TOKYO — Japan on Tuesday executed three prisoners on death row, the first since December 2019, local media reported citing unnamed sources including from the justice ministry.
The executions are the first under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who took office in October and won a general election the same month.
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When contacted by AFP, the ministry did not immediately confirm the reports by multiple major media outlets, which did not give the identity of the three prisoners.
Japan, where more than 100 inmates await execution, is one of the few developed nations that still have the death penalty.
It executed three inmates in 2019 and 15 in 2018 — including 13 from the Aum Shinrikyo cult that carried out a fatal 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway.
Executions are usually implemented long after sentencing, always by hanging.
For decades, authorities have told death row inmates just hours before an execution is carried out.
Public support for capital punishment remains high despite international criticism, including from rights groups.