Woman hurts herself in disagreement with Japanese PM

A woman blocked from driving through a security barrier at the Japanese prime minister's residence Tuesday slashed her own neck in a suicide attempt. Police said she was seriously injured.

The woman, believed to be in her 50's, cut herself in the neck, the left wrist, both upper arms and the upper abdomen with a small knife as security agents tried to persuade her to come out of her car, a police official said on customary condition of anonymity.

The woman was rushed to a hospital by ambulance.

National broadcaster NHK and Kyodo News agency reported the woman had pamphlets criticizing Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's government. The police official said he'd heard word of that but could not confirm it, according to the AP.

The incident came on the first day of the campaign for Sept. 11 parliamentary elections. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was campaigning in a Tokyo suburb early Tuesday and was not in his residence at the time of the attempted intrusion.

Japan has bolstered security in public places amid campaign jitters. A plane in northern Japan was evacuated on Monday after a man called in a bomb threat, but no bomb was found.

NHK reported that Tokyo police deployed 8,000 agents, including riot police, around the capital for the electoral season, a record number for election campaign security.

Police refused to confirm the report.