Why are Indiscriminate Mass Murders On the Rise in Japan?

Members of the media crowd around the Osaka Kyōiku University school’s entrance. A man armed with a knife entered a classroom and slashed pupils and teachers. Eight children died and over 20 people were injured. (© Jiji)

The truck used in the Akihabara attack on June 8, 2008. (© Jiji)

Passengers escape the train through the windows on October 31, 2021, in Chōfu, Tokyo. (© Reuters)

Passersby look up at the Osaka clinic on December 18, 2021, the day after the arson attack. (© Jiji)

Police examine the site of the stabbings outside the University of Tokyo campus. (© Reuters)