Japan arrests suspect carrying explosives near US consulate

Nhật Bản bắt nghi phạm mang theo chất nổ gần lãnh sự quán Mỹ - Ảnh 1. — US Consulate in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan

Kyodo News reported on May 15 that a 44-year-old woman was arrested when she approached the US Consulate building in Okinawa Prefecture carrying a metal tube containing gunpowder, forcing police to temporarily cordon off the area.

Police said the suspect arrested was Akino Miyagi, a resident of Higashi village on the southern Japanese island. She was accused of obstructing an official by threatening a police officer guarding the consulate with a metal pipe. The suspect denied the charges.

The incident occurred in Urasoe City in Okinawa Prefecture, near the prefecture's capital Naha. No one was injured in the incident.

Ms Miyagi has previously participated in protests calling for the cleaning up of waste left behind by the US military when it returned part of the Northern Training Area facility in Okinawa to Japan.

In a statement, the US Consulate thanked Japanese police for their quick response. The incident occurred as the Okinawa Islands marked the 51st anniversary of the US handover to Japan, while many people continue to be upset about the continued presence of many US bases in the country.

According to the Brookings Institution (USA), about three-quarters of the US military facilities in Japan and two-thirds of the approximately 45,000 US troops stationed in the country are present in Okinawa - Japan's smallest and most difficult prefecture. About 20,000 of the 29,000 US troops in Okinawa are Marines. The sound of artillery fire, low-flying aircraft and military exercises often affect the lives of local people.

On June 23, 2022, Okinawa Prefecture marked the 77th anniversary of the end of the Battle of Okinawa, one of the bloodiest battles of World War II, and local leaders called on the United States to reduce its military presence there.

Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki made the call amid growing concerns that Japan's southern islands will be drawn into regional military tensions.

The Battle of Okinawa left an estimated 200,000 people dead, nearly half of them residents. The wartime Japanese military sacrificed many lives in an effort to prevent the American invasion of the main islands, according to AP.

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