Japan marks 20th anniversary of a deadly sarin nerve gas attack

Japan yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of a deadly sarin nerve gas attack by the Aum Shinri Kyo cult that killed 13 and made more than 6,000 sick on the Tokyo subway.

A memorial ceremony was held at Kasumigaseki Station where around 20 employees of Tokyo Metro observed a moment of silence at 8am, around the same time that two employees died there on March 20, 1995.

"It was like coming here to see him," said 68-year-old Shizue Takahashi, who lost her husband Kazumasa Takahashi. The then 50-year-old deputy station master at Kasumigaseki died after removing a plastic bag containing sarin planted by the cult.

Cult leader Shoko Asahara, a blind mystic who espoused a blend of Hinduism and Buddhism, was convicted of ordering five teams of followers to dump packets of sarin on trains, puncturing them with the sharpened tip of an umbrella.

Thousands of commuters were exposed to the colourless, odourless nerve gas, which even in low doses can cause paralysis of the lungs and neurological damage. Some died almost instantly, while others suffered gradually worsening symptoms.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also visited Kasumigaseki Station to offer flowers yesterday. "I'd like to offer my condolences to the victims. We will do all we can so something like this will never happen," Abe told reporters.