List of massacres in Japan

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The following is a list of massacres that have occurred in Japan and its predecessor entities ranging back to the Tokugawa shogunate (Some historical numbers may be approximate). The massacres are grouped into different time periods. Massacres have become a growing problem in contemporary Japan in recent years, with at least 110+ deaths during the 2010s.

Contents

Most notably, the 2019 Kyoto Animation arson attack claimed at least 36 lives and injured an additional 34. It is one of the deadliest massacres in Japan since the end of World War II and the deadliest building fire in Japan since the 2001 Myojo 56 building fire. It was considered "suicidal terrorism" by one criminology professor at Rissho University, as the attack was reportedly intended to be a suicide mission by the suspect. [1] In December 2021, another arson attack occurred, this time at a building in Osaka, specifically at a psychiatric clinic located on the fourth floor. It killed 25 and injured an additional 3. The suspect, who died in hospital two weeks later, is believed to have been inspired by the 2019 attack in Kyoto. [2]

Massacres


Sengoku period (1467–1603)

DateNameLocationPerpetratorDeathsNotes
30 September 1571 Siege of Mount Hiei Inside the Enryaku-ji temple complex on Mount Hiei Oda Nobunaga's army1,500-4,000Massacre of the Buddhist warrior monks who refused to submit to the warlord Oda Nobunaga. [3]
1579 Siege of Itami Itami Castle, Settsu Province Oda Nobunaga's army670 [4] Defenders from the Itami clan and their families were killed after the capture of Itami Castle.
5 September 1595The massacre of Toyotomi Hidetsugu's entire family Kyoto Toyotomi Hideyoshi 39Hideyoshi ordered the execution of Hidetsugu's entire family, including children, wives and concubines.

Tokugawa shogunate (1603–1868)

DateNameLocationPerpetratorDeathsNotes
12–15 April 1638 Mass beheadings at the final days of the Shimabara revolt Inside and around Hara Castle, Minamishimabara Shogunate army37,000Rebels and sympathizers were beheaded by military forces. Afterwards, the Hara Castle was also burned to the ground.
December 1696 Yoshiwara spree killing Yoshiwara Sano Jirōzaemon ?Sano Jirōzaemon murdered dozens of prostitutes with a katana in Yoshiwara [5]

Empire of Japan (1868–1947)

DateNameLocationPerpetratorDeathsNotes
1 March 1919 March 1st demonstrations Korea under Japanese rule Imperial Japanese Army 7,50915,849 Koreans wounded [6]
15 April 1919 Jeamni massacre Hwaseong, Chōsen Imperial Japanese Army29Killing of Korean civilians inside a church in Hwaseong
October 1920 Gando massacre Jiandao Imperial Japanese Army5,000+ [7]
July 1922 Shinano River incident Shinano River Okura zaibatsu 100+Documentation on death incomplete[ citation needed ][ clarification needed ]
September 1923 Kantō Massacre Kantō region Imperial Japanese Army, police and vigilantes6,000+Multiple incidents, including the Fukuda Village Incident
21 May 1938 Tsuyama massacre Tsuyama Mutsuo Toi31After cutting off electricity to his village, 21-year-old Mutsuo Toi proceeded to go on a late-night killing spree with a shotgun, a katana, and an axe before killing himself, 3 injured
2 September 1944 Chichijima incident Chichijima, Ogasawara Islands Imperial Japanese Army 8Japanese soldiers killed eight American airmen on Chichi Jima, in the Bonin Islands, and cannibalized four of them. The ninth, and only one to evade capture, was future U.S. President George H. W. Bush
July 1945 Hanaoka incident Ōdate Imperial Japanese Army 418113 prisoners of war executed; 307 also died

Occupied Japan (1947–1952)

DateNameLocationPerpetratorDeathsNotes
26 January 1948 Teigin case Tokyo Sadamichi Hirasawa 12False verdict suspected
15 July 1949 Mitaka incident TokyoKeisuke Takeuchi820 injured. False verdict suspected

State of Japan (1952–present)

