<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">A Japanese man has set himself alight reportedly to protest a state funeral for ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated in July.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hundreds of foreign dignitaries are expected to attend the funeral on 27 September.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On Wednesday, witnesses called police after spotting a man on fire near the prime minister's office in Tokyo.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Officers put out the blaze, and took the still-conscious man to hospital, local media reported.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The extent of his injuries and his current condition is unknown. Japanese media reports say the man is believed to be in his 70s.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The government is yet to comment on the protest. But public opposition to the holding of the state funeral has intensified in recent months, with polls showing a majority of voters unhappy with the expenditure.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Abe was shot dead on 8 July, aged 67, at a campaign rally for his political party. The killing of Japan's longest-serving prime minister was condemned internationally and shocked Japan, a country with a minimal record of political violence and gun crime.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">But state funerals are not an established practice in Japan, and protesters say they resent the use of public funds on the event that is projected to cost about 1.65bn yen (£10.1m; $11.4m).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">One of the country's main opposition parties, the Constitutional Democratic Party, has also said its lawmakers won't participate in next week's ceremony.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Many in Japan are commenting on how the mood around Abe's state funeral contrasts starkly with the affection shown at the Queen's state funeral in the UK.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Surveys show a majority of Japanese are against the event. Aside from the amount of taxpayers' money being spent, the guestlist - which reportedly includes representatives from the Burmese junta - is raising eyebrows.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Others say that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is failing to address Abe's and senior ruling party politicians' links to the controversial Unification Church, and this is increasing opposition.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Adding to the sour mood, a film about Abe's murder - produced by a former member of the terror group the Japanese Red Army - will be shown next week, with critics saying it romanticises the killing.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Police are yet to confirm details of the protest on Tuesday, but local media reported the man had voiced his opposition to the funeral to a nearby officer before setting himself alight.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Handwritten notes were also found around him expressing the same message, local media reported.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Criticism of the state funeral has also increased as more politicians in Japan's parliament have been found to have connections with a controversial church.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The man charged with killing Abe said he had targeted the former prime minister for his connections to the Unification Church, which he said had bankrupted his family. Source: BBC</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>