Tokyo
A 49-year-old man, identified as Atsunobu Usuda from Kawaguchi, was arrested on Saturday, for allegedly crashing his van into a concertina barrier near Japan’s Prime Minister’s Office and throwing what appeared to be Molotov cocktails at the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) headquarters.
The incident occurred around 5:50 AM local time. Inside the vehicle, several containers were discovered, and although no injuries were reported, a police vehicle was partially burned after Usuda hurled approximately five incendiary devices near the LDP headquarters.
According to sources, after crashing the van, Usuda exited and threw what seemed to be a smoke flare at police officers. He did not resist arrest but remained silent during questioning.
LDP Secretary General Hiroshi Moriyama expressed his outrage over the attack but confirmed that the party’s campaigning would proceed as planned. Following the incident, police and firefighters inspected the area, and security measures were heightened around the Prime Minister’s Office.
This incident raises concerns, especially given the previous assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022.
