Families of people who donated large sums of money to the religious group previously known as the Unification Church say proposed legislation to help those affected is not enough. They say it should take into account the reality of their suffering.

The Japanese government's planned legislation is aimed at providing relief to victims of the religious group and other entities.

A panel of infectious disease experts has urged people in Tokyo to be on high alert for the coronavirus as a rapid increase in infections is just beginning.

Officials of the Tokyo metropolitan government and experts on public health and infectious diseases met on Thursday to assess the coronavirus situation.

A Japanese submarine and two destroyers are making a port call in southern Vietnam in an apparent show of force against China's maritime activities.

Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force deployed a marine fleet, including the country's largest destroyer Kaga, in September to waters in the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.

In early 2019, Toyota joined forces with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to develop a six-wheeled rover capable of transporting two astronauts and their gear on the moon. Development work is ongoing, the process is expected to take nearly a decade, but the partners have already agreed on a name.

It's an off-roader, albeit not one Toyota is used to developing, so it earned the name Lunar Cruiser. The Japanese firm explained it chose that name because the vehicle's basic mission is the same as the original Land Cruiser's: to bring its passengers home alive. FJ Cruiser-like trim on the front end creates another link to Toyota's SUVs.

Governors of some Japanese prefectures are taking tougher measures to counter the spread of the coronavirus, ahead of the summer holidays.

Tokyo has the most cases across the country.

Foreign researchers have called on the Japanese government to ease its entry restrictions to allow foreign students to re-enter the country.

The researchers who have been studying in Japan for many years made the appeal at an online news conference on Wednesday. They took part from the prefectures of Hiroshima and Fukuoka, and elsewhere.

Japan's education ministry is set to release guidelines on how schools closed due to the coronavirus outbreak could resume classes in stages.

Education minister Hagiuda Koichi said on Friday that local education boards across Japan will be informed of the guidelines the same day.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government plans to intensify its call for people to stay at home after sunset as part of its efforts to curb the spread of the new coronavirus.

Sources familiar with the policy say multiple people are suspected of having contracted the virus while dining at restaurants at night.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike will soon hold a news conference to call on residents to refrain from non-essential outing this weekend to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus.

Japan's government is ramping up its battle against the coronavirus. The prime minister wants opposition leaders to back plans allowing him to declare a state of emergency should that become necessary.

This comes as the number of infections reported in the nation climbs above 1,000... including over 700 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

Experts say there's no need to be overly alarmed by the first confirmed case of a new coronavirus infection in Japan. But they also call for vigilance.

Nobuhiko Okabe, head of the Kawasaki City Institute for Public Health, says it's clear where the patient was infected as he had visited Wuhan. He also says human-to-human transmission has been very limited so far.

Two elderly sisters of a Japanese woman abducted to North Korea nearly 40 years ago have called for her early return to Japan.

Keiko Arimoto was abducted by North Korean agents while she was traveling in Europe after she completed a study program in London in 1983. She was 23 years old. She turns 60 on Sunday.