Jakarta, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)–Morinari Watanabe, president of the International Gymnastics Federation, or FIG, on Saturday expressed understanding for the International Olympic Committee’s statement that showed concern over the Indonesian government’s refusal to issue visas to the Israeli gymnastics team ahead of

Tokyo, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)–Japanese brewers Suntory Holdings Ltd. and Sapporo Breweries Ltd. have announced a partial halt to sales of their beer sets for end-of-year gifts, as they are receiving a flood of orders amid delays in product shipments from cyberattack-hit

(The second paragraph from the last should have read, “…have helped…,” instead of as sent. A substitute story follows.) Japan to Conduct Survey on Online Hate Speech Tokyo, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese Justice Ministry is considering conducting the first nationwide survey

Tokyo, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)–The average price of rice sold at some 1,000 supermarkets across Japan in the week through Sunday dropped 63 yen from the previous week to 4,142 yen per 5 kilograms, the agriculture ministry has said. The average was

Tokyo, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s three megabanks are planning to jointly issue corporate-use stablecoins pegged to legal tender like the yen and the dollar, aiming to promote their use in the country. MUFG Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Mizuho Bank intend

Tokyo, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government decided Friday to award the Order of Culture for fiscal 2025 to eight people, including baseball legend Sadaharu Oh, 85, currently chairman of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks professional baseball team, and Susumu Kitagawa, 74, special

(Adnkronos) – Italy’s overseas development agency (AICS) in Lebanon and Syria’s new head, Liana De Rosa, on Friday met Italian non-governmental organisations operating in Lebanon to mark the start of her posting.  “Today, meeting w/ Italian civil society organizations active in Lebanon,

(Adnkronos) – Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to a 48-hour extension of the two-day ceasefire in effect since Wednesday to facilitate negotiations that will begin tomorrow in Doha, the capital of Qatar. The Taliban negotiating team confirmed this to Tolo News broadcaster,

Tokyo, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–The 11-country Asia Zero Emission Community held a ministerial meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, affirming the importance of financing for decarbonization projects, such as the procurement of liquefied natural gas, which emits relatively low carbon dioxide when

(Adnkronos) – North Korea is increasingly involved in Moscow’s war effort. Cluster munitions – that is, munitions that break apart in flight into multiple explosives or incendiary weapons that fall over a wide area – of North Korean manufacture are being used

(Adnkronos) – Two well-known generals and seven other high-ranking officers are under investigation for corruption. This is happening in China, where Xi Jinping’s purges continue, affecting prominent officials. He Weidong, number two of the powerful Central Military Commission and one of the

(Adnkronos) – Lebanese authorities have ordered the release – upon payment of an 11 million dollar bail – of Hannibal Gaddafi, one of the sons of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who has been detained for 10 years in Lebanon without ever

(Adnkronos) – The ‘no Kings’ protest returns across America, with demonstrations scheduled for tomorrow in over 2500 locations nationwide. The day, which is the second after last June’s, which saw the mobilization of 5 million people, is organized by a coalition of

(Adnkronos) – Michelle Bolsonaro, the wife of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempted coup, has not ruled out her possible candidacy in the 2026 presidential elections, emphasizing, however, that the decision rests with God and

(Adnkronos) – Almost half of Poles would be ready to fight in case of an attack on their country. This is what emerges from a survey conducted by the Ibris institute for the newspaper Rzeczpospolita, according to which 25.6% of respondents would

Berlin, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–Authorities in a Berlin district said Friday that they have removed a statue symbolizing “comfort women,” or those who worked as prostitutes for Japanese troops before and during World War II. The decision to remove the statue, set

(Adnkronos) – Training is a key plank of Italy’s multi-billion euro Mattei plan to stabilise Africa and propel its economic development, deputy foreign minister Edmondo Cirielli said at the Med Dialogues conference in Naples on Friday.  “Training is at the heart of

Tokyo, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–Members of Japanese ruling and opposition parties expressed their sadness over the death of former Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama on Friday. As then president of the Liberal Democratic Party, former House of Representatives Speaker Yohei Kono, 88, made

Tokyo, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–The leaders of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party) held their second round of policy talks on Friday and agreed to accelerate arrangements to form a new coalition government. “We made

(Adnkronos) – Training is a key plank of Italy’s multi-billion euro Mattei plan to stabilise Africa and propel its economic development, deputy foreign minister Edmondo Cirielli said at the Med Dialogues conference in Naples on Friday.  “Training is at the heart of

Tokyo, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–A total of 78 pct of Japan’s rice farmers said they plan to maintain or increase production of staple rice in five years, a Japanese agriculture ministry survey showed Friday. Those who want to maintain the current level

Beijing/Seoul, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–China and South Korea paid tribute to former Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, who died on Friday at the age of 101. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a press conference that Murayama was a politician

(Adnkronos) – Israel’s rightwing foreign minister Gideon Saar on Friday lauded transport minister Matteo Salvini, leader of the co-ruling anti-immigrant League party as “one of Israel’s greatest friends in Italy and Europe,” and said he hoped to further cement strong bilateral ties. 

Tokyo, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–The leaders of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party) held their second round of policy talks on Friday to form a new coalition government. “We made great progress,” Nippon Ishin co-leader

Osaka, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–The widow of a Ministry of Finance official who committed suicide requested Friday that the ministry give priority to releasing email messages and other records identifying who had made her husband tamper with official documents regarding the dubious

Tokyo, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–Sanae Takaichi, president of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, made a “tamagushi ” ritual offering to war-related Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Friday, the first day of its autumn festival. She is expected to refrain from visiting the

(Adnkronos) – The United World Food Programme said on Friday it is ramping up food aid in Gaza and will be able to feed the population for three months provided the fragile week-old ceasefire between Israel and Hamas holds.  “WFP is scaling

(Adnkronos) – Madagascar army colonel Michael Randrianirina has been sworn in as the country’s president, days after the military takeover that forced President Andry Rajoelina to flee.  Randrianirina, who led the Capsat army unit that mutinied and joined anti-government protesters over the

(Adnkronos) – The United States has carried out a new air attack against a vessel in the Caribbean Sea presumably involved in drug trafficking, in an attack that, for the first time since the beginning of this series of operations undertaken by

Taipei, Oct. 17 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government donated a water level observation buoy to Taiwan on Friday as part of disaster relief aid. The buoy, which was owned by the land ministry, will constantly monitor the water level of a barrier lake