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15th anniversary of 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake

The monument to the "Miracle Pine," the only tree in a coastal forest that was not flattened by the deadly tsunami of March 2011 in northeastern Japan, is pictured in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, in the early hours of March 9, 2026, two days ahead of the 15th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake.

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Seif El Islam Gaddafi appears for a media tour - Tripoli

Seif El Islam Gaddafi ©, son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi meets with reporters at Bab Al Aziziya barracks, in Tripoli, Libya, on the early hours of August 23, 2011, a day after the fall of the Libyan capital and the announce of Seif's capture by rebels. Pool photo via Balkis Press/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Tanabata festival in Sendai

Paper cranes folded by people wishing for the early reconstruction from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster in eastern Japan are hung in front of a department store in Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Aug. 6, 2025, as the annual Sendai Tanabata Festival begins for a three-day run.

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Tanabata festival in Sendai

Paper cranes folded by people wishing for the early reconstruction from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster in eastern Japan are hung in front of a department store in Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Aug. 6, 2025, as the annual Sendai Tanabata Festival begins for a three-day run.

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Wang Biao (L) and one of his apprentices select cowhide, a raw material for shadow play puppets, at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to gi

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

People watch a shadow play at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and schools. In 2004, he led his troupe

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

An apprentice of Wang Biao arranges shadow play puppets at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and school

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Wang Biao performs a shadow play at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and schools. In 2004, he led his

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Young audiences try their hands on shadow play performance at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and sch

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Wang Biao colors a shadow play puppet at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and schools. In 2004, he led

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

This photo taken on on February 19, 2025 shows a shadow play puppet displayed at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and school

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Wang Biao demonstrates shadow play puppet manipulating skills at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Wang Biao (L) instructs one of his apprentices during a shadow play practice session at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performan

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

An apprentice of Wang Biao colors a shadow play puppet at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and schools

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Shadow Play Inheritor Of Langzhong - China

Wang Biao (R) and one of his apprentices perform a shadow play at a museum for Wang's Shadow Play art in Langzhong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on February 19, 2025. Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is a traditional Chinese folk art inscribed in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2011. Wang's Shadow Play is a representative genre of Langzhong Shadow Play popular in northern Sichuan in southwest China, originated with artist Wang Yuansheng during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and has been passed on between generations since then. Wang Biao, 60, a seventh-generation inheritor of Wang's Shadow Play, takes preserving and promoting the art as his life-time course. Wang Biao started to learn the art from his grandfather in his early childhood, and he followed him to stage performances all over the country in the 1980s. He restarted his shadow play troupe in Chengdu despite a shrinking audience for this art in 2000, and started to give performances at local parks and

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US Navy Shoots Down Its Own F/A-18 In Red Sea Fight

Handout photo dated November 1, 2011 shows an F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Argonauts of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 147 catapults from the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) in the Pacific Ocean. A U.S. Navy cruiser shot down a Navy F/A-18 fighter jet over the Red Sea early Sunday morning, U.S. Central Command said. The F/A-18 was shot by weapons from the guided-missile cruiser the USS Gettysburg after taking off from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on Dec. 22. Both Navy aviators were able to eject from the fighter jet and were recovered safely. One of the two sustained minor injuries, according to CENTCOM. The USS Gettysburg “mistakenly fired on” the F/A-18, CENTCOM said. The shoot down happened amid a weekend of military action against the Houthis, a militant Yemeni nationalist group that controls much of Yemen, including the capital. American and British aircraft have been bombing targets in Sana’a since Saturday. The incident is under investigation. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Comm

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US Navy Shoots Down Its Own F/A-18 In Red Sea Fight

Handout photo dated March 18, 2011 of an F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Blue Blasters of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 34 launches from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Pacific Ocean. A U.S. Navy cruiser shot down a Navy F/A-18 fighter jet over the Red Sea early Sunday morning, U.S. Central Command said. The F/A-18 was shot by weapons from the guided-missile cruiser the USS Gettysburg after taking off from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on Dec. 22. Both Navy aviators were able to eject from the fighter jet and were recovered safely. One of the two sustained minor injuries, according to CENTCOM. The USS Gettysburg “mistakenly fired on” the F/A-18, CENTCOM said. The shoot down happened amid a weekend of military action against the Houthis, a militant Yemeni nationalist group that controls much of Yemen, including the capital. American and British aircraft have been bombing targets in Sana’a since Saturday. The incident is under investigation. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specia

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US Navy Shoots Down Its Own F/A-18 In Red Sea Fight

