Man denies intent to kill ex-PM Kishida in explosives attack

A man accused of the attempted murder two years ago of then Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in a pipe bomb attack during an election-related event denied intent to kill at his first court hearing Tuesday.Ryuji Kimura, 25, is accused of hurling an explosive device at Kishida, who was in the crowd gathered for a stump speech in Wakayama Prefecture in western Japan less than a year after the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.His defense team argued at the Wakayama District Court that Kimura should be facing a charge of injuring two people in the attack, not attempted murd…READ FULL ARTICLE