Briefly

JAPAN

Officials review US troops' off-duty rules

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said on Tuesday that officials were reviewing the off-base code of conduct for US troops in Japan following the alleged killing of an Okinawan woman by a US Marine. Crimes including rapes, assaults, hit-and-runs and drunken driving by United States military personnel have long triggered protests on the southern Japanese island. "We plan to hold discussions including whether the existing rules are effectively functioning," Motegi said, adding that "matters such as patrols and curfew management" would be under review in talks with the US. Japanese police arrested a US Marine stationed on Okinawa last week on suspicion of killing a 39-year-old woman at a hotel in the prefectural capital Naha.

REPUBLIC OF KOREA

Man stabs 8 people in shopping mall

A 59-year-old man stabbed at least eight people on Tuesday at a shopping mall in Incheon, Republic of Korea, police and fire officials said. One victim was in life-threatening condition and received surgery at a nearby hospital. The suspect attacked shoppers as he moved through the mall before business owners and bystanders subdued him, according to Incheon's Namdong District Police Station and witnesses. The man has a history of violent offenses and mental illness and was required to wear an electronic monitoring anklet, according to the Justice Ministry. Witnesses told ROK media that the attacker appeared to have knives tied to both hands and stabbed people in different parts of the mall.

XINHUA-AGENCIES