A UNESCO advisory panel recommended Wednesday that the Jomon Era archeological sites in northern Japan be added to the World Cultural Heritage list. (Kyodo)

Twelve-year-old Kokona Hiraki in women's park skateboarding is set to become the youngest Japanese summer Olympian on record after finishing fifth at a Dew Tour event, the final Tokyo Olympics qualifier. (Kyodo)

Japan remained the world's largest creditor at the end of 2020 for the 30th straight year, although the yen's appreciation against the U.S. dollar cut the value of its foreign assets, the government said Tuesday. (Kyodo)

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party approved Monday a cross-party bill to promote greater awareness among the public of sexual minorities in Japan. (Kyodo)

Kei Komuro, the boyfriend of Princess Mako of Japan, has graduated from Fordham University's law school in New York, a person familiar with the matter said Monday. (Kyodo)

A pair of premium melons in Japan's northern main island of Hokkaido fetched a price of 2.7 million yen ($24,800) in this year's first auction on Monday, about 23 times higher than the winning bid of last year. (Kyodo)

A roughly 3.5 meter-long pet python that managed to break free from an apartment in Yokohama earlier this month was caught alive Saturday, people involved in the search said. (Kyodo)

The number of domestic violence consultations in Japan grew 1.6-fold to a record 190,030 in the fiscal year through March, preliminary government data showed Friday, as the coronavirus pandemic is believed to have ramped up stress among couples and families who spent more time at home. (Kyodo)

Japanese sportswear firm Mizuno Corp. said Friday it will cease using cotton sourced from China's far-western Xinjiang region in its products, a move believed to reflect rising concern over Beijing's alleged human rights abuses against the Uyghur Muslim minority. (Kyodo)

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)

A driver of a Shinkansen bullet train left the cockpit to use the bathroom while the train was running at 150 kilometers per hour with some 160 passengers on board in central Japan, Central Japan Railway Co. said Thursday. (Kyodo)

The Japanese government said Wednesday it will bar the entry of foreign nationals who have recently traveled to Thailand and six other countries in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus. (Kyodo)

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)

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)

Japan's government on Tuesday withdrew a bill that would have made it easier to deport failed applicants for refugee status, officials said, after the death in March of a Sri Lankan woman at an immigration detention centre sparked criticism. (Reuters)

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)

The Japanese government said Monday it has urged its nationals in the Gaza Strip and surrounding areas to evacuate immediately as clashes between the Hamas militant group and Israel intensify. ()

Japan's GDP figure for the January-to-March period dropped into negative territory as consumer spending fell due to a second state of emergency. (NHK)

More than 80% of Japanese polled oppose hosting the virus-postponed Olympics this year, a new survey showed yesterday, underlining public antipathy less than 10 weeks before the Tokyo Games. (gulf-times.com)

Online bookings for elderly people to receive COVID-19 shots at large state-run vaccination centers in Tokyo and Osaka started Monday, as Japan tries to accelerate its vaccine rollout amid a fourth wave of infections. ()

Japan's Supreme Court has ruled that the state and building material makers are liable for health damage suffered by construction workers who developed lung diseases caused by asbestos. (NHK)

Ozeki Terunofuji quickly overpowered sekiwake Takanosho on Saturday to finish the first week of the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament with a perfect 7-0 record. (Kyodo)

After taking time to soak in the glory, Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama is ready to get back to work at this week's AT&T Byron Nelson, which is both a stop on the PGA Tour and a FedExCup event. (Kyodo)

An aging nuclear reactor in central Japan will be restarted in late June, becoming the first unit to operate beyond the government-mandated 40-year service period under new rules set after the 2011 Fukushima disaster, the operator said Wednesday. (Kyodo)

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 38-year-old man who is suspected of drugging and sexually abusing several boys in the town of Mizuho, reports Kyodo News. (tokyoreporter.com)