Japan has test-fired a missile on Japanese territory for the first time as the country accelerates its military buildup to deter China.

Japanese officials say a pod of killer whales that was trapped in drift ice off the northern main island of Hokkaido, prompting concern from environmental groups, has apparently safely escaped.

Millions of tourists flock to beaches around the world each year according to the World Travel Organization, to relax in the warmth of the sun while enjoying the sound of the waves as they hit the shoreline.

Rescuers searching since a tour boat carrying 26 people apparently sank off far northeastern Japan have found the body of an 11th victim.

Rescuers say 10 people who were retrieved from the frigid sea and the rocky coast of a northern Japanese national park had died, a day after a tour boat with 26 aboard sank in rough waters.

Dozens of Japanese tanks are participating in a major exercise on the northern island of Hokkaido in a display of military power that coincides with a recent escalation of Chinese and Russian military moves around Japanese territory.

Japan is further expanding a coronavirus state of emergency from six areas, including Tokyo, to nine as the government repeated its determination to hold the Olympics in just over two months.