A 6-year-old girl was fatally stabbed with a knife Sunday when a relative attacked her family at a pub near Inage Station in the city of Chiba. (Japan Times)

Prosecutors are demanding eight years behind bars for the president of failed travel agency Tellmeclub, who is accused of defrauding two banks of about ¥550 million in loans by doctoring earnings data. (Japan Times)

Japan Airlines is launching a low-cost carrier that will offer mid- to long-distance international flights. The company's executives hope to have it off the ground around the summer of 2020, when Tokyo hosts the Olympics and Paralympics. (NHK)

Two probes in a joint Mercury exploration mission between Japan and Europe, named BepiColombo, will be launched from French Guiana in South America aboard an Ariane 5 rocket in October. (the-japan-news.com)

The Tokyo Stock Exchange has approved e-commerce company Mercari's request to make an initial public offering. (NHK)

A volcano in Kyushu has erupted again, shooting gray smoke and ash thousands of meters into the sky. (Japan Today)

Colorful knitted wool has been wrapped around the enormous bronze spider sculpture in the Roppongi Hills complex in Minato Ward, Tokyo, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the opening of the popular complex. (the-japan-news.com)

Yokozuna Hakuho didn’t look rusty, even taking time to coax his opponent to attack on Sunday’s opening day of the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at Tokyo’s Ryogoku Kokugikan. (the-japan-news.com)

Women are banned from entering the ring in professional sumo, but the rule doesn't apply to a town in northern Japan that holds a women-only sumo event. (NHK)

An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 struck the north of Nagano Prefecture on Saturday morning, according to the Meteorological Agency. A tsunami warning was not issued. (Japan Times)

A suspicious man in black clothes was repeatedly seen near the site where a 7-year-old girl was found dead Monday in Niigata, local officials said Saturday. (Japan Times)

Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso has retracted a remark of his about a former top bureaucrat at his ministry who is accused of sexually harassing a female TV reporter. (NHK)

An elementary schoolgirl was attacked by a man as she walked to school in Tokyo’s Koto Ward on Friday morning. (Japan Today)

Japanese all-male pop group Tokio will remain as special ambassadors to promote the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games despite the departure of one member for forcibly kissing a high school girl at his home in February, Tokyo Gov Yuriko Koike said Friday. (Japan Today)

The golf venue for the Tokyo 2020 Games has granted the first full memberships in nearly four decades to women after lifting a ban under pressure from the International Olympic Committee. (Japan Times)

Police in Tokyo have arrested two Tokyo Metro employees for allegedly getting a woman drunk and then assaulting her last summer. (Japan Today)

Casio Computer Co. has decided to end its compact digital camera business after over 20 years of operation, due to a rapid decline in demand. (the-japan-news.com)

Japan's Emperor Akihito has met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, who's visiting the country for the first time since taking office. (NHK)

Japan's Finance Ministry says central government debt hit another record high at the end of the last fiscal year. (NHK)

The Japanese city of Sapporo may aim to become the host city of the Winter Olympics and Paralympics in 2030 rather than the 2026 Games. (NHK)

With service for two train lines and one subway line, Tokyo’s Kinshicho Station has a lot of people buying tickets every day. But for the past few weeks, they’ve been joined by a crow, who, lacking any money of his own, has taken to stealing human commuters’ prepaid cards and attempting to purchase a ticket of his own. (Japan Today)

A 7-year-old girl who was found dead on a railroad track in the city of Niigata on Monday had told classmates that a stranger talked to her on her way to school that morning, investigative sources said Wednesday. (Japan Times)

The leaders of Japan, China, and South Korea held a series of meetings in Tokyo on Wednesday. North Korea's nuclear program has dominated much of the day's discussion. (NHK)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have reaffirmed joint efforts to fully denuclearize North Korea. (NHK)

Tourists are shocked to see usually ravenous deer turn down their favourite treats. (soranews24.com)