TOKYO - Tokyo police said on Saturday they had arrested a 49-year-old man who threw what appeared to be Molotov cocktails at the headquarters of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) earlier in the day.

He also crashed his van into the security fence outside the prime minister's office, which is close to the LDP headquarters situated in Nagatacho, and threw what appeared to be a smoke bomb at police officers, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Department said.

The man, identified as Atsunobu Usuda, was arrested on the scene for obstruction of official duties, the spokesperson said.

The incident took place amid the campaigning for a general election that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has called on Oct. 27.

Japanese media reported there were no injuries in the incident, which took place before 6 a.m. local time (2100 GMT Friday).

Television footage showed about a dozen plastic containers in his vehicle.

Local media quoted Ishiba as saying democracy should never give in to violence. He was in Kagoshima in southern Japan on Saturday.

LDP Secretary General Hiroshi Moriyama said the party will continue campaigning as scheduled, according to local media.

  - Reuters