Emmanuel, Stephane, Henrik and James come from very different backgrounds, but they share the same painful experience of battling Japan's legal system - in vain - for access to their children after divorce. (straitstimes.com)

Honda Motor Co. on Thursday began accepting orders in Japan for its updated second-generation NSX sports car which will be launched in May. (Kyodo)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang have agreed to further enhance relations between the 2 countries. (NHK)

U.S. actor Johnny Depp will play the role of war photographer Eugene Smith in the movie "Minamata" about a mercury-poisoning disease that affected thousands of people in Japan, according to local reports. (Japan Today)

Among low-income households with children in their early teens, 34.7 percent have experienced difficulty buying food for financial reasons, a survey by a Tokyo-based nonprofit organization showed Monday. (Japan Times)

A government survey has found that more than 410,000 cases of bullying were reported at schools in Japan during the 2017 academic year that ended in March. The figure was the highest ever. (NHK)

Sources say Japanese automaker Subaru is expected to issue a massive recall domestically and in the US for vehicles with defective engine parts. (NHK)

Japan will face a shortage of 6.44 million workers in 2030, making wage hikes, increased child care and other labor-related reforms vital to ensuring a stable workforce, according to a joint survey by Persol Research and Consulting and Chuo University released on Tuesday. (Nikkei)

Ten Japanese traditional rituals featuring people in costumes will be put on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. (NHK)

A 15-year-old boy who was arrested last Friday on suspicion of killing his 87-year-old grandfather and attempting to kill his 82-year-old grandmother at their home in Wako, Saitama Prefecture, has told police he also planned to kill a classmate from his school. (Japan Today)

Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. reopened its flagship Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi department store Wednesday, after a renovation that includes a new first floor designed by architect Kengo Kuma. (Japan Times)

Women who applied unsuccessfully to Tokyo Medical University intend to demand compensation from the school for manipulating entrance exam results in favor of male applicants and hiding the discriminatory practice, their lawyers said Wednesday. (Japan Times)

Journalist Jumpei Yasuda has described his detention by militants in Syria as like being in hell. He was released after 3 years of captivity. (NHK)

Bits of plastic have been detected in the feces of people in Europe, Russia and Japan, according to research claiming to show for the first time the widespread presence of plastics in the human food chain. (Japan Times)

Japan is to stop providing China with government aid next year and start jointly helping developing countries. (NHK)

The Japanese government says it's highly likely that freelance journalist Jumpei Yasuda has been released by militants in Syria. (NHK)

Unfair admissions are suspected at several universities in Japan, the education ministry said in an interim report on its emergency investigation on Tuesday. (the-japan-news.com)

The award-winning Japanese director Naomi Kawase will produce the official film of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. (NHK)

Two major construction companies were Monday ordered to pay fines totalling 380 million yen for colluding to win contracts on the Japan's maglev project. (Japan Today)

Canada’s legalization of the recreational use of marijuana, which went into effect last week, has prompted the Japanese government to issue warnings that Japan’s law on cannabis use may apply to its nationals even when they are abroad. (Japan Times)

On Monday morning, the Nozomi 114 bullet train was making its regularly scheduled run from Hiroshima to Tokyo. Its route along the Sanyo/Tokkaido Shinkansen line provides views of some of Japan’s largest cities and, if the weather is clear, even Mt. Fuji, but one passenger spotted something much more startling. (soranews24.com)

About 2,000 people have taken part in a parade in the ancient Japanese capital of Kyoto in one of the city's major festivals. (NHK)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have revealed that the woman whose corpse was found in a residence of an apartment building in the Roppongi entertainment district of Minato Ward died as a result of a skull fracture, reports the Yomiuri Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

The government is considering giving effective 2 percent rebates for cashless purchases of all goods and services at small shops after next year’s planned consumption tax hike, it was learned Saturday. (Japan Times)

A video tape showing a horse getting whipped at a traditional festival held last month in the city of Kumamoto has caused a public outcry, with many people calling it a form of animal abuse. (Japan Times)