Japan Mulls Use of Domestic AI in SDF Command System
Monday, August 10,2026,12:51
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government has begun considering incorporating domestically developed artificial intelligence into the Self-Defense Forces' command and control system, informed sources have said. The government hopes the move will speed up and improve the accuracy of decision-making by SDF commanders while maintaining AI sovereignty, at a time when countries around... .. read more..
Rakuten Group Logs 1st Jan.-June Operating Profit in 7 Yrs
Monday, August 10,2026,12:00
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Major Japanese e-commerce and mobile phone operator Rakuten Group Inc. on Monday posted its first January-June consolidated operating profit in seven years. Its operating profit came to 50.4 billion yen in the first-half period, against a loss of 6.6 billion yen a year earlier, driven by strengths in its online shopping and financial operations as well as a small... .. read more..
Over 6,000 People Evacuated 2 Weeks after Kumamoto Quake
Monday, August 10,2026,11:19
Kumamoto, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Over 6,000 people are still living at evacuation centers following a massive earthquake that struck the southwestern Japan prefecture of Kumamoto almost two weeks ago. As of 2 p.m. Monday, a total of 39 deaths had been confirmed from the 7.1-magnitude July 28 temblor, which registered up to 7, the highest level on Japan's seismic intensity scale, according t... .. read more..
Japan to Apply Reconstruction Aid Law to All of Kumamoto
Monday, August 10,2026,11:01
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Monday that her government is preparing to apply the law on postdisaster livelihood reconstruction aid to all areas of the southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto, which was hit by a powerful earthquake late last month. Takaichi mentioned this at a meeting of the government's emergency disaster response headquarters at the... .. read more..
Price Parity Growing in Food Delivery in Japan
Monday, August 10,2026,10:33
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Food delivery service providers in Japan are increasingly allowing customers to order items at prices equivalent to those in physical stores, aiming to increase the number of users by dispelling the belief that such services are costly. In March, Uber Eats Japan Inc., which has more than 120,000 member restaurants, introduced the price parity scheme. General Mana... .. read more..
Videos Played at Tokyo Court over Alleged Improper Interrogations
Monday, August 10,2026,10:00
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Video clips of interrogations were played at Tokyo District Court on Monday in a damages lawsuit against the government for alleged improper interrogations filed by a company president indicted for fraud. Litigant Naoyuki Ikuta, 52, the head of a Tokyo-based solar power company, is claiming 11 million yen in damages. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison for th... .. read more..
Nagano Firms Team Up to Expand Local Specialty Sales Abroad
Monday, August 10,2026,09:43
Nagano, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Newspaper publisher Shinano Mainichi Shimbun and trading firm Hachijuni Link Nagano Co., both in the central Japan prefecture of Nagano, announced Monday a business alliance to expand overseas sales channels for local specialties and increase visitors from abroad. They aim to help boost the local economy by combining the newspaper publisher's strong regional in... .. read more..
Disabled Kids Offered Places to Feel at Ease in Quake-Hit Kumamoto
Monday, August 10,2026,08:37
Uki, Kumamoto Pref., Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Efforts are underway in Kumamoto Prefecture to provide children with developmental and intellectual disabilities with places to stay during the day and relieve stress, after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the southwestern Japan prefecture late last month. As many such children are sensitive to changes in their environment and may have difficulty... .. read more..
Japan Officials Battling Misinformation on Social Media
Monday, August 10,2026,08:30
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Foreign Ministry officials have begun to use social media under their own names to combat misinformation, after the Japan International Cooperation Agency's "hometown" project to promote exchanges between Japanese and African cities came under undue attack. JICA had to scrap the project last year as local governments were flooded with protests after mis... .. read more..
Typhoon Dolphin Barrels Into China, Prompting Mass Evacuations
Monday, August 10,2026,08:23
The storm, which made landfall on Sunday evening, is the strongest to hit China this year and also caused flooding in parts of the Philippines. .. read more..
