Japan will ban the flying of drones over 15 U.S. military facilities next month without advance permission as a measure against potential terrorist acts, the Defense Ministry said Friday. The 15 sites include Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo and the U.S. Marines' Camp Schwab on Okinawa. The restrictions, based on a law enacted last year, will be implemented on Sept. 6 following a notice period but have triggered concerns from media organizations over the potential disruption to news-gathering activities. Drone pilots will be barred from flying within 300 meters of the boundary of the designated sites, including the Henoko coastal district in Nago, Okinawa, near Camp Schwab where landfill work is underway to replace the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma despite local opposition. Police and the Self-Defense Forces are permitted to seize or destroy drones if they are flown near the designated zones without permission, and violators face up to a year in prison or a maximum fine of ¥500,000 ($4,700).

Japanese police arrested or took other action against 115 people for civil aviation law violations linked to unauthorized drone flights in 2019, up 31 from the previous year, government data showed Thursday. The National Police Agency tally included 51 foreign nationals, of whom 19, the largest group, were Chinese. Seven were from the United States. Last year, the number of cases that led to police actions stood at 111. Of them, 54 cases happened as offenders tried to take commemorative pictures, while 34 cases were flight operation exercises, according to the NPA data.

KITAKYUSHU – A man was arrested Friday for allegedly flying a drone in a prohibited area without permission in the first such incident since Japan began regulating the unmanned aircraft in 2015. Koji Shiokawa, 58, was arrested on suspicion of violating the revised Civil Aeronautics Law by flying a drone around a park in Kitakyushu on Aug. 21. The park is near a residential area in the city that is designated as a no-fly zone by law due to its high population density. While several drone flight violations have been recorded since the legal revision took affect, only some of cases have been referred to prosecutors. Friday's arrest, however, is the first for flying a drone in a prohibited area without permission, the National Police Agency said.