Vox Sentences - SpaceX round 3

• Japanese cities Tokyo and Osaka have been placed in states of emergency by Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide. This is the third lockdown for Tokyo since the onset of the pandemic, but at two weeks, it is set to be the shortest. Last year, lockdowns lasted for seven weeks. [Bloomberg / Isabel Reynolds and Lisa Du]
• The spread shows little sign of slowing, though, fueled by a new variant. The nationwide tally of new infections sat at above 5,000 for the third consecutive day Friday, led by Osaka’s 1,000 and Tokyo’s 759. All told, Japan has reported 500,000 cases since last February, and 10,000 deaths. [The Hill / Lexi Lonas]
• The lockdown is less strict than previous ones, as it is meant primarily to cap any surge in cases Japan might face amid its annual Golden Week celebration. Spectators will be barred from concerts or sporting events. Restaurants will be forced to close after 8 pm and buses to limit passengers. [Kyodo News / Ryotaro Nakamura]
• It’s all part of a goal to make sure Japan can remain in a position to host the Summer Olympics, postponed from 2020 and set to begin just three months from now. Prime Minister Suga has faced criticism for, some say, caring more about the Olympics than about safety. [Reuters / Chang-ran Kim]
• This isn't the only Olympic news that made waves this week. On Wednesday, the International Olympic Committee announced that taking a knee or raising a fist while inside an Olympic stadium will continue to be against the rules in 2021. The Rule of 50, which bans Olympic athletes from any "demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda," was overwhelmingly reapproved by IOC-consulted athletes. [Reuters / Karolos Grohmann]

[Independent / Danielle Zoellner]

• Louisiana is no longer asking for full shipments of Covid-19 vaccine doses, and many counties in Kansas are turning down more doses as demand becomes even lower than supply in some red states. [AP / Leah Willingham, Heather Hollingsworth, and Michelle R. Smith]
• President Joe Biden will hit 100 days in office next week. He spent his first quarter as president helping over 200 million Americans get vaccinated, passing a massive Covid relief bill, pitching two infrastructure packages, and introducing a slew of executive orders meant to curtail the use of guns. [FiveThirtyEight]
• Iran is facing its worst wave of Covid-19 yet as the country continues to grapple with American sanctions issued by the Trump administration and not yet waived by Biden. [AP / Nasser Karimi and Aya Batrawy]
• When a container ship got stuck in the Suez Canal last month, blocking a major international shipping route, it led to a shortage of an unexpected item: garden gnomes. [New York Daily News / Theresa Braine]