Osaka High Court upholds death penalty for 'black widow' serial killer Chisako Kakehi
The Osaka High Court on Friday upheld the death penalty imposed on a 72-year-old woman dubbed Japan's "black widow" for murdering her husband and two common-law partners with poison to inherit money and escape debt. In handing down the sentence to Chisako Kakehi, presiding Judge ...
Families and survivors mark anniversary of 2005 Amagasaki derailment that killed 107
Some 500 survivors and family members of victims of a 2005 train derailment that killed 107 people gathered Thursday to mark the 14th anniversary of the crash at a ceremony, which was held for the first time at a newly built memorial facility. West Japan ...
Eye-opener: Japanese doctor's work with iPS cells puts macular degeneration on notice
Science has Dr. Masayo Takahashi's mother to thank, in a way, for some of the most notable developments in regenerative medicine using stem cells. More than 35 years ago when Takahashi was contemplating which career she would pursue once she graduated from high school in ...
Record six women secure mayor jobs in Japan's local elections, though two won uncontested
A record six women have secured city mayoralty in this year's quadrennial unified local elections. On Sunday, the second and final round of the elections took place. There were mayoral elections in 59 cities (including three prefectural capitals, Mito in Ibaraki Prefecture, Nagasaki and Oita), 11 ...
Japanese medical school adopts facial recognition-based attendance system
The Hyogo College of Medicine has introduced a facial recognition technology-based system to check student attendance. It is the first university in Japan to use such a system, according to the institution in the city of Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture. The university expects the system to allow ...
The former mayor of the city of Akashi in Hyogo Prefecture who quit last month over his abusive language toward a senior official was re-elected on Sunday, beating two other candidates. Fusaho Izumi, 55, stepped down from the mayoral post after being criticized for verbally ...
A local court ordered Hyogo Prefecture on Wednesday to pay ¥110,000 in damages to a man with intellectual disabilities, saying the prefectural police illegally took his DNA without proper consent in 2015. The police had said they received written permission from the man before conducting ...
Hyogo mayor who called senior official 'stupid' over stalled evictions to make way for road quits
A Hyogo Prefecture mayor submitted a letter of resignation Friday after facing criticism for calling a senior city official "stupid" and suggesting he "burn down" a local building that stood in the way a road project, officials said. "I apologize again for what happened. I ...
Fired-up Hyogo city mayor sorry for calling official 'stupid' and asking him to 'burn down' building
A mayor in Hyogo Prefecture is in hot water for calling a senior city official "stupid" and suggesting he "burn down" a local building that stood in the way of the construction of a new road. "All that has been reported by the media is ...
The city of Kobe and neighboring areas on Thursday marked the 24th anniversary of the deadly Great Hanshin Earthquake, with residents and family members of the deceased remembering those that were lost and pledging to ensure that their stories and lessons learned from the ...
Hiroshima firefighter wins annual Lucky Man race at Hyogo shrine
A 22-year-old firefighter raced past the competition early Thursday to earn the title of "Lucky Man" in the annual run held at a major Shinto shrine in Hyogo Prefecture. As soon as the gates of Nishinomiya Shrine swung open at 6 a.m., Yuki Yamamoto from ...
In country's first name-change referendum, Sasayama voters back renaming city as Tamba-Sasayama
The city of Sasayama in Hyogo Prefecture will be changing its name to Tamba-Sasayama as early as next May following what city officials described as the country's first referendum on changing a municipality's name. Sunday's referendum passed with a margin of 3,128, with 13,646 voting ...
