Japan Declares COVID State of Emergency in Tokyo Area

People wearing face masks walk near a restaurant building in a street in Tokyo on the first night of a month-long state of emergency on 8 January, 2021. Japan declared the state of emergency in Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures on Thursday, marking the country’s second “soft lockdown” after the first emergency was declared in April 2020. The government is asking restaurants and bars to close by 8 p.m., while schools, gyms, cinemas and shops remain open.