Handout photo dated June 18, 2011 shows an F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Argonauts of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 147 launches near F/A-18C Hornets aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) in the Arabian Sea. A U.S. Navy cruiser shot down a Navy F/A-18 fighter jet over the Red Sea early Sunday morning, U.S. Central Command said. The F/A-18 was shot by weapons from the guided-missile cruiser the USS Gettysburg after taking off from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on Dec. 22. Both Navy aviators were able to eject from the fighter jet and were recovered safely. One of the two sustained minor injuries, according to CENTCOM. The USS Gettysburg “mistakenly fired on” the F/A-18, CENTCOM said. The shoot down happened amid a weekend of military action against the Houthis, a militant Yemeni nationalist group that controls much of Yemen, including the capital. American and British aircraft have been bombing targets in Sana’a since Saturday. The incident is under investigation. U.S. Navy p

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US Navy Shoots Down Its Own F/A-18 In Red Sea Fight

Handout photo dated July 18, 2011 shows An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to the Black Knights of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 154 lands aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) in the Gulf of Aden. A U.S. Navy cruiser shot down a Navy F/A-18 fighter jet over the Red Sea early Sunday morning, U.S. Central Command said. The F/A-18 was shot by weapons from the guided-missile cruiser the USS Gettysburg after taking off from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on Dec. 22. Both Navy aviators were able to eject from the fighter jet and were recovered safely. One of the two sustained minor injuries, according to CENTCOM. The USS Gettysburg “mistakenly fired on” the F/A-18, CENTCOM said. The shoot down happened amid a weekend of military action against the Houthis, a militant Yemeni nationalist group that controls much of Yemen, including the capital. American and British aircraft have been bombing targets in Sana’a since Saturday. The incident is under investigation. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Commun

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[Breaking News]Japanese children wish for peace in Gaza

KAMAISHI, Japan Kyodo - A child flies a kite in Kamaishi in Iwate Prefecture on Jan. 8, 2024, with a message wishing for peace in Gaza written on it. About 30 children took part in the event in the northeastern Japan city hit by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, launched after people in Gaza flew kites in 2012 to wish for Japan's early recovery from the disaster. (Kyodo)

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Japanese children wish for peace in Gaza

A child flies a kite in Kamaishi in Iwate Prefecture on Jan. 8, 2024, with a message wishing for peace in Gaza written on it. About 30 children took part in the event in the northeastern Japan city hit by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, launched after people in Gaza flew kites in 2012 to wish for Japan's early recovery from the disaster.

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CORRECTED: Cherry blossoms in nuclear disaster-hit Fukushima town

Cherry trees in full bloom are pictured in early morning light at Yonomori area in the Fukushima prefectural town of Tomioka, northeastern Japan, on April 1, 2023. An evacuation order for the district that had been in place since the March 2011 accident at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was lifted the same day.

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CORRECTED: Cherry blossoms in nuclear disaster-hit Fukushima town

Cherry trees in full bloom are pictured in early morning light at Yonomori area in the Fukushima prefectural town of Tomioka, northeastern Japan, on April 1, 2023. An evacuation order for the district that had been in place since the March 2011 accident at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was lifted the same day.

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CHINA-SICHUAN-GEOLOGICAL EXPERT-WU XICHUN (CN)

(230320) -- CHENGDU, March 20, 2023 (Xinhua) -- This file photo taken in 2011 shows Wu Xichun observing a slice of a fossil sponge with a microscope at the laboratory. Wu Xichun is a professor at the College of Energy of the Chengdu University of Technology and an expert in geology. In the early 1970s, while conducting a geological mapping survey in the northwestern part of Sichuan Province, Wu unexpectedly discovered a reef group formed by Triassic siliceous hexactinellid sponges. Since then, he has devoted himself to the study on sponge reefs for nearly five decades. In order to study foreign literature, Wu mastered English, Russian, and German, and taught himself Latin, Greek, and Old French. He spent years conducting tens of times of on-site investigations at the discovery area to obtain more accurate research results and brought back dozens of pounds of fossils by himself. To clarify the reproduction and migration of hexactinellid sponges, Wu also brought the fossils abroad for more in-depth compar

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JAPAN-TOKYO-PROTEST-NUCLEAR-CONTAMINATED WASTEWATER

(230312) -- TOKYO, March 12, 2023 (Xinhua) -- A sign that reads "do not dump contaminated wastewater into the sea" is pictured during a protest near the headquarters of Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) in Tokyo, Japan, March 11, 2023. Saturday marks the 12th year after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake hit northeast Japan, which is also known in the country as the Great East Japan Earthquake. On March 11, 2011, an ensuing tsunami also led to core meltdowns at the Fukushima power plant operated by TEPCO, resulting in a level-7 nuclear accident. The Japanese government said in January that starting in this spring or summer, over 1 million tons of radioactive wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant will be released into the Pacific. In front of the TEPCO headquarters in Tokyo, a large number of people gathered early Saturday to express their strong opposition to the discharge plan by holding various banners and signs, or handing out leaflets. TO GO WITH "Feature: 12 years after Fukushima quake, Ja

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Weak euro, dollar vs yen

TOKYO, Japan - A display in Tokyo shows the euro trading at 99.97-100.05 yen (2nd column) in the early hours of Dec. 31, 2011. The top column shows the dollar trading at 76.99-77.02 yen.

