The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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LDP amends party rules to toughen penalties for fund violations
TOKYO - Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, headed by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, revised internal rules on Sunday to toughen penalties for lawmakers involved in political funds scandals, as public trust in politics has been declining significantly.
The LDP has come under intense scrutiny amid allegations that some of its factions, including the largest one formerly led by the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, neglected to report portions of their income from fundraising parties and created slush funds for years.
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Filipino woman admits to killing sister, Japanese niece: police
MANILA - A Filipino woman has admitted to killing her sister and Japanese niece, who were initially reported missing but whose bodies were found last week in Quezon province, south of the capital Manila, Philippine authorities said Sunday.
A police official privy to the case told Kyodo News that they obtained a video of Ligaya Pajulas confessing to the crime. She is now in a hospital in Quezon after an attempted suicide upon learning the bodies were discovered.
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Japan completes 4th round of Fukushima treated water discharge
TOKYO - The release of the fourth batch of treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the sea concluded Sunday, with the next round possibly starting next month, the plant's operator said.
Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. released about 7,800 tons of processed water as planned in the latest round, which began in late February. Abnormal tritium levels have not been detected in nearby waters since the first discharge in late August.
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Baseball: Dodgers trounce South Korea's Kiwoom, Ohtani strikes out twice
SEOUL - The Los Angeles Dodgers pounded out 17 hits to beat South Korea's Kiwoom Heroes 14-3 in an exhibition game Sunday, ahead of the season-opening two-game series against the San Diego Padres.
Jason Heyward drove in four runs, Freddie Freeman hit a solo home run among his three hits and Shohei Ohtani struck out swinging in both of his at-bats at Seoul's Gocheok Sky Dome.
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More foreign students set to be eligible for Japan government scholarships
TOKYO - The Japanese government plans to expand the scope of foreign university students eligible for its scholarships from April to provide more academic opportunities to children of the country's growing number of foreign workers, according to officials.
The education ministry is set to include in the target students who are residing in the country with their parents under a "dependent" visa on condition they have completed education through elementary, junior high and high school level in Japan and intend to work and stay in the country after graduating from university, they said.
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Japan business lobby chief hopes for gov't efforts to end deflation
TOKYO - The head of Japan's biggest business lobby on Sunday expressed hope that the government of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will take necessary measures to fully combat the country's decades-long deflation.
In a speech at the annual convention of Kishida's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Masakazu Tokura, chairman of the Japan Business Federation known as Keidanren, said the nation's economy has been on an upward trend on the back of robust wage growth.
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M5.4 quake hits Japan's Fukushima Pref., no tsunami warning issued
TOKYO - An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.4 struck off Fukushima Prefecture early Sunday, but no tsunami warning was issued, the weather agency said.
The 6:17 a.m. quake registered 4 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in towns including Futaba and Okuma, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. The temblor's focus was off Fukushima at a depth of about 50 kilometers.
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Football: Furuhashi nets 10th league goal, gets assist in Celtic win
GLASGOW, Scotland - Forward Kyogo Furuhashi scored his 10th league goal of the season before providing an assist as Celtic eased past St. Johnstone 3-1 in the Scottish Premiership on Saturday.
The 29-year-old opened the scoring in the 40th minute at Celtic Park after peeling away from his marker and staying onside to head in Nicolas Kuhn's cross.
Video: American beaver-bitten wood items on sale as unique decorations
