Japan's Defense Minister Shigro Ishiba cancelled a scheduled visit to Iraq in which he planned to visit Japanese troops serving in the country.
Japan's Kyodo news agency reported the visit was cancelled due to "security concerns" and in light of the recent abduction of three Japanese soldiers in Iraq.
Meanwhile, the agency further said Japanese troops will resume operations outside their camp in southern Iraq on Tuesday after concluding that local security has improved to a certain extent, nine days after the activities were suspended, sources at the Self-Defense Forces said.
The roughly 530 Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) troops based in Samawah, southern Iraq, are scheduled to "supervise" local constructors involved in renovating schools and to make arrangements for "humanitarian and reconstruction aid" at the Coalition Provisional Authority's office on Tuesday, the sources added, according to the agency.
The troops have limited their operations to "purifying and providing water" inside the camp since April 4 because they received information that their safety could be threatened, a GSDF officer explained.
Tokyo deployed its troops to Samawah on a "humanitarian aid" mission to help rebuild local infrastructure, purify water and provide medical relief. (Albawaba.com)
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