Japanese former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was gunned down Friday while campaigning for a national election, the government said, with public broadcaster NHK saying he appeared to have been shot from behind by a man with a shotgun.
Olice said a 41-year-old man suspected of carrying out the shooting in the western city of Nara had been arrested.
Kyodo and NHK news agency said Abe, 67, appeared to be in a state of cardiac arrest when he was flown to hospital after initially regaining consciousness and responding.
“Such an act of barbarity cannot be tolerated,” Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters, adding that Abe had been shot at about 11:30 a.m.
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrives for his address in Nara, Japan, July 8, 2022, in this still image obtained from video posted on social media. TWITTER @MAKIHANMAN37/via REUTERS
He said he didn’t know Abe’s condition.
This screenshot shows former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lying on the ground after being shot from behind by a man during a July 10, 2022 Senate election campaign in Nara, Western Japan, July 8, 2022 in this photo taken by Kyodo . Kyodo/via REUTERS
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe looks on after arriving for his speech in Nara, Japan, July 8, 2022, in this still image obtained via video posted on social media. TWITTER @MAKIHANMAN37/via REUTERS
NHK showed video of Abe giving a campaign speech outside a train station when two shots were fired, the view was briefly obscured and then security officials were seen tackling a man on the ground. A cloud of smoke behind Abe was seen in another video shown in NHK.
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrives for his address in Nara, Japan, July 8, 2022, in this still image obtained from video posted on social media. TWITTER @MAKIHANMAN37/via REUTERS
A Kyodo photo showed Abe facing up in the street near a guardrail, blood on his white shirt. There were people around him, one of whom was giving chest compressions.
This screenshot shows former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lying on the ground after being shot from behind by a man during a July 10, 2022 Senate election campaign in Nara, Western Japan, July 8, 2022 in this photo taken by Kyodo . Kyodo/via REUTERS
TBS Television reported that Abe had been shot in the left side of his chest and apparently in the neck as well.
Political violence is rare in Japan, a country with strict gun regulations. The weapon used in the shooting appeared to be a homemade firearm, NHK said.
In 2007, Nagasaki mayor Iccho Itoh was shot and killed by a yakuza mobster. The head of the Japanese Socialist Party was assassinated during a speech in 1960 by a right-wing youth with a samurai sword.
“At first I thought it was fireworks,” a bystander told NHK.
Police identified the suspected gunman as Tetsuya Yamagami, a resident of Nara.
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe looks on after arriving for his speech in Nara, Japan, July 8, 2022, in this still image obtained via video posted on social media. TWITTER @MAKIHANMAN37/via REUTERS
Abe served two terms as prime minister to become Japan’s longest-serving prime minister before stepping down in 2020 due to ill health.
But he has remained a dominant presence over the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which controls one of its main factions.
His protégé, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, is headed to the Senate election on Sunday in hopes, analysts say, to emerge from Abe’s shadow and determine his premiership.
Kishida suspended his election campaign after the shooting of Abe and returned to Tokyo, where he was scheduled to speak to the media at 5.30am GMT.
The government said there were no plans to postpone the elections.
United States Ambassador Rahm Emanuel said he was saddened and shocked by the shooting of an outstanding leader and unwavering ally.
“The US government and the American people pray for the well-being of Abe-san, his family and the people of Japan,” he said in a statement.
Abe is best known for his signature “Abenomics” policy of bold monetary easing and fiscal spending.
He also boosted defense spending after years of declines and expanded the military’s ability to project power abroad.