Aum Shinrikyo Successors Continue to Gain New Young Members

Tokyo, March 21 (Jiji Press)--Three successor groups of the now-defunct Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult continue to attract new young members 30 years after the cult carried out a deadly sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway system.

Of them, mainstream successor group Aleph is believed to have systematically conducted recruitment activities while hiding its name. Although such activities stalled in recent years partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a Public Security Intelligence Agency official said that "risks still remain."

According to the agency, over 860 people joined the three successor groups in the decade through 2023. Of them, 52 pct were in their 20s or younger, meaning they were born after the sarin gas attack on March 20, 1995.

The three group had about 1,600 believers as of the end of January this year, of whom at least 1,200 were members of Aleph.

Aleph's recruitment tactics are characterized by the concealment of the group's name and the use of conspiracy theories.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]