Tokyo (AP): A vehicle crashed into a temporary barricade near the Israeli Embassy in Tokyo on Thursday, and reports say police arrested the driver.

The alleged motive and whether the embassy was targeted are not known. Protestors often gather against Israel's attacks on Gaza, and the street near the embassy has been barricaded by Japanese police.

Police refused to confirm the media reports.

A man in his 50s believed to be a member of a right-wing group was arrested at the scene on suspicion of obstructing official duties, public broadcaster NHK and other media reported.

An ambulance was dispatched to a nearby location when an emergency call reported one person was injured, the Tokyo Fire Department said. One police officer had a hand injury, the media reports said.

Photographs and video footage showed a black compact vehicle crashed into a guardrail by the sidewalk, with debris scattered on the street. The crash site is near an intersection about 100 meters (yards) from the embassy, NHK said.

 

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New Delhi, Nov 26: RPI(A) leader Ramdas Athawale, a key BJP ally, on Tuesday called for a quick decision on the next chief minister of Maharashtra and suggested that incumbent Eknath Shinde should shift to the Centre as a Union minister.

Addressing a press conference here, Athawale also backed senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis as the next chief minister of Maharashtra, contending that the saffron party won the maximum number of seats in the 288-member Assembly and should have the right to the top executive post in the state.

He said a peculiar situation has arisen in Maharashtra where BJP leaders want Fadnavis as the chief minister, while Shiv Sena leaders want Shinde to continue in the post, citing the good work he has done over the last two and a half years.

Athawale, the Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, said NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has declared that he was not in the race for the chief minister.

"We need to resolve this matter, without any further delay. The election results were announced on November 23 and we should have had the oath of the new chief minister on November 26, the Constitution Day," Athawale said.

Backing Fadnavis for the post of chief minister, Athawale said Shinde can become the deputy chief minister or shift to the Centre and join the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Athawale said his RPI(A) has a presence in every part of the state, but unfortunately lost the two seats -- Dharavi and Kalina -- offered to it in the recent Maharashtra Assembly elections.

He demanded that an RPI member be made an MLC and a minister in the state government.

The BJP-led Mahayuti won a landslide victory in the Maharashtra Assembly elections winning 235 seats in the 288-member House. The BJP won 132 seats, followed by Shinde-led Shiv Sena (57) and Ajit Pawar-led NCP (41). Smaller parties, who are part of the alliance, won five seats.