Society

Violinist Taro Hakase Reveals Diagnosis of Ramsay Hunt Syndrome

TOKYO, Sep 07 (News On Japan) - Violinist Taro Hakase (53) announced on Friday that he has been diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome, a condition that causes facial paralysis.

Hakase updated his official website on the same day, explaining that he noticed something was wrong with his body one morning in August, just before the national tour with his band. That afternoon, during the recording of a radio program, he realized that the left side of his face was not moving.

"Afterwards, I was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome, the same condition that Justin Bieber revealed he had two years ago. Before I knew it, the left side of my face had completely stopped moving," Hakase shared.

The violinist is scheduled to perform the first concert of the tour on September 7th in Kanagawa. He remarked, "Concerts are my life, and this tour is especially important as it's the first for this band. I couldn't find any reason to cancel. While my onstage talk may not go as smoothly as usual, I plan to make the concert even more enjoyable than ever. Although half of my face is paralyzed, I'm full of energy otherwise."

Online, fans have expressed their concern, with many leaving messages such as "Please take care of yourself."

Source: ANN

Tokyo Quake Scenario Projects Up to 18,000 Deaths

The Japanese government is preparing to release a new damage projection for a major earthquake striking directly beneath the Tokyo metropolitan area by the end of the year, and interviews with officials familiar with the assessment indicate that in the worst-case scenario the death toll could reach 18,000, while economic losses are estimated at 83 trillion yen.

Toyota Launches First New Supercar in 17 Years

Toyota unveiled its new GR GT supercar on December 5th at Woven City, the next-generation technology testbed located in Susono, Shizuoka Prefecture, marking the model’s world debut as the automaker targets a release around 2027, positioning the vehicle as the pinnacle of its GR sports-car lineup and its first true supercar since the Lexus LFA launched in 2010.

Eel Regulation Dropped After Japan Opposition

The proposal to strengthen regulations on international eel trade has been formally shelved, marking a result in line with the position pushed by Japan and several other countries.
EU member states and others had called for tighter controls on all eel transactions under the Washington Convention, citing global resource depletion and the need for stronger international oversight. However, Japan countered that the Japanese eel faces no imminent risk of extinction and opposed the measure.

Tsukiji Outer Market Urges Tourists to Stay Away in December

Tokyo’s Tsukiji Outer Market has taken the unusual step of asking tourists not to visit in December as operators move to prevent crowd-related accidents during the busy year-end shopping season, with local officials also confirming that Shibuya’s New Year’s Eve countdown will be canceled for the sixth consecutive year.

Abe Akie Makes First Court Appearance

Abe Akie appeared at the Nara District Court on December 3rd for the lay judge trial of the shooting that killed former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, marking the first time she has attended proceedings in person. Akie arrived in the courtroom shortly after 1 p.m. wearing a navy jacket and bowed toward the gallery as she entered, while the court continued a scheduled witness examination of Sakurai Yoshihide, a religious scholar and specially appointed professor at Hokkaido University.

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