Prime minister is safely evacuated after blast in Japan

TOKYO — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan was safely evacuated Saturday from a site where he had been scheduled to give a speech and shortly before an explosion was heard, according to police.

An object was thrown, prompting Kishida’s removal. By the time of the explosion, the prime minister had been taken away from the area, according to the police department in Wakayama, the western Japanese city where the episode occurred. It is not clear what the explosive object was, but it did not result in serious damage or injuries, police said.

Video footage posted by the national broadcaster, NHK, on Saturday showed police officers, a security detail and members of the public tackling the man the police say is the suspect. The man, who was carrying a gray and black backpack and wearing beige pants, black Adidas sneakers and a blue jacket, appeared to struggle as police and security officers half-dragged him from the scene. NHK footage showed billowing white smoke rising from a site close to a fishing port where supporters had gathered late Saturday morning to wait for the prime minister to arrive.

Kishida had been scheduled to give a stump speech in support of a lower house candidate from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party who is running in a special election.

A spokesperson for the police department in Wakayama said Saturday a suspect was in custody. According to a driver’s license that police believe belongs to the suspect, he is 24 years old and surnamed Kimura.

Less than a year ago, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot during a campaign speech in Nara, a city not far from Wakayama.

Separate video on NHK showed the suspect on Saturday holding a gray canister shortly before a loud explosive was heard.

▶ This article originally appeared in The New York Times.