The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Iran launches attack on Israel in retaliation for embassy strike
JERUSALEM/TEHRAN - Iran launched dozens of missiles and drones toward Israel from Saturday evening to the following morning, as Tehran moved to retaliate against a recent deadly attack on the Iranian embassy complex in Syria.
It was the first time that Iran has directly launched an attack on Israeli territory. An Israeli military spokesman said over 200 drones and missiles were launched from Iran, with most being intercepted.
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Japan PM strongly condemns Iran attack on Israel, conflict escalation
TOKYO - Japan "strongly condemns" Iran's retaliatory attack on Israel and considers it an escalation that will further destabilize the Middle East, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Sunday.
Japan is "deeply concerned," Kishida said after Iran launched an unprecedented attack on Israel that began on Saturday evening and continued through to the following morning in response to a recent deadly strike on an Iranian consulate in Syria's capital city of Damascus.
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Japan's SDF begins Tomahawk missile training for FY 2025 deployment
TOKYO - Japan's Self-Defense Forces have started training to operate land-based Tomahawk cruise missiles, as the country plans to deploy them from fiscal 2025 in the hope of enhancing deterrence against China and North Korea.
With the help of the U.S. military, the first drills were joined by Maritime Self-Defense Force and Air Self-Defense Force officers and were conducted March 25-29 in the U.S. Navy's base in Yokosuka, southwest of Tokyo, with further exercises to follow, according to U.S. Forces Japan.
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Japanese youth spend around 5 hours a day online: government survey
TOKYO - Japanese youth spend on average nearly five hours a day online on weekdays, while around 65 percent of 10-year-olds already have their own smartphones, according to a recent government survey.
The fiscal 2023 survey by the Children and Families Agency also found that the primary purpose of internet use among those of young age was to watch videos, while music, games and use of search engines also ranked high.
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Baseball: Murakami ends season-opening power outage in Swallows' win
YOKOHAMA - A day after being moved up to the No. 2 slot in the Yakult Swallows' order, slugging third baseman Munetaka Murakami hit his first home run of the season in Sunday's 9-0 Central League win over the DeNA BayStars.
Murakami, who in 2022 won a batting Triple Crown, drove one out to dead center at Yokohama Stadium in the first inning. He also walked in the fifth and singled in Yakult's seven-run seventh.
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Horse racing: Fledgling Justin Milano wins 3rd in row at Satsuki-sho
FUNABASHI, Japan - Second-favorite Justin Milano kept his career record perfect after three races Sunday by winning the 84th running of the 2,000-meter Satuki-sho classic for 3-year-olds.
Third pick Jantar Mantar took the lead after the final corner at Chiba Prefecture's Nakayama Racecourse but was outstripped at the finish. Justin Milano darted down the final stretch alongside Cosmo Kuranda before crossing the wire a neck ahead in a record race time of 1 minute, 57.1 seconds with Jantar Mantar third.
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Rugby: Steelers storm home late to snatch 40-40 draw with Brave Lupus
TOKYO - Playoff hopefuls Kobe Steelers mounted a late comeback to draw 40-40 with Brave Lupus Tokyo in Japan Rugby League One on Sunday.
Center Junta Hamano dotted down after the siren to knot the scores, but Bryn Gatland missed the conversion that would have clinched victory for the visitors at Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground.
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Football: Nakamura scores off Ito's assist in Reims defeat
STRASBOURG, France - Keito Nakamura scored off fellow Japan winger Junya Ito's cross during Reims' 3-1 defeat at Strasbourg in the French Ligue 1 on Saturday.
Nakamura opened the scoring with his third goal of the season in the eighth minute at Stade de la Meinau after Ito sped down the right and floated the ball in for his compatriot to bury a well-taken header.
Video: Cherry blossom viewing along Tokyo's Sumida River
