Main news(2025/05/15)
[Earthquake Alert] Magnitude 4 earthquake hits Urahoro town, Hokkaido, no risk of tsunami
2025-05-15 22:12:00
An earthquake occurred at around 10:06 pm on the 15th. There is no need to worry about a tsunami caused by this earthquake. The epicenter was in the central Tokachi region of Hokkaido, the depth of the epicenter was 90 km, and the magnitude of the earthquake was estimated to be 4.5. The seismic intensity of each city, town, and village is as follows. ▼Seismic intensity 4 in Urahoro Town, Hokkaido.
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Hydrogen sulfide in Hokkaido's Esashi scallop processing plant, 2 people rushed to hospital, 1 died
2025-05-15 21:28:00
On the afternoon of the 15th, toxic hydrogen sulfide was released on the premises of a scallop processing plant in Esashi Town, northern Hokkaido, and two male workers were taken to the hospital, one of whom died. The police are currently investigating the details of the incident.
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Self-Defense Force training plane crash: Flight stable for 1 minute after takeoff, altitude drops during turning
2025-05-15 18:48:00
Details of the accident on the 14th, when an Air Self-Defense Force training plane crashed into a pond in Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture, have been revealed. The training plane was flying stably for about one minute after takeoff, but while circling at an altitude of about 1,400 meters, it rapidly lost altitude and crashed. The Air Self-Defense Force is continuing to confirm the details of the incident and is also continuing to search for the two missing personnel.
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LDP Tax System Research Committee to hold study session on handling of consumption tax
2025-05-15 18:11:00
Regarding the treatment of the consumption tax, senior members of the LDP's Tax System Research Council met and confirmed that they will hold a study session for party lawmakers next week to exchange opinions on the impact of lowering the tax rate and practical issues.
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Decrease in "primary breastfeeding" as a factor in the rise in dual-income households
2025-05-15 18:01:00
A research group made up of experts has published survey results showing that the percentage of mothers who primarily breastfeed their babies under five months of age was 51% last year, a 27-point decrease over the past 10 years. The research group believes that the reasons for this include the increase in dual-income households and an increase in people who are working together as a family to raise children.
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LDP to set up special committee on coexistence with foreigners as nuisance behavior becomes an issue
2025-05-15 17:09:00
As the number of foreigners settling in Japan increases, nuisance behavior has become an issue in some areas, and the Liberal Democratic Party has set up a special committee to begin discussing how they can coexist.
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Plan to extend deadline for buying back stockpiled rice to "within five years in principle"
2025-05-15 17:06:00
In response to concerns that the stockpiled rice released by the government is not being distributed sufficiently to supermarkets and other outlets, the government has decided to extend the deadline for buying back the same amount of rice from businesses that have sold the stockpiled rice from the current "within one year in principle" to "within five years in principle." This is intended to ease businesses' anxieties about the buyback and encourage easier distribution of stockpiled rice, as well as to ease concerns that the government's buyback will lead to rice shortages in the future.
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Elderly woman dies in Kodaira, Tokyo; son arrested on suspicion of murder; caregiver fatigue?
2025-05-15 16:11:00
Early on the morning of the 15th, an elderly woman was found strangled and collapsed in an apartment in Kodaira, Tokyo, and was confirmed dead at a hospital. The 62-year-old man who lived in the apartment said that he had strangled his mother because he was tired of caring for her, and the Metropolitan Police Department has arrested him on suspicion of murder and is continuing its investigation.
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At least 21 killed in three-car crash on Mexico highway
2025-05-15 15:35:00
At least 21 people were killed in an accident involving three vehicles, including a bus, on a highway in Mexico.
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Sumitomo Mitsui Card and SoftBank announce partnership in financial services, etc.
2025-05-15 15:27:00
Sumitomo Mitsui Card, a subsidiary of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, and SoftBank have announced that they will collaborate in the fields of financial services and digital technology. In addition to linking each other's financial apps with smartphone payments, the two companies will also be able to exchange points, aiming to capture the customers of both companies through a cross-industry collaboration.
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Kumamoto Mayor requests Minister of Child Health and Welfare Mihara to consider legal reform for confidential childbirth
2025-05-15 15:16:00
Regarding "confidential births," in which pregnant women give birth without revealing their identities to anyone other than medical institutions, Kumamoto City Mayor Onishi met with Minister of State for Children's Policy Mihara and requested that legislation be considered to institutionalize this and that consultation systems be improved.
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"Annual income barrier": Government tax commission to begin full-scale discussions on concrete measures to revise basic deductions
2025-05-15 15:04:00
At a general meeting on the 15th, the government's Tax Commission confirmed that it would begin full-scale discussions on specific measures to revise the basic deduction in line with inflation, with a view to revising the "annual income barrier." With the tax reform scheduled for the end of the year in mind, the commission plans to organize issues such as indicators for determining price fluctuations.
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The bill to raise teacher salaries was passed in the House of Representatives
2025-05-15 14:36:00
A bill to amend the law to raise the amount of the salary increase paid to teachers in lieu of overtime pay was passed by a majority vote at the House of Representatives plenary session on the 15th and sent to the House of Councillors. After discussions between the ruling and opposition parties, amendments are being made to include a reduction target for teachers' overtime work.
