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Japan PM rushed to safety after object thrown at him and blast heard Japan PM rushed to safety after object thrown at him and blast heard
(32 minutes later)
A person was detained after a pipe-like object was thrown at Fumio Kishida Man detained after what looked like a smoke bomb was thrown at Fumio Kishida
Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, was evacuated from a port in Wakayama after a blast was heard, but he was unharmed, local media reported. Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, was evacuated unhurt after a suspect threw what appeared to be a smoke bomb at an outdoor speech in western Japan on Saturday, domestic media reported.
Several reports, including by Kyodo news agency, said an apparent “smoke bomb” had been thrown, but there were no immediate signs of injuries or damage at the scene in western Japan. A loud explosion was heard but Kishida took cover and was unharmed while police subdued a man at the scene, public broadcaster NHK said.
A person was detained at the site in Wakayama where Kishida had been due to give a speech, national broadcaster NHK and others said. The incident occurred at the Saikazaki fishing harbour in Wakayama prefecture, about 65km south-west of Osaka.
There was no immediate official confirmation of the incident, with local police declining to comment.
Japan has bolstered security after the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe, who was shot and killed while speaking at a campaign event in July 2022.Japan has bolstered security after the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe, who was shot and killed while speaking at a campaign event in July 2022.
The incident comes as Japan hosts G7 ministerial events in northern Sapporo and the city of Karuizawa in Nagano, and ahead of the May leaders’ summit in Hiroshima. Kishida had just started to deliver the speech after touring the harbour when Saturday’s incident occurred, NHK said.
Kishida was to continue his Saturday afternoon campaign schedule after the incident, the LDP confirmed via its Twitter account.
NHK footage showed crowds running away as several police officers appeared to pin a man to the ground before removing him from the scene. The man appeared to be in his 20s or 30s, media said.
A representative of Wakayama’s prefectural police headquarters said he could not answer questions about the incident.
A woman at the scene told NHK that she saw an object flying overhead and “it gave me a bad feeling, so we ran away unbelievably fast. Then we heard a really loud noise. It made my daughter cry.”
A man at the scene told the broadcaster that “when we all stopped in front of the podium, someone started saying ‘culprit!’ or something, or ‘an explosive was thrown,’ so everyone started dispersing fast.”
“And then, about 10 seconds after the culprit was captured, there was a blast,” he said.
Kishida is to host a Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima next month. G7 foreign ministers are to meet on Sunday in the resort city of Karuizawa.