Chiba heavy rain death toll rises to 13; government to hold ministerial meeting

Chiba heavy rain: 13 dead, 2 missing; government to hold ministerial meeting on 18th On the 17th, Chiba Prefecture announced that a man in his 60s from Ichihara City was missing, bringing the number of missing to two. Police discovered three additional bodies, raising the death toll to 13. On the afternoon of the 18th, the government will hold a ministerial meeting attended by Prime Minister Takaichi, together with the emergency disaster response headquarters meeting for the Kumamoto earthquake. 123

April-June real GDP up 1.1% annualized, third consecutive quarter of growth The Cabinet Office announced on the 17th that real GDP for the April-June quarter rose 1.1% on an annualized basis, marking the third consecutive quarter of positive growth. 4

Extraordinary Diet session to be convened late next month; consumption tax cut bill and local compensation to be deliberated The government and ruling parties are coordinating to convene an extraordinary Diet session late next month to deliberate a related bill that would lower the consumption tax on food items to 1%. Local governments are expected to see annual revenue shortfalls of about 1.6 trillion yen, and the government is considering a plan to compensate them through special local grants and other measures. A cabinet reshuffle and Liberal Democratic Party executive appointments are also focal points. 35

Chinese survey ship deploys wire in Senkaku EEZ; Coast Guard demands halt On the afternoon of the 15th, a Japan Coast Guard patrol vessel confirmed a Chinese survey ship extending something like a wire into the sea in the EEZ about 120 kilometers north of Kuba Island in the Senkaku Islands. After the Coast Guard demanded by radio that it stop, the ship left the EEZ about five hours later. Since March 30, actions believed to be marine surveys by Chinese vessels have occurred one after another. 6

Proposal to tighten Lower House proportional 'revival' seats: Sanseitō 14→1, Mirai 4→1 A proposal has emerged to tighten the 'revival election' system, under which candidates who lose in single-seat constituencies can still be elected through proportional representation. If applied to the previous election, it is estimated that the seats of Sanseitō and Mirai would be significantly reduced. 7

Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara praises revised Imperial House Act, saying 'possibility of increase in imperial family members has emerged' In an interview with the Sankei Shimbun, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said that the revised Imperial House Act enacted in July has created the possibility of an increase in the number of imperial family members. Regarding the system to adopt male-line male descendants of former imperial families, he said 'the real work begins now,' and indicated his intention to quietly work out the details while respecting the wishes of those involved. 8

Two women arrested on suspicion of attempting to transfer man abroad to make him a 'caller' On the 17th, Hiroshima Prefectural Police arrested a female company executive (32) and an unemployed woman (30) on suspicion of kidnapping a man and sending him abroad to involve him in special fraud, on charges including kidnapping for the purpose of transferring him out of the country. The man had fled to the embassy in Thailand, a transit point. Involvement of 'tokuryu' is suspected in the background. 9

Sumiyoshi-kai affiliated gang member re-arrested on suspicion of making 19-year-old woman work as caller overseas The Metropolitan Police Department re-arrested a Sumiyoshi-kai affiliated gang member on suspicion of sending a then-19-year-old woman to Malaysia to work as a caller at a special fraud group's base. 10

Sixth-grade boy drowns at Niigata fishing port; may have been swimming in restricted area On the afternoon of the 17th, a sixth-grade elementary school boy (11) drowned at a fishing port in Kita Ward, Niigata City. He was rescued but confirmed dead. He had come to play with two friends, and the site was a restricted area. Another boy also complained of feeling unwell, but his life is not in danger. 11

Takarazuka Municipal Hospital: manufacturer employee took patient X-ray images outside hospital On the 17th, Takarazuka Municipal Hospital announced that between September and October 2025, an employee of a medical device manufacturer who was present during surgeries photographed a total of 14 images of four patients and posted them to a group chat outside the hospital. Individual patient consent had not been obtained. 12

Man, former staff member, re-arrested on suspicion of secretly filming middle school students at soccer training camp On the 17th, Saitama Prefectural Police re-arrested Shinichi Nemoto (45), a former staff member, on suspicion of photographing two male middle school students in the changing room of a guesthouse during a soccer club training camp. He has admitted to the charge, saying it was 'to satisfy sexual desires.' More than 300 image files were found on a seized device. 13