Outrage over the alleged killing of a woman by a US Marine in Okinawa has erupted in Tokyo, where protesters marched on the US Embassy demanding an end to the American military presence in Japan.
The demonstrations follow the arrest of Lance Corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, suspected of strangling Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel on the island on Saturday and stealing her belongings. Ballard has denied the allegations.
Okinawa is home to several major US military installations and tens of thousands of American service members.
Footage from Tuesday’s rally shows demonstrators carrying placards demanding justice for Yagi and calling for US forces to leave Japan, before marching outside the embassy under a heavy police presence.
“Neither the US military nor the embassy has offered a proper apology. It is only natural to be angry about this,” one protester said.
Another demonstrator said resentment over crimes involving US personnel had accumulated over decades and accused the authorities of ignoring repeated demands to remove American bases.
“It is truly infuriating that the presence of these bases leads to women being killed or raped like this. I cannot forgive it,” the protester said.
Tokyo has lodged a formal protest with Washington over the case. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has described the alleged killing as a “heinous crime” and demanded full US cooperation with the investigation, tighter discipline among American personnel, and measures to prevent similar incidents. Washington has expressed regret over Yagi’s death and pledged to cooperate with the Japanese authorities.
The case has reignited a decades-old dispute over the concentration of US military facilities in Okinawa. The prefecture accounts for just 0.6% of Japan’s territory but hosts around 70% of the land exclusively used by US forces in the country.
Crimes involving American personnel have repeatedly fueled opposition to the bases. In 1995, the abduction and rape of a 12-year-old Okinawan girl by three US servicemen triggered mass protests. In 2016, former Marine and US base worker Kenneth Franklin Gadson raped and murdered 20-year-old Rina Shimabukuro and was later sentenced to life imprisonment.
Further sexual assault allegations involving US personnel have emerged in recent years despite measures introduced by the US military to tighten discipline, including increased patrols and restrictions on off-base drinking.
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