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July 12, 2026
 

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HUMAN RIGHTS

Iranians walk past a billboard showing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with anti-U.S. rhetoric in Tehran on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 30, 2026
Iran rounds up thousands in mass arrest campaign after crushing unrest: sources
Activists say detainees are being held in secret lockups, denying access to lawyers and family members.
A doctor told the Nagoya District Court on Wednesday that Sri Lankan detainee Wishma Sandamali died from a combination of dehydration and starvation. Her family is suing the Japanese government for damages.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 29, 2026
Sri Lankan detainee’s death could have been prevented, doctor testifies
Dr. Masamune Shimo said there were three junctures at which Wishma Sandamali’s life could have been saved before her death at an immigration facility in Japan in 2021.
Defendants in detention in court often remain in handcuffs and waist restraints until judges enter the courtroom, to help prevent escape.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 29, 2026
Japan to reconsider use of handcuffs and ropes for defendants in court
Current rules will still apply if a defendant is considered a flight risk.
Defense lawyers of a 1952 murder case seeking a retrial hold signs reading "unjust decision" on Wednesday in the city of Kumamoto.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 28, 2026
Court rejects retrial request for executed man believed to have had leprosy
It was a rare case in which a retrial was sought for a defendant who had already been executed.
A billboard organized by the corporate accountability group Eko passes through Westminster urging Britain's prime minister to stand up to Elon Musk and ban X and Grok in London on Jan. 14.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 27, 2026
Too many kids already know someone who’s been deepfaked
The increasing availability of AI nudification tools has fueled skyrocketing reports of AI-generated child sexual abuse material.
Eiko Kawasaki (center), a plaintiff in a compensation case against North Korea, attends a news conference in Tokyo along with other plaintiffs and lawyers on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 27, 2026
Court holds North Korea liable for ‘paradise on Earth’ program
The Tokyo District Court ruled that four plaintiffs had “most of their lives taken away” by Pyongyang.
Police keep watch outside the West Kowloon Magistrates' court in Hong Kong on Jan. 12.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 27, 2026
Hong Kong uses decades-old speeches to try democracy activists
Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung are standing trial for “incitement to subversion,“ which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail.
Demonstrators march to protest federal immigration enforcement operations and to demand justice for Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both of whom were fatally shot by federal immigration agents, in Minneapolis on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 27, 2026
In possible thaw, Trump and Minnesota governor talk after fatal shooting
Public outcry over the U.S. leader’s deportation drive, which has left two people dead, has prompted him to signal a shift in strategy.
Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte attends a senate probe on the drug war during his administration, in Manila on Oct. 28, 2024.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 26, 2026
Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte fit for pre-trial hearings, ICC judges rule
Rodrigo Duterte’s defense had said the elderly politician, who is being held in The Hague over ‍murders during his war on drugs, could not stand trial due to cognitive decline.
U.S. Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino walks to his vehicle at a gas station in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 21.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 26, 2026
Greg Bovino, the face of Trump’s ‘turn and burn’ migrant crackdown
Unlike many of his agents who wear masks during raids, Bovino, who has directed several high-profile immigration raids, relishes the spotlight and controversy.
Human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari (right) with her husband and fellow lawyer Hadi Ali Chattha, during a court hearing in Islamabad on Dec. 5.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 26, 2026
Defiance as a profession: Pakistan’s jailed lawyer Imaan Mazari
The human rights lawyer, who has been given a 10-year jail term over “anti-state” social media posts, shot to prominence tackling some of the country’s most sensitive topics.
People chant in London's Trafalgar Square on Sunday during a demonstration in support of the nationwide protests in Iran.
WORLD
Jan 26, 2026
Iran protest death toll seen rising to possibly more than 20,000
Ongoing restrictions to internet access and telecommunications have hampered rights groups’ attempts to calculate how many people died during Iran’s crackdown on demonstrations.
Human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari (R) sits with a journalist after a hearing at the Islamabad High Court Bar Association in Islamabad on Jan. 20. From raising her voice for marginalized communities to representing those up against blasphemy charges, Imaan Mazari had emerged as Pakistan's top human rights lawyer as tolerance for dissent diminishes.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 25, 2026
Pakistani court jails rights activist and husband for 10 years
Changes to the constitution and hasty legislation passed by parliament have pushed Pakistan towards tighter state control, with diminishing political and civil rights.
A large crowd marches down a street during during the "ICE out of Minnesota: Day of Truth and Freedom" protest in Minneapolis on Friday.
WORLD
Jan 24, 2026
Defiant protests over U.S. immigration crackdown and child’s detention
Images of a terrified pre-schooler being held by immigration officers who were seeking to arrest the boy’s father have rekindled public outrage.
A demonstrator burns a photo of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during a protest in support of the Iranian people outside Downing Street in London on Jan. 11.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2026
Iran’s supreme leader trapped in a web of his own making
Should another war with the U.S. or Israel erupt, Iranians both inside and outside the country now appear far more willing to support it.
A tax office burned during protests is seen during a tour for international news media in Tehran on Wednesday.
WORLD / Society
Jan 22, 2026
‘Too dangerous to go to hospital,’ says eyewitness to Iran’s protest crackdown
In Istanbul, a 45-year-old engineer recounts watching angry demonstrations over economic hardship explode into Tehran’s biggest anti-government protests since 1979.
Frenchie Mae Cumpio, a detained Filipino journalist, gestures as she arrives at Tacloban Regional Trial Court in Leyte island on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jan 22, 2026
Philippines convicts journalist on terror charge called ‘absurd’
Community journalist and radio broadcaster Frenchie Cumpio, 26, is the first Filipina journalist to be prosecuted under the terror financing laws.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (third from right) bows as she meets with the victims of forced sterilization at the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 22, 2026
Takaichi meets with victims of forced sterilization
The prime minister said the government’s responsibility is “extremely grave” and added that she wanted to make sure everyone received compensation.
Chile's President-elect Jose Antonio Kast waves during the presentation of his cabinet at the office of the president-elect, in Las Condes, Santiago, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 22, 2026
Chile rights groups slam cabinet picks featuring Pinochet-era figures
Jose Antonio Kast, 60, will be sworn in on March 11 as the first far-right head of state in Chile since the exit of late dictator Augusto Pinochet.
Pro-democracy activist Lee Cheuk-yan raises his hands as he arrives at Lai Chi Kok Reception Center by prison van after being sentenced for unauthorized assembly, in Hong Kong on April 16, 2021.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 22, 2026
Hong Kong begins national security trial of Tiananmen vigil group
Once legal in China-ruled Hong Kong, such public commemorations ​were hailed as a symbol of the city’s relative freedom compared to mainland China.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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