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Fireworks during Irumagawa Tanabata Festival in Sayama, Saitama Prefecture in July 2023
JAPAN / Society
Jul 22, 2024

Many summer fireworks festivals in Japan canceled due to complaints

Property damage caused by debris, and littering and trespassing by those looking for a better view are among the reasons for the cancellations.
Japanese badminton players participate in one of Ajinomoto's Kachimeshi Kai gatherings.
JAPAN
Jul 23, 2024

Ajinomoto offering food-related support to Japan athletes in Paris

Ajinomoto has been offering athletes light traditional Japanese meals at an on-site nutrition support base set up for every Summer and Winter Olympics.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters in Tokyo Monday following news of U.S. President Joe Biden's exit from the presidential race.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 23, 2024

Kishida aides wary of impact from Biden's withdrawal

Many expect Kishida to make a decision on his approach to the LDP's leadership race after the summer holiday period in mid-August.
French President Emmanuel Macron is "following the situation closely" and "intervening with the Danish authorities," according to his Elysee palace office.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2024

Macron urges against anti-whaling activist's extradition

Japan is one of the last three countries in the world to permit commercial whaling along with Iceland and Norway.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 24, 2024

Toyota chairman and 12 other Japanese executives banned from entering Russia

Others include Rakuten Group Chairman and CEO Hiroshi Mikitani and Japan International Cooperation Agency President Akihiko Tanaka.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 24, 2024

Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny

The funds can be used by the chief cabinet secretary with no explanation needed, fueling speculation of widespread misappropriation.
Tsuyoshi Ode, specially appointed professor at Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, poses with a certificate for the school's hydrogen dueled ship during news conference on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2024

Japan certifies hydrogen-fueled ship for the first time

The ship requires three tanks of high-pressure hydrogen gas at room temperature and can sail some 75 kilometers in five hours at a speed of 8 knots per hour.
People who made hometown tax donations to the city of Narita in Chiba Prefecture take part in a tour on Sunday at Narita Airport in the city, which was offered as a return gift.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2024

Japan's hometown tax donations top ¥1 trillion for first time

The number of people who received residence tax breaks through the system is also believed to have hit a record 10 million.
Passengers wait at Bordeaux-Saint-Jean station in Bordeaux, France, after the nation's high-speed rail network was disrupted by an attack on Friday.
OLYMPICS
Jul 26, 2024

Team Japan not impacted by French train attacks ahead of opening ceremony

The French railways system was hit by a series of attacks on Friday.
This year's rice harvest is also feared to be impacted by the scorching heat, spurring concerns among producers and consumers.
JAPAN
Jul 27, 2024

Heat waves impact Japan's rice quality, leading to shortage

Despite 2023's harvest volume being on par with previous years, high temperatures have caused rice grains to develop a cloudy look or break into pieces.
Gold medalist Natsumi Tsunoda celebrates on the podium after she won the women's under 48-kg division at the Paris Olympics on Saturday.
OLYMPICS / Judo
Jul 27, 2024

Dominant Natsumi Tsunoda delivers Japan's first gold medal at Paris Olympics

Tsunoda is the first Japanese woman to win gold in the under 48-kg division since Ryoko Tani at the 2004 Athens Games.
Daiki Hashimoto competes in the parallel bars event during the qualification round at the Paris Olympics on Saturday.
OLYMPICS / Gymnastics
Jul 28, 2024

China has early edge on Japan as Olympic gymnastics springs into action

Daiki Hashimoto, seeking to emulate his compatriot Kohei Uchimura by securing back-to-back titles in male gymnastics' premier event, was not at his best on Saturday.
Tomokazu Harimoto in action alongside Hina Hayata during their shock defeat at the hands of North Korean pair Jong Sik Ri and Kum Yong Kim on Saturday at the Paris Olympics.
OLYMPICS
Jul 28, 2024

Japan's Olympic mixed doubles table tennis team stunned in first round

The 49-minute match ended in a shocking defeat for the Japanese pair, who were considered top contenders for the title and challengers to the Chinese team.
Hifumi Abe reacts after defending his Olympic title in the judo men's under-66 kg division at the Champ-de-Mars Arena in Paris on Sunday.
OLYMPICS / Judo
Jul 28, 2024

Japan's Hifumi Abe defends Olympic title after sister falls early

The Abe siblings famously both won gold at their home Olympics in Tokyo in 2021 just 30 minutes apart.
Koki Kano celebrates after winning the gold-medal match over France's Yannick Borel in the men's epee event at the Paris Olympics on Sunday.
OLYMPICS / Fencing
Jul 29, 2024

