Japan on terror alert
Japan intensified security at airports, nuclear plants and government facilities today as a precaution against a possible terror attack.
The government’s heightened alert sent a shiver through global financial markets, knocking the Japanese yen to ten week lows against the dollar.
The National Police Agency refused to discuss whether the government had new information about a possible terror strike.
An NPA official said riot police armed with automatic rifles would guard Tokyo and Kansai international airports and nuclear power and reprocessing facilities.
Larger police forces were being mobilised and additional checkpoints set up around the prime minister’s residence, US embassy, military facilities and national and local assembly buildings, he said. Security was also beefed up at ports, railway stations and shopping malls.
The tighter security comes as Japan deploys 1,000 air, sea and ground forces for a humanitarian mission to Iraq – its largest military deployment since the Second World War.
