One person dead and several missing after deluge in Noto, still recovering from 1 January earthquake
Heavy rain pounded Japan’s north-central Noto region, triggering landslides and floods and leaving one person dead and several missing, officials have said.
The deluges caused swollen rivers to overflow, flooding homes and leaving some people stranded in a region still recovering from the deadly 1 January earthquake.
Continue reading...It is unclear if the suspect targeted the boy because he was Japanese, but there is concern that the incident could trigger a further deterioration in ties
Japan’s foreign minister, Yoko Kamikawa, has described as “despicable” the alleged killing in China of a 10-year-old Japanese boy and demanded that Chinese authorities do everything possible to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals living in the country.
The boy, who has not been named by Japanese media, died on Thursday, a day after he was allegedly stabbed about 200 metres from his school in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Michelin, Dunlop, Goodyear and Bridgestone products have found way to Russia via intermediaries
More than $30m (£23m) worth of aircraft tyres made by western manufacturers including the French firm Michelin and Britain’s Dunlop were imported into Russia last year via intermediaries despite attempts to ban the trade, according to a Ukrainian government agency.
Russian aviation is critically dependent on foreign-made tyres and, according to the available customs records, the vast majority imported into the country in 2023 were produced by companies headquartered in France, Britain, the US and Japan.
Continue reading...Pen-chan defies expectations to be reunited with keeper safe and sound after swimming 30 miles in open sea
A fugitive penguin in Japan has been found safe and sound two weeks after escaping into the sea and paddling for miles in what her keeper called a miracle.
Pen-chan, a female Cape penguin born and raised in captivity, who had never swum in the open sea before or fended for herself, absconded from an event in the central Aichi region on 25 August.
Continue reading...Living microbes that cause disease in humans and host antibiotic-resistance genes carried 1,200 miles
Microbes that cause disease in humans can travel thousands of miles on high-level winds, scientists have revealed for the first time.
The winds studied carried a surprising diversity of bacteria and fungi, including known pathogens and, some with genes for resistance to multiple antibiotics. Some of the microbes were shown to be alive – in other words, they had survived the long journey and were able to replicate.
Continue reading...Eels use tail-first technique to back up digestive tract of fish towards oesophagus before coming out of gills
It sounds like the plot of a horror movie – a predator swallows its prey only for the creature to burst out of its captor’s body. But it seems Japanese eels do just that.
Scientists in Japan have discovered that when swallowed by a dark sleeper fish, the eels can escape.
Continue reading...Japanese group says Couche-Tard plan undervalues firm, but leaves door open to higher offer
The parent company of the global convenience store chain 7-Eleven has rejected a near $39bn (£29.6bn) takeover offer from a Canadian rival, arguing it “grossly undervalues” the company.
Last month, Tokyo-based Seven & i revealed that it had received a bid from Alimentation Couche-Tard setting the scene for what could be Japan’s biggest ever foreign takeover.
Continue reading...Parents and campaigners have called on education and health authorities to end the practice of requiring children to strip off for school health checks
“My chest was completely exposed and I felt embarrassed,” writes a Japanese girl after undergoing an annual health checkup at her middle school. Another says: “Before the exam our teacher told us we would have to lift up our tops and bra … I didn’t want to do it but I couldn’t say no.”
The testimony from two 13-year-olds, seen by the Guardian, is typical of the discomfort – and in some cases trauma – felt by children attending schools in Japan that can require boys and girls as young as five – and as old as 18 – to strip to the waist during health examinations.
Continue reading...Severe gusts and heavy rain leave dozens injured and more than 250,000 homes without power
Typhoon Shanshan has killed at least three people and injured about 40 as it barrels through Japan, with more than 250,000 homes left without power.
At the time of writing, 24-hour rainfall totals have reached 300-400mm across swaths of Miyazaki, in the Kyushu region. Up to 630mm of rain has been recorded at one site near Shiiba after about 500mm fell since midnight on Thursday.
Continue reading...Meteorological agency says over a metre of rain could fall in 48 hours as tens of thousands are advised to evacuate from storm’s path in southern island of Kyushu
Japan’s strongest typhoon of the year has made landfall in the country’s south-west, bringing torrential rain and winds of up to 252 km/h (157 mph), strong enough to destroy homes.
The meteorological agency said Typhoon Shanshan, referred to in Japan as Typhoon No 10, made landfall on the island of Kyushu at around 8am. The power company said 254,610 houses were already without electricity.
Continue reading...Two-minute incursion by military surveillance aircraft comes amid regional tensions in Asia-Pacific
Japan has condemned an unprecedented violation of its airspace by a Chinese military aircraft as “utterly unacceptable” and a threat to its security.
The incursion comes after repeated maritime provocations by Chinese vessels near disputed islands in the East China Sea in an escalation of regional tensions.
