Japan will soon bid a final farewell to the country's longest-serving prime minister with a state funeral. Abe Shinzo was shot and killed during a political rally in July.

More than 4,000 people will gather at the Nippon Budokan arena in central Tokyo. Prime Minister Kishida Fumio will speak, along with the heads of the Upper and Lower Houses, as well as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Former Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide will also deliver a eulogy on behalf of Abe's friends.

People in Japan have been placing flowers on altars to honor former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo since Tuesday morning.

Two altars have been set up at Kudanzaka Park, which is located near Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo. Abe's state funeral will be held at Nippon Budokan on Tuesday afternoon.

More than 4,000 people will gather for former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo's state funeral in Tokyo on Tuesday. Abe was shot and killed during an election campaign speech in July.

Speakers at the funeral include Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, the heads of Japan's Lower and Upper Houses and the Supreme Court's Chief Justice.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has held talks with US Vice President Kamala Harris. She arrived in Tokyo on Monday to attend the state funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo on Tuesday.

Their meeting was held on Monday evening at the State Guest House in central Tokyo.

Security is being tightened around the venue of the state funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo. The funeral will take place at Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo on Tuesday.

Tokyo police have deployed tens of thousands of officers around the hall and elsewhere.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government says it confirmed 6,316 new cases of the coronavirus on Monday.

The daily tally climbed more than 2,200 from a week ago.

US Vice President Kamala Harris has arrived in Japan to attend the state funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo on Tuesday.

Harris flew in to the US military's Yokota Air Base in Tokyo on Monday. It is her first visit to Japan since taking office in January of last year.

Police in Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, have found a charred object in the building housing Japan's main ruling Liberal Democratic Party's prefectural chapter.

They started investigating the incident as an attempted arson.

A city in central Japan is counting on a well-known figure of a friendly cat to attract visitors.

Ise holds an annual event at the Okage Yokocho shopping alley near the city's famous shrine.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio is holding a series of separate talks with foreign dignitaries visiting Japan for Tuesday's state funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo.

About 40 meetings are scheduled over the three days through Wednesday.

Japan on Monday expands a simplified system for reporting coronavirus cases to cover medical institutions across the country in order to reduce their burden.

The conventional reporting system required the facilities to enter the records of all infected people they have identified into a state-run computer network.

A Japan-South Korea cultural exchange festival has taken place in Seoul, welcoming people back for the first time in three years.

The festival is held annually by an organizing committee that includes Japanese and South Korean businesses.

Tokyo police have tightened security as many foreign dignitaries are arriving in Japan to attend the state funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo on Tuesday.

Roughly 20,000 police officers will be deployed to ramp up security for the funeral at Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo.

New footage of the Beatles has been made public in Japan. The footage captured scenes of intense police security when the Fab Four visited Japan to perform in more than 55 years ago. Some contained never-before-seen footage.

The video was released in July to a nonprofit organization, which made an information disclosure request to the Metropolitan Police Department in 2015.