Japan has hanged two death row inmates in the first executions since the new government took power last year. They were hanged at the Tokyo Detention Centre. The two men executed were Kazuo Shinozawa, 59, convicted of killing six women in a jewellery shop fire, and Hidenori Ogata, 33, who killed a man and a woman in 2003. Justice Minister Keiko Chiba who opposes the death penalty. witnessed the executions and announced the formation of a group to review the death penalty. Opinion polls show broad support for capital punishment in Japan. A total of 107 inmates remain on death row in Japan. Prisoners are usually executed two or three at a time.

Japan has hanged two death row inmates in the first executions since the new government took power last year. They were hanged at the Tokyo Detention Centre. The two men executed were Kazuo Shinozawa, 59, convicted of killing six women in a jewellery shop fire, and Hidenori Ogata, 33, who killed a man and a woman in 2003. Justice Minister Keiko Chiba who opposes the death penalty. witnessed the executions and announced the formation of a group to review the death penalty. Opinion polls show broad support for capital punishment in Japan. A total of 107 inmates remain on death row in Japan. Prisoners are usually executed two or three at a time.