Kumamoto Quake Victims Hit by Crimes
Monday, August 10,2026,07:37
Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Pref., Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Police are increasing vigilance in Kumamoto Prefecture, following reports of scam attempts targeting local residents affected by a major earthquake that jolted the southwestern Japan prefecture last month. A special unit comprising over 300 police officers has been dispatched to patrol disaster-stricken areas after suspicious individuals wer... .. read more..
Hidankyo Calls for Nuclear-Free World on 70th Anniv.
Monday, August 10,2026,07:05
Nagasaki, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Officials of Nihon Hidankyo, or the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, renewed their call for a world without nuclear weapons, on the 70th anniversary of its establishment Monday. At a press conference held near the hypocenter of the atomic bomb dropped by the United States on the southwestern Japan city of Nagasaki on Aug. 9, 1945,... .. read more..
How Japan Reduced Deaths From a Major Quake
Monday, August 10,2026,06:31
After deadly tremors a decade ago, Kumamoto built earthquake-resistant buildings and even trained locals in search and rescue. .. read more..
Mizuho Bank Raises Long-Term Prime Rate to 3.25 Pct
Monday, August 10,2026,05:03
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Mizuho Bank said Monday it will raise its long-term prime lending rate by 0.1 percentage point to 3.25 pct, the highest level in about 30 years, effective Wednesday. The increase in the long-term prime, a benchmark for interest rates on loans of one year or longer to large corporate customers, reflects a rise in long-term interest rates in Japan. END [Copyright T... .. read more..
BOJ Members Saw Need for Faster Rate Hikes in July: Summary
Monday, August 10,2026,04:47
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Bank of Japan policymakers in July expressed their views that interest rate hikes should be accelerated, given upside risks to inflation, a summary of opinions at the latest monetary policy meeting showed Monday. "It cannot be said that 'the risk of waiting is marginal,' and it is therefore necessary for the bank to accelerate the pace of adjustment to the degre... .. read more..
Japan's P-1 Patrol Aircraft Leaves for Antipiracy Mission
Monday, August 10,2026,04:39
Ayase, Kanagawa Pref., Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's P-1 patrol aircraft has left the Atsugi air base in Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo, for Djibouti to take part in an antipiracy mission. This is the first time for the P-1, Japan's first domestically built patrol aircraft, to take on an actual overseas mission. It will replace the P-3C patrol aircraf... .. read more..
12-Yr-Old Kumamoto Violinist Performs at Carnegie Hall in N.Y.
Monday, August 10,2026,03:58
New York, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Twelve-year-old violinist Sora Iwai from earthquake-hit Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, performed at Carnegie Hall in New York after winning the top prize in the under-18 division of an international music competition. Iwai, an elementary school sixth grader living in the city of Kumamoto, the capital of the namesake prefecture, played Franz Waxman's ... .. read more..
Abe Wins 5th Term as Nagano Governor
Monday, August 10,2026,01:25
Nagano, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--Shuichi Abe won a fifth term as governor of the central Japan prefecture of Nagano in an election Sunday, defeating his sole contender. Abe, 65, won support mainly from prefectural assembly members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. He also received backing from the Nagano regional branch... .. read more..
Nihon Hidankyo Marks 70 Years of Founding
Sunday, August 9,2026,23:00
Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)--The Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, or Nihon Hidankyo, the country's only national organization of hibakusha atomic bomb survivors and the 2024 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, marked on Monday 70 years since its establishment. Survivors of the August 1945 U.S. atomic bombings of the western Japan city of Hiroshima and the southwest... .. read more..
U.S. Forces Airlift Water for Kumamoto Quake Victims
Sunday, August 9,2026,14:00
Tokyo, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--The U.S. Forces Japan on Sunday airlifted a total of about 33,000 bottles of drinking water for victims of a recent powerful earthquake that struck Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan. A KC-130 aircraft of the U.S. military transported the water, weighing about 16 tons, from the U.S. Air Force's Yokota Air Base in Tokyo to the Japanese Ground Self-Defense For... .. read more..
Citizens Remember Nagasaki A-Bomb Victims, Pray for Peace
Sunday, August 9,2026,12:41
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Many people gathered at a park in the southwestern Japan city of Nagasaki on Sunday to mourn the victims of the U.S. atomic bombing of the city exactly 81 years ago, wish for the abolition of nuclear weapons and pray for lasting peace. High school students who serve as peace ambassadors and work on a campaign to collect signatures for nuclear abolition held a ... .. read more..