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Futenma report delivered to Okinawa Pref. office

NAHA, Japan - Cardboard boxes containing a key environmental impact assessment report are seen piled up in the janitor's room of the Okinawa prefectural hall at 5:49 a.m. on Dec. 28, 2011. The Defense Ministry managed to deliver the report on relocating the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station within Okinawa Prefecture to the prefectural government office early in the morning after failing to do so earlier due to opposition from local residents. The report was delivered shortly after 4 a.m. to the prefectural government office in Naha.

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Futenma report delivered to Okinawa Pref. office

NAHA, Japan - Protesters sit in the corridor in front of the janitor's room in the Okinawa prefectural hall where a key environmental impact assessment report was delivered on Dec. 28, 2011. The Defense Ministry managed to deliver the report on relocating the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station within Okinawa Prefecture to the prefectural government office early in the morning after failing to do so earlier due to opposition from local residents. The report reached the prefectural government office in Naha shortly after 4 a.m.

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Visitors to huge belt conveyor get sunflower seeds

RIKUZENTAKATA, Japan - A tourist association in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, offers bottles of sunflower seeds, as shown in this file photo taken on Nov. 11, 2014, to participants in a tour of a huge belt conveyor seen as a symbol of reconstruction work from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Association officials hope visitors will remember the city when sunflowers bloom in early summer.

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3 sumo grand champions visit quake-hit region

IWAKI, Japan - A trio of yokozuna (grand champions) -- (from L, front row) Kakuryu, Hakuho and Harumafuji -- pose with visitors to a gymnasium in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, in an annual sumo event to pray for early reconstruction from the 2011 quake and tsunami that hit northeastern Japan.

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California nuclear plant

TOKYO, Japan - A March 2011 file photo shows the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in southern California in the United States. Electric utility Southern California Edison announced on June 7, 2013, that two reactors at the plant taken offline in early 2012 due to faulty steam generators made by a Japanese manufacturer will be shut down for good.

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Oi plant's No. 4 reactor starts capacity operation

OBAMA, Japan - Photo from a Kyodo News helicopter shows the No. 4 reactor building (right) at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, on July 25, 2012. The reactor, which is the second to go back online after all of Japan's commercial reactors were taken offline for regular checks in the wake of the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident, started full-capacity power generation early on July 25 to ease electricity shortages in western Japan. The building housing the No. 3 reactor, the first to resume operation, is seen to the left.

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Oi plant's No. 4 reactor starts capacity operation

OBAMA, Japan - Photo from a Kyodo News helicopter shows the No. 4 reactor building (front) at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, on July 25, 2012. The reactor, which is the second to go back online after all of Japan's commercial reactors were taken offline for regular checks in the wake of the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident, started full-capacity power generation early on July 25 to ease electricity shortages in western Japan. The building housing the No. 3 reactor, the first to resume operation, is seen in the back.

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Day following reactor reboot at Oi nuclear plant

OI, Japan - Security guards stand near the entrance to Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan coast, on July 2, 2012. The No. 3 reactor at the plant attained a suspended nuclear fission chain reaction, or criticality, early in the day after it became the previous night the first reactor in Japan to be rebooted after regular checkups since 2011's Fukushima nuclear crisis.

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Oi nuclear plant's No. 3 reactor attains criticality

OI, Japan - Photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter on July 2, 2012, shows the No. 3 reactor building at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan coast. The No. 3 reactor attained a suspended nuclear fission chain reaction, or criticality, early in the day after it became the previous night the first reactor in Japan to be rebooted after regular checkups since 2011's Fukushima nuclear crisis.

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Oi nuclear plant's No. 3 reactor attains criticality

OI, Japan - Photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter on July 2, 2012, shows the No. 3 reactor building (R) at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan coast. The No. 3 reactor attained a suspended nuclear fission chain reaction, or criticality, early in the day after it became the previous night the first reactor in Japan to be rebooted after regular checkups since 2011's Fukushima nuclear crisis.

