[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a Meeting of the Ministerial Council on the Response to the Mass Stabbing Incident at the Facility for the Disabled at the Prime Minister’s Office.

In his opening remarks, the Prime Minister stated,

“A large number of innocent people lost their lives at Tsukui Yamayuri-En. Such a horrendous act is unacceptable and cannot be forgiven.

I offer my heartfelt condolences to those who lost their lives in this incident, and I offer my deepest sympathies to their families. I also pray for the speedy recovery of everyone who was injured.

I believe that many people are very troubled by this incident, including the victims and their family members. We must thoroughly determine the cause of this incident and exert our best efforts to ensuring people’s safety and that a similar incident never occurs again.

Relevant ministers, centered on the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, will cooperate to urgently examine necessary measures from various standpoints, including reinforcing security at facilities and follow-up provided after hospitalization. I will then issue instructions to quickly transition these measures into the implementation stage wherever possible. I would like the entire Cabinet to act as one in addressing this incident.”