[AlbertC]

Japan: Man sentenced to death for Kyoto anime fire which killed 36​

The incident, one of Japan's deadliest in recent decades, killed mostly young artists and shocked the anime world.

Shinji Aoba, 45, pleaded guilty to the attack but his lawyers had sought a lighter sentence on grounds of "mental incompetence".

Judges rejected this however, ruling that Aoba knew what he was doing.

"I have determined that the defendant was not mentally insane or weak at the time of the crime," Chief Judge Masuda said on Thursday at Kyoto District Court.

Japan: Man sentenced to death for Kyoto anime fire which killed 36

The arson attack in a revered Kyoto animation studio killed 36 people and injured dozens more.

www.bbc.com

 

[AlbertC]

Japan to make it easier for Indian students to get study visas in their country:

Indian students only need their student ID card to get a visa to Japan, says Japanese Ambassador

Highlighting the streamlined visa process, along with an abundance of skill development programs and promising job prospects, the envoy stressed about the vast potential awaiting Indian aspirants in the ‘land of the rising sun.’ Suzuki conveyed a specific message to the people of India...

timesofindia.indiatimes.com

 

[Towered]

I foresee an epidemic of Uber Eats e-bikes on the crowded sidewalks of Tokyo...

 

[Northern Light]

Since the middle-east thread remains locked, I will put this here:

Live updates: Iran launches dozens of drones toward Israel

Iran has launched drones toward Israel, according to an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson. Follow here for the latest live news updates.

www.cnn.com

This seems destined to go well.

Edit to add: No time wasting here, Israel has launched attacks on Tehran:

 

[kEiThZ]

Edit to add: No time wasting here, Israel has launched attacks on Tehran:

There seems to be no actual corroboration of any Israeli attack on Tehran. This looks like misinformation being passed around.

This seems destined to go well.

Mostly yes. If that was the Iranian response, I'd say Israel did alright. That was a rather weak response. Iran launched a bunch of slow drones, some cruise and ballistic missiles against a country that has the densest air defence network on Earth. Some countries en route closed their airspace and launched tracking aircraft, giving Israel plenty of warning and help. That's why Israel is claiming 99% of 300 projectiles shot down and just one casualty (a young girl injured by falling debris). And Iran has already said that they consider the matter "concluded".

Live updates: Iranian barrage of missiles and drones causes little damage, Israel says

Iran has launched drones toward Israel, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a statement, in an attack that Tehran had promised to carry out after its embassy in Damascus was hit last week.

www.nbcnews.com

I would have been far more worried about escalation if an Israel-Hezbollah war looked likely.