Japan expands state of emergency to 8 more prefs.
Japan's prime minister has officially expanded the coronavirus state of emergency to cover 8 more prefectures where infections are spreading rapidly.
As Tokyo hosts the Paralympics, nearly half of Japan's prefectures will be under the measure.
Suga Yoshihide said on Wednesday, "The number of new infections across the country remains at a record high. The figure is especially high in the Aichi area. The highly contagious Delta variant is posing serious threats. I call on the public to cooperate more to overcome the crisis."
13 prefectures -- Okinawa, Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa, Osaka, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Shizuoka, Kyoto, Hyogo and Fukuoka -- are currently under the state of emergency.
From Friday until September 12, the measure is to cover eight more: Hokkaido, Miyagi, Gifu, Aichi, Mie, Shiga, Okayama and Hiroshima.
So-called quasi-emergency measures will be in effect in 12 other prefectures: Ishikawa, Fukushima, Kumamoto, Toyama, Yamanashi, Kagawa, Ehime, Kagoshima, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki and Miyazaki.
Officials plan to urge restaurants and bars to stop serving alcohol and impose stricter procedures such as limiting the number of people allowed at shopping malls and events. But Japan's measures do not resemble the strict lockdowns imposed in other countries.
Earlier on Wednesday, officials confirmed that the Delta variant continues to sweep across the nation.
Hospitals are under enormous strain, with more seriously ill patients than ever. Officials say many people don't know where they got infected.
Officials plan to introduce anti-infection measures at schools, but not to force them to close. They also plan to give teachers and other staff priority access to vaccines and provide schools with virus test kits.
AP - Nov 26
Top diplomats from Japan and China met for bilateral talks Saturday as they try to resolve disputes including China's ban on Japanese seafood that has badly hit Japanese exporters.
Reuters - Nov 25
Japan passed on Friday an extra budget worth around 13.1 trillion yen ($88 billion) aimed at helping households cope with the rising cost of living and corporations boost domestic investment, even amid concerns over the country's worsening finances.
News On Japan - Nov 23
Japan hosted the "Self-Defense Forces Joint Exercise," from October 10, attended by the Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) and the U.S. military. JNN reports on Japan's only elite unit, the 1st Airborne Brigade, during their training.
The Diplomat - Nov 23
Japan’s biggest defense company, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), has outlined plans for future growth through development investment in new major national defense projects, including standoff missiles and a joint next-generation fighter program with Britain and Italy.
NHK - Nov 22
North Korea's space agency says the country has launched a rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite and put it successfully into orbit.
Kyodo - Nov 22
A Japanese health ministry panel on Tuesday decided to ban HHCH, a synthetic cannabinoid, from Dec. 2 after many people who consumed gummies containing the compound had to go to the hospital.
dailymail.co.uk - Nov 22
The home of the US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel became the target of anti-Semitic vandals over the weekend who spray painted the word 'Nazis' on a fence outside his house in Michigan.
CNA - Nov 21
Japan has condemned the seizure of a Japanese-operated cargo ship by Yemen's Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, south of Israel.
AOL - Nov 19
Daisaku Ikeda, a former leader of Japan's influential Buddhist group Soka Gakkai, has died at the age of 95.
News On Japan - Nov 18
Edogawa Ward in Tokyo, which has the highest incidence of bicycle thefts in the city, announced the installation of 80 surveillance cameras in bicycle parking areas at private condominiums and other locations.
CCTV Video News Agency - Nov 18
Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in San Francisco of the United States on Nov. 16, reaffirming the positioning of comprehensively advancing the strategic and mutually beneficial relations between China and Japan.
eurasiareview.com - Nov 18
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s inaugural two-day visit to Malaysia heralded a new strategic bulwark of defence and security criticality.
News On Japan - Nov 16
A car crashed into the barricades near the Israeli Embassy in Tokyo on Thursday morning, injuring a police officer.
NHK - Nov 15
Wednesday marks 46 years since a 13-year-old junior high school girl was kidnapped by North Korean agents.
NHK - Nov 14
Japan's government has approved the resignation of State Minister of Finance Kanda Kenji, who repeatedly failed to pay taxes for his company.
NHK - Nov 14
An NHK opinion poll shows the approval rate for the Cabinet of Japan's Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has fallen below 30 percent for the first time since he took office two years ago.