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Former yokozuna Hakuho gives a news conference to announce his retirement from the Japan Sumo Association and reveal his future plans in Tokyo on Monday.
SUMO
Jun 9, 2025

Hakuho vows to grow sumo globally after exiting domestic sports body

The impetus for the decision, Hakuho said, was the failure of the Japan Sumo Association to provide a clear timeline about the restoration of Miyagino stable.
Experts are calling on people not to miss children's signs of trouble, particularly in June after fatigue can accumulate over the two months since the beginning of the school year in April.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 9, 2025

Experts warn of 'June syndrome' among children in Japan

Much like the better-known May syndrome, or May blues, June syndrome is a general term for mental and physical disorders and is medically classified as adjustment disorder.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks at an Upper House session in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 9, 2025

No-confidence motion against Ishiba Cabinet could lead to double election

A double election could result in more political stability if either bloc manages to capture both chambers, or continued instability if neither holds a majority.
Amid growing global tensions and military rearmament, allies in Europe and Asia increasingly fear that under Donald Trump, the U.S. has become an unreliable partner — undermining trust, unity and the foundation of the postwar international order.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2025

Whose side is the U.S. on? Doubts strain alliances

The U.S. once anchored a stable world order. Now, with rising threats from China and Russia, allies scramble to adapt as Washington sends mixed signals on defense and trade.
By spurring the ASEAN countries to deepen cooperation, with one another and with others, U.S. tariffs could bring about an even more prosperous — and, crucially, resilient — grouping.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2025

Trump vs. a united ASEAN

By spurring the ASEAN countries to deepen cooperation, U.S. tariffs could bring about an even more prosperous — and, crucially, resilient — grouping.
U.S. Secretary of Treasury Scott Bessent (L) and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (R) shake hands as they pose for a photo during trade discussions at the Lancaster House in London on Monday.
BUSINESS
Jun 10, 2025

U.S.-China trade and minerals talks in London set to extend to second day

Washington and Beijing are trying to revive a temporary truce struck in Geneva that had briefly lowered trade tensions and calmed markets.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes warms up before Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans last February. Flag football is set to debut at the 2028 Olympics — but if the NFL wants the sport to thrive globally, it should resist overshadowing it with high-profile pro players.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 8, 2025

NFL stars don’t belong on the Olympics' flag football field

If the NFL is really serious about growing football’s global footprint, it and its players should sit the Olympics out.
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks at a news conference about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest autism survey in Washington on April 16.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 10, 2025

Kennedy dismisses all 17 members of U.S. CDC vaccine panel

All sitting members were appointed under former President Joe Biden's administration.
Expectant parents Masataka and Saki Ohita look at ultrasound images of their unborn twins.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Jun 23, 2025

Childbirth facilities disappearing from Fukushima towns

With just 26 facilities in the prefecture that can handle deliveries, there is concern that the trend could accelerate population decline.
Members of law enforcement operate amid a standoff between police and protesters following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Compton, California, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 10, 2025

Los Angeles ICE raids fuel controversy over masked agents

The moves have ignited a politically charged debate over whether the agents are protecting their identities or engaging in intimidation tactics.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department said that an undercover investigation helped identify a suspect in an attempted scam case in the greater Tokyo area.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 10, 2025

New police method reveals shady part-time job suspect

It was the first time for police to detect a suspect under the investigation method introduced in January.
A plastic bottle lies on the sand at Maccarese beach in Italy in 2018.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Jun 10, 2025

Development banks to invest €3 billion in ocean plastics fight

Plastic waste entering the water could triple to up to 37 million metric tons per year by 2040, from around 11 million tons in 2021, the U.N. estimates.
According to the Japan Society for the Study of Obesity, 20% of women in their 20s in Japan are underweight, one of the highest rates among developed countries.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 10, 2025

Female Underweight/Undernutrition Syndrome to be classified disorder

According to one group, 20% of women in their 20s in Japan are underweight.
Italy's head coach Luciano Spalletti leaves at the end of the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Moldova at the Mapei Stadium in Reggio Emilia, Italy on Monday.
SOCCER
Jun 10, 2025

Italy not in a good place for successor, says sacked Spalletti

Spalletti announced his own dismissal on the eve of the Moldova match, which comes after less than two years in the role and included a disappointing Euro 2024 campaign.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung speaks during a ceremony to mark the 70th Memorial Day at Seoul National Cemetery on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 10, 2025

China's Xi urges South Korea's Lee to protect free trade in first talks

Chinese leader Xi Jinping told new South Korean President Lee Jae-myung that the two countries “should jointly safeguard multilateralism and free trade."
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro gestures as he attends Brazil's Supreme Court trial over an alleged coup attempt, in Brasilia on Monday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 10, 2025

