OSAKA, Japan: Hospitals in Japan's second largest city of Osaka are buckling under a huge wave of new COVID-19 infections, running out of beds and ventilators as exhausted doctors warn of a "system collapse", and advise against holding the Olympics this summer. (channelnewsasia.com)

Mikiko Matsuyama, a renowned Japanese ballet dancer who had made great contribution to introducing the Chinese culture to Japan, died in Tokyo at the age of 98 on Saturday, Matsuyama Ballet said. (bignewsnetwork.com)

Japan's effort to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 has grassroots corporate support in a region where developers are unlocking potential for water and wind power. (Nikkei)

In sumo, Ozeki champion Terunofuji beat fellow Ozeki Takakeisho in a playoff to win his fourth title in the Summer Grand Sumo tournament in Tokyo. (NHK)

French President Emmanuel Macron plans to attend the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, France's sports minister said on Friday. (Japan Today)

Japan's Prime Minister has confirmed the southern prefecture of Okinawa will be added to the coronavirus state of emergency. (NHK)

Japan's Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu has indicated that his ministry may consider halting the country's current economic assistance to Myanmar, whose military has been oppressing protesters. (NHK)

Health officials in Japan’s Ibaraki Prefecture have retracted an advisory that encouraged people to avoid sharing meals with foreigners due to Covid-19 concerns, after it was blasted as discriminatory. (rt.com)

Rank-and-file grappler Endo put himself back in the championship race Friday at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament with an upset victory over ozeki Takakeisho. (Kyodo)

TOKYO (TR) – Over the past few months, Tokyo Metropolitan Police have been busting maid cafes in Chiyoda Ward for operating without licenses, reports the Asahi Shimbun (May 20). (tokyoreporter.com)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested two women who are suspected of swindling nearly two dozen men by luring them to hotels, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

Japanese regulators recommended the approval of COVID-19 vaccines developed by Moderna Inc and AstraZeneca PLC on Thursday, paving the way for the country to speed up its slow-moving vaccination campaign. (Reuters)

TOKYO -- Japan will consider cutting off all official development assistance to Myanmar, even for ongoing projects, if the situation there does not improve, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told Nikkei. (Nikkei)

Less than 30% of Japan's medics have been vaccinated against COVID-19 in major cities with just 65 days to go before the start of the Tokyo Olympics, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Wednesday, amid growing calls for the Games to be canceled. (Japan Today)

Cancelling the Tokyo Olympics in response to mounting public opposition in Japan to holding the Games during the Covid-19 pandemic would be an unparalleled act in peacetime. (deccanherald.com)

TOKYO -- Japan plans to boost defense spending without worrying about sticking to its long-standing limit of 1% of gross domestic product, Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told Nikkei on Wednesday. (Nikkei)

TOKYO (TR) – A woman who was found collapsed with a knife plunged in her abdomen on a road in Nerima Ward on Wednesday later died. (tokyoreporter.com)

World-renowned fashion designer Koshino Junko has been awarded France's highest order of merit, the Legion of Honor. (NHK)

The Japanese government plans to ban foreign VIPs from meeting their countries' athletes during this summer's Tokyo Olympics as a measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, officials said Wednesday. (Kyodo)

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 27-year-old man over the alleged rape of a woman in Toshima Ward earlier this year, reports TV Asahi (tokyoreporter.com)

A Japanese court on Wednesday ordered a man to pay about ¥1.29 million for causing emotional distress to the family of the late Hana Kimura, a cast member of the now-canceled reality TV show "Terrace House," after posting hateful messages about her online after her death. (Japan Times)

The two mass coronavirus vaccination centers set up by the Self-Defense Forces will accept reservations from people in wider areas starting Monday. They will cover residents aged 65 and older in all parts of Tokyo and Osaka. (NHK)

Japanese actor Masakazu Tamura, who appeared in a number of popular TV series and films in his 60-year career, died of heart failure at a hospital in Tokyo last month, people close to him said Tuesday. He was 77. (Kyodo)

Japan's prime minister says he believes that the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics can be held in a safe manner by implementing thorough anti-virus measures. (NHK)

Avivid rainbow heralds the arrival of dusk in Tokyo, but the fabled promise of a pot of gold must seem like a cruel joke to restaurateurs in Shimbashi, where office blocks stand in happy proximity to hundreds of watering holes. (theguardian.com)