A Nagasaki prefectural government official was arrested Tuesday after paper cranes symbolizing peace were found burned at a Nagasaki park commemorating the victims of the atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city in 1945. (Kyodo)

Police in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, say a 26-year-old man who was arrested after robbing a watch store in Kawasaki on Sunday said he applied for the job on a social networking site. (Japan Today)

Japan's more powerful lower house passed a contentious bill on Tuesday to promote understanding of sexual minorities, paving the way for enacting the legislation by the end of the current parliamentary session through next week. (Kyodo)

The rainy season has officially begun across Japan, with the northeast and parts of central areas of the nation joining other regions already experiencing soggy weather, the weather agency said Sunday. (Kyodo)

A 26-year-old woman was stabbed by a man in Tokyo’s Koto Ward late Friday. Police said the suspect, who was in his 30s, died after having apparently jumped from a nearby apartment building where he lived. (Japan Today)

Four Chinese nationals have been arrested on suspicion of smuggling about 700 kilograms of illegal stimulants from the United Arab Emirates, police and customs officials said Wednesday. (Kyodo)

Thirteen percent of elementary to high school students in Japan had depressive tendencies warranting medical attention last October due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, a recent study by a medical institute said. (Kyodo)

Police in Fukuoka said Sunday they have arrested four men over the death of a 43 year-old-man after a fight between several people on Saturday. (Japan Today)

Tokyo stocks closed Monday at 33-year highs as investor sentiment was boosted by a surge in U.S. stocks late last week and robust jobs data for May. (Japan Today)

Police in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, have arrested a 24-year-old woman and a 20-year-old man on suspicion of abandoning a newborn baby girl whose partially burned body was found along the coastline last month. (Japan Today)

A private photo of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, taken at his official residence, was leaked by a magazine on Friday, with critics arguing the action was inappropriate and generated security issues at what they consider a public facility, reports Kyodo News. (Daily Sun)

Japan on Tuesday unveiled a comprehensive policy package to tackle hay fever caused by pollen from cedar and cypress trees, aiming to halve emissions over the next 30 years. (Kyodo)

About 200 people, including "cosplayers" dressed up as characters from manga and anime, cleaned up the Dotonbori area on Saturday, Kyodo reports. (NOJ)

A four-year-old boy fell to his death from the 12th floor of an apartment building in Hofu, Yamaguchi Prefecture, on Friday afternoon. (Japan Today)

A man in his 50s was fatally shot in a coffee shop in Machida, Tokyo, on Friday night, in what police believe was a gang-related shooting. The shooter fled with an accomplice but later turned himself in at a police station. (Japan Today)

Lone yokozuna Terunofuji completed a triumphant comeback from injury Saturday at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament, outlasting title rival Kiribayama to clinch the championship with a day to spare. (Kyodo)

Over 97 percent of new university graduates in Japan found jobs this spring, up 1.5 points from the previous year for the first rise in three years, reflecting a labor shortage as the economy recovers from the coronavirus pandemic, the government said Friday. (Kyodo)

NASA on Tuesday unveiled photos of the area of the Moon where a Japanese lander failed in what could have been the world's first lunar touchdown by a private space vehicle. (Kyodo)

Japan's lower house on Tuesday approved a bill creating a special pool of funds to substantially increase defense spending despite opposition lawmakers' resistance. (Kyodo)

Japan is considering overhauling its tax-free shopping scheme for foreign visitors in response to a growing number of cases of tax-free items being resold overseas for profit at tax-inclusive prices, sources close to the matter said Monday. (Kyodo)

Lone yokozuna Terunofuji took the outright lead and became the first wrestler to clinch a winning record Sunday as he improved to a perfect 8-0 at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament. (Kyodo)

Yuko Kishida, the wife of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, has gifted pairs of wearable binoculars to the spouses of the leaders of the Group of Seven countries and international organizations who attended the G-7 summit that concluded Sunday in Hiroshima, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry. (Kyodo)

The leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations visited a small island in Hiroshima Bay containing a world heritage shrine and sat down to a working dinner at a traditional hot-spring inn there at the end of the first day of their summit Friday. (Kyodo)

Leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized economies kicked off talks at their summit on Friday in Hiroshima, with concerns lingering that Russia may use a nuclear weapon in its ongoing aggression against Ukraine. (Kyodo)

Japan's trade deficit nearly halved to a one-year low of 432.41 billion yen ($3 billion) in April, as imports dropped for the first time in 27 months on lower crude oil prices, while U.S.-bound auto shipments delivered record exports, the Finance Ministry said Thursday. (Kyodo)