Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe died on Friday after being shot in an attack during an election rally in Nara, western Japan. The death was confirmed by the Liberal Democratic Party (PLD), to which he belonged.
Abe, 67, was shot while speaking ahead of parliamentary elections. He was still transported by plane to a hospital after suffering a cardiorespiratory arrest, but he did not survive. According to NHK, a Japanese television network, Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, was arrested for attempted murder and a firearm was confiscated. NHK reported that the suspect served in the Maritime Self-Defense Force for three years in the 2000s.
According to The New York Times, the Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency confirmed that the former prime minister suffered gunshot wounds to the neck and chest. The station broadcast scenes in which Abe is seen passed out on the street and being rescued by security guards. Images show the former prime minister clutching his chest when he was hit, and passing out with his bloody shirt. At the time of the attack, he was delivering a speech on behalf of the Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) Kei Sato’s election campaign to the Upper House of the Japanese Parliament.
Public broadcaster NHK broadcast dramatic footage of Abe giving a speech outside the main train station in Nara. He’s on his feet, dressed in a navy blue suit, raising his fist when a gunshot is heard. An NHK reporter reported that at least two shots were fired. There is still no confirmation whether Abe was hit by two bullets.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called the attack “cowardly and barbaric” and added that the crime that took place during the election campaign, which is the foundation of democracy, was absolutely unforgivable.
Amelia Warner
Amelia Warner writes all the Latest Articles. She mostly covers Entertainment topics, but at times loves to write about movie reviews as well.
