Search ended at mall wrecked by Japan quake blast

TOKYO: Japanese officials said on Saturday (Aug 1) they had ended rescue operations at a shopping mall devastated by an explosion following a powerful earthquake that killed at least 36 people.A total of 12 people were pulled from the site, including seven who were confirmed dead, according to the disaster management office of the Kumamoto region, hit by the 7.1-magnitude jolt on Tuesday."We conducted a thorough search over the past two days in collaboration with the fire service, the Self-Defence Forces, and other regional police units", to ensure no one remained missing, a police official told a disaster management meeting on Saturday."We found no such individual," he added. A spokesperson for Aeon, operators of the mall, told AFP that the seven people who died were employees of tenant s