PM Takaichi Urged to Recognize More Hibakusha
Sunday, August 9,2026,10:08
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was urged on Sunday to officially recognize more hibakusha survivors of the Aug. 9, 1945, U.S. atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city of Nagasaki. Some people who were exposed to radiation from the bomb have not been official recognized as hibakusha because they were outside locations designated as atomic-bombed ar... .. read more..
PM Takaichi Mum on Cabinet, LDP Exec Reshuffles
Sunday, August 9,2026,08:55
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Sunday stopped short of commenting on possible reshuffles of her cabinet or the lineup of executives at her ruling Liberal Democratic Party. "My cabinet is now making maximum efforts in response to a powerful earthquake that hit Kumamoto Prefecture, so I have nothing to say at the moment," she told a press conference i... .. read more..
Orix Pitcher Yoshihisa Hirano to Retire at End of Season
Sunday, August 9,2026,04:51
Tokyo, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Orix Buffaloes pitcher Yoshihisa Hirano, who has earned a total of 258 saves in Japanese and U.S. career, will retire at the end of this season, the Japanese professional baseball team said Sunday. The 42-year-old right-hander has played mainly as a relief pitcher. This season, he also works as a pitching coach at the team in the Pacific League of the Nippon Prof... .. read more..
Memorial Mass Held at Nagasaki's Urakami Cathedral 81 Years On
Sunday, August 9,2026,03:55
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--About 250 people gathered and offered prayers at a memorial mass held at Urakami Cathedral in the city of Nagasaki on Sunday, which marked the 81st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city. At the cathedral, many Christians were killed by the bomb dropped on the city on Aug. 9, 1945, in the closing days of World War II. Fusayo Y... .. read more..
Students in Nagasaki Call for Nuclear Abolition
Sunday, August 9,2026,03:51
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--High school students in the city of Nagasaki who serve as peace ambassadors and work on a campaign to collect signatures for nuclear abolition held a rally on Sunday, the 81st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city. About 100 people, including students and others, joined hands to form a human chain around a ground zero monument a... .. read more..
Nagasaki Mayor Calls Nukes "Absolute Evil" in Peace Declaration
Sunday, August 9,2026,03:47
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki in this year's peace declaration on Sunday reiterated the atomic-bombed city's call for the abolition of nuclear weapons, describing them as an absolute evil. The theory of nuclear deterrence, advocated mainly by nuclear weapons states, "is extremely dangerous and fragile," Suzuki said, reading the declaration at a memorial ceremony... .. read more..
Reactor at Kansai Electric's Oi Plant Stops after Alarm
Sunday, August 9,2026,02:13
Osaka, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--The No. 3 reactor at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, central Japan, has stopped automatically after an alarm went off, the company said in the small hours of Sunday. While the cause of the incident is under investigation, no leakage of radioactive substances has occurred, according to the firm, which serves the Kansai weste... .. read more..
Japan to Draw Up Guidelines on Reuse Business
Sunday, August 9,2026,02:00
Tokyo, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Environment Ministry plans to draw up guidelines in fiscal 2027 to help foster reliable reuse companies so that consumers can buy and sell used items with a sense of safety. As disputes between customers and some malicious firms have been reported, the ministry plans to encourage reuse companies to comply with laws and protect consumers through the guidel... .. read more..
Nagasaki Hibakusha Urges Pursuit of Peace, Not War Preparations
Sunday, August 9,2026,01:00
Nagasaki, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--A hibakusha survivor of the atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city of Nagasaki has said that world leaders should work to avoid wars instead of war preparations as she is concerned that global reliance on nuclear deterrence is gaining momentum. Tadako Kawazoe, 82, chair of the A-Bombs Survivors Liaison Council of the Nagasaki Peace Action Center, or Hib... .. read more..
