Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was targeted with a smoke bomb while delivering a lecture in the Japanese city of Wakayama. According to reports, the prime minister was successfully evacuated and the attacker was caught. When the explosion was heard, officers moved PM Kishida safely away from the location while responding to the situation.
According to the Japanese news agency Kyodo News, a man flung what seemed to be a smoke bomb toward Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a speech at a campaign event in western Japan on Saturday. When the incident occurred, Kishida was standing alongside a candidate for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The Japanese prime minister was safely evacuated from the area.
The attacker was apprehended by police immediately after the incident, which occurred during official campaigning for a lower house by-election in the Wakayama No. 1 district. Videos on social media and television showed officers climbing on top of a man, holding him down, and then dragging him away. According to Kyodo News, Kishida’s address was canceled. Kishida, on the other hand, continued campaigning later.
“There was a loud blast sound at the previous speech venue. Police are investigating details, but I’d like to apologize for worrying many people and causing them trouble,” Kishida reportedly said, quoted NHK. He added, “An election that’s important to our country is taking place, and we must work together and follow through on it.”
Kishida escapes attack during a campaign event
Kishida described the incident, saying he spotted an object thrown near him at a campaign event and escaped minutes before it exploded. He also told a top Liberal Democratic Party official over the phone that the time between seeing the device thrown at him and the explosion was enough for him to depart the campaign venue, according to NHK. He also stated that he would continue his campaign activities on Saturday and Sunday as planned.
