December 22, Friday, 2023

1. Students at Major League player Ohtani Shohei’s old elementary school got the chance to check out some of the baseball gloves the star has donated to schools in Japan. Three of the gloves, two for right—handers and one for left-handers, were sent to Anetai Elementary School in Oshu City in the northeastern prefecture of Iwate. About 250 students got their first look at them after the school’s second-semester closing ceremony on Friday. 2. Japan’s government has officially decided to allow a mission of the Self-Defense Forces in Djibouti to rescue and evacuate its nationals during emergencies in the Middle East and Africa. The mission is in the eastern African nation for anti-piracy measures in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia. It also gathers information to secure the safety of ships related to Japan. 3. Japan’s Daihatsu Motor is halting production at all of its domestic plants from next week following a scandal over test data irregularities. The automaker is also considering compensation payments to parts makers it deals directly with. The move could have an impact on regional economies. Daihatsu will stop production at all four of its vehicle factories in Japan.