Allies watch for Kremlin attempt to justify Ukraine invasion.
The U.S. issued some of its starkest, most detailed warnings yet about how a Russian invasion of Ukraine might unfold, and its Western allies went on high alert for any attempts by the Kremlin to create a false pretext for a new war in Europe.
U.S. President Joe Biden sounded unusually dire Thursday, as he warned that Washington saw no signs of a promised Russian withdrawal -- but instead saw more troops moving toward the border with Ukraine, indicating Moscow could invade within days.
90% of recent deaths from coronavirus involved patients aged 70+.
Japan's health ministry says over 90 percent of the coronavirus deaths during the past week involved patients aged 70 and older.
The ministry said municipalities nationwide reported 960 deaths due to the coronavirus during the week up to Tuesday.
The ministry said 29.4 percent of the patients who died were aged 90 and older, while 43.2 percent of them were in their 80s.
South Korea daily COVID-19 cases top 100,000, curfew eased ahead of election.
South Korea's new daily COVID-19 cases topped 100,000 for the first time amid its Omicron outbreak, with authorities saying social distancing measures would be only slightly eased ahead of the March 9 presidential election.
Authorities announced on Friday they would move a curfew on restaurants and cafes from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m., a nod to increasing criticism from business owners.
Munitions found at Okinawa dam likely to belong to U.S. forces.
The Okinawa prefectural government stopped drawing water from the Kurashiki dam after officials discovered unexploded ordnances and drums containing projectile shells in the mud there, it announced on Feb. 17.
The spot where the old munitions were discovered is normally submerged when the dam is full. But the water level was low when officials were conducting an inspection of the dam and discovered the ammunition and large metal drums.
Olympics: IOC's Bach says Valieva figure skating spectacle 'chilling'.
A day after 15-year-old Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva suffered a meltdown on sport's biggest stage, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said the doping scandal and its fallout "disturbed" him.
In his opening comments at a press conference held Friday to mark the nearing end of the Beijing Olympics, Bach said the way the Russian Olympic Committee skater was received by her entourage after exiting the ice following her disastrous free routine "was chilling."
JAL eyes rebound, reopens hiring process.
apan Airlines is preparing for a rebound in air travel. After a two-year hiring hiatus, the company is looking to recruit new graduates again.
JAL put the freeze on almost all of its recruiting in the spring of 2020, but is now accepting job applications from prospective mechanics and flight attendants. The new employees would join in April 2023.
But the number they hire is expected to be smaller than it was before the pandemic.
Vice principal, teacher in Osaka accused of hiding confiscated cannabis from police.
Police here sent papers on a private high school vice principal and teacher to public prosecutors on Feb. 18 on suspicion of hiding cannabis confiscated from a student without reporting it to the authorities.
The 70-year-old vice principal and 45-year-old teacher at Kokoku High School in Osaka's Tennoji Ward were reported to prosecutors on suspicion of concealing evidence and cannabis possession.
Ex-company executive ordered to pay 50 million yen for headhunting.
The Tokyo District Court ordered a former consulting company executive to pay 50 million yen for luring his former subordinates to a rival firm he moved to, saying he violated his previous employer’s bylaws against headhunting.
In its ruling issued on Feb. 16, the court called the headhunting a “treacherous” act that cannot be justified in light of social norms.
NBA: Washington's Rui Hachimura goes for 20 in win over Brooklyn.
Rui Hachimura broke the 20-point mark for the first time this season in a 117-103 win on Thursday for his Washington Wizards over the reeling Brooklyn Nets.
Hachimura scored 20 points on 8-for-15 shooting at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, making both three-point shots he attempted in the victory.
