Japan said Friday that a second Japanese national has been detained in Iran, and its Foreign Ministry demanded the early release of both people. The ministry said it has confirmed the detainee is safe and in good health, though it did not provide additional details including when the person was detained or whether the case is connected to a previous detention involving a Japanese journalist.
The ministry said the second person had been detained before the Feb. 28 military strikes on Iran by the United States and Israel. Japan’s officials had previously confirmed the detention of a first Japanese person but had not said the detainee’s identity.
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told a parliamentary panel that Japanese officials were able to contact the two after the Feb. 28 strikes and confirmed their safety. Motegi said the government was “doing everything to support them, their families and others involved,” according to his remarks reported in the session.
Motegi also said he emphasized the importance of protection and early release when he met this week with the Iranian ambassador. Japan did not specify further steps it expects from Iran beyond the demand for early release.
On the identity of the first detainee, the Committee to Protect Journalists named Shinnosuke Kawashima, the Tehran bureau chief of NHK. CPJ said its report quoting an unidentified source described the journalist’s arrest conditions and cited anonymity on the grounds that the source feared retribution.
CPJ said Kawashima was arrested Jan. 20 by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and transferred Feb. 23 to Evin Prison. The organization demanded the immediate release of Kawashima and other journalists it says are being held for their work.