Japan has become an unexpected base of operations for Russian intelligence agents since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, with spies allegedly using the country to procure and smuggle high-tech equipment and other goods to Russia, The New York Times reported on July 12.
Convenience store operators in Japan are strengthening safety measures as bear-related damage grows more serious, with Lawson expanding the use of bear repellent spray and considering drone-based remote monitoring.
A woman arrested on suspicion of sewing shut the lips of a woman she lived with in Koga, Ibaraki Prefecture, has denied the allegation, telling investigators she has no recollection of the incident.
A 37-year-old gang member known in Tokyo's Kabukicho district by the nickname "Crazy" has been arrested on suspicion of robbing and injuring a teenage girl near Shinjuku Station after threatening her with what appeared to be an ice pick.
A wild boar repeatedly charged at a man on the grounds of a food service company in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, on July 13, injuring two people before being captured about an hour and a half later.
Two men died on July 11 in separate water accidents in Aichi and Gifu prefectures, including an Indonesian man who apparently drowned after jumping into a waterfall basin and a fisherman swept away while trying to recover his fishing gear.
Two typhoons are currently near Japan, with Typhoon No. 9, Bavi, over North China and Typhoon No. 11, Haishen, east of the Philippines, but only Bavi is expected to have any indirect impact on the country.
An abandoned concrete arch bridge deep in the forests of Kamishihoro in Hokkaido's Tokachi region is slowly being reclaimed by nature, its exposed reinforcing bars and weeds marking the passage of time.
Osaka’s Minami district, now entering another period of major change with the planned opening of the Naniwasuji Line, the redevelopment of Midosuji and improvements around Nankai Namba Station, has transformed from an area once described as "scary" and "dirty" into one of Japan’s leading tourist destinations.
A 10-ton hoko float was pulled through central Kyoto on July 12 in a trial run ahead of the Yamahoko Junko procession during the Gion Festival's early parade.
The Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly is facing mounting scrutiny over its use of public funds after revelations that assembly members spent about 45 million yen in one year on overseas inspection trips, including a Hawaii visit that cost nearly 12 million yen for four members.
Neyagawa in Osaka Prefecture has approved Japan's first citywide tax on vacant homes, imposing a new municipal levy at a rate of 35% on owners in addition to existing fixed-asset taxes from fiscal 2029.
Japan’s breakfast market is gaining new momentum, with Starbucks launching morning offerings at some locations in May and a growing number of newcomers entering the increasingly lively sector.
Japan’s relationship with intimate goods is far older than the modern online adult shop. Long before discreet packaging, digital payments, and private home delivery, Japanese artists, writers, merchants, and townspeople were already exploring the boundaries between desire, humor, privacy, and everyday life.
Fires involving lithium-ion batteries, including those used in mobile battery packs, are occurring at a record pace in Japan this year, with 179 incidents reported by the end of May, according to the Tokyo Fire Department.
Ask ten people for the best AI platform in 2026 and you get ten chatbot names. That is the wrong question.
Tokyo stocks rebounded on July 14 after an early fall of nearly 1,000 points, as investors bought back semiconductor and artificial intelligence-related shares while a recovery in South Korean equities and easing Japanese bond yields helped restore risk appetite.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group became Japan's most valuable company for the first time on the Tokyo stock market on July 13, overtaking Toyota Motor as expectations grow that higher interest rates will lift bank earnings.
A debate over whether shorts belong in the workplace is spreading in Japan after Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike encouraged metropolitan government employees to wear cooler clothing, including shorts, as part of efforts to cope with intensifying summer heat.
A 65-year-old man who spent 40 years working for a company was shocked to learn that his pension would amount to 168,000 yen a month, raising fresh concern over whether retirees in Japan can live on public pension payments alone.