Seven Chinese activists who were arrested for illegal entry after landing on the disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea were deported to China on Friday night.
Police handed over the activists to immigration authorities earlier in the day. The seven were placed on a commercial flight from Naha to Shanghai. Immigration officials did not accompany them, and the Chinese government will bear the transportation costs, Japanese officials said.
The move was apparently intended to quickly settle the smoldering diplomatic row with China.