Heavy snow fell on mountainous areas in Japan on Friday night. Snowfall also continued mostly along the Japan Sea coast from northern to western Japan. (NHK)

About 40 percent of those aged between 17 and 19 think sex education at school is useless, an online survey by the Nippon Foundation think tank showed Thursday. (Japan Times)

Having disregarded a state instruction to kill cattle left behind in areas near the crisis-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, some local farmers have been struggling to keep about 430 cows within a 20-kilometers radius of the complex exposed to radiation. (Japan Today)

Police were called out to deal with traffic congestion and noise disturbance in the early hours of Thursday after a huge crowd gathered to watch a popular entertainment TV program being filmed at an amusement park in Tokyo. (Japan Today)

Two death row inmates who killed a company president and an employee at the firm were hanged Thursday morning in Osaka, the Justice Ministry said, bringing the number of executions in the country this year to 15. (Japan Times)

A dog handed over its responsibilities to wild boar at a ceremony marking the change of year under the Oriental zodiac. (NHK)

A total of 210 teachers at public schools in Japan were disciplined over sexual behavior in fiscal 2017, which ended in March, according to an education ministry survey. (Japan Times)

Five-year prison terms were sought Wednesday for three former executives of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. for their alleged failure to prevent the Fukushima nuclear disaster triggered by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. (Japan Times)

A total of seven women have come forward to claim that they were sexually abused by famous photojournalist Ryuichi Hirokawa, a weekly tabloid reports in its latest issue. (tokyoreporter.com)

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday asked business leaders to raise wages to spur consumption and mitigate the impact of next October’s planned sales tax hike, the sixth consecutive year he has requested such an increase. (Japan Times)

The Japanese government officially announced on Wednesday to withdraw from the International Whaling Commission, a move that drew criticism from a global community worried about depleted whale populations. (Nikkei)

Police on Tuesday arrested a woman for allegedly dumping trash off the balcony of her 31st-floor condo in Kobe on a number of occasions. (Japan Times)

The estimated number of cats being kept as pets outnumbered that of dogs for the second straight year in 2018, the Japan Pet Food Association said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

A close aide to former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn has been released from detention. Greg Kelly posted bail of about 635,000 dollars. (NHK)

Japan Airlines Co. said Tuesday an internal probe has concluded that a female flight attendant who tested positive for alcohol last week consumed alcohol while on duty. (Kyodo)

Japan's government on Tuesday adopted a slew of measures to encourage foreign nationals to work in the country and to smooth their integration into society. (Nikkei)

Japan’s swine fever epidemic is spreading further with a sixth case identified Tuesday in the central part of the country, leading to the first dispatch of Ground Self-Defense Force troops and the launch of a crisis control unit by the central government. (Japan Times)

The violence and scandals that have plagued Japan's sumo world came full circle just after the year's sixth and final tournament, leaving maiden victories by the sport's young up-and-comers in the shadows. (Japan Today)

Nearly 83,000 people visited the Imperial Palace in central Tokyo on Sunday to celebrate Emperor Akihito's 85th birthday. (NHK)

Japan's Emperor Akihito turned 85 on Sunday. (NHK)

A 7-year-old Japanese boy, on holiday in Australia with his family, died in hospital Sunday after an incident while swimming at a public lagoon in the northern city of Cairns, according to local media reports. (Japan Times)

To prepare for the upcoming New Year’s countdown event, Shibuya Ward in Tokyo is asking convenience stores to refrain from selling alcoholic drinks in glass bottles from 9 p.m. on Dec 31 until 6 a.m. on Jan 1. (Japan Today)

Japanese prosecutors re-arrested Nissan Motor Co Ltd's ousted chairman Carlos Ghosn on Friday on fresh allegations of making Nissan shoulder 1.85 billion yen in personal investment losses, dashing chances he would be released on bail imminently. (Japan Today)

The estimated amount of babies born in Japan this year has dropped to the lowest number since comparable data became available in 1899, government figures showed Friday. (Japan Times)

Japan's top Coca-Cola distributor plans to pass higher transport costs on to customers with its first discretionary price hike in 27 years, a move that could unleash a wave of inflation in a risk-averse industry. (Nikkei)