Tag Archives: Tokyo

A lawmaker from Japan’s governing party has been arrested on suspicion of receiving 3.7m yen ($34,000) in bribes from a gambling operator. As a member of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s cabinet until October, Tsukasa Akimoto oversaw the government’s plan to introduce casinos. The 48-year-old denies wrongdoing and says he never …

The number of babies born in Japan fell an estimated 5.9% this year to fewer than 900,000 for the first time since the government started compiling data in 1899, the welfare ministry said on Tuesday. The dwindling number of births will put more strain welfare finances to support snowballing costs …

The death toll from torrential rains that caused flooding and mudslides in Japan climbed to 10 on Saturday, with three others missing, public broadcaster NHK reported, just two weeks after the region was hit by a powerful typhoon. Landslides ripped through waterlogged areas in Chiba and Fukushima prefectures, in eastern …

Japan has deployed tens of thousands of troops and rescue workers after one of the strongest storms in years hit, killing at least 23 people. Typhoon Hagibis made landfall south of Tokyo on Saturday, moving north and bringing severe flooding. Seventeen people are missing from the storm, public broadcaster NHK …

A powerful typhoon that battered Tokyo overnight with record winds has killed two people, police say, as canceled trains caused commuter chaos and more than 100 flights were scrapped, leaving thousands stranded at the airport. Typhoon Faxai, packing winds of up to 207 kilometers (129 miles) per hour, made landfall …

Air and ground transport in Tokyo has come to a standstill as Japan braces for Typhoon Faxai, with heavy rain expected to drench the capital in the coming hours. Japan Airlines canceled 20 flights to and from Tokyo’s two airports on Sunday and warned of more cancellations and delays. Inbound …

The Japanese military has sought a hike in its annual budget for the eighth consecutive year in a bid to fund the purchase of US-built stealth jet fighters, interceptor missiles and other military hardware to face perceived threats from China and North Korea. Tokyo’s defense ministry budget proposal — unveiled …

Torrential rain-triggered floods and landslides in Japan on Wednesday, killing at least two people and prompting authorities to order more than 900,000 people to leave their homes while another million were advised to move to safety. More than twice the usual rainfall for the whole of August has fallen over …

An Air China Airbus A330 burst into flames right as passengers and crew were boardings, forcing an emergency evacuation of the immediate area at Beijing Airport. There have been no reports of injuries and emergency services are on the scene battling the blaze which erupted in the cargo hold of …

Fifty-seven people have died and more than 18,000 have sought hospital treatment since July 29, when Japan was blanketed by an extreme and unrelenting heatwave. The government announced the startling figures on Tuesday, revealing that the number of people hospitalized has tripled from the previous week. Those aged 65 and …

Two people, including an 11-year-old girl, were killed and 17 other children hurt in a stabbing spree in Japan on Tuesday — a rare act of public violence in a country considered one of the safest in the world. The attack took place near a park in the city of …

Japan has asked the Pentagon for permission to use its own military airstrip, currently shared with US forces, during the 2020 Olympic Games. An Air Force spokesman said the US is “excited” to consider the proposal. Tokyo is seeking to increase its passenger capacity during the competition in July and …