3+ hour, 10+ min ago   (423+ words) Genta Koja, a former deputy mayor of Naha who accepts the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko in Nago, won the Okinawa gubernatorial election on September 13, defeating incumbent Governor Denny Tamaki and bringing an end to…...

7+ hour, 49+ min ago   (652+ words) SHIZUOKA - High school students in Mishima, Shizuoka Prefecture, explored how humans and artificial intelligence might coexist in the future by interacting with an AI-powered humanoid robot during a class on September 11. The students met Miroki, a humanoid robot equipped with…...

4+ day, 6+ hour ago   (1488+ words) OSAKA - Raccoons are increasingly appearing in urban areas of Japan, including residential neighborhoods near Shin-Osaka Station, raising concerns over disease, attacks on people and agricultural damage that reached about 700 million yen nationwide last year. Despite their familiar appearance, raccoons are…...

4+ day, 15+ hour ago   (610+ words) OSAKA - Universal Studios Japan unveiled its 2026 Halloween event to the media on September 9, a day before its public opening on September 10, featuring a record number of zombies and the park's first horror attraction restricted to visitors aged 18 and over. The…...

6+ day, 3+ hour ago   (704+ words) OSAKA - Grape-picking season has reached its peak at tourist farms in Kashiwara, Osaka Prefecture, where hot weather from spring through summer has produced particularly sweet, richly flavored fruit this year, although prolonged rain has reduced visitor numbers and could shorten…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago   (1396+ words) TOKYO - Three men have been arrested on suspicion of attempting to defraud a flood victim in Chiba Prefecture of 3.2 million yen by falsely claiming that his electrical breaker panel and flooring needed urgent repairs, in a type of scam that…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago   (630+ words) TOKYO - Chiba Prefectural Police have arrested a 71-year-old former junior high school principal on suspicion of committing indecent acts against an elementary school girl at a welfare support facility in Yachimata, Chiba Prefecture, in May. The suspect, Mikio Otsuka, works…...

2+ week, 1+ day ago   (657+ words) KAGOSHIMA - A search continued off Kagoshima Prefecture on August 29 for three teenage boys who remained missing after four junior and senior high school students were swept out to sea while playing along a rocky coast in Ichikikushikino. According to the…...

2+ week, 5+ day ago   (570+ words) TOKYO - Nine people were injured, including two seriously, after a pleasure boat carrying 10 people ran aground near the mouth of the Tama River close to Haneda Airport on the evening of August 24. Emergency services received a series of calls shortly…...