Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has asked for the public's cooperation over the next three weeks to stem a resurgence in coronavirus infections.
In his comment on Thursday, Suga described the three weeks as an extremely crucial period.
Japan's transport ministry has asked taxi drivers to use the fresh air mode of their vehicles' air conditioners to reduce the risk of coronavirus infection. It also requested that they wear masks and ask passengers to do the same.
The ministry sent the requests through a taxi industry group after studying simulations by the supercomputer Fugaku at the RIKEN research institute.
The Japanese prime minister has told the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince that Japan will support the Middle Eastern country's reforms centered on industrial diversification and reducing its dependence on crude oil.
Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman talked on the phone on Thursday.
The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has finished work to prevent large debris from falling into a fuel storage pool in the No.1 reactor building.
Tokyo Electric Power Company on Thursday released footage showing precautions it had taken to keep a broken crane from falling into the pool.
About half of Japanese firms responding to a survey say they were targeted by cyberattacks involving ransomware in the past year.
IT security firm CrowdStrike surveyed 2,200 data security officials at companies around the globe. In Japan, 200 officials from major companies in finance, automobile and other sectors responded.
Medical experts have warned that the number of serious coronavirus cases is expected to rise further, likely overstretching Tokyo's general medical care system.
The experts said treating COVID-19 patients in serious condition while providing normal medical care would become "extremely difficult."
Japanese prosecutors have demanded the death penalty for a 30-year-old man charged with murdering nine people at his apartment in the city of Zama, near Tokyo.
Prosecutors demanded the death sentence for Shiraishi Takahiro at the Tachikawa branch of the Tokyo District Court on Thursday.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government confirmed 481 new cases of the coronavirus in the capital on Thursday.
The figure marks the second straight day that the daily count has exceeded 400.
Japan's Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide is seeking to strengthen cooperation with China in the economic field to improve relations. He also wants China to act positively on maritime and security issues around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
Japan controls the islands. The Japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of Japan's territory. China and Taiwan claim them.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako have sent online messages of encouragement to the elderly in Tokyo and the southwestern prefecture of Oita.
The Emperor and Empress were at the Akasaka Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday. They watched a group in Oita Prefecture helping the elderly maintain good health conditions and also monitored senior citizens at a human resources center in Tokyo.
The Japanese government plans to step up measures toward the end of the year to fight coronavirus infections.
The government advisory panel on its coronavirus response on Wednesday called for stronger action for a short period of around three weeks. The panel said the government should ask people to refrain from moving to or from areas where the virus is spreading rapidly, if necessary preventive steps are not taken.
Japan's Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has strongly urged Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to act positively on maritime and security issues around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
Wang made a courtesy visit on Suga at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday. They talked for about 20 minutes.
NHK has learned that staff at the office of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo had disposed of receipts from hotels where annual parties were held for his supporters.
Each party was held on the eve of Abe's annual cherry blossom viewing event.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government plans to ask establishments that serve alcohol to close at 10:00 p.m. for 20 days, starting this Saturday.
In response to a resurgence of coronavirus infections in the Japanese capital, the metropolitan government plans to ask bars, restaurants and karaoke parlors in Tokyo's 23 wards and cities in the Tama area to agree to the measure.