Burglars also struck three stores across Japan's western metropolis of Osaka prefecture, taking roughly 200 iPhones.

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Toru Hashimoto, governor of Osaka prefecture, Japan's second-biggest industrial hub, is campaigning on a promise to build a similar megalopolis, though against opposition from local mayors.

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Ota Fusae, 48, a former official at the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, defeated two major rivals in a gubernatorial election in Osaka Prefecture to become the country's first female prefectural governor, and one of the youngest, too.

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There it is spearheading a move, already approved by the Diet, to merge the city of Osaka with the surrounding prefecture.

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That will give him some cover to announce the restarting of the Oi nuclear plant in Fukui prefecture, which powers the Kansai industrial region of which Osaka is the heart.

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