News Headlines - 24 August 2020

▽Abe hits history books with 2,799 consecutive days as prime minister : The Asahi Shimbun

Shinzo Abe marked a record 2,799 straight days in office on Aug. 24 as the longest-serving prime minister in the nation's constitutional history amid mounting concerns about the state of his health.
The milestone in terms of a single run in the job surpasses the previous record set by his great-uncle, Eisaku Sato, who served as prime minister from 1964 to 1972. Sato's main achievement was regaining sovereignty of Okinawa in his last year.
With more than a year remaining in his term as president of the Liberal Democratic Party, Abe, 65, is on course to extend a record that is bound to stand for many years.

▽Abe returns to hospital on day he becomes Japan's longest-serving PM

On the day he became Japan's longest-serving prime minister in terms of consecutive days in office, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe revisited Monday a Tokyo hospital where a week ago he underwent what an aide called "a regular health checkup."
Abe, 65, said he went to Keio University Hospital to be informed about his previous checkup results and undergo additional tests, a government official said.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, seen in this undated file photo, became Japan's longest-serving prime minister in terms of consecutive days in office on Aug. 24, 2020, marking 2,799 uninterrupted days as premier and breaking the previous record held by his great uncle Eisaku Sato. (Kyodo)
Reiterating his determination to keep working as the nation's leader amid speculation about his health, he also thanked the Japanese people for giving him strong support in elections in remarks to reporters following the four-hour visit.

▽Japan's Takeda Sells Drugs Subsidiary to US Blackstone Fund - The New York Times

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. is selling its subsidiary in Japan focused on consumer healthcare to U.S. investment fund Blackstone Group.
The deal, announced Monday by the Japanese drugs manufacturer, is valued at 242 billion yen ($2.3 billion), although the exact sales price will be determined later, after adjustments for debt and capital of the subsidiary, Takeda Consumer Healthcare Co.
The deal will likely be completed by March 2021, according to Tokyo-based Takeda.

▽Venezuela says most-used border crossing from Colombia is now open - Reuters

Venezuela on Friday said its most-used crossing along the border with Colombia was now open following a brief closure this morning for disinfection, after Colombian migration authorities earlier said it had been closed... Colombia is a top destination for Venezuelans fleeing the political, economic and social crisis in their country. Some 1.7 million Venezuelans reside in Colombia.
Since March, when Colombia declared a national lockdown to combat the new coronavirus, around 100,000 Venezuelans have returned home.
Another 40,000 are waiting to cross the border, according to Colombian migration authorities, amid weekly limits by Venezuelan authorities on the number of citizens allowed to return.

▽22-year-old panda gives birth to cub in Washington | NHK WORLD

The oldest giant panda in the United States has given birth to a cub. Mei Xiang, at 22, reportedly became the second oldest panda in the world to do so.
The cub was born at the Smithsonian's National Zoo in Washington. It is the first baby giant panda in the US capital in five years.
Zoo officials say Mei Xiang showed signs of pregnancy last month, and that zookeepers confirmed the birth as she was seen nursing the newborn cub last Friday.