Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe hasdied from gunshot woundssustained during a campaign speech in Nara, Japan on Friday morning.
A spokesperson for Nara Medical University confirmed the tragic news of Abe’s assassination in a press conference Friday, reported CNN.
Japan’s longest-serving prime minister was officially pronounced dead at 5:03 p.m. local time, the outlet added. He was 67.
Shinzo Abe.Chung Sung-Jun/Getty
According to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in Tokyo, Abe, was shot in the right side of his neck at around 11:30 a.m. local time while speaking at a campaign rally ahead of Japan’s Upper House elections on Sunday, Japan’s public media organizationNHK, reported.
He then collapsed and was immediately rushed to Nara Medical University for treatment, the outlet said.
Shinzo Abe.Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images
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Police have arrested Yamagami Tetsuya in connection with the attack, NHK confirmed Friday, adding that a handmade gun was discovered at the scene.
The broadcaster said Tetsuya, 41, lived in Nara city and once worked for Japan’s Maritime Self Defense Force. He also reportedly told police that he was angry with the former prime minister and deliberately set out to kill him, NHK added.
Tributes from political leaders around the world have flooded in since the news of the tragic shooting was announced.
An aerial photo of the site where Shinzo Abe was shot in Nara City.The Yomiuri Shimbun/AP
“Our thoughts, our prayers are with him, with his family, with the people of Japan,” Blinken said Friday, according to the BBC. “This is a very, very sad moment. And we’re awaiting news from Japan.”
British Prime Minister,Boris Johnson–who resigned from 10 Downing Streeton Thursday – said in a tweet that he was “Utterly appalled and saddened to hear about the despicable attack on Shinzo Abe. My thoughts are with his family and loved ones.”
Japan has one of the lowest rates of gun deaths in the world, according toBusiness Insider.
Abe served as prime minister of Japan from 2006 to 2007, and from 2012 to 2020.
source: people.com
