News On Japan

A city in Miyagi Prefecture says it will preserve an elementary school devastated by the 2011 tsunami as a memorial. (NHK)

A light aircraft crashed at a regional airport in Osaka Prefecture on Saturday, killing all four people aboard, local firefighters said. (Kyodo)

Saitama Prefectural Police have arrested a fireman from a station in Tokyo for allegedly taking illicit photographs of a woman inside a shopping mall in Saitama City, reports Nippon News Network (Mar. 26). (Tokyo Reporter)

Last year Kyu-shirataki Station made headlines around the world for staying open just to send one girl to school, but now that she's graduating, it's time to pack it in. (rocketnews24.com)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has released a new promotion video in English, highlighting the law enforcement work and efforts toward tackling terrorism and crime. (Japan Today)

The someiyoshino cherry trees are blooming in Osaka, which means the hanami season is upon us. Cherry blossom viewing is also becoming popular with foreign tourists, who are visiting Japan in record numbers. (the-japan-news.com)

All-girl idol group AKB48 plans to add branches in two more Southeast Asian countries - Thailand and the Philippines, its management agency said. (Japan Times)

This spring, major alcoholic beverage companies are introducing new chuhai products, which are blends of shochu spirit with soda and fruit juice. (the-japan-news.com)

An investigation by the Japan Surgical Society has discovered a high death rate within Gunma University Hospital's No. 1 surgical department, in addition to the high rate in the No. 2 department linked to a number of fatalities after liver surgery. (the-japan-news.com)

A NAO humanoid robot serves a customer at the foreign exchange counter of The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ's Narita Airport branch in Narita, Chiba Prefecture. (the-japan-news.com)

FamilyMart will work with the Japan Post group to provide shipping between the company's domestic convenience stores and such foreign Asian destinations as Taiwan, targeting demand by the recent flood of tourists from abroad. (Nikkei)

Police in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, said Sunday that tires on 33 cars were punctured sometime early Saturday morning. (Japan Today)

It was not pretty, but Hakuho defeated fellow Mongolian yokozuna Harumafuji to capture a record-extending 36th career championship title with a 14-1 record on Sunday, the final day of the Spring Grand Tournament. (Japan Today)

The new Democratic Party held its inaugural convention in Tokyo on Sunday. (NHK)

A 15-year-old girl who went missing from her home in Asaka, Saitama Prefecture, two years ago, was taken into custody in Tokyo on Sunday, police said. (Japan Times)

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, said Sunday that communication with the Hitomi X-ray astronomy satellite, which was launched last month, has failed. (Jiji Press)

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has sought to have women hold 30 percent of supervisory positions in all fields by the time Tokyo hosts the Olympics in 2020. But as of now, his own government is at least 15 years behind schedule. (Japan Times)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police are investigating an incident in which a woman plunged to her death in a fall from the eighth floor of a building while holding her three-year-old son, who survived, reports TBS News (Mar. 28). (Tokyo Reporter)

Japanese police on Monday detained a 23-year-old man wanted for allegedly kidnapping a junior high school girl who was found safe in Tokyo on Sunday two years after she went missing. (Jiji Press)

Skymark Airlines Inc. exited bankruptcy administration and forecast its first operating profit in three years after reducing its fleet, cutting routes and securing new funding. (Japan Times)

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