Japan Admits Weapons Leak Caused Chinese Illnesses

Japan has admitted that three people in China became ill last month after being exposed to chemical weapons left in the country after World War II, Agence France-Presse reported today (see GSN, June 6).

“A Japanese fact-finding mission has concluded the poison gas incident in Guangzhou city of June 21 was caused by chemical weapons of the former Japanese military,” Hatsuhisa Takashima, spokesman for the Japanese Foreign Ministry, said in a prepared statement. “The government feels an extreme regret that this kind of accident happened and offers a sincere sympathy for the people injured.”

Three Chinese citizens became ill after inhaling gas leaking from abandoned shells. Their condition is not life threatening, according to public broadcaster NHK (Agence France-Presse, June 27).

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