Japan and beyond: Week in Photos

Here is a selection of Kyodo News photos taken this week in Japan and beyond.

Dec. 9

Ilia Malinin of the United States dazzles with a series of quad jumps to win the figure skating Grand Prix Final men's title for the first time, with a personal-best total of 314.66 points -- the world's third highest of all time. (Kyodo)

Hana Yoshida of Japan picks up the bronze medal in the women's competition at the figure skating Grand Prix Final at Beijing's National Indoor Stadium. (Kyodo)

Dec. 10

Hong Kong holds its first district council election under a new electoral system based on Beijing's principle of only allowing "patriots" to administer the city. (Kyodo)

Odakyu Electric Railway Co.'s 50000 series VSE train, known affectionately as the "White Romancecar," completes its last run with railway fans packing a platform at Seijogakuenmae Station in Tokyo to take photographs. Odakyu is considering whether to exhibit the retired VSE cars at the Romancecar Museum in Ebina, Kanagawa Prefecture. (Kyodo)

Japan takes part in the Prince Takamado Trophy fencing tournament at the Aichi Sky Expo convention center in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture. (Kyodo)

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force's Blue Impulse aerobatic team flies during an aviation show at the ASDF base in Naha in Okinawa Prefecture. (Kyodo)

Dec. 11

Japan's largest opposition party submits a no-confidence motion against Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, the top government spokesman, over accusations he failed to report millions of yen received as part of fundraising efforts for his ruling party faction. (Kyodo)

A verification test is held at a heliport in Osaka to put a manned flying car into practical use, using 2X of German firm Volocopter GmbH. (Kyodo)

Dec. 12

The kanji for "zei," meaning tax, is picked as the Chinese character most representative of the social mood in Japan in 2023. The kanji was written with a giant calligraphy brush on a roughly 1.5-meter by 1.3-meter Japanese "washi" paper by chief Buddhist priest Seihan Mori of the renowned Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto. (Kyodo)

Rina Gonoi, who came forward to expose an indecent assault she suffered while serving as a Ground Self-Defense Force member, speaks to reporters after the Fukushima District Court sentenced three dishonorably discharged GSDF sergeants to two years in prison, suspended for four years, for the attack. (Kyodo)

Dec. 13

Japanese wheelchair tennis player Tokito Oda, 17, who this year became the youngest winner at both the French Open and Wimbledon, poses in front of a photo of himself at the opening of an exhibition of news photos from 2023 at a department store in Tokyo. (Kyodo)

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledges to replace several ministers embroiled in a political fundraising scandal, shortly after an extraordinary parliamentary session wrapped up.　(Kyodo)

Dec. 14

People protest runway construction in Nago, Okinawa, which involves reclamation work off the city's Henoko coastal area. It would replace the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, which sits in a densely populated area on the same island. (Kyodo)

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida replaces all four Cabinet ministers belonging to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's largest faction as he makes a desperate bid to fend off criticism of his government's handling of a political fundraising scandal. Among the four are trade minister Yasutoshi Nishimura and Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno. (Kyodo)

Dec. 15

Photo taken at Tokyo's Haneda airport shows Japan Airlines Co.'s new flagship Airbus A350-1000 aircraft for international flight services. (Kyodo)

A giant "ema" votive plaque bearing an illustration of a dragon is put up at Kumano Nachi Taisha shrine in Nachikatsuura in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, ahead of the start of the Year of the Dragon in 2024. (Kyodo)