Japan Prime Minister escapes ‘smoke bomb’

The Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, narrowly escaped a ‘smoke bomb’ during a visit to the port city of Wakayama over the weekend.

POLITICS NIGERIA reports that Kishida was giving a speech at the Saigasaki fishing port when a sudden explosion interrupted his address, causing chaos as the crowd attempted to flee.

The blast, which occurred around 11:30 am local time, was caused by a “smoke bomb” that was hurled toward Kishida by an unidentified man. Witnesses, including a local city council member, reported seeing someone throw a “cylindrical silver object” immediately before the explosion.

Thankfully, Kishida was evacuated from the scene unharmed, and the authorities quickly arrested one suspect who was taken into custody. The resulting panic was captured on video, showing police officers scuffling with the suspect on the ground as they attempted to subdue him, while bystanders fled in all directions.

Japanese officials have confirmed that there were no injuries, and Kishida was able to safely leave the area. The prime minister had traveled to the port city to show support for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, as candidates campaign for a by-election later this month (April).

It would be recalled that the previous prime minister, Shinzo Abe, was assassinated during a public campaign event last year (2022), with a gunman fatally shooting him with a homemade firearm. The suspect, Tetsuya Yamagami, a 41-year-old veteran of the Japanese military, was arrested at the scene and later confessed to the murder.