Japan aims to receive a record number of foreign visitors in 2025, a draft of the government's revised plan showed Thursday, with inbound tourism seeing a steady recovery since the country significantly eased border measures last October. (Japan Today)

The Japanese government is planning to allow people to make their own choices about wearing face masks to prevent coronavirus infections, beginning on March 13. (NHK)

A Japanese man accused of causing the death of his 1-year-old son in 2018 by leaving him frail from severe malnutrition, refusing him medical treatment and shooting him multiple times with an air gun was sentenced to 16 years in prison on Thursday. (Kyodo)

Yuta Nakamoto (中本悠太) is one of two Japanese members of K-Pop band NCT (Neo Culture Technology). Born in Kadoma, Osaka, his fans call him the "Takoyaki Prince".

Police in Izumi, Osaka Prefecture, have arrested a 40-year-old unemployed woman on suspicion of killing her 39-year-old boyfriend and stashing his body inside a freezer at her house. (Japan Today)

Shenjumiausuan released a research result recently on "the interests of investing in Japanese real estate from Chinese investors" that 89% of Chinese investors are interested in going for a house-viewing tour if the overseas traveling market reopens. (asiaone.com)

From April, revised traffic laws will allow self-driving delivery robots to navigate streets across Japan. (WION)

The Liberal Democratic Party will likely struggle to agree on a bill to encourage understanding of LGBT issues, particularly regarding how the legislation will refer to discrimination. (The Japan News)

A volcano on Sakurajima in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, erupted Wednesday, with a local weather observatory warning those within a 2-kilometer radius against pyroclastic flows and falling rocks. (Kyodo)

Sana Minatozaki (湊崎 紗夏) is a Japanese singer based in South Korea. She is one of three Japanese members of the South Korean girl group Twice, formed in 2015 by JYP Entertainment.

A ski resort in Niigata Prefecture, central Japan, is urging visitors to take precautions after two snowboarders were attacked by a wild boar. No one was injured. (NHK)

The West Express Ginga is Japan's newest sleeper train. The word Ginga means galaxy in Japanese. Today, I stayed in a semi-private room called First Seat. (Travel Alone Idea)

The number of taxi operators going bankrupt in Japan has reached a 10-year-high, according to a new survey conducted by local business information provider, Tokyo Shoko Research. (South China Morning Post)

Many regions and nations took positives from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. (newsonjapan.com)

A 10-year-old French-Japanese boy will become the first officially recognized dual-national kabuki actor, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, a star of the traditional art form. (Japan Today)

NHK has learned that Japan's government is considering advising senior citizens and other high-risk people to wear masks when they visit crowded places during a coronavirus outbreak. (NHK)

With their fine powder snow, hot springs and scenic vistas, Japan's international ski destinations, buoyed by pent-up demand and yen weakness, are booming following a COVID-19-induced slumber lasting more than two years. (Nikkei)

On a quiet day at work around 10 years ago, Tadanori Fukushima started receiving alarming email messages from a sender he did not recognize. The emails warned that his company's broadcasting satellite -- worth roughly $150 million -- was on a collision course with an unidentified object. The sender turned out to be the U.S. Air Force. (Nikkei)

The Philippine government is planning to deport the two remaining fraud suspects to Japan on Wednesday. The men are also suspected of being involved in a series of robberies in Japan. (NHK)

Animal welfare advocates in Winnipeg have filed a legal complaint with the federal government, after an inhumane shipment of live horses to Japan left them without food or water for over 28 hours. (CityNews)

Japanese investor SoftBank Group reported Tuesday that it sank into a deep loss for the October-December quarter, slammed by the global plunge in technology shares. (business-standard.com)

A group of airlines in Japan, including Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways, plans to make passenger mask-wearing a “personal choice” in May in line with the government’s planned downgrading of COVID-19, which involves a revision of mask guidelines. (Japan Times)

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said Tuesday it had abandoned its struggling project to develop a passenger plane, a decade after the jet was due for commercial rollout. (capitalfm)

The Philippines deported on Tuesday two of four Japanese men suspected of planning and coordinating a string of robberies across Japan beginning last year, with Japanese police immediately arresting them when they boarded a flight to Japan. (Nikkei)

Rola (ローラ) is a Japanese entertainer of Japanese, Russian and Bangladeshi descent. As a model, she is known for her regular appearances in the Japanese fashion magazine Vivi and in numerous commercials.