Japan considers expanding areas covered by emergency declaration

Gion district is quiet in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture on April 15, 2020. /AP

The Japanese government is considering expanding the list of prefectures covered by Japan's state of emergency declaration over the coronavirus outbreak, Kyodo News reported, citing an official on Thursday.

The expansion, possibly including Kyoto, Hokkaido and Aichi, will be discussed later this week by a government panel of experts on communicable diseases, said the report.

On April 7, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a month-long state of emergency over the spread of the coronavirus in Japan covering Tokyo and six other prefectures for a period of about a month.