SHINZO ABE, FORMER JAPANESE PM DIES AFTER BEING SHOT

Fri 08 July 2022:

Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe has died, according to local media, after he was shot while giving a speech in the city of Nara, in western Japan.

The 67-year-old collapsed and was unconscious when he was taken to hospital after being reportedly shot in the neck and chest.

The NHK broadcaster and the Kyodo news agency announced Abe’s death on Friday, hours after his successor, Fumio Kishida, said the 67-year-old had been gravely wounded in the gun attack.

Earlier on Friday, local media, citing fire department officials, reported that the former prime minister had shown “no vital signs” and was in a state of cardiac arrest.

Abe was in the middle of giving a speech in Nara when he collapsed to the ground clutching his chest, with his shirt smeared in blood.

An NHK reporter at the scene said they heard two loud bangs during his speech, with several security guards running towards Abe.

One witness told NHK a man came from behind in the moments before he collapsed.

“The first shot sounded like a toy. He didn’t fall and there was a large bang. The second shot was more visible, you could see the spark and smoke,” she said.

Police said a 41-year-old male suspect has been arrested at the scene.

Moment former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe was shot from behind as he campaigned in the city of Nara. pic.twitter.com/kPEBkOlxzV

— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) July 8, 2022

Who is the suspect?

Local media have identified the suspect as Yamagami Tetsuya, a Nara resident. He was arrested at the scene on charges of attempted murder.
NHK said the suspected gunman had used a handmade gun in the attack and quoted defence sources as saying that he had worked for the Maritime Self-Defense Force for three years until 2005.
Kishida, the prime minister, said a motive for the attack was not yet clear. NHK, citing the police, said the suspect told investigators he was dissatisfied with the former prime minister and intended to kill him.
It was not clear why he was angry with Abe.

Why was Abe in Nara?

Japan is heading to the polls for its upper house election on Sunday — and although he resigned from politics, Mr Abe has remained a major figure within the Liberal Democrat Party.

He controlled one of the party’s major factions, and is considered an elder statesman of the LDP because of the stability he brought to the country while serving as prime minister.

Abe known for his “Abenomics” policy, which featured a more relaxed monetary policy and higher government spending, and was instrumental in the country winning the 2020 Olympics for Tokyo.

Abe became the longest-serving Japanese prime minister last year, surpassing the record held by his great uncle Eisaki Sato.

He was first elected to the top job in 2007 and became the country’s youngest prime minister since World War II, but quit later that year due to his ill health.

He was returned as prime minister in December 2012, and promised to revamp the country’s economy and revise its constitution.

Abe led his party to six national election victories and survived several scandals, and was re-elected as Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) president for a third consecutive three-year term in 2018 after the party changed the rules.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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