Japan looks to ease virus state of emergency ahead of Olympics

Police officers and firefighters arrive to receive their coronavirus vaccines in Tokyo (Koji Sasahara/AP)

Japan is expected to ease a coronavirus state of emergency in Tokyo and most other areas this weekend, with new daily cases falling just as the country begins to make final preparations for the Olympics starting in just over a month.

Japan has been struggling since late March to slow a wave of infections propelled by more contagious variants, with new daily cases soaring above 7,000 at one point and seriously ill patients straining hospital capacities in Tokyo, Osaka and other metropolitan areas.