Japan lawmakers visit Yasukuni Shrine, South Korea protests

The group of lawmakers who visited the shrine included nine junior ministers. - Reuters

TOKYO (Reuters): Nearly 100 Japanese lawmakers from several political parties visited the controversial Yasukuni Shrine for war dead in Tokyo on Tuesday (Dec 7), prompting the South Korean government to express "deep concern and regret".

The shrine is seen by Seoul and Beijing as a symbol of Japan's past military aggression because it honours - among some 2.5 million war dead - 14 Japanese World War Two leaders convicted as war criminals by an Allied tribunal.