News On Japan

Aum Shinrikyo planned to release sarin at a police station in Tokyo the same day it gassed the capital's subway system in 1995, Jiji Press has learned. (Japan Times)

Police have arrested a third-year junior high school boy for attempting to kill a goat. The boy told police he was inspired to kill someone after watching videos of Islamic State extremists beheading hostages and that he wanted to practice on the goat first. (Japan Today)

Two more aging nuclear reactors are to be decommissioned in addition to three that utilities said had outlived their service life. (Asahi)

The Nikkei index rose to a fresh 15-year high Wednesday as wage hikes at large firms fueled optimism about the Japanese economy, while investors also waited for a U.S. Federal Reserve policy meeting for clues as to when the Fed will raise interest rates. (Kyodo)

Japan's cyber-security task force has been testing employees of government ministries and agencies on their ability to stop hacker attacks. (NHK)

Land prices in Japan's three largest metropolitan areas gained for a second consecutive year as interest rates at record lows boosted housing demand and property investments. (Bloomberg)

Benesse Holdings Inc. has learned of a new customer data leak at an education service unit, after the company was the target of Japan's largest-ever data theft scandal last year. (Japan Times)

The Hyogo prefectural assembly on Wednesday adopted an ordinance that will make it compulsory for cyclists to buy liability insurance, the first such local regulation in Japan. (Jiji Press)

Japan's industry ministry has urged Toyo Tire and Rubber Company to look into its substandard rubber by the middle of next week. The product is a building material for quake-absorption. (NHK)

Michelle Obama arrived in Tokyo Wednesday on her first visit to Japan as U.S. first lady, kicking off her two-nation tour in Asia aimed at promoting girls' education globally. (Kyodo)

The operator of Universal Studios Japan says it will build a theme park in the country's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa. (NHK)

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Wednesday it has raised its estimate for Japan's real economic growth in 2015 to 1.0 pct from the previous projection of 0.8 pct. (Jiji Press)

Tokyu Plaza Shibuya, a commercial building that opened in June 1965 near Shibuya Station in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, will end its 49-year-long history on Sunday, due to redevelopment of areas around the station. (The Japan News)

The education ministry surveyed third-year high school students by examining four English language skills of listening, writing, speaking and reading, and revealed Tuesday that even in their strongest subject - reading - about 73 percent hovered at the middle school level. (The Japan News)

The Kobe District Court on Wednesday sentenced a 28-year-old man to 17 years in prison for his part in the deaths of two members of an extended family in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, between 2005 and 2008. (Japan Today)

We don't want to stereotype an entire country, but Japan can be sort of insane. They really go for the gusto in just about everything they do, and that extends to their drinking establishments. Certain Tokyo neighborhoods are notorious for hosting some of the most bizarre bars in the world. (geek.com)

Police have arrested a 32-year-old man on suspicion of killing his 39-year-old ex-wife at their house in Tokyo's Adachi Ward. (Japan Today)

Japan needs to reduce the number of clubs competing in its top flight rugby competition and overhaul its entire structure if it is going to make inroads on the world stage, head coach Eddie Jones said on Wednesday. (Japan Today)

Three men died, apparently from hydrogen sulfide poisoning, near the Nyuto hot spring resort in Senboku, Akita Prefecture, on Wednesday night, the Akita prefectural police said. (The Japan News)

A record 1.387 million foreign tourists visited Japan in February, surpassing the previous monthly record of 1.272 million set in October 2014, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization. (Asahi)

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