{
  "id": 15585971,
  "title": "PLA hits out at Chinese student accused of wearing Japanese rising sun flag in classroom",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/19/pla-hits-out-at-chinese-student-accused-of-wearing-japanese-rising",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-19T09:07:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "South China Morning Post",
    "slug": "south-china-morning-post",
    "url": "https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3371379/pla-hits-out-chinese-student-accused-wearing-japanese-rising-sun-flag-classroom"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The People's Liberation Army (PLA) has criticized a Chinese student for wearing the Japanese rising sun flag in a classroom at Moscow State University, accusing him of promoting Japanese militarism. The PLA described the incident as \"egregious\" and \"shocking,\" stating that advocating for militarism is an offense against human conscience. The incident occurred during a history class on Wednesday when the student, named Chen, was said to have brought a 1930s Japanese military cap and draped the flag over himself. Some Chinese students protested, but Chen allegedly responded with physical violence and verbal abuse in Japanese. The Chinese Students and Scholars Association at Moscow State University reported the incident to the university and the Chinese embassy, and the university has launched an internal investigation. Two Chinese-language videos of the student apologizing have gone viral, with one showing him admitting his actions were \"wrong\" and expressing a desire to promote a deeper understanding of the Nanking massacre.",
  "summary": "The People’s Liberation Army has criticised a Chinese student who reportedly wore the Japanese rising sun flag in a classroom at a Russian university, accusing him of whitewashing Japanese militarism. The flag, which is still used by the Self-Defence Forces, is widely seen as a symbol of Japanese militarism and aggression in many countries, including China. “Regardless of which country or campus…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Reuters Business via SCMP",
        "title": "PLA hits out at Chinese student accused of wearing Japanese rising sun flag in classroom",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/19/pla-hits-out-at-chinese-student-accused-of-wearing-japanese-rising-15587709",
        "published": "2026-10-19T09:07:34.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}