NEWSWORTHY
Ai Fukuhara decided it was right time to step away
There were no traits of a crying baby. Instead of shedding tears, which was her trademark in childhood, Ai Fukuhara kept smiling and repeated the words of appreciation as the 29-year-old table tennis icon spoke to the media on Tuesday, two days after announcing ...
21-year prison term upheld for ex-NHK reporter found guilty of raping three women
A high court on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling that sentenced a former reporter for public broadcaster NHK to 21 years in prison for raping three women. The defense for Yasutaka Tsurumoto, 30, claimed someone with a grudge against the former journalist may have ...
Six bodies, possibly all from same family, found after fire breaks out at Sendai residence
Six bodies were found early Thursday after a fire broke out at a residence in Sendai, police said. The blaze was reported to firefighters at around 2:20 a.m. after a late-night worker nearby heard a woman's cry for help. The fire was extinguished about four ...
Sendai policeman's killer may have tried to steal officer's gun
A university student who stabbed a policeman to death at a police box in Sendai on Wednesday may have tried to steal the officer's gun, investigative sources said Thursday. The body of police officer Hiroaki Seino, 33, had cuts apparently inflicted during his attempts to ...
Man fatally stabs officer at Sendai police box before being shot to death
Police officer Hiroaki Seino was fatally stabbed early Wednesday by a man who said he had come to hand over some lost cash.
Fate of Miyagi's aging UFO-like traffic lights hangs in balance
The fate of UFO-like traffic lights installed in a northeastern prefecture more than 30 years ago hangs in the balance as local police consider whether they should be removed. The traffic lights in Miyagi Prefecture, famous locally for their distinctive shape, have signals visible to ...
Huge hometown crowd celebrates Olympic figure skating champ Yuzuru Hanyu in Sendai
More than 100,000 people turned out to cheer Yuzuru Hanyu, who won a second consecutive men's figure skating gold medal at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, as he paraded through the streets of his hometown of Sendai on Sunday. According to organizers, about 108,000 adoring fans ...
More people to sue state over sterilizations under eugenics law
The government may soon face more lawsuits over the forced sterilization of people with disabilities as a group of lawyers said Friday that preparations are under way following the first such lawsuit, which was filed by a Miyagi woman earlier this year. The group, led ...
Lawyers set up hotlines for victims of 1948-1996 eugenics law
Lawyers in five cities set up telephone counseling hotlines Friday for individuals who were forced into sterilization or affected by the Eugenic Protection Law to gauge the effect that the now-defunct act has had nationwide. Volunteer lawyers based in Sapporo, Sendai, Tokyo, Osaka, and Fukuoka ...
Woman sues government of Japan over forced sterilization under scrapped eugenics law
Suit says the state failed to take measures despite the serious infringement on human rights allowed by the 1948 law.
It's time to stop blocking color
Minimalist interiors have been a growing trend for many years now, primarily dominated by a monochromatic palette of white. But who says we need to abandon color to live a de-cluttered life?
Pilot shortage prompts Air Do to cancel 34 flights in November
Air Do, a regional carrier based in Sapporo, said Tuesday that it has decided to cancel a total of 34 flights on two routes in November due to a lack of pilots. The two routes connect the New Chitose airport in Hokkaido with Haneda airport ...
