News On Japan

In the early afternoon of Sept 13, a 70-year-old resident of Kumagaya in Saitama Prefecture returned to his home to find a young foreign man standing in front of the entranceway. He seemed agitated and spoke in broken Japanese. (Japan Today)

The first passenger jet manufactured in Japan reached speeds topping 200 kph for the first time during ground trials on Nov. 6 at Nagoya Airport here. (Asahi)

The number of visitors to the 44th Tokyo Motor Show, which ended Sunday, totaled 812,500, down from 902,800 in the previous show in 2013, the organizer of the event, Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, said. (Japan Times)

Transport minister Keiichi Ishii on Sunday pitched Japan's technology for a magnetically levitated train system to his U.S. counterpart Anthony Foxx as the two took a ride on a maglev train test line in central Japan. (Kyodo)

A flock of cranes appeared near a residential area of eastern Hokkaido on Sunday. (NHK)

The Ainu Association of Hokkaido, a group made up of the indigenous people in the prefecture, plans to express displeasure over a banner ad displayed at New Chitose Airport south of Sapporo by professional baseball team Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, it has been learned. (Japan Times)

Mongolian grand champion Hakuho marked his return to the raised ring in style with a comfortable win over komusubi Tochinoshin on Sunday, the first day of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament. (Japan Today)

Japan booked Asia's berth at the 2016 Rio Olympics rugby sevens competition defeating arch-rivals Hong Kong 24-10 in a gripping final at the Asia Rugby Sevens qualifying tournament on Sunday. (AP)

Official campaigning for the Osaka mayoral election began Sunday with four candidates vying to succeed departing Mayor Toru Hashimoto who has set up a new political party. (Kyodo)

Brazilians of Japanese descent and Japanese citizens who work in Brazil have welcomed Prince and Princess Akishino in the country's second largest city, Rio de Janeiro. (NHK)

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Sunday that he will further study reducing the burden of pregnancy and childbirth. (Japan Times)

A 16-year-old boy died after inhaling butane gas used in a lighter while in a park with friends in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, police said Sunday. (Japan Today)

Contemporary music composer Shoichi Yabuta on Nov. 8 became the first Japanese to win the composition section of the Geneva International Music Competition, known as a gateway to success for up-and-coming musicians. (Asahi)

A male Chinese tourist who dressed as a woman to enter the female section of a public bath in Wakayama Prefecture, was arrested on suspicion of unlawful entry, police said. (Japan Times)

Large swaths of Tokyo, Osaka, Shanghai, New York and other cities will slip under the waves even if an upcoming climate summit limits global warming to 2 degrees Celsius, scientists reported Sunday. (Japan Times)

The number of visitors to Tokyo Skytree since it opened to the public on May 22, 2012, exceeded 20 million Monday. (The Japan News)

The colorful autumn leaves are in their prime at a garden in Nagano Prefecture. (NHK)

On November 5, law enforcement, including Kyoto police, announced the arrest of Mitsuaki Ono, the 55-year-old president of Tokyo-based Aircast, for allegedly helping teenagers distribute pornographic content of themselves in exchange for cash. (Tokyo Reporter)

Chiba Prefectural Police on Monday arrested a 76-year-old man for killing his neighbor following a dispute over drainage in Tateyama City, reports TBS News (Nov. 9). (Tokyo Reporter)

Hyogo Prefectural Police have again arrested a 28-year-old male company employee for hiding inside a storm drain to take illicit photographs of female pedestrians in Kobe, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Tokyo Reporter)

Latest Images