revival is a welcome boost.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jun 10, 2024

The world’s flying again and jumbo jets are burning fuel like it’s 2019

But despite this year's record number of flyers, increased efficiency will likely hold back fuel consumption to prepandemic levels.
Tokyo has proved to be an attractive destination for Chinese entrepreneurs in recent times, away from the challenges hitting the economy at home.
BUSINESS
Jun 16, 2024

Chinese entrepreneurs bet on Japan

A Chinese-language MBA program has been catering to those seeking opportunities in Tokyo.
Emmanuel Macron, France's president, during U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to the Elysee Palace in Paris on Saturday
WORLD / Politics
Jun 10, 2024

Macron’s high-risk vote attempts to halt Le Pen’s French advance

French President Emmanuel Macron called a snap legislative ballot in a desperate bid to stop the rise of his far-right rival, Marine Le Pen.
Lee Kyoung-hyun, a popular YouTuber shaman, at her shaman parlor in Seoul on May 13
WORLD / Society
Jun 10, 2024

South Korea's young shamans revive ancient tradition with social media

Google Trends shows that searches on YouTube for "shaman" and "fortune-telling" in Korean have nearly doubled over the past five years.
A Saudi Aramco logo outside an oil storage tank at the Juaymah tank farm at the firm's Ras Tanura oil refinery and terminal at Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, in October 2018
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 10, 2024

Saudis said to hand about 60% of Aramco offer to foreign investors

The firm's stock sale generated strong demand from the U.S. and Europe, sources said.
A driving course inside a new facility in the city of Saitama created for elderly drivers
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2024

Saitama police open Japan's first elderly driver training center

Drivers 70 and older have to undergo sessions consisting of driving instruction and classroom lectures, as well as cognitive tests.
The percentage of working people who said they sleep seven hours or more has reached 52.4%, a significant increase from 27% in 1999, according to a survey conducted in April.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 10, 2024

Japanese with lack of sleep reduced by half from 25 years ago

36.3% of working adults said that they sleep six hours, followed by 36.0% who said they sleep seven hours.
Dutch runner Abdi Nageeye (center) wears a continuous glucose monitor on his upper left arm as he competes in the 2022 Rotterdam marathon in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in April 2022.
OLYMPICS
Jun 11, 2024

Olympic athletes turn to diabetes tech in pursuit of medals

Continuous glucose monitors were developed for use by diabetes patients but their makers also spy opportunities in sports and wellness.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield votes during a U.N. Security Council vote on a U.S.-drafted resolution backing a proposal outlined by U.S.President Joe Biden for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, at the U.N. headquarters in New York on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 11, 2024

U.N. Security Council backs Israel-Hamas cease-fire plan

Hamas has welcomed the adoption of the U.S.-drafted resolution, saying in a statement that it is ready to cooperate with mediators.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attends a news conference in Berlin on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 11, 2024

EU centrists work to build coalition after far-right parties gain in vote

The rightward shift may make it tougher to pass new legislation to respond to security challenges, climate change or industrial competition from China and the U.S.
Migrant workers harvest and package vegetables in a greenhouse in Gasan-myeon, South Korea, in December 2023. Though a shrinking population makes imported labor vital, migrant workers routinely face predatory employers, inhumane conditions and other abuse.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jun 11, 2024

South Korea accused of 'human trafficking' with seasonal worker program

Filipino workers say brokers charge excessive fees to find them back-breaking work, confiscate their passports and documents, and cheat them out of wages.
People protest near the Russian Embassy in Colombo on June 4. Colombo's parliament set up an inquiry last month to track at least 2,000 battle-hardened Sri Lankans who reportedly enlisted on both sides of the Ukraine war, including in the regular armed forces and mercenary groups.
WORLD
Jun 11, 2024

Sri Lanka seeks to bring home 'duped' ex-soldiers fighting in Russia war

With no communication for months, and reports of at least 16 Sri Lankans killed and 37 wounded, distraught families are pleading with politicians for help.
People gather around four American educators from an Iowa university, who were reportedly stabbed in a public park in Jilin, China, in this still image taken from video released on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jun 11, 2024

Four U.S. educators stabbed in park in northeast China

The group had been visiting a temple in Beishan Park when they were attacked by a man with a knife. There were no reports of a motive.
Employees of a seafood restaurant work in their kitchen space at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo. Side gigs are becoming increasingly common in Japan as companies look for flexible sources of labor while workers look to top up income in their spare time.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Japan spot work startup Timee targets July listing, sources say

The startup, founded in 2017, is aiming for a valuation of roughly $1 billion and the joint global coordinators are Daiwa Securities and Morgan Stanley, the people said.
French President Emmanuel Macron decided to trigger a parliamentary vote in an effort to regain the political initiative after his party was comprehensively beaten by Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally in Sunday’s European election.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

Macron’s election gamble triggers chaos and anger inside his party

In calling for an election just 20 days from the dissolution of parliament, he is dialing up the pressure not just on his opponents, but also his own people.
From left: Promoter Frank Warren, fighter Anthony Joshua and Saudi official Turki al-Sheikh attend a fight between Dmitry Bivol and Malik Zinad in Riyadh on June 1.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
Jun 12, 2024

Saudi Arabia wealth fund holding talks to create boxing league, sources say

PIF is looking to invest in a joint venture with some of the sport's stakeholders that would feature more boxing bouts.
Naran Unurtsetseg became one of Mongolia's most well-known journalists by exposing sexual abuse in a Buddhist boarding school, violence in the military and by taking on some of the country's most powerful people.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

Hard-hitting journalist ensnared in Mongolia's press freedom crackdown

Mongolia has plummeted in press freedom rankings amid what critics say is a declining rule of law and a government seeking to curb criticism of its record on corruption.
Dads in Japan tend to fall in one of two categories: "amatō," a person fond of sweets, or "karatō," a person fond of alcohol.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 14, 2024

Dads like sweets, but some like sweet words even more

Looking for a gift for Father's Day? It's said that Japanese dads fall into one of two categories: They like sweets or they like sake.
Pilgrims circle Kaaba as they perform Tawaf at the Grand Mosque, ahead of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on June 11.
WORLD / Society
Jun 12, 2024

Gaza war hangs over Hajj as pilgrims flock to Mecca

Saudi Arabia's minister in charge of religious pilgrimages warned last week that "no political activity" will be tolerated.
Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary soldiers in Sudan. The International Criminal Court has begun investigating the events of an eight-month period in 2023 when soldiers from the RSF targeted unarmed civilians.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

Top war crimes court appeals for evidence of atrocities in Sudan

The move comes days after a U.N. official warned of a strong chance genocide had been committed in Darfur — a worrying echo of events two decades ago.
The rates of unmarried Japanese have been rising across every age group. More than 90% of women age 30-34 were married in 1980, versus 65% now.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 11, 2024

Tokyo government's 'Tinder' is actually a good idea

The rates of unmarried Japanese have been rising across every age group. More than 90% of women aged 30-34 were married in 1980, versus 65% now.
In 2023, 15.4% of China's population was over 65, a demographic milestone that typically slows economic growth.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 12, 2024

Is China too old to get rich?

By 2023, 15.4% of China's population was over 65, a demographic milestone that typically slows economic growth.
A Palestinian walks among the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israel's military offensive in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 13, 2024

U.S. says Hamas seeks changes to the cease-fire plan

Hamas reiterated its stance that it is Israel rejecting proposals and that the Palestinian Islamist group was not suggesting new ideas.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’