Fuji TV led with a report that the GOJ is considering lifting the state of emergency for all remaining prefectures on May 25. The network said that although the number of new cases per 100,000 in the preceding week in Kanagawa would be above the government target even if there were zero new cases over the next three days, a GOJ source said that since the number of new cases is on the decline and the routes of infection are clear in most cases in both Kanagawa and Hokkaido, there is a good chance that the state of emergency will be lifted. The network added that a senior GOJ official said that the reason for moving up the date to May 25 is because the public is “reaching its limit both economically and in terms of staying home.” The GOJ is expected to make a final decision soon while carefully assessing the number of new cases this weekend. NHK gave top play to a report that the Tokyo government will release a roadmap this afternoon for the easing of its coronavirus-related restrictions, including its request for business operators to close during the state of emergency.

NTV, TBS, and TV Asahi led with reports that the cabinet approved this morning the resignation of Hiromu Kurokawa as chief of the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office after he admitted to gambling with journalists when the nation was under a state of emergency.