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[ad_1] The transport ministry plans to support the installation from fiscal 2025 of manually operated gates and fences at Class 4 railway crossings, which do not have alarms or barriers, in order to boost the safety of dangerous crossings. The measures are designed to reduce accidents by urging pedestrians to temporarily stop at railroad crossings. The ministry sought necessary funding under the government's budget for the fiscal year that starts […]

[ad_1] Maebashi, Gunma Pref. – Aziz Ahmed is hoping to support children who interpret for family members who cannot speak Japanese through a nonprofit organization that he set up in August last year.The 25-year-old Pakistani established the NPO in Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture to raise awareness of young language carers who must often translate documents and write on behalf of parents and other family members originally from abroad. As a young […]

[ad_1] Busan, South Korea – Kiyoshi Kurosawa, cinema's "master of horror" and recipient of the Busan International Film Festival's Filmmaker of the Year Award, said on Thursday he'd like to see more Japanese artists explore genre cinema.Celebrated Asian filmmakers including South Korea's Bong Joon-ho, the Oscar-winning director of "Parasite," admire 69-year-old Kurosawa, whose works are renowned for their keen observations and psychological depth. Kurosawa received the BIFF Filmmaker of the […]

[ad_1] WASHINGTON – As Israel pounded northern Gaza with air strikes last October and ordered the evacuation of more than a million Palestinians from the area, a senior Pentagon official delivered a blunt warning to the White House.The mass evacuation would be a humanitarian disaster and could violate international law, leading to war crime charges against Israel, Dana Stroul, then the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle […]

[ad_1] Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is unrepentant about the Oct. 7 attacks a year ago, people in contact with him say, despite unleashing an Israeli invasion that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, laid waste to his Gaza homeland and rained destruction on ally Hezbollah.For Sinwar, 62, architect of the Hamas cross-border raids that became the deadliest day in Israel's history, armed struggle remains the only way to force […]

[ad_1] Wajima, Ishikawa Pref. – Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Saturday that the government plans to classify the torrential rain that struck the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture in September as a severe disaster.Ishiba announced the plan during a visit to areas damaged heavily by the rain as well as the powerful Jan. 1 earthquake that jolted the peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, following a request for aid from Ishikawa Gov. […]

[ad_1] American artist Cameron Lew’s appreciation for pop culture from Japan’s Showa Era (1926-89) helped shape the music he makes under the name Ginger Root. With his new album “Shinbangumi,” he wants to emphasize that’s not all the project is about.“I feel like everyone wants to dilute and simplify what you do, and I think the buzzword that came to mind was ‘city pop,’” says Lew, 28, over a call […]

[ad_1] Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) is considering raising its stakes in Nintendo and other Japanese gaming companies, Kyodo News reported on Saturday. Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, vice chair of the sovereign wealth fund's gaming unit, disclosed the plan in an interview with the news agency. He told the Japanese news agency that PIF is not in a rush to increase its stakes, and that […]

[ad_1] BOGOTA/MONTEVIDEO/RIO DE JANEIRO – Latin America's wealth of hydroelectricity and other renewable energy resources could make the region a major producer of clean hydrogen as the world seeks alternatives to fossil fuels to fight the climate crisis, but some big hurdles lie in the way. Government leaders expect a major boon for the region from clean hydrogen, also known as green hydrogen, produced using electricity from renewable sources that […]