Nearly 20 people have so far announced their intention to run in Tokyo's gubernatorial election. Campaigning will kick off on Thursday.

On Monday, Yamamoto Taro, the leader of opposition party Reiwa Shinsengumi, told reporters that he will run in the election to be held on July 5th.

Japanese Defense Minister Kono Taro has announced that the government will suspend a plan to deploy the Aegis Ashore missile defense system in the country.

Kono spoke to reporters on Monday, citing financial and technical challenges as reasons for the decision.

Japan Airlines has decided to fully reopen Terminal 1 for domestic flights at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on July 1 as more passengers are beginning to travel since the state of emergency was lifted on May 25 in Japan.

The airline closed its north wing departure lobby in April after the number of passengers plunged due to the pandemic.

Authorities in Tokyo say 47 people tested positive for the coronavirus Sunday. It was the first day in six weeks the number of new infections in the capital topped 40.

32 of them were traced to nightlife entertainment establishments.

Japanese weather officials are warning of localized heavy rains in wide areas of western to northeastern Japan by Monday morning.

The meteorological agency says warm, damp air is flowing from the west into a front, causing atmospheric conditions to become unstable over most of the country.

Japan's minister in charge of the nation's coronavirus response and the governor of Tokyo have agreed to cooperate on measures to curb the rising trend of coronavirus infections in the capital's nightlife districts.

Nishimura Yasutoshi and Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko met on Sunday. The mayor of Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward, Yoshizumi Kenichi, joined the meeting. Shinjuku is home to the Kabukicho district and other nightlife hubs.

Prime Minister Abe Shinzo is warning against a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak in Japan. He urged people not to expect the virus to weaken in the coming hot summer months.

Abe spoke during a program streamed live on Sunday night. He said people should not be complacent this summer because the virus is spreading even in extremely hot countries in the Middle East.

An anti-racism march was held in central Tokyo on Sunday as part of the protest movement sparked by the death of George Floyd in US police custody last month.

The protesters included Japanese and non-Japanese people, who responded to calls on social media.

Officials of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government say they confirmed 47 new cases of the coronavirus in the Japanese capital on Sunday.

This is the first time since May 5 that the daily count for Tokyo has risen above 40.

A private rocket launch by a Japanese firm has failed to reach space after liftoff.

Interstellar Technologies, which is based in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, launched the 5th version of its "Momo" rocket at 5:15 a.m. on Sunday from a site in the town of Taiki.

A rocket developed by a Japanese venture firm has failed to reach space.

Interstellar Technologies, which is based in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, launched the 5th version of its "Momo" rocket at 5:15 a.m. on Sunday from a site in the town of Taiki.

Japan's weather officials are advising people to take precautions against heavy rain through Monday.

The Meteorological Agency says warm, damp air flowing toward a front over the main island of Honshu has made atmospheric conditions unstable over wide areas of western and eastern Japan.

Members of Japan's governing Liberal Democratic Party speculate that some officials are poising themselves to become the next party leader.

LDP policy chief Kishida Fumio and former LDP secretary-general Ishiba Shigeru are among those tipped as a possible successor to Prime Minister Abe Shinzo.

An amusement park in Tokyo's waterfront area has opened its doors for the first time in about three months. That comes after the Tokyo Metropolitan Government lifted the capital's coronavirus alert and eased restrictions on businesses.

Tokyo Joypolis, an indoor amusement park in the Daiba district, reopened on Saturday after taking steps to prevent infections. It had been closed since early March due to the coronavirus.