Continue reading...Path of Hurricane Gilma spared damage as Hurricane Hone passes close to Hawaii and Typhoon Shanshan approaches Japan
The Pacific Ocean has become a theatre of dynamic meteorological activity this week, showcasing two hurricanes in the north-east, and a typhoon in the north-west. Hurricane Gilma underwent rapid intensification into a powerful category 4 storm on Sunday as it tracked west through the Pacific. Fortunately, Gilma’s path was spared significant damage, but instead generated turbulent sea conditions over the weekend; 3.5-metre-high swells and sustained winds reaching 130mph made it a feature to be avoided by marine vessels. Gilma will eventually approach the Hawaiian archipelago, with models suggesting it will pass to the north of the islands by Friday. By then, however, Gilma is expected to have dissipated into a remnant area of low pressure with little destruction in its path.
In contrast, Hurricane Hone made its presence felt on the Hawaiian islands this weekend, passing just 50 nautical miles south of Hawai’i – the Big Island – with sustained winds towards the centre nearing 80mph on Sunday. Despite being classified as a category 1 hurricane, Hone has made a significant impact through elevated surf and sea swells, causing strong breaking waves of up to 4.3 metres, as well as strong winds gusting around 60mph. However, the biggest threat is that of flash flooding and landslides on steep slopes, especially on the eastern windward side of the island.
Continue reading...Unscripted remarks about the Japanese-administered islands were made during during a Chinese-language programme on the public broadcaster NHK
Japan’s public broadcaster, NHK, has apologised after a member of staff referred to the disputed Senkaku Islands as “Chinese territory” during an internationally broadcast radio programme this week.
The presenter, a Chinese national in his 40s, made the unscripted remarks for about 20 seconds during a Chinese-language broadcast on Monday on the NHK World-Japan and Radio 2 channels, according to the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.
Continue reading...Proposal to Tokyo-based Seven & i by ACT could become biggest foreign takeover of a Japanese firm
The owner of the global convenience store chain 7-Eleven has received an offer from a Canadian rival to buy the company, in what could be Japan’s biggest ever foreign takeover.
The Tokyo-based Seven & i revealed on Monday that it had received a bid from the Canadian convenience store multinational Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT) to buy its stake in the company.
Continue reading...Two women and two MPs under the age of 50 are on potential list of candidates for next Liberal Democratic Party leaders
After a week in which Japan’s citizens braced themselves for a possible megaquake, the biggest seismic shift came from its political epicentre, as the prime minister, Fumio Kishida, announced his decision to step down next month.
His three years in office will end in late September when his ruling Liberal Democratic party [LDP] selects a new president, who is assured of being approved as Japan’s next prime minister in the LDP-controlled parliament.
Continue reading...Paul Watson fighting efforts byJapan to have him stand trial there for 2010 confrontation with whalers
A Greenland court has ordered the anti-whaling activist Paul Watson to remain in custody until 5 September pending a decision on his possible extradition to Japan.
Watson, an American-Canadian who has been detained since his arrest in Nuuk in July, had appealed against the court’s decision, the statement on Thursday added.
Continue reading...Kishida’s three-year term has been marked by scandal, rising living costs and record defence spending
Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, has said he will not run for the presidency of his ruling Liberal Democratic party (LDP) next month – a decision that will result in the appointment of a new leader of the world’s fourth-biggest economy.
Kishida, who has been battling low approval ratings and a damaging fundraising scandal, said he would step down as LDP leader in September, telling reporters on Wednesday that the party needed an “open contest to promote debate”.
Continue reading...The Japan Meteorological Agency has issued its first-ever warning of the risk of a huge earthquake along the Pacific coast
Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, has cancelled a visit to central Asia this weekend after experts warned that the risk of a “megaquake” occurring off the country’s Pacific coast had increased following Thursday’s magnitude 7.1 earthquake in the south-west.
Kishida, who is battling low approval ratings and faces challenges to his leadership in a ruling party presidential election next month, announced his decision at a press conference on Friday.
Continue reading...City’s mayor says Israel not invited because of risk of protests at event honouring victims of 1945 nuclear blast
The US ambassador to Japan will skip this year’s memorial service for the nuclear attack on Nagasaki because Israel has not been invited, the embassy has said.
Rahm Emanuel would not attend the event on Friday because it had been “politicised” by Nagasaki’s decision not to invite Israel, the embassy said. Instead, he would honour the victims of the Nagasaki bombing at a ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo and a lower-ranked US official would attend the Nagasaki event, it said.
Continue reading...No immediate signs of damage reported after powerful quake hits off eastern coast of Kyushu
A powerful earthquake struck off Japan’s southern coast on Thursday, triggering a tsunami advisory, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said, but there were no immediate signs of major damage.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake registered a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 and was centred off the eastern coast of Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu at a depth of about 30km (18.6 miles).