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Oi nuclear plant's No. 3 reactor attains criticality

OI, Japan - Employees work on the morning of July 2, 2012, in the central control room at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Oi nuclear power plant in the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan coast, after the No. 3 reactor at the plant attained a suspended nuclear fission chain reaction, or criticality, early in the day. It became the previous night the first reactor in Japan to be rebooted after regular checkups since 2011's Fukushima nuclear crisis. (Pool photo)

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Former Prime Minister Kan

TOKYO, Japan - Undated file photo shows former Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan. Kan verbally lashed Tokyo Electric Power Co. officials shortly after the hydrogen explosions at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in March 2011, ordering them to contain the crisis at all costs, company records showed March 15, 2012. ''It doesn't matter if the company executives aged around 60 die at the accident site. I'm going, too,'' Kan is quoted as saying, during his visit to TEPCO's headquarters in the early hours of March 15, 2011.

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Transport ministry mulling random body search of airport passengers

NARITA, Japan - Photo shows a security check area in the international departure lobby at Narita airport near Tokyo on Dec. 22, 2011. The transport ministry is considering strengthening antiterrorism measures at international airports in Japan from as early as April by conducting body searches on randomly selected passengers, according to airport sources.

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Finance minister Azumi at press conference

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi speaks at a press conference at the Finance Ministry in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2011, after the Cabinet of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda agreed on the initial budget for fiscal 2012 the same day. The government plans to submit the draft budget to parliament in early 2012.

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TEPCO to raise electricity bills

TOKYO, Japan - Toshio Nishizawa, president of Tokyo Electric Power Co., speaks during a news conference at the company's head office in Tokyo on Dec. 22, 2011. Nishizawa said the company has decided to raise electricity charges for corporate users from next April and will also seek household electricity bill hikes at an early date in the face of its increasingly tough business environment.

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Climate talks reach accord

DURBAN, South Africa - Xie Zhenhua (L), vice chairman of China's National Development and Reform Commission, and Todd Stern (R), U.S. climate talks envoy, are pictured at the U.N. climate talks in Durban, South Africa, in the early hours of Dec. 11, 2011. The 17th Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP17, agreed to launch a new framework in 2020 including major emitters China and the United States aimed at tackling greenhouse gas emissions, while extending the Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012.

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Climate talks reach accord

DURBAN, South Africa - Participants applaud as the U.N. climate talks reach an accord in Durban, South Africa, in the early hours of Dec. 11, 2011. The 17th Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP17, agreed to launch a new framework in 2020 including major emitters China and the United States aimed at tackling greenhouse gas emissions, while extending the Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012.

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Climate talks reach accord

DURBAN, South Africa - Christiana Figueres (front L), executive secretary of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, and South African foreign minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane hug after the U.N. climate talks reached an accord in Durban, South Africa, in the early hours of Dec. 11, 2011. The 17th Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP17, agreed to launch a new framework in 2020 including major emitters China and the United States aimed at tackling greenhouse gas emissions, while extending the Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012.

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Lunar eclipse observed in Tokyo

TOKYO, Japan - Photo taken in Tokyo at 9:50 p.m. on Dec. 10, 2011, shows the moon in an early stage of a total lunar eclipse. The phenomenon is observed when the Earth passes between the sun and moon, casting its shadow over the moon.

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South African foreign minister Nkoana-Mashabane

DURBAN, South Africa - South African foreign minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane (L) attends an informal meeting at the 17th Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Durban, South Africa, in the early hours of Dec. 10, 2011.

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Gov't, DPJ agree to lower car weight tax

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda (R) speaks at the prime minister's office in Tokyo early on Dec. 10, 2011, after receiving a set of tax policy change proposals for fiscal 2012. The government and the ruling Democratic Party of Japan agreed to lower the car weight tax.

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Murals of Okto-ri tomb in Nampho, N. Korea

TOKYO, Japan - Photo taken in October 2011 shows murals on stone chamber walls -- men and women clad in ethnic costumes on the east wall and a design consisting of Chinese characters, pronounced ''tae (dae)'' and ''wang'' in Korean on the north wall -- at the Okto-ri tomb in Nampho, North Korea. The tomb dating back to the late fourth century to the early fifth century during the Koguryo dynasty was excavated in 2010 and disclosed to the foreign media for the first time in October 2011.

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Murals of Okto-ri tomb in Nampho, N. Korea

TOKYO, Japan - Photo taken in October 2011 shows murals on a stone chamber's east wall which depict men and women in ethnic costumes, some of them dancing, at the Okto-ri tomb in Nampho, North Korea. The tomb dating back to the late fourth century to the early fifth century during the Koguryo dynasty was excavated in 2010 and disclosed to the foreign media for the first time in October 2011.

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Okto-ri tomb in Nampho, N. Korea

TOKYO, Japan - A man walks into the Okto-ri tomb in Nampho, North Korea, which was disclosed to the foreign media for the first time in October 2011. The tomb dating back to the late fourth century to the early fifth century during the Koguryo dynasty was excavated in 2010.