”It was just a prank, bro!” won’t get intruders off with just a warning.

Japan will be hosting a G7 summit later this spring, and in preparation for the gathering of world leaders, the Japan Self-Defense Forces are conducting special training sessions with local police departments, drilling response tactics for a variety of potentially dangerous situations. For example, on Tuesday in Kodaira City in west Tokyo, members of the Ground Self-Defense Forces and the Tokyo Metropolitan Police coordinated on a training exercise for how to deal with a very modern problem: YouTuber pranksters.

▼ Video of the training exercise was, ironically, posted to YouTube.

Specifically, the scenario for the exercise was “nuisance-style YouTubers attempt to force their way onto a JSDF base.” As shown in the video, the SDF members stop the intruding car and instruct its occupants to leave the vehicle, positioning themselves so that the YouTubers can neither make their way deeper into the restricted area nor escape. Meanwhile, the SDF contacts the police, who rush to the scene and take the YouTubers into custody. Once the area is secured, the SDF members perform a search of the car, where they discover an explosive device which has to be dealt with by the bomb squad.

It’s not clear if the training scenario was constructed under the theory that terrorists might pose as YouTubers while trying to approach their targets, or if the exercise simply combined two different situations, detainment of intruders and bomb disposal, for the sake of expediency. Either way, YouTube commenters see the drill as a strange, but necessary, sign of the times.

“We’ve entered the era where the country and its people need protection from YouTubers.”
“Weird world we’re living in.”
“Terrorists disguising themselves as YouTubers definitely seems like something that could happen.”
“I think we’re going to need more training like this, where the real threat someone poses isn’t apparent right away.”
“But the people in the video are way too well-behaved. Real YouTube pranksters are a lot worse.”

If only we could get similar protection from video pranksters at revolving sushi restaurants.

Source: Nitele News via Otakomu, YouTube/日テレNEWS
Top image: Pakutaso
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