Japan man sets himself on fire in apparent protest at Abe funeral

The protest is an escalation in public demonstrations over a planned state funeral for assassinated ex-PM Shinzo Abe.

A Japanese man has set himself alight reportedly to protest at the state funeral for ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated in July.

Hundreds of dignitaries from Japan and around the world are expected to attend the funeral on 27 September.

On Wednesday, witnesses called police after spotting a man on fire near the prime minister's office in Tokyo.

Officers put out the blaze, and took the still-conscious man to hospital, local media reported.

The extent of his injuries and his current condition is unknown. Japanese media reports say the man is believed to be in his 70s.

The government is yet to comment on the protest. But public opposition to the holding of the state funeral has intensified in recent months, with polls showing a majority of voters unhappy with the expenditure.

Abe was shot dead on 8 July, aged 67, at a campaign rally for his political party. The killing of Japan's longest-serving prime minister was condemned internationally and shocked Japan, a country with little experience of political violence and gun crime.

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But state funerals are not an established practice in Japan, and protesters say they resent the use of public funds on the event that is projected to cost about 1.65bn yen (£10.1m; $11.4m).

One of the country's main opposition parties, the Constitutional Democratic Party, has also said its lawmakers won't participate in next week's ceremony.

Sour mood ahead of state funeral

By Mariko Oi, BBC News

Many in Japan are commenting on how the mood around Abe's state funeral contrasts starkly with the affection shown at the Queen's state funeral in the UK.

Surveys show a majority of Japanese are against the event. Aside from the amount of taxpayers' money being spent, the guest list - which reportedly includes representatives from the Burmese military junta - is raising eyebrows.

Others say that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is failing to address Abe's and senior ruling party politicians' links to the controversial Unification Church, and this is increasing opposition.

Adding to the sour mood, a film about Abe's murder - produced by a former member of the terror group the Japanese Red Army - will be shown next week, with critics saying it romanticises the killing.

Police are yet to confirm details about the man who set himself alight, but local media reported he had voiced his opposition to the funeral to a nearby officer before doing so.

Handwritten notes were also found around the man expressing the same message, local media reported.

Criticism of the state funeral has also increased as more politicians in Japan's parliament have been found to have connections with the Unification Church.

The man charged with killing Abe said he had targeted him for his connections to the church, which he said had bankrupted his family.