Emperor Akihito on Wednesday visited a shrine dedicated to ancient Korean settlers in Hidaka, Saitama Prefecture. (Japan Today)

Popular Japanese singer Namie Amuro has announced that she will retire next September. (NHK)

More than 40 countries have signed a global treaty at UN Headquarters to legally ban nuclear weapons. (NHK)

Japan celebrated two years to the start of Rugby World Cup 2019 on Wednesday with the Webb Ellis Cup on display in Tokyo's Shibuya district ahead of a 46-day tour that will see it visit all 12 host cities from Sapporo in the north to Kumamoto in the south. (Japan Today)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is in New York to attend the UN General Assembly and to hold talks with other world leaders. (NHK)

The surf breaks of Okuragahama Beach in Miyazaki, Kyushu are set to welcome the world's top junior surfers Saturday at the 2017 VISSLA ISA World Junior Surfing Championships. (Kyodo)

Delta Air Lines has announced it will end flights between Japan and Guam because of low demand just days after another airline delayed Japan-Guam flights because of North Korea's threat to attack the U.S. island territory. (Japan Today)

It was at the end of 2015 when an all-girl junior high school affiliated with Japan Women's University received an inquiry from a mother of an elementary school student, asking if her daughter would be eligible to apply for enrollment. (Japan Times)

A work by 15th-century ink wash painter Sesshu that had been missing for 84 years has been found. (NHK)

The estranged wife of a former violin maker broke into his house and destroyed 54 violins and 70 bows after they fought over payments for child support, prosecutors said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

The Defense Ministry deployed Patriot Advanced Capability-3, or PAC-3, missile interceptors in the city of Hakodate, Hokkaido, on Tuesday after North Korea recently fired two missiles over the southern part of the northernmost prefecture. (the-japan-news.com)

Japan has no shortage of festivals for every season, from the weird and wacky, to the absolutely magical. One such festival that would fall into the latter category is the Tengu no Hi-watari (天狗の火渡り), which takes place annually in Japan’s northern-most prefecture of Hokkaido. (rocketnews24.com)

Jurassic Park may be the first thing that comes to mind when you see Aogashima Island from the air - but yes, THIS IS TOKYO! (ONLY in JAPAN)

Toshiba Corp has decided to sell its chip unit to a Japan-U.S.-South Korean consortium for around 2.4 trillion yen ($21 billion) following months of talks involving other bidders, sources close to the matter said Wednesday. (Japan Today)

A spokesperson for Toys"R"Us Japan says the company is operating as usual. (NHK)

Salmon have a lousy problem, and the race to solve it is spanning the globe. (Japan Today)

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force says 4 of its F2 fighters conducted a joint drill with US military aircraft over Japan on Monday. (NHK)

The U.S. government is sounding out Japan about a visit by President Donald Trump on Nov 5-7, including a plan to play golf with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on arrival day ahead of formal talks the next day, a diplomatic source said Monday. (Japan Today)

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is on his way to New York to attend the UN General Assembly. (NHK)

At age 117 years, Nabi Tajima of Japan has taken over as the world's oldest verified living person. (loopjamaica.com)

The missiles may not be physically crashing into Japan, but their effect is hitting television stations square in the wallet. (rocketnews24.com)

Severe tropical storm Talim has made landfall on Japan's northern main island of Hokkaido, after passing by the western coast of the country. It is packing strong winds and torrential rains. (NHK)

Police in Kaizu, Gifu Prefecture, said Saturday they have arrested a 35-year-old man on suspicion of assaulting his six-year-old stepson by hitting him with a baseball bat. (Japan Today)

Prosecutors in Ogori, Fukuoka Prefecture, plan to charge a policeman -- already indicted for murdering his wife in June -- with the murder of their two children. (Japan Today)

Rumblings are building within Japan's government and ruling camp that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will call a snap election in the near future, The Nikkei has learned. (Nikkei)