Fumio Kishida was evacuated after an explosion occurred as he was about to deliver a speech. A man was arrested.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is safe after being evacuated following an explosion as he prepared to deliver a speech at a fishing port in the west of the country, Japanese media reported on Saturday .
Several media outlets, including the Kyodo news agency, reported that an object resembling a “smoke bomb” was thrown, but there appeared to be no injuries or visible damage at the scene. Television images showed a movement of the crowd, then the sound of an explosion followed by an emission of white smoke.
The Prime Minister resumed his election campaign activities a few hours later.
“There was a loud explosion (…) The police are investigating to find out the details, but I would like to apologize for having worried and inconvenienced many people,” he said according to the public television channel. NHK.
A man arrested
A person was arrested on the spot, at the fishing port of Saikazaki in the department of Wakayama, where Fumio Kishida was to deliver an election speech, according to the public television channel NHK.
NHK released footage showing a man on the ground surrounded by several others as the crowd dispersed. The man was arrested on suspicion of “obstructing business activity”, according to the chain.
“I was in shock. My heart is still beating very hard,” a woman at the scene told NHK.
Another person explained to the television channel that a movement of panic among the crowd was triggered even before the explosion, after someone said they saw an explosive device being thrown.
“An Unforgivable Atrocity”
Fumio Kishida had just finished tasting fish at the venue and was about to address the crowd in support of a candidate from his Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) in the upcoming by-elections for the lower house of parliament when the incident has occurred.
“It is unfortunate that such an incident happened in the middle of an election campaign, which is the foundation of democracy. It is an unforgivable atrocity,” election strategy manager Hiroshi Moriyama told NHK. of the PLD.
Reinforced security devices
Japan has tightened its security arrangements after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was shot and killed last July while speaking at an election campaign event.
Shinzo Abe’s device was relatively light-handed, and his assassination has sparked scrutiny of how politicians are protected. His alleged killer, Tetsuya Yamagami, said he targeted Shinzo Abe because of his alleged ties to the Moon sect, also known as the Unification Church.
This new incident comes as Japan hosts G7 ministerial meetings in the north and center of the country this weekend, and the summit of leaders of the countries of this group is to be held in May in Hiroshima.
