Japan holds off on recognising Palestinian state, cites need for comprehensive review
Tokyo: Japan has decided not to recognise a Palestinian state for now, opting instead to continue its review of the issue amid pressure from both allies and international partners.
According to a report in the Asahi Shimbun, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will skip a United Nations General Assembly meeting this month that will focus on Palestinian statehood. The decision, citing unnamed government sources, underscores Japan’s cautious stance.
Japan’s position currently aligns with the United States, which has rejected calls for recognition. This contrasts with several Group of Seven (G7) members, including France, Britain, Canada, and Australia, which have announced plans to recognise Palestine during the UN assembly to step up pressure on Israel. In contrast, Germany and Italy have described immediate recognition as “counterproductive.”
The Asahi report suggested that Japan’s decision was influenced by its efforts to maintain strong ties with the United States and avoid provoking a harder stance from Israel. U.S. officials reportedly urged Tokyo not to proceed with recognition, while France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot lobbied Japan to support the move, Kyodo news agency reported last week.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya confirmed on Tuesday that Japan was conducting “a comprehensive assessment, including appropriate timing and modalities, of the issue of recognising Palestinian statehood.” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi echoed this statement on Wednesday when asked about the report.
Despite holding back on recognition, Hayashi voiced grave concern over Israel’s military operations in Gaza, warning that “the very foundations of a two-state solution could be collapsing.” He urged Israel to take steps to end the worsening humanitarian crisis, including famine.
At a UN session last Friday, Japan voted in favour of a declaration calling for “tangible, timebound, and irreversible steps” toward a two-state solution. However, Prime Minister Ishiba is expected to skip the related meeting on September 22 in New York.
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Syndicate extorting money from Rajasthan bus conductors for decades dismantled, 8 held
Kota(Rajasthan) (PTI): Police busted a syndicate that allegedly extorted money from Rajasthan Roadways bus conductors by forcing them to charge passengers without issuing tickets, even as they offered the conductors protection from vigilance checks, officials said.
Jhalawar Police carried out simultaneous raids across 12 districts and arrested eight people, including the gang leader, Narendra Singh Rajawat, an independent ward councillor in Jhalawar.
With this, the decades-long operations of the gang, which has caused substantial loss to the state transport corporation, has been dismantled, they said.
As part of 'Operation Clean Ride', police also captured the exchange of money on video in a sting operation, a senior officer said on Saturday.
Since the gang would pass on messages regarding vigilance teams to the bus conductors through STD phone booths in the early days of its operation, it came be known as the 'STD Gang'.
The gang threatened roadways staff with false complaints of corruption for not issuing tickets to passengers and job termination if the payments were not made.
The gang allegedly facilitated "large-scale ticketless travel" and shared "confidential vigilance information", resulting in heavy revenue loss to the state, police said.
Police claimed the gang's activities caused revenue losses of up to 40 per cent at certain locations.
Speaking in detail on the matter on Saturday, Jhalawar Superintendent of Police Amit Kumar said following a confidential complaint received on December 24, 2025, police began a discreet investigation.
Technical evidence, call detail records and UPI transaction details were collected by the probe team. A sting operation was conducted that recorded members of the accepting illegal payments from conductors at different bus stands.
Based on the findings, a coordinated raid plan was executed, and all arrests were made simultaneously so that they would have no time to flee or destroy evidence.
Police arrested eight accused, including gang leader Narendra Singh Rajawat. Rs 11,57,980 in cash, three cars, two motorcycles, one laptop, 15 mobile phones, a spy camera pen, roadways identity cards, STD diaries, bus security slips, passbooks, cheque books and several other documents were seized from them.
Additional detentions were made with the help of local police in Ajmer, Tonk, Chittorgarh, Jodhpur, Pratapgarh, Jaipur, Banswara, Kota and Agar in Madhya Pradesh for further investigation, the SP said.
Police said the syndicate had been operating in a structured and organised manner for several years. They allegedly collected between Rs 50 and Rs 200 per conductor per trip and Rs 1,200 to Rs 2,500 per bus in exchange for bypassing checks and suppressing violations.
Conductors who refused to pay were allegedly targeted through vigilance complaints and harassment, the officer said.
The probe also revealed that multiple criminal cases had earlier been registered against members of the gang in different police stations for offences including obstruction of public servants, assault, criminal intimidation and violations under the IPC and SC/ST Act. Several of these cases are currently pending trial in court.
The SP said police are coordinating with Rajasthan Roadways management for further investigation and to set up preventive measures for the future.
'Operation Clean Ride' involved district special teams, cyber teams and police personnel from multiple districts. Further investigation is underway to identify others involved in the syndicate and assess the total revenue loss caused, police said.
