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Coronavirus

Japan PM declares emergency, vows to control COVID in month

Restrictions take effect at midnight as Tokyo logs 2,400 cases for first time

Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Jan. 7. (Photo by Uichiro Kasai)

TOKYO -- Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga declared a coronavirus state of emergency on Thursday, asking Tokyo-area bars and restaurants to close early and residents to stay home at night as he vowed to rein in rising cases in a month.

The move came as the number of new cases in Tokyo jumped to a record 2,447 the same day. It was only a week ago that the daily total surpassed 1,000 for the first time. The accelerating pace has unnerved the country and made virus containment a top political priority.

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