Man sets himself on fire outside Japanese embassy in Seoul

A man set himself on fire outside the Japan embassy in Seoul, South Korea on Friday amid tension between the two countries.

The man, who was in his 70s, started the fire inside his car as it was parked in front of the building where the Japanese Embassy is located, according to police in Seoul.

He was taken to the hospital where he was being treated. Due to his condition he was not able to communicate with police or hospital staff.

The self-immolation comes as ties between Seoul and Tokyo have plunged to their lowest point in decades since Japan recently tightened export controls of some high-tech materials.

South Korea and Japan, both key US allies, have been often embroiled in history and territory disputes stemming from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.

South Korean officials have said the Japanese trade curbs were retaliation for local court rulings that ordered Japanese firms to provide financial compensation to former Korean forced laborers. Japan denies that.

For decades, largely peaceful anti-Japan protests have occurred near the Japanese Embassy. Protests sometimes turned violent, with demonstrators cutting their own fingers or scuffling with police officers.

In 2017, a South Korean Buddhist monk died after setting himself ablaze in protest of Seoul’s 2015 agreement with Tokyo to settle an impasse over Korean women forced into sex slavery for Japanese soldiers during the colonial occupation.

With Wires

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