Japanese officials are looking at how to respond to the coronavirus, which is now rapidly spreading through parts of the country. Officials confirmed more than 2,400 infections on Friday -- the highest daily tally ever. (NHK)

A Japanese court sentenced a 22-year-old woman to nine years in prison on Friday for starving her 2-year-old daughter to death last year in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido. (Kyodo)

'Robovie' the robot works at a sports shop in the Japanese city of Osaka, where he usually directs shoppers to what they are looking for. But during the pandemic, he has a new task – reminding customers who are not wearing a mask to put one on, and asking people to keep their distance when queuing. (Rappler)

Professional japaneese talented heavyweight MMA fighter and olympic judo champion Satoshi Ishii against czech light heavyweight athlete and RIZIN champion Jiri Prochazka with nickname "Denisa". Fight took place in Saitama, Japan on December 29, 2015. MMA fight video in HD. (That's why MMA!)

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Friday the government will continue its Go To Travel domestic tourism promotion campaign despite growing worries about a resurgence of the coronavirus in Japan. (Japan Today)

Teenage shogi sensation Fujii Sota has become the youngest professional shogi player to mark 200 victories. (NHK)

The Story of Japan Airlines Flight 351, its hijacking by Sekigun-ha and aftermath, with one of its members being part of Japan's most mysterious band, Les Rallizes Dénudés (STEVEM)

Japan's major travel agency, JTB, plans to eliminate 6,500 jobs, as it expects to post the largest ever net loss this fiscal year, due to the coronavirus pandemic. (NHK)

Police in Ashikita, Kumamoto Prefecture, have arrested a 21-year-old Vietnamese woman on suspicion of abandoning the bodies of her newborn twins. (Japan Today)

A small vessel carrying 62 people, mostly sixth-grade students on a school trip, sank Thursday in the sea off western Japan shortly after all aboard were rescued by Japan Coast Guard ships and nearby fishery boats, the coast guard said. (Japan Today)

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako have made online inspections of Japanese Red Cross Society hospitals dealing with coronavirus patients. (NHK)

Japan is expecting to see a record low number of newborns in 2020, government sources said. (South China Morning Post)

Data released by a group of researchers show the average 10-year survival rate of cancer patients in Japan stands at 58.3 percent. (NHK)

A Japanese welding firm has opened it’s first “welding theme park” in Fukui city in Ishikawa prefecture in Japan. (South China Morning Post)

The surge in coronavirus cases across Japan is putting a damper on plans for the festive season, with many bosses say they won't throw parties for their employees this year. (NHK)

Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko has urged residents not to eat and drink in large groups, to keep the coronavirus out of their homes. (NHK)

Japan-based Korean writer Yu Miri has won the National Book Award, the most prestigious literary prize in the US. (NHK)

This year's Beaujolais Nouveau went on sale in Japan on Thursday with a more demure reception amid the coronavirus pandemic. (Kyodo)

The number of child abuse cases handled by child consultation centers across Japan in fiscal 2019 rose by 33,942 from the previous year to 193,780, the most since the survey started in fiscal 1990, the welfare ministry said in a preliminary report Wednesday. (Japan Times)

Google has begun providing forecasts of the number of new coronavirus cases and deaths in Japan. (NHK)

A Japanese official indicated to a visiting group of South Korean lawmakers that it would be possible to invite North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to next summer's Tokyo Olympics, a South Korean newspaper reported Wednesday, quoting one of the legislators. (Japan Times)

Japanese officials confirmed more than 2,300 cases across the country on Thursday -- a new daily record --and the continuation of a worrying trend. (NHK)

University students in Japan are finding it tougher to line up graduate jobs, as the coronavirus pandemic casts its shadow over the economy. (NHK)

Japan's exports in October bounced back to just below the levels seen before the novel coronavirus pandemic, as global demand for products such as cars has risen in line with a gradual recovery in business activities, government data showed Wednesday. (Japan Today)

Japan will adopt stronger security requirements for drones used in defense and infrastructure surveillance next fiscal year, a move that will essentially shut out Chinese-made devices from government procurement. (Nikkei)