Sources have told NHK that a former executive of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics organizing committee said business suit retailer Aoki Holdings would be a Games sponsor before the official decision was made.

Sources close to the case quote a former senior official of the organizing committee as saying that the former executive, Takahashi Haruyuki, told others in 2017 that Aoki intended to sponsor the events for 500 million yen, or about 3.7 million dollars.

NHK has learned that business suit retailer Aoki Holdings sharply reduced the consulting fees it paid to a former executive of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics organizing committee after the Games ended last year.

Sources close to the case told NHK that Aoki reduced the consulting fees it had paid each month to the former executive, Takahashi Haruyuki, by half to 500,000 yen, or about 3,700 dollars, in October last year. The Tokyo Games ended in September.

A bright meteor streaking across the night sky has dazzled stargazers in the greater Tokyo area.

Many people took to social media to describe seeing a 'ball of fire' flying through the sky shortly after 7:20 p.m. on Thursday.

The Japanese government and ruling coalition appear set to reject a request by the opposition parties to hold an extraordinary Diet session on relations between Cabinet ministers and the former Unification Church.

The religious organization, now known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, has allegedly been involved in so-called "spiritual sales" and other dubious marketing practices.

A study in Japan has found that seizures were a more common symptom among children who contracted the coronavirus when the Omicron variant was predominant than when the Delta variant was predominant.

Researchers from the National Center for Child Health and Development and other institutes examined about 850 cases among children under 18 years of age hospitalized with COVID-19.

New allegations have emerged in Japan surrounding the former Unification Church about its fund raising and connections with politicians.

The government has convened its first panel on so-called "spiritual sales" and other dubious marketing practices allegedly used by the group.

Japan reported a record 255,534 new coronavirus infections across the country on Thursday.

Twenty-one of Japan's 47 prefectures logged their highest daily tallies.

World-renowned Japanese fashion designer Mori Hanae has died at the age of 96. She was known for her signature butterfly motifs.

Mori was born in the western Japanese prefecture of Shimane in 1926. She took the first step in her long career with the opening of a studio in Tokyo's Shinjuku district in 1951.

Heavy rain is lashing parts of northern Japan. Weather officials are warning of landslides in areas where the ground has already been loosened by days of rainfall.

The Meteorological Agency says unstable atmospheric conditions in Tohoku and the prefectures of Hokkaido and Niigata are due to a low-pressure system accompanied by a front passing over northern Japan.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government confirmed 27,453 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday, a decrease of about 3,700 from a week ago.

The seven-day average through Thursday was 24,347. That is nearly 20 percent down from the previous week.

Heavy rain is forecast for wide areas of Japan. Weather officials are calling for people to be on the alert for possible landslides, flooding in low-lying areas and swollen rivers, as well as lightning strikes and gusty winds.

The Meteorological Agency says humid air is flowing to a front, making atmospheric conditions unstable in wide areas from western to northern Japan.

Legendary Japanese fashion designer Mori Hanae has died at the age of 96. She was known for her trademark butterfly motifs.

NHK has learned that business suit retailer Aoki Holdings may have started asking favors from a former executive of the Tokyo Games organizing committee before the two sides formed a consulting contract.

The former executive, Takahashi Haruyuki, was arrested on Wednesday. He is suspected of receiving bribes totaling 51 million yen, or about 380,000 dollars, from former Aoki Holdings Chairman Aoki Hironori and two others over sponsorship and licensing contracts for the Tokyo Games.

Japan's health ministry has decided to approve online sales of antigen coronavirus test kits if they meet certain conditions such as their accuracy is on a par with government-approved products.

Sales of the products at pharmacies have been allowed since late last year, as a special measure, on the conditions that pharmacists explain how to use them to buyers.