A man was arrested on Saturday in Tokyo after throwing several suspected molotov cocktails at the headquarters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (PLD), eight days before the legislative elections, Japanese media announced.
According to public television NHK, five or six incendiary devices hit a riot police vehicle, but the fire was quickly extinguished and no one was injured.
Contacted by AFP, the police were initially unable to confirm this information.
The individual, apparently aged around 40, also tried to drive his car into the grounds of the Prime Minister’s offices, but was blocked by a barrier, according to NHK.
According to Japanese media, he then threw another projectile, probably a smoke bomb, before being arrested by the police for disturbing public order.
“The motivations of the perpetrator are not known but freedom of expression cannot be silenced by violence and I am outraged by this act, as elections, which are the basis of democracy, arrive”castigated LDP Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama, according to the media.
Shortly after becoming prime minister following his victory in the LDP’s internal election in September, Shigeru Ishiba called snap elections for October 27.
The incident occurred shortly before 6:00 a.m. (9:00 p.m. GMT Friday). According to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper and other media, several plastic canisters were found in the suspect’s car.
Footage of the incident shows a riot police van at the front partially burned, while firefighters and police officers work in the area.
Violent crime is very rare in Japan. But the country remains marked by the assassination in 2022 of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, killed in the street during a campaign rally by an individual armed with a homemade pistol.
Shigeru Ishiba’s predecessor, Fumio Kishida, was targeted by a homemade bomb in April 2023, without being injured.
Despite frequent changes of leaders, the PLD, a conservative group from which Mr. Kishida also comes, has had little challenge in power since the end of the Second World War.
Faced with low participation and a fragmented opposition, the PLD and its partners have a good chance of winning again on October 27, even if their majority may be narrower.