Japan's Kano breaks French hearts in Olympic fencing final

Yannick Borel of France took silver and Mohamed Elsayed of Egypt was awarded bronze.
Haruka Nakamura (left) celebrates with teammate Kohane Ushioku during the women's gymnastics qualification round for the Paris Olympics on Sunday.
OLYMPICS
Jul 29, 2024

Japan's gymnastics team puts in solid performance despite missing captain

The teenage athletes' Olympics journey had got off to an inauspicious start after 19-year-old captain Shoko Miyata was sent home just days before the Games.
A man cools himself in a water mist spray in Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Multiple regions topped 40 degrees Celsius for the first time this year on Monday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 29, 2024

Multiple places in Japan see mercury top 40 C for first time this year

Notable readings include a peak of 41 degrees Celsius in Sano, Tochigi Prefecture, as well as 40.2 C in the city of Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture.
Footballer Kaishu Sano has been released after being arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 30, 2024

Japan footballer Kaishu Sano released after sexual assault arrest

It is not clear whether the case against the 23-year-old, who recently signed for top-flight German side Mainz, has been dropped.
President Shinji Kaneko (left) and other executives of Keikyu Department Store bow in apology during a news conference in Yokohama on Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2024

Grilled eel leaves one dead and 140 sick in Japan

The products included eel cooked in the traditional kabayaki style
Harley-Davidson motorcycles on display in Tokyo. Japan's antitrust watchdog has raided the manufacturer's Japan unit for allegedly imposing excessive sales quotas on its dealers.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2024

Harley-Davidson's Japan unit raided after quotas force dealers into hardship

The motorcycle manufacturer's unit in Tokyo is also suspected of having dealers buy Harley-Davidson models that they did not want.
Upper House lawmaker Muneo Suzuki speaks to reporters in Moscow on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2024

Pro-Moscow lawmaker Muneo Suzuki visits Russia again

The Upper House member defied the central government by flying to Moscow for talks with senior Russian officials.
An expert panel discusses the creation of a database for all civil court rulings, on Monday in Tokyo.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2024

Japan expert panel calls for database of all civil court rulings

The ministry plans to submit a related bill during next year's ordinary session of parliament, with a view to launching the database in fiscal 2026.
Takanori Nagase celebrates after winning gold in the men's under-81 kg judo event at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday.
OLYMPICS / Judo
Jul 31, 2024

Japan's Takanori Nagase defends Olympic judo title

Before Paris, Nagase's form was uncertain as the 2015 world champion competed just eight times between his two Olympic titles.
A worker at a supermarket in Tokyo's Nerima Ward puts up a sign on July 25 saying rice purchases are restricted to one bag per customer.
JAPAN
Jul 31, 2024

Japan's rice stocks shrink to record low amid high demand and heat woes

An 18 percentage point decline in the share of 2023's crop rated first-grade led to a decrease in rice on the market, while demand saw the first rise in a decade.
Traditional soap cakes are manufactured in Aleppo in northern Syria in February.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 31, 2024

Japanese importer fights to preserve traditional Aleppo soap

It is said that Aleppo has upheld the tradition of soapmaking for approximately 1,000 years, using olive and laurel oil with alkali made from charcoaled desert shrubs.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shakes hands with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol as U.S. President Joe Biden looks on alongside other members of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders week in San Francisco in November.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 31, 2024

Japan to co-lead crisis response branch of the global trade initiative IPEF

Japan will be vice chair of the Crisis Response Network, a body under the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity.
Georgia's Lasha Bekauri (top) and Japan's Sanshiro Murao battle in the men's gold medal bout in the under-90 kg judo event at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday.
OLYMPICS / Judo
Aug 1, 2024

Georgian Bekauri retains judo title over Japan's Murao

Bekauri won a controversial bout over Murao in the gold-medal match to secure the victory.
Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki said Israel will not be invited to the city's annual peace ceremony this year.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2024

Israel is not invited to Japan's Nagasaki peace ceremony

Nagasaki sent a letter to the Israeli embassy last month calling for an "immediate cease-fire."
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida rides on a self-driving bus in Taki, Mie Prefecture, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2024

Japan to allow driverless cars on 25 public roads by March 2025

Level 4 driverless vehicles will also be seen traveling under specific conditions on some 10 routes after going through a shortened screening process .
The amount of money stolen in fraud cases linked to social media in the first half of 2024 exceeded that of the whole 2023, the National Police Agency said.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 1, 2024

¥66 billion stolen in Japan via online scams in first half of 2024

Of the investment fraud cases reported, 51.6% involved advertisements on social media platforms.

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