DateNameLocationPerpetratorDeathsNotes
30 June 1966 Hakamada Incident Shimizu, Shizuoka Iwao Hakamada 4False verdict suspected
30 August 1974 Mitsubishi bombing Tokyo East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front 8Powerful bomb explodes at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries headquarters in Marunouchi. Eight killed, 378 injured. Eight left-wing activists are arrested May 19, 1975, by Japanese authorities.
6 November 1975 1975 Aki shooting Aki, Kōchi Prefecture Ikuya Hatakeyama631-year-old Ikuya Hatakeyama shoots eight of his neighbours with a 12-gauge shotgun, killing six and critically injuring two
19 August 1980 Shinjuku bus attack Shinjuku, TokyoMaruyama Hirobumi6A mentally disturbed man Maruyama Hirobumi throws a bucket of petrol and a lit newspaper into a bus. The ensuing fire killed 6 and injured 14. [8] [9]
9 February 1982 Japan Air Lines Flight 350 Haneda Airport, TokyoSeiji Katagiri24Flight 350 was on approach to Haneda Airport when the pilot Seiji Katagiri deliberately nose-dived the plane to crash it. The pilot was then subdued by other flight crews, yet the plane remained descending. It then crashed into Tokyo Bay. The pilot who deliberately nose-dived the plane was suffering from mental illness before the incident
27–28 June 1994 Matsumoto incident Matsumoto Aum Shinrikyo8Members of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult released sarin gas near the homes of several judges who presiding over legal cases involving the cult. 500+ injured [10]
20 March 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack TokyoAum Shinrikyo136,252 injured
25 July 1998 Wakayama arsenic poison case Sonobe district of Wakayama, Wakayama Masumi Hayashi 4Four people are killed and 63 injured after eating curry laced with arsenic at a community festival in Wakayama. Masumi Hayashi, the chief suspect, has been sentenced to death and is currently appealing. [11]
8 September 1999 Ikebukuro massacre Tokyo Hiroshi Zota 26 injured [12] [13] [14]
29 September 1999 Shimonoseki Station massacre Shimonoseki Yasuaki Uwabe5Yasuaki Uwabe, a former architect, drove a rented car into Shimonoseki Station and hit at least 7 people, two of whom died before the car got stuck. He then proceeded to stab pedestrians at random with a kitchen knife, injuring 4 and killing a further 3. Uwabe was eventually apprehended by a station worker and was arrested shortly after. Uwabe was executed in 2012.
30 December 2000 Setagaya family murder Setagaya Unknown4A Family of four are murdered at their home in suburban Tokyo by an unknown intruder, the case remains unsolved.
8 June 2001 Osaka school massacre Ikeda Mamoru Takuma 837-year-old former janitor Mamoru Takuma entered an elementary school in Osaka, then used a kitchen knife to kill 8 students. He wounded an additional 13 other students and 2 teachers
1 September 2001 Myojo 56 building fire Shinjuku Unknown44Perpetrator never caught.
20 June 2003 Fukuoka family murder case Higashi-ku, FukuokaWei Wei, Yang Ning and Wang Liang4Businessman Shinjiro Matsumoto, his wife Chika and two children aged 11 and 8 are murdered in a robbery by three Chinese students who broke into their home and dumped their bodies in Hakata Bay. Two of the three - Yang Ning and Wang Liang – fled to China where they were arrested. Yang was executed and Wang sentenced to life imprisonment. The third, Wei Wei, was arrested in Japan and was held on death row until finally executed in December 2019.
18 and 20 September 2004 Ōmuta murders Omuta, Fukuoka Kitamura-gumi4Mob wife Mami Kitamura murders four people with her husband and two sons.
19 - 23 March 2008 Tsuchiura massacre Tsuchiura, Ibaraki Masahiro Kanagawa 27 injured [15] [16]
8 June 2008 Akihabara massacre Chiyoda Tomohiro Katō710 injured
1 October 2008 Osaka movie theater fire [17] [18] Osaka Kazuhiro Ogawa [19] 16
12 January 2010 2010 Habikino shooting Iichan bar, Habikino, Osaka Prefecture Yasuhisa Sugiura4 (including the perpetrator)
14 March 2013 Etajima stabbings Etajima, Hiroshima Chen Shuangxi26 Wounded
21–22 July 2013 Yamaguchi arson and murders Mitake Kosei Homi5
17 May 2015 Kawasaki building fire Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture Unknown1111 people died and 17 were seriously injured in an arson attack on 2 buildings [20]
26 July 2016 Sagamihara stabbings Sagamihara Satoshi Uematsu1926 injured
6 October 2017 Komatsu family murder Hitachi, Ibaraki Hirobumi Komatsu6Hirobumi Komatsu killed his wife and five children by stabbing, he then set the bodies on fire. [21]
31 March - 1 April 2018 Hioki murders Hioki, Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyushu Tomohiro Iwakura5Tomohiro Iwakura Kills Four Members of His Family and a Neighbor by Strangulation [22] [23]
28 May 2019 Kawasaki stabbings Tama ward of Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture Ryuichi Iwasaki318 injured
18 July 2019 Kyoto Animation arson attack Kyoto Shinji Aoba3633 injured [24]
17 December 2021 Osaka building fire Osaka Morio Tanimoto (suspect)253 injured, including suspect; arson suspected [25] [26]
25 May 2023 Nagano Attack Nagano Masanori Aoki4Attacker stabbed 2 women dead, then shot 2 responding police officers. [27]

