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Chelsea defender Alfie Gilchrist celebrates after scoring the club's sixth goal during their English Premier League football match against Everton on April 15.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 25, 2024

Arsenal? Liverpool? Chelsea? Help me pick my 'football' team

This writer’s been in England for six years. It’s time he backed a club.
A Japan Coast Guard vessel sails near one of the disputed East China Sea islands that Japan calls the Senkakus and China calls Diaoyu, in August 2013.
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2024

China confronts Japanese politicians visiting near disputed East China Sea islets

The Japanese group, including former Defense Minister Tomomi Inada, was on an inspection mission organized by the city of Ishigaki, in Okinawa Prefecture.
The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan's Natsumi Sakai (center) celebrates with other CDP officials and supporters on Sunday in Tokyo's Koto Ward after being announced as the winner of the Tokyo No. 15 district by-election.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 29, 2024

Election trouncing a blow to Kishida, but snap election unlikely

The PM might order a Cabinet reshuffle and make leadership changes within the LDP to boost his popularity ahead of the party's presidential election.
This Israeli Army handout released on April 18 shows Israeli soldiers conducting operations in the Gaza Strip against Hamas militants.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 28, 2024

Freeing hostages matters more than destroying Hamas

After a joint plea from the US and 17 other nations focusing on Hamas, Israel should lean into a deal.
Despite being a major player in industries like technology and manufacturing, South Korea's defense exports have historically lagged behind.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 25, 2024

South Korea’s cheap weapons still won’t sell themselves

Despite being a major player in industries like technology and manufacturing, South Korea's defense exports have historically lagged behind.
Studies have observed that patients eventually diagnosed with multiple sclerosis initially complain of common issues like anxiety, fatigue or bladder problems. Researcher may be on the road to developing a simple test that can definitively tell a patient if they have the disease.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 21, 2024

This multiple sclerosis discovery could be a breakthrough

Researchers have found evidence that neurons are being damaged years before the disease makes itself known.
A pack of dietary supplements designated by Kobayashi Pharmaceutical as a functional food.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 30, 2024

Japan panel reviewing 'functional foods' label system

The system has been criticized for leaving it entirely up to functional food makers to guarantee the safety of their products.
Demonstrators rally against a controversial "foreign influence" bill, which Brussels warns would undermine Georgia's aspirations to join the European Union, in Tbilisi early on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 1, 2024

Police fire tear gas and rubber bullets at Georgia pro-EU protesters

Riot police beat and arrested scores of people protesting against a bill that critics say resembles Russian legislation used to silence dissent.
The root cause of yen weakness lies in the U.S., not Japan, with the currency falling to its weakest since around 1990.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 1, 2024

Japan should leave its currency bazooka at home

The root cause of yen weakness lies in the U.S., not Japan. That makes the latter's options very limited.
We don't know how much damage these polymers do to our health. But we can make significant inroads on litter and emissions to tackle this issue head-on.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2024

Plastic pollution is a growing problem. Here are some ideas on how to solve it.

International cooperation and proactive measures are needed to mitigate the harmful effects of plastics.
Manahel al-Otaibi wears western clothes in the Saudi capital Riyadh in September 2019. Human rights groups have denounced an 11-year prison term recently handed down by a counterterrorism court to the Saudi fitness instructor and women's rights activist.
WORLD / Politics
May 2, 2024

Saudi Arabia cracks down on online speech, jailing critics for decades

Fitness influencer Manahel al-Otaibi was recently sentenced to 11 years in prison after criticizing male guardianship laws and women's dress requirements.
Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology, which allowed customers to grab grocery items from a shelf and walk out of the store, is reportedly being phased out of its grocery stores.
COMMENTARY / World
May 2, 2024

Amazon's AI stores seemed too magical. And they were.

There are plenty more examples of companies that have failed to mention humans pulling the levers behind supposedly cutting-edge AI technology.
Forever Young, ridden by jockey Ryusei Sakai, runs during the UAE Derby in Dubai on March 30.
MORE SPORTS
May 3, 2024

Contenders prepare for 150th running of Kentucky Derby

Japanese-bred Forever Young, which starts from the 11th post, is a 10-1 contender.
Diane Severin Nguyen’s film, “In Her Time (Iris’s Version),” 2023-24, about a young actress struggling with her role in a (fictional) movie about the Nanjing Massacre, is on display at the Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. Artificial intelligence and the "rhetoric around gender and authenticity” were themes in this year's show.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 2, 2024

The winner-take-all economy is ruining art, too

The value of art is not just a matter of taste. To appeal to collectors, artists require the approval of the establishment.
Tokyo stands alone in the Group of Seven. Far from shutting down polluting fuel plants, it’s opening them.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 2, 2024

