Tokyo Olympic Games: No fans at events as state of emergency announced

The state of emergency will last until 22 August

Japan has declared a state of emergency in Tokyo which will run throughout the Olympic Games.

It's due to rising coronavirus infections in the city.

Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said it would remain in place until 22 August, but he did not give details on the restrictions.

The Games' organisers have confirmed the decision means that no fans will be allowed at the Games.

The Olympic Games are scheduled to take place in the Japanese capital between 23 July and 8 August. The Paralympic Games are between 24 August and 5 September.

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The Games were supposed to take place last year but were postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

There have been calls for the Games to be postponed or cancelled again due to the ongoing Covid-19 situation in the country.

Japan's vaccination rollout has been slow, and just over 15% of the country is fully vaccinated. There is rising concern over the threat of the Delta variant.

In Tokyo and Osaka, the two cities hit hardest by the recent increase in cases, authorities hope over-65s will be fully vaccinated by the end of July.

A June poll in the leading Asahi Shimbun newspaper suggested more than 80% of the population want the Games cancelled or postponed - the paper called for them to be cancelled.

Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said: "Taking into consideration the effect of coronavirus variants and not to let the infections spread again to the rest of the nation, we need to strengthen our countermeasures.

"Given the situation, we will issue a state of emergency for Tokyo."