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Tokyo doctor recommends avoiding group drinking

Jul 16, 2020 (NHK) - The head of the Tokyo Medical Association has called on people not to get together for drinks this month, to prevent further spreading of the coronavirus in the capital.

Association chairman Ozaki Haruo made the request in a phone interview with NHK, after the Tokyo Metropolitan Government raised its alert level for the virus to the highest of its four-tier scale.

He said the virus is definitely spreading in not only nightlife districts but also other communities. He added that without effective measures, it could spread further.

Ozaki said infections are spreading in places where people drink alcohol. He urged people to refrain from getting together for drinks or meals, at least this month.

Ozaki said it has become clear that people can be infected when talking to each other in crowded, confined places. He said there is no choice but to ask people to avoid such places.

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Japan’s World Cup campaign ended in the cruelest possible fashion on June 29, as Gabriel Martinelli scored in the fifth minute of stoppage time to give Brazil a 2-1 victory over the Samurai Blue in their knockout match in Houston. Japan had led in the first half and were still level at 1-1 in the final moments, but Martinelli’s late strike sent Brazil into the Round of 16 and eliminated Japan from the tournament.

Strong earthquakes have continued to shake parts of Japan in recent weeks, with 11 temblors measuring lower 5 or above on the Japanese seismic intensity scale recorded across the country since April 2026.

A Kintetsu Railway train derailed inside Kyoto Station on the morning of June 29, forcing partial suspensions on the Kintetsu Kyoto Line for the rest of the day and causing long delays that hit commuters, students and tourists.

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Japan advanced to the knockout stage of the World Cup after a 1-1 draw with Sweden on June 25, finishing second in Group F and setting up a Round of 32 clash with Brazil in Houston.

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