Report of explosion, injury at U.S. Kadena Air Base in Japan's Okinawa
TOKYO, June 9 (Reuters) - An explosion occurred at an ammunition storage area inside the U.S. military's Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, southern Japan, on Monday and there has been a report of an unknown number of injuries, a Yomitan Village official said.
Public broadcaster NHK reported that the facility belonged to Japan's Self Defense Forces and was used to temporarily store unexploded ammunition.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
5 hours ago
- The Independent
Where North Korea sent warship whose failed launch enraged Kim Jong Un
Satellite images reveal North Korea moved its damaged warship, which partially capsized during a launch last month, to Rajin dockyard for repairs. The 5,000-tonne destroyer, North Korea's second known, was damaged during its launch ceremony on May 21, leading Kim Jong Un to call it a 'criminal act'. The Centre for Strategic and International Studies reported the warship is now in a graving dock at Rajin Ship Repair Factory, with critical parts covered to limit visibility. Experts say the ship's hull will be examined to determine restoration steps, with potential transfer to the fitting out dock for weapons and systems installation after repairs. Kim Jong Un blamed officials for the failed launch, detaining several involved and ordering the ship's restoration before a ruling party meeting.
Reuters
5 hours ago
- Reuters
Taiwan indicts four suspected spies for China in case reaching presidential office
TAIPEI, June 10 (Reuters) - Taipei prosecutors indicted four people on Tuesday suspected of spying for China in a case that reached Taiwan's presidential office, seeking jail terms of more than 18 years. Democratically-governed Taiwan says it has faced heightened military and political pressure over the past five years or so from Beijing, which views the island as sovereign Chinese territory, a position Taipei's government rejects. In a statement, Taipei prosecutors said the four, all previously members of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, had been indicted on espionage and other charges. One of them was a former assistant to then foreign minister Joseph Wu, now head of the National Security Council, while another was a former presidential office adviser, sources familiar with the matter have previously told Reuters. The Taipei prosecutors said in a statement that their suspected crimes included divulging or delivering classified national security information to China. Jail sentences of 18 years or more are being sought, the statement added. Reuters was not able to immediately locate contact details for legal representatives of any of those indicted. China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment. Last week, Taiwan's presidential office said it could not comment on the cases given the ongoing legal proceedings. But it said that any person, regardless of party affiliation, who has "betrayed the country, collaborated with hostile external forces and committed crimes that hurt the whole nation" should be subject to the most severe punishment.
The Guardian
a day ago
- The Guardian
Lex Greensill says SoftBank managers ‘felt threatened' by his links to founder
The financier Lex Greensill has told a court that senior managers at SoftBank 'felt threatened' by his relationship with Masayoshi Son, the founder of the Japanese tech investor that pumped hundreds of millions of dollars in his specialist lender before its collapse. Greensill said he travelled to Tokyo 'often weekly' for in-person mentoring sessions with the billionaire founder, who he dined with and referred to by the Japanese honorific 'Son-san'. Greensill made the comments in his first public courtroom appearance since the devastating demise in 2021 of his company, which counted former prime minister David Cameron as an adviser. Greensill said there were 'people in the SoftBank organisation who felt threatened by the nature of the relationship', and sought to 'make things difficult' for him. The Australian, who appeared in court with a trimly cut beard and dark blue suit on Monday, said that included some senior SoftBank executives. The businessman is appearing for two days of a month-long trial at the high court in London, in which a former Credit Suisse fund is suing SoftBank for $440m (£325m) over a complex deal it allegedly coordinated with Greensill prior to its collapse. It is part of efforts by Swiss bank UBS to recoup money for former clients of its former rival Credit Suisse, which it acquired in an emergency rescue deal in 2023. The case centres on funds that Greensill lent to Katerra, a US construction group that SoftBank had also invested in. Credit Suisse is alleging that SoftBank coordinated a restructuring plan for Katerra with Greensill in late 2020, in a move that benefited SoftBank and left the Swiss lender's clients out of pocket. SoftBank has denied the claims. Its lawyers told the court that it was a 'classic example of claimants casting around for a party with deep pockets on whom they seek to pin blame for a loss caused by their own negligence and risk-taking. It should be dismissed.' UBS said in a statement: 'We will continue to pursue all paths to maximise financial recovery of the supply chain finance funds, acting in the interests of all our stakeholders.' Greensill's comments come four years after his eponymous supply chain lender collapsed and became engulfed in a string of financial and political scandals. The 48-year-old Australian melon farmer turned City banker founded the lender in 2011, offering companies advances on their invoices in exchange for a fee. He would go on to gain high level political connections, and hired some of the world's most powerful former politicians including Cameron and former Australian foreign minister Julie Bishop. But the company, which at one point hoped to launch a £22bn stock market flotation, collapsed in 2021, after insurers refused to renew contracts that underpinned billions of pounds worth of loans and kept Greensill's complex financial operation afloat. It came amid growing concerns over the firm's management and billions of pounds of risky loans issued to companies owned by the metals magnate Sanjeev Gupta. Attention then turned to its government connections, including Cameron's efforts to persuade ministers to give Greensill access to government-backed Covid loans, resulting in a lobbying scandal that engulfed Whitehall for months. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Greensill's failure had far-reaching financial consequences including for Credit Suisse, which packaged up Greensill's loans into investment funds for wealthy clients. Credit Suisse was forced to suspend $10bn worth of those funds after Greensill Capital went under. It left customers nursing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of losses, and further eroded investor confidence in the 167-year-old bank, which collapsed two years later. Son, who Forbes estimates to be worth $29bn, built SoftBank into one of the world's most prominent investors, making bets on tech and online services including China's e-commerce site Alibaba, the TikTok parent ByteDance and the UK chip designer Arm. He used his investment gains to make a series of increasingly bold bets on tech companies, and obtained Saudi Arabia's backing for its tech-focused SoftBank Vision Funds. During the Covid pandemic tech boom the valuations of its companies soared, but after the bubble burst SoftBank went through a period of retrenchment, though Son has continued to forge ahead with investments. The trial, which began last Thursday, is due to continue until 4 July.
