Here is our selection of news photos taken in Japan and beyond by Kyodo News photographers this week.

"Mizu uchiwa," or literally "water fans" in Japanese, are hung on a rack to dry at a craftsman's shop in Gifu, central Japan, on June 13, 2020. A variation of traditional Japanese fans made with washi paper and bamboo frames, these come with a translucent water-like appearance made by varnishing their surface and with drawings representing summer-related motifs like goldfish and morning glories. (Kyodo)
 
 
Members of the audience keep their distance from each other during a just-restarted concert by Kyoto Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra in the western Japan city on June 13, 2020, after a three-month hiatus amid the coronavirus pandemic. (Kyodo)
 
 
Pilot in command Seiji Oyama waves from a Boeing 737-500 airplane operated by All Nippon Airways Co. following its last flight at Tokyo's Haneda airport on June 14, 2020. With the flight, all 25 ANA airplanes of the model nicknamed Super Dolphin have been retired following its launch for domestic flights in 1995. It was also Oyama's final flight before his own retirement. (Kyodo) 
 
 
Hydrangeas are in full bloom at the Kumano Nachi Taisha shrine in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, on June 14, 2020, when an annual festival of the flower was held there. (Kyodo)
 
 
People wearing face masks amid coronavirus concerns walk near JR Tokyo Station under the strong sun on June 15, 2020, with the mercury topping 30 C in the Japanese capital. (Kyodo)
 
 
Hospital clown Kosuke Omune entertains a child at Nagoya Medical Center in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, on June 16, 2020. It was the first time in four months the hospital has allowed such visits, amid anti-coronavirus measures. (Kyodo) 

 

Japan's new supercomputer Fugaku, under development, is shown to the media at the Riken Center for Computational Science in Kobe on June 16, 2020. The Fugaku has a processing speed of up to 100 times faster than its predecessor. (Kyodo) 
 
 
People read a Rodong Sinmun newspaper article in Pyongyang on June 17, 2020, that reported the previous day's demolition of a joint liaison office by North Korea. (Kyodo)
 
 
Photo taken on June 17, 2020, shows an unidentified white balloon-like object spotted in skies above Sendai, northeastern Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency's Sendai office confirmed that it was not an item flown by the agency. (Kyodo) 

 

A board for displaying posters of candidates running in the July 5 Tokyo gubernatorial election is pictured on June 17, 2020, a day before campaigning officially officially kicked off. Incumbent Gov. Yuriko Koike faces a record 21 challengers.

 

Giant panda Eimei gets a message board reading "Thank you, Eimei" at the Adventure World zoo in Shirahama in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, on June 17, 2020, ahead of Father's Day weekend. Since he came to the zoo in 1994, Eimei has sired 15 cubs. (Kyodo)
 
 
A woman receives a copy of a newspaper extra edition in Hiroshima on June 18, 2020, that reported former Japanese Justice Minister Katsuyuki Kawai and his lawmaker wife Anri were arrested earlier in the day on suspicion of giving out cash to local politicians and supporters during the wife's 2019 upper house election campaign in the western Japan city. (Kyodo)
 
 
About 5,000 panels showing photos of DeNA BayStars fans are displayed on the seats of its home ground Yokohama Stadium in eastern Japan on June 18, 2020, a day before the coronavirus-delayed 2020 baseball season begins in Japan. (Kyodo) 
 
 
The Orix Buffaloes' mascot dolls are placed in seats for the team's season opener against the Rakuten Eagles at Kyocera Dome in Osaka on June 19, 2020. The Japanese baseball season began without fans in the stands amid continued worries over the novel coronavirus. (Kyodo) 
 
 
Passengers get on a shinkansen bullet train at JR Tokyo Station on June 19, 2020. Japan lifted its final advisories on inter-prefecture travel the same day as the government believes the spread of the novel coronavirus has been kept in check. (Kyodo) 

 

 

 
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Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - June 6~12

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - May 30~June 5

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - May 23~29

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - May 16~22