The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Quake death toll in central Japan tops 80, with 72-hr window closing
TOKYO - Search and rescue operations continued in central Japan after it was struck by a powerful earthquake on New Year's Day, with the death toll rising above 80 and some 180 unaccounted for in Ishikawa Prefecture as of Thursday.
In Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called for an "all-out effort" to save as many lives as possible during the first 72 hours following the magnitude-7.6 quake disaster, after which the victim survival rate is said to drop sharply.
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Japan PM vows to establish rules to boost transparency of LDP factions
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged Thursday to establish rules to enhance the transparency of factions within his ruling Liberal Democratic Party following a political fundraising scandal involving its largest policy group.
Kishida said at a press conference that he is eager to strengthen the governance of the LDP by setting up a "political reform" panel led by him next week in an attempt to restore the public's trust in politics.
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Tokyo stocks start 2024 mixed as yen falls on quake, tech weighs
TOKYO - Tokyo stocks were mixed Thursday, the first trading day of 2024, as exporters received a boost from the yen's weakness following a major earthquake in central Japan while technology shares were sold, tracking their U.S. counterparts.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 175.88 points, or 0.53 percent, from Friday at 33,288.29. The broader Topix index finished up 12.40 points, or 0.52 percent, at 2,378.79.
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Canceled domestic flights due to Tokyo airport collision strand many
TOKYO - Over a hundred domestic flights connecting local airports and Tokyo's Haneda airport were canceled on Thursday, the first workday of the New Year, following a collision between a Japan Coast Guard plane and a Japan Airlines jetliner, leaving passengers stranded at some Japanese airports.
A JAL official said the carrier had canceled more than 60 domestic flights to and from Haneda, affecting about 13,000 people, two days after the accident occurred on a runway at Japan's busiest airport.
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2023 marks Japan's hottest year on record, 1.29 C higher than average
TOKYO - Japan's average temperature in 2023 was the highest on record since comparable data became available in 1898, as global warming and high atmospheric pressure systems raised the mercury for most of the year, the weather agency said Thursday.
The average temperature in 2023 was 1.29 C warmer than the mean temperature for 30 years through 2020, surpassing the previous record set in 2020, which saw the mercury rise 0.65 C above average, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
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U.S. to provide Japan quake support including through military: envoy
TOKYO - Japan has accepted a U.S. offer to assist in response to the powerful quake that shook the central region on New Year's Day, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said Thursday, noting that logistical support from the military as well as food and other supplies are being readied.
"When Japan is in a time of need, we're here to support them, both civilian with resources, military with logistics," the ambassador said. Initially the aid will be worth around $100,000 but that would be a "down-payment," he said.
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Taiwan to donate 60 million yen to help Japan relief efforts after quake
TAIPEI - Taiwan pledged Thursday to donate 60 million yen ($418,800) to Japan to help its disaster relief after a powerful earthquake jolted Japan's central Noto Peninsula and surrounding areas on New Year's Day.
At a press conference in Taipei, Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said the government donation would be for the Japanese authorities' rescue operations and post-disaster reconstruction work, in hopes of returning life to normal as soon as possible.
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JAL pilots did not see coast guard plane when touching down
TOKYO - The pilots of the Japan Airlines jetliner that collided with a Japan Coast Guard aircraft at Tokyo's Haneda airport told an internal probe that they could not visually confirm the presence of the JCG plane when touching down, according to the company.
The flight control data unveiled Wednesday showed no sign of controllers directing the JAL plane to abort its landing, suggesting both the airline's pilots and the flight controllers were unaware of the JCG aircraft entering the runway that the jetliner was approaching.
Video: Japan bullet trains, airports packed with people returning from holidays