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Nippon Life Insurance to end secondment to agency due to customer information leak issue
2025-05-15 13:46:00
Nippon Life Insurance, a major life insurance company, has announced that it will stop seconding employees to joint agencies that handle products from multiple insurance companies for sales purposes. The company is reviewing the secondment system in response to a series of problems in the industry, including the leaking of customer information.
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Part of the evolution of a plant whose flowers emit a foul odor revealed
2025-05-15 13:04:00
The National Museum of Nature and Science and others have announced that a member of the Asarum family, known for its foul-smelling flowers, appears to have acquired the ability to produce a foul odor through slight genetic changes. This finding is drawing attention as it sheds light on part of the evolutionary process.
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Sapporo District Court rejects lawsuit by residents seeking return of public funds used to attend state funerals
2025-05-15 12:40:00
In a lawsuit filed by a group of Hokkaido residents seeking to have public funds paid for by Governor Suzuki and others to attend the "state funeral" of former Prime Minister Abe three years ago returned, the Sapporo District Court dismissed the lawsuit, stating that "socially speaking, attendance is within the scope of ceremonial etiquette."
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Three people arrested for ripping off people who were invited to restaurants via dating apps
2025-05-15 12:02:00
The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested three employees for luring a man they met on a dating app to a restaurant in Shibuya, Tokyo, and forcing him to pay 1.1 million yen in cash. There have also been confirmed cases of disabled men falling victim to the app, and the Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the actual illegal business practices.
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Vietnamese arrested for making fraudulent purchases using smartphones registered with other people's card details
2025-05-15 11:50:00
The Metropolitan Police Department arrested a group of four Vietnamese people and the manager of a convenience store in Tokyo who is believed to have cooperated with them on the illegal purchase of a large amount of e-cigarettes using a smartphone with someone else's credit card information registered to it. In all cases, the information of AEON card users was misused through a system known as "offline payment." However, there have been a series of incidents involving AEON cards where offline fraudulent use continued even after the cards had been suspended, so the Metropolitan Police Department is also investigating whether this is related to the incident.
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Japan Display considering cutting more than 1,000 domestic staff
2025-05-15 10:16:00
It has been revealed that Japan Display, a liquid crystal panel manufacturer, is considering cutting more than 1,000 employees in Japan. This amounts to nearly half of the company's domestic workforce, and the company is in urgent need of a turnaround amid continuing losses.
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Kyoto Prefectural Police to refer documents to prosecutors for two police officers taking secret photos in women's restrooms at their workplace
2025-05-15 07:04:00
It has been learned from investigators that the police have decided to refer the case to prosecutors as early as the 15th for two male police officers from a Kyoto Prefectural Police station who were accused of taking upskirt photos in the women's restroom at their workplace.
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Four company executives arrested for illegally handing over delivery account to foreigner
2025-05-15 06:17:00
According to an interview with a person involved in the investigation, the Metropolitan Police Department has arrested four people, including company executives in Tokyo, on suspicion of illegally giving out delivery accounts for the food delivery service "Demae-kan" to foreigners. The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the case, believing that the accounts were illegally lent to more than 100 people, mainly Uzbeks who are not legally permitted to work, and received compensation.
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Direct talks: Russian presidential aide Medinsky and others to attend
2025-05-15 06:04:00
Regarding Russia's proposal to hold direct talks with Ukraine in Turkey on the 15th of this month, the Russian presidential office announced that presidential aides will attend. There was no mention of President Putin's attendance.
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The 50-year-old "hikikomori" and his 80-year-old father end up
2025-05-15 06:00:00
My son suddenly quit his job and shut himself in his room. Even when he found another job, he quit within a few days and returned home. I yelled at him. "I can't leave you in the house. Get out." My son was silent and crying. 19 years later, my son turned 50 and I was approaching 80. "I have to do something before I die..." And we were able to move forward again. It was because I had changed myself that my son was able to tell me his "true feelings."
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Employees of hair removal salon Musee Platinum file for bankruptcy
2025-05-15 05:42:00
It has been learned from an interview with a lawyer representing some employees of Musee Platinum, a major hair removal salon, that they have not been paid their salaries for several months up until March of this year, and have decided to file a petition for the start of bankruptcy proceedings for the company at the Tokyo District Court, claiming that "the operating company has a large amount of debt and is in a state of insolvency." In response to an interview with NHK, the operating company stated that approximately 1.5 billion yen in salaries remain unpaid, and commented, "We will start making partial payments at the end of this month, and expect to complete them by the end of the year."
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Saitama Misato: Four elementary school students hit and run, SUV type vehicle used to escape searched for
2025-05-15 05:15:00
On the evening of the 14th, in a hit-and-run incident in Misato City, Saitama Prefecture, in which four elementary school students were injured, the SUV that ran off from the scene has still not been found even after a night has passed. Two men are believed to have been in the car, and the police are continuing to search for them.
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Self-Defense Forces training plane crash: No emergency communication or evacuation
2025-05-15 05:12:00
On the 14th, an Air Self-Defense Force training aircraft crashed into a pond in Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture, and interviews with related parties revealed that no emergency communication was made before the crash, nor was there an emergency evacuation from the aircraft. The Self-Defense Forces are investigating the details of the incident and are continuing their search for the two missing personnel.
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