Blog

The small population of a village in Japan is now "outnumbered by puppets" - after using life-like mannequins to replace those who have left the area.Fewer than 60 people live in the southern village of Ichinono - with most of them past retirement age, as younger people have moved away for jobs or education. In an effort to heal feelings of loneliness that can come after the departure of neighbours or loved ones, the villagers have used old clothes, fabrics and mannequins to stitch together a new population of puppets.A mannequin girl wearing a beanie hat can be seen swaying gently on a wooden swing, while her friend, a boy with a big smile, stands on a scooter, ready to go.Another puppet girl in a red helmet is seen sitting on a bike nearby. Meanwhile, under leafless trees in another part...

A man has died after a boat carrying migrants deflated in the English Channel, officials say.French authorities said the man, who was Indian and around 40 years old, was on a boat that departed from Tardinghen, northern France, at 5.30am on Sunday.The boat quickly deflated after departing, and those onboard swam back to the beach, authorities said.Emergency services attempted to help the man, but he died at the scene.Authorities also said several other attempts were stopped by police on Sunday morning, including in Equihen-Plage, Calais and Sangatte.Read more:What Dover residents make of small boat crossingsMan charged after weeks-old baby dies in car crash ...

Global climate action plans are "falling miles short" of what is needed to stop climate change from "crippling" economies, the United Nations has warned.Current national climate plans submitted by 168 nations to the UN will see global emissions of greenhouse gases in 2030 just 2.6% lower than in 2019, a new report has found. This marks only "marginal progress" since the same annual "Synthesis" report last year, when 2030 emissions were forecast to be 2.0% lower than in 2019.And it is "only a fraction" of what is "urgently needed", it said, given emissions should plummet 43% by 2030 in order to stave off the worst impacts of climate change, as per the advice from UN climate science body the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).The UN's climate change chief Simon Stiell said: "Th...

A shock parliamentary election result in Japan has left the country in political limbo, after its ruling coalition suffered a rare defeat with no party winning enough seats to be given a clear mandate to lead.Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior coalition partner Komeito secured 215 seats in the lower house of parliament - 233 seats are needed to form a majority. The main opposition, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ) won 148 seats, up from 98 previously.Under the constitution, the parties now have 30 days to try to form a coalition government. There could be days or weeks of political jockeying ahead.The LDP's coalition still has a majority in the less powerful upper house. The result is a major setback for Mr Ishiba, who only beca...

An evocation of Nazism? Of course it was, and of course it wasn't.Like everything else in this election, the narrative cuts both ways. Madison Square Garden is the iconic venue in New York City for spectacle. It's a stage for the big event and lends cachet to a candidate closing out his campaign, no doubt.In appearing at MSG, Donald Trump writes himself on to the same Wikipedia page as the New York Knicks, several hundred rock concerts and two of the three Ali-Frazier fights. Image: Donald Trump set out his campaign closing message to voters in New York's Madison Square Garden Image: Melania Trump introduces her husband. Pic: Reuters Throw "Nazi" into the ...