Japan may lift state of emergency for Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo this week www.japantimes.co.jp

Japan is considering lifting a state of emergency in Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo later this week as the number of new coronavirus infections in each of the three prefectures has remained low, government officials said Tuesday.
The eight remaining prefectures include Tokyo, Osaka and five prefectures in their respective regions — as well as Hokkaido — covering nearly half of the country’s population.
The government will decide whether to lift the emergency by group, the officials said.
I believe the metropolitan area will aim to lift the emergency at the end of the month,” a source close to Abe said.
Another government source did not rule out the possibility of the state of emergency ending for all eight prefectures Thursday.