LDP Secretary-General Key in Cabinet, Party Reshuffle by Takaichi
Sunday, August 9,2026,00:00
Tokyo, Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has started considering reshuffling her cabinet and the executive lineup at the Liberal Democratic Party possibly in September, with the treatment of Shunichi Suzuki, current secretary-general of the ruling party, believed to be a focal issue, informed sources have said. Through the shake-ups, Takaichi apparently aims to rei... .. read more..
Play Space for Children Set Up at Kumamoto Quake Shelter
Saturday, August 8,2026,23:00
Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Pref., Aug. 9 (Jiji Press)--A space for children to play was set up at an evacuation shelter in Kumamoto Prefecture after a powerful earthquake that struck the southwestern prefecture on July 28 forced nurseries and after-school care services to suspend operations. In the city of Yatsushiro, which suffered significant damage from the 7.1-magnitude quake, the second-floo... .. read more..
Volunteer Activities Fully Start in Quake-Hit Kumamoto
Saturday, August 8,2026,12:43
Hikawa, Kumamoto Pref., Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--Volunteers have fully started their activities in the southwestern Japan prefecture of Kumamoto, which was hit hard by a 7.1-magnitude earthquake late last month. While the prefectural government initially called on volunteers to refrain from visiting affected areas as necessary preparations had not yet been made, all 11 municipalities seeking vo... .. read more..
Prince Hisahito Helps Make Breakfast at Nippon Scout Jamboree
Saturday, August 8,2026,11:40
Jinsekikogen, Hiroshima Pref., Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--Prince Hisahito, the son of Japan's Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, took part in preparing breakfast Saturday morning during the Nippon Scout Jamboree event in the town of Jinsekikogen in Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan. The prince stayed the night at a tent he set up with other participants of the jamboree, the biggest ... .. read more..
LDP, JIP Facing Challenges 10 Months On
Saturday, August 8,2026,10:32
Tokyo, Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its ally, the Japan Innovation Party, face a challenge of resolving a sense of distrust on both sides nearly 10 months after they formed a governing coalition. The JIP has made tough policy demands to the LDP, led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, on the back of their coalition agreement, reached last October, and frust... .. read more..
Generative AI Aiding Quake Relief in Kumamoto
Saturday, August 8,2026,09:50
Kumamoto, Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--Generative artificial intelligence is increasingly utilized to assist relief efforts in the wake of a powerful earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, late last month. Meanwhile, AI is believed to have been used to create fake videos that were spread on social media, highlighting both the advantages and drawbacks of the technology. Misato Kae... .. read more..
Video of Takaichi's Visit to Quake-Hit Kumamoto under Fire
Saturday, August 8,2026,09:10
Tokyo, Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--A roughly two-minute video of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's visit to earthquake-stricken Kumamoto Prefecture on Monday has sparked controversy, with some saying that it is like a promotional video for the country's leader. The video was created by the prime minister's office and posted on its official account on X, formerly Twitter, on the night of the... .. read more..
3 Major Japan Brewers Log Higher Revenue in Jan.-June
Saturday, August 8,2026,08:18
Tokyo, Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--Three major brewers in Japan posted year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue in January-June, on the back of strong sales of beer and other products, according to their earnings reports released Friday. Suntory Holdings Ltd. saw its revenue increase 7.1 pct to 1,733.1 billion yen thanks to robust domestic sales of its flagship brands and the popularity of new c... .. read more..
Many Indonesians Named after Japanese Anime Characters
Saturday, August 8,2026,06:47
Jakarta, Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--A number of Indonesians have names inspired by Japanese manga and anime, with 16 people, for example, confirmed to be named "Doraemon," the name of an earless robotic cat and a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title, it has been learned. An Indonesian official in charge of resident registry posted on social media Wednesday that Japan... .. read more..
Osaka Adopts Plan to Create 4 Wards under Metropolis Project
Saturday, August 8,2026,06:36
Osaka, Aug. 8 (Jiji Press)--The prefectural and municipal governments of Osaka, western Japan, have adopted a plan to realign the prefectural capital's current 24 wards into four special wards under the so-called Osaka metropolis administrative reform project. The decision was made at Friday's meeting of the statutory committee on the realignment project, held at the Osaka municipal governm... .. read more..