Shoko Asahara (麻原 彰晃, Asahara Shōkō; March 2, 1955 – July 6, 2018), born as Chizuo Matsumoto (松本 智津夫, Matsumoto…
Shoko Asahara (麻原 彰晃, Asahara Shōkō; March 2, 1955 – July 6, 2018), born as Chizuo Matsumoto (松本 智津夫, Matsumoto Chizuo), was a Japanese cult leader and domestic terrorist who founded and led the doomsday cult known as Aum Shinrikyo. He was convicted of masterminding the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway which killed 14 people and injured thousands more, and was also involved in several other assassinations and terrorist attacks. Asahara was sentenced to death in 2004, and his final appeal failed in 2011. In June 2012, his execution was postponed due to further arrests of Aum members. He was executed along with other senior members of Aum Shinrikyo on July 6, 2018.
Famous People from Kumamoto Prefecture
Kumamoto Prefecture: 8 people
Kōzō Okamoto (Japanese: 岡本 公三, Hepburn: Okamoto Kōzō; IPA: [o̞ka̠mo̞to̞ ko̞ːzo̞ː]; 7 December 1947 – 23 July 2026) was…
Kōzō Okamoto (Japanese: 岡本 公三, Hepburn: Okamoto Kōzō; IPA: [o̞ka̠mo̞to̞ ko̞ːzo̞ː]; 7 December 1947 – 23 July 2026) was a Japanese communist militant and a member of the Japanese Red Army (JRA), responsible for the massacre of 26 passengers at Ben-Gurion International Airport in Israel in 1972. While at university, Okamoto was introduced to the Red Army Faction (the precursor organization to the JRA) by his brother, a member of the group. He later traveled to Beirut, Lebanon, where he received military training by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and was selected to carry out the Lod Airport massacre. He was the sole survivor of the three perpetrators. After his arrest by Israeli forces, Okamoto was sentenced to three life sentences, but was released in the 1985 Jibril Agreement after serving 13 years. He would later move to Lebanon, where he spent three years in prison on false visa charges before being granted asylum, despite a Japanese extradition request.
Kenji Utsunomiya (宇都宮 健児, Utsunomiya Kenji; born December 1, 1946) is a Japanese lawyer and former chair of the Japan…
Kenji Utsunomiya (宇都宮 健児, Utsunomiya Kenji; born December 1, 1946) is a Japanese lawyer and former chair of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations.
Michiko Ishimure (石牟礼道子, Ishimure Michiko; 11 March 1927 – 10 February 2018) was a Japanese writer and activist. She…
Michiko Ishimure (石牟礼道子, Ishimure Michiko; 11 March 1927 – 10 February 2018) was a Japanese writer and activist. She won the 1973 Ramon Magsaysay Award, among the most prestigious awards in Asia, for publicizing writings about Minamata disease, which was extremely controversial at the time.
Gan Tanigawa (谷川 雁; December 25, 1923 – February 2, 1995) was a Japanese poet, critic, and social activist. He is best…
Gan Tanigawa (谷川 雁; December 25, 1923 – February 2, 1995) was a Japanese poet, critic, and social activist. He is best known for his work with the Sakuru Mura (サークル村) poetry group.
Kubushiro Ochimi (16 December 1882 – 23 October 1972; in Japanese, 久布白落実, or くぶしろ おちみ in kana) was a Japanese religious…
Kubushiro Ochimi (16 December 1882 – 23 October 1972; in Japanese, 久布白落実, or くぶしろ おちみ in kana) was a Japanese religious leader, temperance activist, and feminist. She was president of the Japanese Women's Christian Temperance Union, and general director of the Women's Suffrage League in Japan.
Tōten Miyazaki (Japanese: 宮崎 滔天, Hepburn: Miyazaki Tōten) or Torazō Miyazaki (1 January 1871 – 6 December 1922) was a…
Tōten Miyazaki (Japanese: 宮崎 滔天, Hepburn: Miyazaki Tōten) or Torazō Miyazaki (1 January 1871 – 6 December 1922) was a Japanese philosopher who aided and supported Sun Yat-sen during the Xinhai Revolution. He assisted Sun during his visits to Japan as he was wanted by Qing dynasty authorities.
Kanamori Michitomo (金森 通倫; 2 October 1857 – 4 March 1945) was a Japanese Christian minister. He also went under the…
Kanamori Michitomo (金森 通倫; 2 October 1857 – 4 March 1945) was a Japanese Christian minister. He also went under the English name Paul Kanamori and published as Kanamori Tsurin. Former prime minister of Japan, Shigeru Ishiba is Kanamori's great-grandson.