Japanese researchers have released the results of a study of potential side effects from the Moderna vaccine for the coronavirus.

The health ministry team monitored around 1,400 Self-Defense Forces members after they received their first shot.

Japan's Fisheries Agency has proposed raising catch quotas for Pacific bluefin tuna by a total of 20 percent. The move comes ahead of an online international conference on stocks of the fish next month.

Japan says stocks are recovering, and an increase in quotas should not hinder the trend.

Tokyo police have arrested two economy ministry officials on suspicion of abusing a subsidy program designed to help businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Police say Sakurai Makoto and Arai Yutaro are accused of applying for subsidies through a shell company last December to gain about 50,000 dollars.

The head of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee has pledged to step up anti-infection measures after coronavirus cases were found among the Ugandan national team.

Hashimoto Seiko spoke to reporters on Friday after one member of the Ugandan team tested positive at Narita Airport, and another after arriving in the city of Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture, western Japan, which is hosting the team's training camp.

Candidates for the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly have kicked off a nine-day period of official campaigning. The assembly election is seen as a prelude to a Lower House election to be held later this year.

A total of 271 candidates are vying for 127 seats in 42 districts.

It has been revealed that the Japanese Olympic Committee suffered a cyberattack in April last year, but did not publicly disclose the incident as there was no sign of a data leak.

The JOC says it was forced to temporarily halt operations after PCs and servers at its office in Tokyo were infected with malware. It says data stored in the servers were tampered with, and access was blocked.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government says it confirmed 562 new cases of the coronavirus in the capital on Friday.

The figure is up 109 from a week earlier, marking a week-on-week increase of more than 100 for the third day in a row.

Japan's health minister says the government may declare another state of emergency for Tokyo if there is a further spread of the coronavirus.

Tamura Norihisa said at a news conference on Friday that the number of people who are out and about at night in Tokyo was on the rise even before the state of emergency expired on June 20.

Japan's minister for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games says the Ugandan Olympic member who tested positive for the coronavirus upon arrival in Japan has been found to be infected with the Delta variant first identified in India.

The nine-member Ugandan team arrived at Narita airport near Tokyo last Saturday. His infection was detected at the airport quarantine station.

Japan's Imperial Household Agency chief says Emperor Naruhito is deeply concerned about the coronavirus status in the country ahead of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games due to open next month.

The agency's Grand Steward Nishimura Yasuhiko spoke at a regular news conference on Thursday. He said he humbly believes that amid public concern, the Emperor is worried that the event could lead to a rise in infections.

The organizing committee for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics has decided to scale down sports experience events and other operations planned for visitors at the capital's waterfront area during the games.

The committee made the decision as part of its efforts to prevent coronavirus infections.

Campaigning for the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election will soon begin. The event is seen as a bellwether for a Lower House general election scheduled later this year.

All 127 assembly seats are up for grabs across the capital's 42 electoral districts. Residents will vote on July 4.

Citizens who will volunteer at the upcoming Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games took part in a seminar on Thursday to deepen their understanding of people from the LGBTQ community.

LGBTQ people served as instructors at the online seminar attended by 430 Tokyo Games volunteers.

Researchers in Japan estimate that the Delta variant of the coronavirus now spreading in the country is 1.95 times more transmissible than the original virus. The variant was first identified in India.

A group led by Kyoto University Professor Nishiura Hiroshi and Hokkaido University Professor Ito Kimihito reported the results of their analysis at a meeting of an advisory panel to the health ministry on Wednesday.