Bolsonaro planned to 'redo' 2022 Brazil election he lost, court told

The former president faces charges of having led a "criminal organization" plotting to wrest power from leftist election victor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Supplies wait to be loaded on trucks to go into the Gaza Strip, at the Kerem Shalom crossing between Israel and Gaza, on its Israeli side, on May 29.
WORLD
Jun 10, 2025

U.N. says most flour delivered in Gaza looted or taken by starving people

A U.S. official has called for Israel to let in far more aid via multiple crossings and routes.
A ¥4.7 trillion ($32.4 billion) buyout bid by an entity led by Toyota Motor Chairman Akio Toyoda wasn’t formally on the agenda, but it overshadowed Toyota Industries' annual meeting on Tuesday as shareholders aired their grievances and sought clarity about the proposal.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 10, 2025

Toyota Industries shareholders question buyout at annual meeting

The Toyota group’s plan to privatize Toyota Industries has drawn sharp criticism from investors and analysts since it was announced a week ago.
Japan faces soaring rice prices, a powerful farming cooperative resistant to change, declining farmer numbers, falling rice consumption and conflicting government policies that hinder effective reform of the sector.
COMMENTARY
Jun 10, 2025

How ‘vintage’ rice is shaking up Japanese politics

Rice is where consumers have drawn the line. The staple rose by 98% in the past year, adding almost half a percentage point to headline inflation.
A hydroelectric dam near Shannan in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in March 2025
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 10, 2025

Catastrophe on the roof of the world

As the source of 10 major rivers that sustain nearly 20% of the world’s population, the Plateau’s degradation threatens regional water security, food systems and biodiversity.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri passes the checkered flag to win the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on June 1.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Jun 10, 2025

Imola axed from 2026 F1 calendar as Spain gets two races

Japan will be round 3 as a standalone event on March 29.
The new basic plan for promoting disaster prevention measures is expected to call for intensive efforts to develop evacuation shelters and stockpile emergency supplies to prevent earthquake-related deaths from indirect causes.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2025

Japan plans to target 80% reduction of likely megaquake death toll in 10 years

The target will be included in a new basic plan for promoting disaster prevention measures, which is expected to be adopted in early July.
Emergency specialists working at the crash site of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane near the city of Aktau, Kazakhstan, in December last year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 10, 2025

Expanding missile threats and airspace closures are straining airlines

The aviation industry, which prides itself on its safety performance, is investing more in data and security planning.
The Port of Los Angeles, in San Pedro, California. The World Bank stopped short of forecasting a recession, but said global economic growth this year would be its weakest outside of a recession since 2008.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 10, 2025

World Bank slashes global growth forecast as trade tensions bite

The bank stopped short of forecasting a recession, but said global economic growth this year would be its weakest outside of a recession since 2008.
BTS member RM (left) plays saxophone while V looks on while holding flowers at an outdoor facility in Chuncheon on Tuesday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jun 11, 2025

Two BTS megastars released from South Korea military

As the members of one of the world's biggest pop groups complete their military service obligations, fans hope for a new album.
Firefighters work at the site of a Russian drone strike in Kyiv on Tuesday.
WORLD
Jun 11, 2025

Russia launches one of war's largest air attacks on Kyiv

The overnight strikes were part of what Moscow says is retaliation for attacks by Ukrainian forces on Russia.
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., testifies before a Senate Committee in Washington, on May 14.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 11, 2025

Kennedy's firing of CDC panel undermines vaccine confidence, experts say

The firing of the vaccine committee comes weeks before a public meeting in which advisers were to vote on the 2025-26 COVID-19 vaccine boosters.
More and more older Japanese people are joining health clubs, with Pilates becoming a popular form of exercise.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 11, 2025

So long, gateball. Japan’s seniors are ready to work those core muscles.

Japan’s seniors are trading gateball for Pilates, chasing strength, stability and a new kind of aging — with core control.
Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (center) shoots the ball against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half of Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center, Oklahoma City on Sunday.
BASKETBALL / NBA
Jun 11, 2025

Pacers admit Tyrese Haliburton is hurting but will play Game 3

"I don't think you're going to hear him making a big deal out of it," coach Rick Carlisle said Tuesday.
A pollster for the national census leaves a note at a house in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, in September 2020 after no one answered the door.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 11, 2025

Japan faces staffing challenges for crucial census

The pollster workforce is aging, while increased public concerns over privacy have led more residents to refuse to participate.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years