In-depth News Features | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

A year after a powerful earthquake ravaged Japan's Noto Peninsula, residents of one historic neighborhood are banding together to expedite repairs to the centuries-old shrine they consider the heart of their community.

A remote island in western Japan is a spiritual home for sumo wrestling. For hundreds of years, a competition in Shimane Prefecture's Okinoshima town has honored a local deity. Among more than 200 people who took part in the latest event were wrestlers from Poland who discovered that the sacred ritual is far more than just a sport.

Nobel Peace Prize-winning economist Muhammad Yunus has a new challenge: The political novice took the helm of an interim Bangladeshi government after a surge of student protests culminated in the ousting of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. In an exclusive interview with NHK World's Mitamura Taro in New York, Yunus shared his vision for his country's future. This is the full transcript of the interview.

South Korean pop star group New Jeans surprised fans at its Tokyo concert with a cover of a beloved Japanese '80s hit, sparking a viral buzz back home. NHK World's Aoki Yoshiyuki unpacks why Japanese pop from the 1970s and '80s is enjoying a major revival in South Korea.

NHK interviewed a former prisoner of war who experienced brutality after being captured by Russian forces. His suffering is not unique, according to a United Nations' report based on interviews with hundreds of current and former detainees on both sides. The report claims Russia is carrying out "systematic torture" of Ukrainian prisoners.

Perry Link is a leading sinologist with a deep knowledge of Chinese language and culture, and more than half a century of expertise in US-China relations. During the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident, he helped shelter a prominent Chinese intellectual at the US embassy in Beijing.

Although he has been banned from entering China, Link has kept in touch with many of the country’s activists and intellectuals. He sat down with NHK World's Yoshioka Takuma to talk about the goals of the Chinese Communist Party, and the importance of engagement outside of politics and business.

The interview has been edited for clarity.

US President-elect Donald Trump won over voters in some surprising places, including reliably blue cities like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. NHK World's Inoue Yuki takes a closer look at Trump's success amid this swing to red in some of New York's most diverse districts.

Osaka is the first city in Asia to host the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association's (IGLTA) annual global conference, cementing Japan as a dream destination for a diverse range of travelers.

About 600 influencers, travel agents, tourism officials, hoteliers, and other industry figures from around the world took in the sights and sounds of Osaka during October.

Many tourists who arrive in Japan put climbing Mount Fuji high on their list of things to do. This summer they were back in big numbers to tackle the country's most iconic peak.

Often they find themselves in the care of mountain guide Passang Lama Bhotia from Nepal, who fell in love with Mount Fuji as a child and moved over to Japan as an adult to pursue his dream.

Intractable divisions at the UN Security Council have drawn criticism from UN chief Antonio Guterres, and deepened a sense of disillusionment about the body's ability to resolve the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, among other urgent matters. NHK heard from two experts about proposals to improve the fairness and functioning of the council and the challenges that stand in the way of change.