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Francis Tang
Although Truvada has been used globally as an HIV prevention drug for years, the movement toward expanding its use as preexposure prophylaxis in Japan has been slow.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 29, 2024
Health ministry approves Truvada as HIV prevention drug
Truvada is the first drug approved in Japan for both the treatment and prevention of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
The Todoroki Falls in Amakusa, Kumamoto Prefecture, on Saturday. Seven high school students who had played in a river nearby experienced vomiting and diarrhea.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 28, 2024
Over 100 people fall sick in Kumamoto with river eyed as potential source
The city has set up signs near the river due to the suspected norovirus cases, calling on visitors to refrain from playing in the water.
Remnants of the first Moji station complex are located near the current Mojiko Station in the city of Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 27, 2024
Kitakyushu clashes with academics over Meiji Era remains
The city wants to proceed with plans to build a five-story complex to house several aging public facilities on the site of the original Moji railway station.
An electronic signboard at Tokyo Station displays information about a megaquake alert last Saturday. The government lifted the alert on Thursday but urged continued vigilance.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 15, 2024
Japan lifts megaquake alert after no major seismic activity detected
Authorities note that although the alert is lifted, a large-scale earthquake remains a possibility.
A train in Nimi, Okayama Prefecture, on West Japan Railway's Geibi Line in September 2023. The line is among those that have seen rail tracks warped by this summer's extreme heat.
JAPAN / Boiling Point
Aug 15, 2024
Japan’s searing summer heat is warping railway tracks more often
West Japan Railway, Kyushu Railway and Shikoku Railway have all been affected.
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Aug 9, 2024
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
How serious is the situation, and what should people do in the days to come? Here’s what you need to know.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday following a major earthquake in the Kyushu region.
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2024
Kyushu escapes major damage from magnitude 7.1 earthquake
The quake led to at least 13 injuries, with three residential buildings suffering damage.
Naoshi Hirata, chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday evening.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2024
Japan issues first-ever alert over risk of Nankai Trough megaquake
It is believed that the chance of a major earthquake occurring in the Nankai Trough is relatively higher than usual, the weather agency said.
A tsunami advisory, shown in yellow, was issued following an earthquake in Kyushu on Tuesday afternoon.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2024
Tsunami advisory lifted after strong quake jolts Kyushu
The 7.1 magnitude quake, measuring a weak 7 on Japan's intensity scale, triggered small tsunami waves in some areas.
A bulletin board shows the day's highest temperature in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, on July 29.
JAPAN / Boiling Point
Aug 8, 2024
From Naha to Nemuro, how Japan’s cities are responding to more heat
Municipalities are reaching for everything from automated misting systems to anime to help cool residents and educate them about the risks of heat.
The Tsuruga Coast Guard Office in Fukui Prefecture issued warnings about possible attacks by wild dolphins as early as 2022.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 6, 2024
Fukui coast guard warns swimmers of danger posed by wild dolphins
In one case, a 10-year-old who had gone for a swim at a beach in the city of Tsuruga was bitten by a dolphin, suffering a serious injury to their hand.
Ukrainian Minister of Justice Denys Maliuska (center left) and Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi (center right) sign a memorandum of cooperation on judicial reforms and anti-corruption measures, in Kyiv on Monday.
JAPAN
Aug 5, 2024
Japan and Ukraine agree to cooperate on anti-corruption measures
The countries' two justice ministries will cooperate across fields such as judicial reform and the strengthening of judicial institutions via personnel training.
People cross a street in Tokyo's Harajuku district on Wednesday. In July, the deviation from the average temperature between 1991 and 2020 — a period when warming was already well underway — was 2.16 degrees Celsius.
JAPAN / Boiling Point
Aug 1, 2024
Japan experienced its hottest July on record
The number of “extremely hot days” — those where the highest temperature hits 35 C and above — was the largest figure for a July.
The Ukedo fishing port in the town of Namie in Fukushima Prefecture in March. In 2022, Taiwan lifted most of its import restrictions on food produced in five prefectures including Fukushima.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 24, 2024
Taiwan set to lift remaining import restrictions on Japanese food
The latest measure will cover products such as mushrooms and the meat of wild animals.
As of Sunday, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical reported 279 deaths and 2,274 hospital visits due to health issues related to its beni kōji supplements, among which 461 required hospitalization.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 23, 2024
Kobayashi Pharma's president and chairperson resign over health scandal
For the first time in its history, someone outside of the Osaka-based drugmaker's founding family will become its president.
A passerby holding a parasol wipes her face as she walks on the street amid a heatstroke alert in Tokyo and other prefectures, in Tokyo on July 9.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Boiling Point
Jul 19, 2024
How to prevent and respond to heatstroke in Japan this summer
Staying hydrated and controlling the rise in one's body temperature are the fundamental ways for preventing and alleviating heat-related illnesses.
People lay flowers before the two year anniversary of the shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the city of Nara on July 7.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 16, 2024
Trump shooting reminds Japan of similar attacks on politicians at home
The attack on the former U.S. president evoked memories of similar incidents involving Japan's prime ministers.
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games' opening ceremony, which will be held outside of a stadium for the first time in history, has attracted a lot of interest from Japanese fans.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 10, 2024
Japan fans shun pricey Olympics tickets even as top-tier packages sell out
Travel agencies report a noticeable drop in demand for Paris Olympics tours amid a weakening of the yen and the introduction of a new booking system.
A man takes a break under a cooling mist as the government issued a heatstroke alert in Tokyo and other prefectures in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 9, 2024
Number of heatstroke patients in Japan jumps fourfold amid sweltering temperatures
By prefecture, Tokyo had the most heatstroke-related transports at 907. Aichi came in second with 763 cases.
Pedestrians shelter themselves from the sun using parasols as they cross a street in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo on Thursday. The temperature in Tokyo hit 35 degrees Celsius just after noon on Thursday, the first time so far this year.
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2024
Mercury hits 39.3 degrees Celsius in Shizuoka
Many cities experienced 35 degree weather, resulting in heatstroke alerts being issued for several regions across Japan.

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?