Japan extends Covid-19 states of emergency ahead of Olympics

Japan was set on Friday to extend a state of emergency in some areas of the country, including Tokyo, until 20 June to try to bring coronavirus cases down.

Less than two months away from the start of the Summer Olympic Games, Japan is struggling to ease the strains on the national healthcare system as the pandemic shows no signs of easing.

The country has seen a record number of Covid-19 patients in critical condition in recent days, even as the number of new infections has slowed.

"In Osaka and Tokyo, the flow of people is starting to creep up, and there are concerns that infections will rise," Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, who also heads the country's coronavirus countermeasures, said at the start of a meeting with experts.

It is expected that the extension of the state of emergency will be announced later on Friday.

Japanese officials, Olympics organisers and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have said the Games would go ahead under strict virus-prevention measures.

At the moment, only 6% of Japan's population has been vaccinated, according to Reuters data. Nonetheless, officials in Tokyo expect that number to rise to about 30% by the end of July.