Japanese authorities staged a drill on Tuesday under the scenario of a major earthquake striking the country.

September 1 is Disaster Prevention Day in Japan. This day commemorates the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, which left more than 100,000 people dead in and around Tokyo.

NHK has learned that Japanese police have arrested two doctors on suspicion of killing a woman with a progressive degenerative disease at her request.

Investigative sources say the 51-year-old woman was suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and told the people around her that she wanted to undergo euthanasia. ALS gradually paralyzes sufferers.

An event to pray for the safety and success of the July Grand Sumo Tournament was held on Saturday at an arena in Tokyo. Only a limited number of sumo officials were allowed to attend due to the coronavirus threat.

Japan Sumo Association Chairman Hakkaku and other stable masters were among those who showed up at the Ryogoku Kokugikan hall.

Saturday marks exactly one year since the deadly arson attack at a studio of Kyoto Animation in Kyoto, Japan.

The blaze on July 18 last year left 36 employees dead and 33 others injured. It was the worst mass-killing in Japan in about three decades.

A memorial service is planned for the victims of the deadly arson attack at a studio of Kyoto Animation on Saturday, the first anniversary of the fire.

The studio, in the city of Kyoto, was set ablaze on July 18 last year. Of the 70 employees who were inside, 36 died and 33 were injured.

The Japan Sumo Association says it will hold its July tournament in Tokyo with about 2,500 spectators, roughly 25 percent of the full capacity. The reduction is part of measures against the coronavirus outbreak.

The association made the announcement on Monday. The tournament will start on Sunday at Ryogoku Kokugikan arena.

Japan's newly-established subcommittee to discuss coronavirus measures has held its first meeting.

The subcommittee replaces a previous panel of experts that provided key proposals to the government with a focus on curbing the outbreak.

A museum in the city of Mito, north of Tokyo, is holding an exhibition that features yokai monsters called Tsukumo-gami, which means spirits of tools.

Mito City Museum, which was temporarily closed due to the coronavirus, organized the exhibition to coincide with its reopening on June 13.

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.

A funeral has been held for the father of Yokota Megumi, a Japanese national abducted and taken to North Korea in the 1970s.

Yokota Shigeru spent half his life trying to bring his daughter home from North Korea. He died on Friday at the age of 87 without being able to see his loved one again.

Police in Fukuoka Prefecture, western Japan, say a man armed with a knife holed up inside a restaurant in Fukuoka City on Tuesday morning and is holding two girls hostage.

They say the girls are aged three and six and are the children of the restaurant's owner. They also say the hostage-taker is a former employee of the store.

People have been enjoying walking beneath cherry blossoms at a popular viewing spot in Tokyo on Saturday, but there are no gatherings this year due to the new coronavirus threat.

Ueno Park attracts more than 3 million people to admire the cherry blossoms in a normal year.

Officials from the Japan Sumo Association have decided that the spring tournament in Osaka starting on March 8 will be held without any spectators. They took the decision as part of efforts to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.

The members of the association's board meeting have been discussing two options, holding it without any spectators or completely canceling it.

National and other public universities in Japan have begun staging their entrance exams, with precautions taken against the new coronavirus.

The education ministry says nearly 440,000 people have applied for the exams, down about 30,000 from last year.