Man kills 18 at Japanese center for disabled

July 26, 2016

A Japanese man killed 19 patients and injured 25 others at a center for the disabled outside Tokyo on July 16.

The attacker used a knife to kill sleeping patients at the center in Sagamihara, Japan. The attack was the worst mass killing in Japan in decades. 

Satoshi Uematsu, who lived nearby and had once worked at the facility, reportedly had expressed the belief that disabled people should be euthanized "if they are unable to live at home and be active in society."

Pope Francis sent a message of sympathy to Tokyo's Archbishop Peter Takeo Okada, offering his condolence to the families of the deceased. 

 

---

For all current news, visit our News home page.

---

 
Further information:

• Knife attacker in Japan kills 19 in their sleep at disabled center (Reuters)
• Message for the victims of the attack on a centre for the disabled near Tokyo (Vatican press office)