Four injured in stabbing incident on Tokyo train, woman in custody

Four men were injured on Wednesday in a stabbing incident and taken to hospital after a woman wielded a knife on a train at Akihabara Station in Tokyo, Japanese police said.

The police received an emergency call at just before 11 pm local time (1400 GMT) saying the woman had inflicted injuries with a knife on the Yamanote loop line, one of the busiest transport routes in the city.

Police arrested the attacker, identified only as a woman in her 20s, on suspicion of attempted murder, Kyodo News reported.

No other details, including the condition of the injured and a motive for the attack, were available. It was learned that none of the victims had suffered life-threatening injuries.

East Japan Railway Company said the Yamanote loop line was briefly suspended due to "trouble on the train".

Akihabara, traditionally home to retailers of electronics and gadgets, is a major tourism hotspot in Tokyo and has become synonymous with video games, comic books and outlandish fashion.

Violent crimes are rare in Japan, which has strict gun control laws and only a handful of gun-related crimes annually. But in recent years, there have been several high-profile cases involving random knife attacks and arson on subways, and there is growing concern about homemade guns and explosives.

Train operators in major cities have been stepping up safety measures, including installing security cameras on train cars and conducting more frequent drills among station staff.

(Reuters and AP)