Japan restarted a nuclear reactor Friday despite a court challenge by local residents, in a boost for Tokyo's faltering post-Fukushima push to bring back atomic power.

Operator Shikoku Electric Power said it switched on the No. 3 reactor at its Ikata nuclear power plant in Ehime prefecture, about 700 kilometers (430 miles) southwest of Tokyo.

The reactor, shuttered along with dozens of others across Japan in the wake of the March 2011 Fukushima accident, was expected to be fully operational by Aug. 22.
Source : WAM