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References

  1. ↑ Yamaguchi, Mari (19 July 2019). "Kyoto Animation studio arson fire suspect reportedly had grudge". CTV News. CTV. Archived from the original on 30 December 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  2. ↑ "Osaka clinic fire suspect may have copied Kyoto Animation arson attack". The Japan Times . 21 December 2021. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
  3. ↑ "What makes a good priest — good looks or a knack for violence?". The Japan Times. 19 February 2023.
  4. ↑ Ōta, Gyūichi (2011). The chronicle of Lord Nobunaga. J. S. A. Elisonas, Jeroen Pieter Lamers. Leiden: Brill. p. 342. ISBN   978-90-04-20456-0. OCLC   743693801.
  5. ↑ "殺人のきっかけは「微笑み」？美人花魁、八ツ橋殺人事件、被害者が語る真相とは？　-　和樂web 美の国ニッポンをもっと知る". intojapanwaraku.com (in Japanese). 24 April 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  6. ↑ Ebrey, Patricia Buckley; Walthall, Anne (1947). East Asia : a cultural, social, and political history (Third ed.). Boston. ISBN   9781133606475. OCLC   811729581.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ↑ Eckhardt Fuchs; Tokushi Kasahara; Sven Saaler (4 December 2017). A New Modern History of East Asia. V&R unipress GmbH. p. 196. ISBN   978-3737007085 . Retrieved 2018-03-03. The Japanese forces then carried out the Gando Massacre, in which they indiscriminately attacked Koreans living in Eastern Manchuria and other regions, killing over 5,000 and burning down more than 3,500 homes.
  8. ↑ "A double dose of Fumiyo Kohinata; arson attack survivor featured on "NHK Special"; CM of the week: Ajinomoto - The Japan Times". The Japan Times . 25 January 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  9. ↑ "死者6人の「バス放火事件」は現代の格差社会でも起こりうる無差別犯罪【大量殺人事件の系譜】 « 日刊SPA!". SPA! (in Japanese). 14 October 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  10. ↑ "Incident Summary for GTDID: 199406270007". www.start.umd.edu.
  11. ↑ "Courts ignore reasonable doubt: lawyers". The Japan Times. 2006-11-16. Archived from the original on 2008-10-25. Retrieved 2008-02-04.
  12. ↑ "Ikebukuro killer insane, lawyers say". The Japan Times . Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  13. ↑ "LEAD: High court upholds death sentence for street killer. - Free Online Library".
  14. ↑ "「わしボケナスのアホ全部殺すけえのお」 1999年池袋通り魔事件犯人を死刑前に支配した"怒り"". Shūkan Bunshun (in Japanese). November 14, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  15. ↑ "BBC NEWS - Asia-Pacific - Japanese man in stabbing frenzy". BBC News . March 24, 2008. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  16. ↑ "土浦連続通り魔事件-死刑になりたくて殺人…究極の身勝手男". guardians7.com (in Japanese). Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  17. ↑ Factbox: Recent mass killings in Japan Reuters , July 18, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2021
  18. ↑ Fire at Japanese Adult Video Theater Kills 15 Fox News , January 13, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2021
  19. ↑ Suicide was motive in Osaka arson Japan Times , October 5, 2008. Retrieved December 26, 2021
  20. ↑ "Kawasaki lodging fire that claimed 11 lives was arson: fire department - The Mainichi". Mainichi Shimbun . 2 February 2016. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  21. ↑ "Ibaraki man gets death sentence over murders of wife, 5 children | the Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis".
  22. ↑ "Man given death sentence for 2018 murders of five in Kagoshima - The Japan Times". The Japan Times . 11 December 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  23. ↑ "日置5人殺害事件、発覚から6年　控訴審日程決まらず「なぜこんなに時間がかかるのか」…遺族悲痛（南日本新聞） - Yahoo!ニュース". Yahoo! News (in Japanese). 6 April 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  24. ↑ "Death toll from arson attack on Kyoto Animation studio rises to 36". japantoday.com. 5 October 2019. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  25. ↑ "24 confirmed dead in suspected case of arson in Osaka". The Japan Times. 17 December 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  26. ↑ "Police: Osaka fire suspect may have copied Kyoto arsonist | the Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis".
  27. ↑ "Suspect arrested after shooting and stabbing attack in Japan leaves four dead". CNN. 25 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
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