The dog ate Japan’s plan to phase out coal power

Under the country’s current strategic energy plan, coal will still account for about 19% of generation in 2030.
British opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and Labour's Claire Ward embrace after Ward was elected as East Midlands Mayor in Mansfield, England, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
May 5, 2024

Labour mayoral wins cap triumphant election run for U.K.'s Keir Starmer

The results dashed any hopes Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had of reassuring Tories anxious about the possibility of a general election wipe out.
While a new Alzheimer’s test offers hope for early intervention, it also raises complex ethical and practical questions about its implementation and potential impact on individuals' lives.
COMMENTARY / World
May 5, 2024

Do you really want to find out if you'll get Alzheimer's?

Would you want to know there’s something going wrong in your brain — even if there’s no cure?
A man maneuvers media equipment following an Israeli police raid on an Al Jazeera de facto office at the Ambassador Hotel in Jerusalem on Sunday.
WORLD
May 6, 2024

Israel raids Al Jazeera’s offices after banning broadcaster

Al Jazeera’s broadcasts and access to its website are now blocked throughout Israel.
Presidential candidate Jose Raul Mulino (left) poses with ex-President Ricardo Martinelli during the general election, in Panama City in this photo released Sunday. Mulino was named the winner of Sunday's presidential election.
WORLD / Politics
May 6, 2024

Ex-minister Jose Raul Mulino wins Panama presidential race

Jose Raul Mulino, the protege of a graft-convicted former head of state, was declared Panama's president-elect after elections Sunday.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa meets with Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan on April 29.
JAPAN / Politics
May 7, 2024

Kamikawa supporting struggling Kishida government on diplomatic front

Some in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are hoping she will become a candidate for the party presidency and lead it through the next general election.
Taro Aso (center), vice president of the Liberal Democratic Party, hands the party's proposals for securing a sufficient number of imperial family members to Lower House Speaker Fukushiro Nukaga (left) at the parliamentary building on April 26.
JAPAN
May 8, 2024

Interparty talks on shrinking imperial family may start next week

The talks are likely to focus on retaining female imperial family members after marriage and adopting male relatives.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic (center right) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (center left) during a welcoming ceremony at Belgrade Airport on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 8, 2024

China's Xi Jinping visits Serbia on anniversary of 1999 NATO bombing

Three Chinese nationals were killed and 20 wounded in the attack, which prompted outrage in China and an apology from then U.S. President Bill Clinton.
A woman walks past air-conditioning units on a building in Seoul on April 30.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
May 8, 2024

World extends temperature streak to 11 months with hottest April ever

Including April, the world's average temperature was the highest on record for a 12-month period — 1.61 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial period.
If Donald Trump were to win a second term, his aggressive stance toward China and inclination for protectionist measures could complicate the situation for Southeast Asian nations.
COMMENTARY / World
May 8, 2024

What a second Trump term could mean for Southeast Asia

Donald Trump has made bold promises about U.S.-China policy that, if enacted, would transform the world.
AI-powered disinformation campaigns particularly during elections can create varied and nuanced content, making detection more challenging.
COMMENTARY / World
May 7, 2024

If AI wrecks democracy, we may never know

AI-powered disinformation campaigns can create varied and nuanced content, making detection more challenging.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol held a news conference on Thursday, his first in about two years as he tried to set a new course for his conservative government after suffering a stinging defeat in parliamentary elections last month.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 9, 2024

South Korea’s Yoon tries to reset agenda with rare news conference

The leader used the event to lay out his priorities for his remaining three years in office.
The H5N1 bird flu virus, which has been found in cattle, is a pathogen that has loomed large in the minds of infectious disease experts for its potential to cause a deadly human pandemic.
COMMENTARY / World
May 9, 2024

The bird flu outbreak brings more questions than answers

This is a pathogen that has loomed large in the minds of infectious disease experts for its potential to cause a deadly human pandemic.
Japanese people are exposed to less online disinformation compared to other countries, partly due to language barriers and inherent skepticism.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 9, 2024

Japan’s accidental resilience in the disinformation age

The Japanese are exposed to less online disinformation compared to other countries, partly due to language barriers and inherent skepticism.
Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
May 11, 2024

How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan

Five years into the Reiwa Era and the challenges Japan's moms face are unique, though the qualities that help them persevere haven't changed a bit.
As the entire world is fixated on Gaza, the Iranian government has been arresting girls who go out in the street without headscarves and executing people.
COMMENTARY / World
May 10, 2024

Don't let Gaza help Iran cloak its own repression

As the entire world is fixated on Gaza, the Iranian government has been arresting girls who go out in the street without headscarves and executing people.

Longform

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