Three death-row inmates were hanged Thursday morning, the first executions Justice Minister Okiharu Yasuoka has approved since taking office in the Aug. 1 Cabinet reshuffle.
"I just performed my duty as justice minister," Yasuoka told a news conference. "The current political situation is irrelevant," he added, referring to Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's Sept. 1 resignation announcement and the launch Wednesday of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election campaign.
Given that a new prime minister will be appointed after the LDP election, it is uncertain how long Yasuoka will remain in his post and whether these will turn out to be his only executions.