JAPAN – Japan’s prime minister has demanded an explanation from Beijing over the fatal stabbing of a schoolboy in the second knife attack on Japanese children in China in recent months. The 10-year-old boy was stabbed by a man on his way to class Wednesday about 200 meters (650 feet) from the gates of the Japanese school in the southern city of Shenzhen, according to China’s foreign ministry.

The child, whose father is Japanese and mother is Chinese, was a Japanese national, according to the ministry. He was taken to a hospital and later died of his injuries, authorities said Thursday. A 44-year-old suspect was apprehended at the scene and taken into custody, Shenzhen police said in a statement. The man was unemployed and had previously been detained twice on suspicion of damaging public telecom facilities and disrupting public order, state media in Shenzhen reported Friday, citing the police.

Speaking to reporters Thursday, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called the attack “a despicable crime and a serious and grave matter,” and urged China to protect Japanese people in the country. “We strongly demand that the Chinese side explain the facts of the case. As more than a day has already passed since the crime, we have instructed them to provide an explanation as soon as possible,” Kishida said.

“Such an incident must never be repeated. We strongly urged the Chinese side to ensure the safety of Japanese people.” At a regular news conference Thursday, China’s foreign ministry expressed “regret and heartache” over what it called an “unfortunate incident” and extended condolences to the boy’s family. Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the ministry, said the case was being investigated and called it an “isolated incident.”

“Similar cases could happen in any country,” Lin said. “China has always taken, and will continue to take effective measures to ensure the safety of all foreign nationals in China.” The attack took place on a sensitive date, the anniversary of the “918” incident in 1931, when Japanese soldiers blew up a Japanese-owned railway in northeast China in a pretext to capture the region. (CNN)…[+]