A South Korean court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a group of people referred to as wartime comfort women and relevant families. (NHK)

The U.S. and Japan showcased the strength and unity of their alliance during last week's summit, but one particular sentence in the joint leaders' statement that followed the meeting conceals a sore spot in the relationship. (Nikkei)

The Japanese government is considering declaring a state of emergency in two of the country's major urban centers to curb a spike in coronavirus cases. (NHK)

Independent power supplier eRex will build Japan's first commercial hydrogen power plant next year to initially supply zero-emission electricity to around 100 households, Nikkei has learned. (Nikkei)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government says it confirmed 861 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday. (NHK)

There are less than 100 days to go before the Tokyo Olympics and the torch relay is busy crisscrossing all of Japan’s 47 prefectures. (TIME)

Japan's glacial COVID-19 inoculation push is prompting some foreign residents to consider flying to other countries to get vaccinated, as the pandemic surges again with no shots in sight for everyday people. (Reuters)

The Japanese government may be edging closer to declaring another state of emergency, based on a request from the western prefecture of Osaka. (NHK)

The number of new condo units that went on sale in greater Tokyo last month rose from the same month a year ago. It was the fourth straight monthly increase. (NHK)

Japan's government said Monday it is asking Myanmar to release a Japanese journalist who was arrested by security forces in its largest city of Yangon the previous day. (coastreporter.net)

Japan will conduct its first large-scale survey on myopia among elementary and junior high school students, to begin as a government digital device rollout nears its conclusion, education ministry officials said Monday. (Kyodo)

The Japanese city of Sapporo, host of marathon and race walk events at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics, has downsized a test running event due to be held early next month as coronavirus cases rise. (Reuters)

For some observers, the 2018 arrest – and alleged rough treatment – of Carlos Ghosn, who had served as chairman and CEO of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, signaled that "the bloom was off the rose" for Tokyo and Japan as a coveted international executive assignment. (cgtn.com)

Oriental Land Co. said Monday that it will lower the cap of the daily number of visitors to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea each from 20,000 to 5,000, starting Tuesday to May 11. (Japan Times)

The vaccine rollout in Japan has been very slow with less than 1% vaccinated, causing concern about the postponed Tokyo Olympics that are scheduled to open in just over three months. (texarkanagazette.com)

Nearly 4 percent of children living in group homes for youngsters across Japan have at least one parent with foreign roots, forcing staff members to confront issues they were not initially trained to handle, an Asahi Shimbun study shows. (Asahi)

The Saitama Seibu Lions baseball team offered fans free coronavirus antibody tests before a game on Sunday. (NHKn)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government says it confirmed 405 new cases of coronavirus infections on Monday. (NHK)

The countdown is on for the #Tokyo2020​ Olympics. The one-year delay has already brought with it plenty of complications and there are still some unanswered questions. (Reuters)

Police in Tokyo have arrested a 32-year-old man on suspicion of assaulting singer Tomomi Kahara by forcibly pulling her by the arm and shoving her shoulder while in a taxi. (Japan Today)

U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga have agreed to jointly invest $4.5 billion for the development of next-generation communication known as 6G, or "beyond 5G." (Nikkei)

Tokyo and three neighboring prefectures have confirmed their highest new infection counts of the coronavirus since the second state of emergency was lifted last month. (NHK)

Japanese fried chicken, or "Karaage," is in a period of Warring States, with a bunch of new stores opening nationwide, including 678 just last year! (JapanNutrition.com)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested two members of hip-hop group Namedaruma over the alleged possession of marijuana, reports Nippon News Network (tokyoreporter.com)

Four building maintenance workers were killed Thursday in a basement parking garage in Tokyo as a fire suppression system was unintentionally activated, trapping them in an enclosed space with high levels of carbon dioxide, police and firefighters said. (Kyodo)