Global Courant 2023-04-15 23:54:18
TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida resumed his campaign on Saturday after being evacuated unharmed from the site where a “smoke bomb” had exploded.
The incident in western Japan’s Wakayama came less than a year after the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, which traumatized the country and shook officials’ safety.
Kishida was in town to make remarks in support of a ruling party candidate at a local port when an uproar rippled through the crowd that had gathered to hear him speak.
Footage from national broadcaster NHK showed the prime minister turning to look back as a person was held by security and people moved away, some screaming.
Seconds later, an explosion was heard and the air filled with white smoke.
Footage and photos from the scene showed a silver, pipe-like object on the ground, but it was not immediately clear whether this had caused the explosion and smoke.
Government officials said a man had been arrested on suspicion of obstructing trade.
He has been identified as a 24-year-old man from Hyogo area, a Wakayama police official told AFP. There was no immediate information about a possible motive.
People at the scene described moments of panic.
“I was running like crazy, and then, about 10 seconds later, there was a loud noise and my child started crying. I was stunned, my heart is still beating fast,” one woman told NHK.
A man at the scene told the broadcaster that “when we all pulled up in front of the stage, someone started saying ‘guilty!’ or something like that, or “an explosive was thrown,” so everyone started to disperse quickly.
“And then, about 10 seconds after the perpetrator was captured, there was an explosion,” he said.
