Japan holds evacuation drill amid ongoing tensions over North Korea's nuclear programme [Photos]

Hundreds of Tokyo residents scrambled for cover on Monday in the Japanese capital's first evacuation drill for a military attack since World War II

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Hundreds of Tokyo residents scrambled for cover on Monday in the Japanese capital's first evacuation drill for a military attack since World War II, amid ongoing tensions over North Korea's nuclear programme. AP

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"We have information a missile launch has occurred. Please evacuate calmly inside a building or underground," a loudspeaker blared out the warning at a Tokyo amusement park. AP

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A park employee ran around, shouting 'a missile was launched, a missile was launched' as some 250 local residents and office workers duly evacuated to reinforced concrete buildings and a nearby subway station. AP

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The drill comes as regional tensions remain high over North Korea's nuclear and missile drive, despite the hermit state's plan to send athletes to next month's Winter Games in South Korea. AP

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North Korea has singled out Japan, a key US ally in the region, for verbal attacks, threatening to 'sink' the country into the sea and to turn it into 'ashes' AP