Two Japanese diplomats were ambushed and shot dead by gunmen Saturday in the Iraqi village of Mukayshifa while driving to a conference on reconstruction work in Tikrit, north of Baghdad. Mr. Katsuhiko Oku and Mr. Masanori Inoue were reported to have been attacked when they stopped to buy food and drinks at a roadside stand. We express our deep sorrow over Japan's first fatalities since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
Whether or not those diplomats were the targets of terrorists has yet to be confirmed. But Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda on Sunday voiced his strong suspicions that the killings were indeed committed by terrorists. Seven Spanish intelligence agents were also slain on Saturday when guerrillas ambushed their cars south of Baghdad. The nature and timing of the two attacks suggest an increase in coordinated terrorist activities.
Despite growing security concerns in the wake of the diplomats' deaths, the Japanese government has reiterated its commitment to Iraq's reconstruction on the basis of the priority Tokyo places on its ties with the United States.