The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Tokyo Olympic ex-exec faces fresh bribery charge
TOKYO - Prosecutors on Tuesday served a fresh arrest warrant on Haruyuki Takahashi, a former Tokyo Olympic organizing committee executive already embroiled in suspected corruption cases, for allegedly accepting bribes totaling 76 million yen ($54,000) from major publisher Kadokawa Corp.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office also arrested former Kadokawa executive Toshiyuki Yoshihara, 64, and another person for allegedly bribing Takahashi, 78, as well as Kazumasa Fukami, 73, who heads a consulting firm, for allegedly receiving bribes from the publisher.
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Japan to cut COVID isolation period to speed up economic recovery
TOKYO - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday that Japan will shorten the period of isolation for COVID-19 patients with symptoms to seven days from the current 10 days and for asymptomatic patients to five days from seven days.
By shortening the recuperating period, the government seeks to allow people to return to work more quickly to mitigate the impact on socioeconomic activities from the coronavirus pandemic.
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Cost of Abe's state funeral to total over 1.6 bil. yen: Japan
TOKYO - The Japanese government said Tuesday it will allocate an additional 1.4 billion yen ($9.97 million) for the state funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to cover security costs and welcome foreign dignitaries, bringing the total price tag to over 1.6 billion yen.
With opposition to the slain former leader's state funeral growing, given his divisive political stances and various scandals, the vastly larger outlays that draw on taxpayers' money may trigger a strong backlash from the public, observers said.
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Liz Truss set to become Britain's new leader as Johnson bids farewell
LONDON - British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will officially be appointed prime minister by Queen Elizabeth later Tuesday after a short ceremony at the monarch's Balmoral estate in Scotland.
Shortly before Truss becomes prime minister at lunchtime, outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson will officially tender his resignation to the monarch. Johnson decided to step down following a wave of resignations triggered by a series of scandals that cast his integrity into question.
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Powerful typhoon Hinnamnor slams southwest Japan, moves north
TOKYO - Powerful typhoon Hinnamnor early Tuesday passed Japan's southwestern main island of Kyushu, bringing torrential rain and strong winds to the area, before moving northward through the Sea of Japan.
Kyushu has so far experienced widespread power outages and disruption in transportation services, with one man in his 70s in Saga Prefecture believed to have died after falling from a roof while attempting to stormproof it, according to authorities.
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Russia scraps visa-free visits to islands disputed with Japan
TOKYO - Russia has scrapped an agreement with Japan to allow Japanese former residents to visit disputed islands off Hokkaido without visas, triggering a protest Tuesday from Tokyo as tensions between the two nations remain high over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian government released a document Monday signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin regarding its unilateral withdrawal from the agreement, a decision that a Russian lawmaker attributed to Japan's participation in Western sanctions against Moscow over its war in Ukraine.
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Ex-baby sitter appeals 20-yr prison term for sexually abusing 20 boys
TOKYO - A 31-year-old former baby sitter convicted of forcible sexual intercourse and other indecent acts on 20 boys aged 5 to 11 years old has appealed his 20-year prison term to a higher court.
The defense of Akinori Hashimoto had maintained that some of his behavior detailed in the indictment was "close physical contact" and did not constitute a crime. They also said he has a "low chance of reoffending," arguing that a 10-year prison term was proportionate.
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Baseball: Ohtani homers twice as Angels rout Tigers
ANAHEIM, California - Shohei Ohtani went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBIs, leading the Los Angeles Angels to a 10-0 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Monday.
Ohtani drove the first pitch he saw in the third inning from left-hander Tyler Alexander (3-9) over the right-center field wall with one runner on, pushing the Halos' lead to 4-0 at Angel Stadium.
