Kyoto Animation fire: Japan prosecutors seek death penalty over blaze that killed 36

Shinji Aoba has admitted starting fire but has pleaded not guilty, saying a psychological disorder makes him incapable of distinguishing between right and wrongProsecutors in Japan are seeking the death penalty for the suspect in an arson attack in 201…

Shinji Aoba has admitted starting fire but has pleaded not guilty, saying a psychological disorder makes him incapable of distinguishing between right and wrong

Prosecutors in Japan are seeking the death penalty for the suspect in an arson attack in 2019 that killed 36 people in one of the country’s deadliest crimes for decades.

Shinji Aoba, who was not arrested until he had recovered from the burns he sustained in the attack on an animation studio in Kyoto, admitted in court in September 2023 to starting the fire.

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Oppenheimer to finally be released in Japan after ‘Barbenheimer’ backlash

Internet references conflating the two films drew anger in Japan, which was twice attacked by nuclear weapons during the second world warAudiences in Japan will finally get to see Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan’s hit biopic about the creator of the nu…

Internet references conflating the two films drew anger in Japan, which was twice attacked by nuclear weapons during the second world war

Audiences in Japan will finally get to see Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan’s hit biopic about the creator of the nuclear bomb – following criticism that it was marketed in a way that trivialised the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The movie’s distributor in Japan, Bitters End, said on Thursday that the film, which examines L. Robert Oppenheimer’s moral quandary over his key role in the world’s first nuclear attack on 6 August 1945, would be released in 2024.

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Oppenheimer to finally be released in Japan after ‘Barbenheimer’ backlash

Internet references conflating the two films drew anger in Japan, which was twice attacked by nuclear weapons during the second world warAudiences in Japan will finally get to see Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan’s hit biopic about the creator of the nu…

Internet references conflating the two films drew anger in Japan, which was twice attacked by nuclear weapons during the second world war

Audiences in Japan will finally get to see Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan’s hit biopic about the creator of the nuclear bomb – following criticism that it was marketed in a way that trivialised the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The movie’s distributor in Japan, Bitters End, said on Thursday that the film, which examines L. Robert Oppenheimer’s moral quandary over his key role in the world’s first nuclear attack on 6 August 1945, would be released in 2024.

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Tokyo taxi driver arrested, accused of running over pigeon

Atsushi Ozawa accused of using car to kill common pigeon, which vets said died of traumatic shockTo some, they are another species of feathered friend; to others, they are rats with wings whose droppings deface historic buildings.But in Japan, pigeons …

Atsushi Ozawa accused of using car to kill common pigeon, which vets said died of traumatic shock

To some, they are another species of feathered friend; to others, they are rats with wings whose droppings deface historic buildings.

But in Japan, pigeons may have become the victims of crime, after police arrested a Tokyo taxi driver on suspicion of deliberately driving into a flock of the birds, killing one of them.

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Tokyo taxi driver arrested, accused of running over pigeon

Atsushi Ozawa accused of using car to kill common pigeon, which vets said died of traumatic shockTo some, they are another species of feathered friend; to others, they are rats with wings whose droppings deface historic buildings.But in Japan, pigeons …

Atsushi Ozawa accused of using car to kill common pigeon, which vets said died of traumatic shock

To some, they are another species of feathered friend; to others, they are rats with wings whose droppings deface historic buildings.

But in Japan, pigeons may have become the victims of crime, after police arrested a Tokyo taxi driver on suspicion of deliberately driving into a flock of the birds, killing one of them.

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Taiwan presidential election: opposition in chaos as China looms in background

Voters are faced with a choice of continuity with the ruling DPP or change, with an opposition that favours closer ties with Beijing On the eve of the deadline to formally register as a candidate for Taiwan’s presidential elections in January, the ruli…

Voters are faced with a choice of continuity with the ruling DPP or change, with an opposition that favours closer ties with Beijing

On the eve of the deadline to formally register as a candidate for Taiwan’s presidential elections in January, the ruling party’s pick for vice-president held a slick and short press conference at a Taipei convention centre. Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s high-profile diplomatic representative to the US, took few questions from the massive crowd of press. She presented herself as an experienced and pragmatic deputy to presidential candidate Lai Ching-te in a Democratic Progressive party (DPP) administration.

An administration run by Lai and Hsiao, she said, would continue to defend Taiwan’s democracy from Beijing’s authoritarian threats of annexation and preserve “the status quo”.

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Electric plane set to deliver mail across New Zealand in decarbonisation push

Air New Zealand says using the ALIA electric cargo plane to deliver parcels will help plot route towards zero-emissions passenger flights in a ‘new age of propulsion’Parcels and letters will soon be distributed by electric aircraft between regions of N…

Air New Zealand says using the ALIA electric cargo plane to deliver parcels will help plot route towards zero-emissions passenger flights in a ‘new age of propulsion’

Parcels and letters will soon be distributed by electric aircraft between regions of New Zealand as the sparsely populated country embarks on a “new age of propulsion” in its attempts to decarbonise its reliance on aviation.

On Wednesday, Air New Zealand announced it had purchased a battery-powered, all-electric five seater cargo aircraft, which will be put to use running mail between airports with New Zealand’s postal service from 2026.

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Trial shows more than 90% of women trying for baby lack essential nutrients

Most of those tested lack nutrients crucial for healthy foetal development as found in abundance in meat and dairy productsMore than 90% of women who are trying for a baby may have marginal or low levels of vitamins that are essential for a healthy pre…

Most of those tested lack nutrients crucial for healthy foetal development as found in abundance in meat and dairy products

More than 90% of women who are trying for a baby may have marginal or low levels of vitamins that are essential for a healthy pregnancy, according to researchers who say the problem will likely worsen as vegetarian diets become more popular.

Tests on more than 1,700 women in the UK, New Zealand and Singapore who planned to conceive revealed most were lacking nutrients found in abundance in meat and dairy products, many of which are crucial for healthy foetal development.

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EU expected to issue veiled warning to China over supply of cut-cost goods

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen to meet Chinese president Xi Jinping at summit on ThursdayThe EU is to tell China that its €400bn (£343bn) trade deficit is not sustainable long term amid fears that it will flood the bloc with subsidised …

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen to meet Chinese president Xi Jinping at summit on Thursday

The EU is to tell China that its €400bn (£343bn) trade deficit is not sustainable long term amid fears that it will flood the bloc with subsidised electric cars, solar panels and medical devices, threatening European manufacturing and jobs.

Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission chief, and Charles Michel, the European Council president, will meet Xi Jinping at a summit on Thursday, the second of its kind this year.

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EU expected to issue veiled warning to China over supply of cut-cost goods

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen to meet Chinese president Xi Jinping at summit on ThursdayThe EU is to tell China that its €400bn (£343bn) trade deficit is not sustainable long term amid fears that it will flood the bloc with subsidised …

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen to meet Chinese president Xi Jinping at summit on Thursday

The EU is to tell China that its €400bn (£343bn) trade deficit is not sustainable long term amid fears that it will flood the bloc with subsidised electric cars, solar panels and medical devices, threatening European manufacturing and jobs.

Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission chief, and Charles Michel, the European Council president, will meet Xi Jinping at a summit on Thursday, the second of its kind this year.

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