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Japan prosecutors charge 3 ex-SDF officers with indecent assault

Mar 18 (NHK) - Japanese prosecutors have charged three former members of the Ground Self-Defense Force with indecent assault of a female colleague, reversing a previous decision not to indict them.

Prosecutors in the northeastern prefecture of Fukushima on Friday charged the three without arrest.

They are accused of pushing Gonoi Rina down on a bed and touching her in August 2021 at Camp Koriyama in Fukushima.

Gonoi reported the case to a GSDF police unit, which referred the three to prosecutors. But prosecutors decided not to indict them in May 2022.

Gonoi quit the GSDF and said she was sexually abused. She also asked an inquest panel to deliberate the matter. ...continue reading

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China’s Foreign Ministry announced that it will extend visa-free entry for Japan, France, and 43 other countries until the end of December 2026, as the government seeks to attract more overseas investment and tourists amid a prolonged economic slowdown.

The Tenpyo Procession, in which participants don splendid period costumes and visit Todaiji Temple, was held in Nara on November 3rd. The event commemorates Emperor Shomu, who commissioned the construction of the Great Buddha, and Empress Komyo, known for her devotion to Buddhism.

Japan’s record-breaking bear crisis has entered a new and deadly phase, with authorities confirming that a 79-year-old woman missing in Akita Prefecture was found dead in the mountains, believed to be the 13th fatality from bear attacks this year.

An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been confirmed at a poultry farm in Eniwa City, Hokkaido, prompting authorities to begin culling operations on Sunday afternoon.

Japan’s worsening bear problem has prompted calls for national intervention, but legal and operational barriers have complicated the government’s response. In 2025, bear attacks have reached record levels, leaving 12 people dead—double the previous high of six fatalities in 2023.

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A police officer responding to a traffic accident in Hyogo Prefecture died after falling from a bridge on November 3rd in Nishinomiya City, with authorities investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.

A woman armed with a knife was subdued by police after causing a disturbance inside a movie theater in Tokyo’s Kabukicho district on November 2nd.

Police in Yokohama are investigating a possible case of corpse abandonment after a headless and partially dismembered body was found floating near Yamashita Park.

A suspicious package was discovered at Keihan Railway’s Chushojima Station in Kyoto on November 1st, prompting police to investigate the possibility of an explosive device.

A truck that had fallen into a river in the town of Okoppe on the Sea of Okhotsk side of Hokkaido was found on the morning of November 2nd, with the body of a man discovered inside.

Halloween Eve in Shibuya still drew a festive atmosphere, with people gathering in costume and enjoying the night. Tokyo police deployed several hundred officers, including the well-known “DJ police,” to manage the crowds and prevent congestion at the famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing.

A man accused of killing and injuring four family members with a crossbow in Takarazuka City, Hyogo Prefecture, was sentenced to life in prison on October 31st, after the Kobe District Court rejected the prosecution’s demand for the death penalty.

Bear attacks are reaching unprecedented levels across Japan, with a record 12 fatalities so far this year as sightings continue daily from mountain towns to city centers, disrupting schools and local institutions.