YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — The Navy has adopted the new U.S. Forces Japan curfew policy for its sailors in the country, Commander Naval Forces Japan officials said Friday.

The decision means that servicemembers from each branch in Japan in the grades of E1-E5 will have a midnight-to-5 a.m. curfew, while higher ranks will no longer have any curfew. All servicemembers on mainland Japan are barred from drinking alcohol in public from midnight to 5 a.m., according to the USFJ policy released Wednesday.

The Navy had delayed implementation of the USFJ liberty restrictions earlier this week, pending a review.

The new regulations replace the 11 p.m.-to-5 a.m. curfew restrictions on servicemembers of all ranks issued in October, following the arrest of two sailors on Okinawa for the alleged rape of a Japanese woman. The incident touched off protests on the island, where the majority of U.S. servicemembers in Japan are based.

Servicemembers on Okinawa remain under restrictions that ban all public consumption or purchase of alcohol, and also bar servicemembers with a blood alcohol content of 0.03 or higher from leaving their bases or off-base residences.

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