News Headlines - 25 January 2018

▽Mount Kusatsu-Shirane: Japanese soldier killed by falling rocks after volcano erupts - CNN

A 49-year-old man has died, and at least 10 others are injured, after a volcano erupted near the popular Japanese ski resort of Kusatsu, shooting flaming rocks into the sky... The man, a member of Japan's Self Defense Force (SDF), was killed by falling volcanic rocks while participating in a training exercises on the mountain at the time of the eruption, the SDF confirmed.

▽Kyoto University says researcher at iPS institute falsified data for paper - Japan Today

Kyoto University said Monday a researcher at its iPS institute headed by Nobel Prize winner Shinya Yamanaka has engaged in "falsification and fabrication" in a paper published last year in scientific journal Stem Cell Reports.

▽Abe Will Go to PyeongChang, Despite Japan-South Korea Tensions | The Diplomat

Despite ongoing difficulties in the Japan-South Korea bilateral relationship, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will travel to PyeongChang next month for the opening of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
Abe confirmed on Wednesday that he would attend the opening ceremony of the games on February 9... Abe said that he would seek to “firmly convey Japan’s position” on the issue while in South Korea.

▽German rapper-turned-jihadi Denis Cuspert reportedly killed in Syria | DW

Renowned German jihadi Denis Cuspert has been killed in Syria, at least according to a pro-"Islamic State" propaganda news site. He's been reported dead before. But the site posted photos purporting to show his corpse.

▽Aum trials leave many questions unanswered | The Japan Times

Despite the massive amount of time spent in courtrooms and convictions that led to 13 Aum members being put on death row, however, much about the cult’s unprecedented crimes remains a mystery — such as the exact motives behind the subway gas attack and how and why the Aum followers, including highly educated youths with promising career prospects, had been drawn to the cult and came to commit the heinous crimes upon the orders of its founder and guru, Shoko Asahara.