Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has collapsed bleeding after being shot while campaigning on a street in Nara, in the west of the country.
Japanese public broadcaster NHK has reported that the 67-year-old man was shot and suffers from heart failure.
The station broadcast images showing the sunken Abe on the street, with several security guards running towards him.
Abe was shot while giving a speech on a street in Nara. (NHK) People react after the shootings in Nara, western Japan, on Friday, July 8, 2022. Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe suffered heart failure after being apparently shot during a campaign speech on Friday in western Japan, NHK public television said Friday. (Kyodo) News via AP) (AP)
Abe reportedly grabbed his chest when he collapsed, his shirt smeared with blood, around 11:30 a.m. local time (12:30 p.m. EST).
NHK reported that Abe was rushed to a hospital, showing images of a helicopter taking off from near the scene of the incident.
The station also reported that the local fire department said Abe showed no vital signs.
Witnesses said they heard gunshots in the apparent attack on Nara.
Police are inspecting the site where former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was shot dead in Nara, western Japan, on Friday, July 8, 2022. Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe suffered heart failure after was apparently shot dead during a campaign speech on Friday in western Japan, NHK reported. said television on Friday. (Kyodo News via AP) (AP) It looks like Shinzo Abe was shot while campaigning in Nara. (BNO News / Twitter)
Abe was standing while making an election campaign speech ahead of Sunday’s election for the upper house of Parliament when it took place.
Police say a man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
Videos aired on NHK showed a man holding what appeared to be a weapon before being attacked on the ground by three dressed men.
The longest-serving prime minister in Japanese history, Abe led the country from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020.
Abe left the post of prime minister in 2020 because he said a chronic health problem has resurfaced.
Shinzo Abe, photographed here in 2020, was shot while campaigning in Nara. (EPA) Investigators are working near the shooting site in Nara, western Japan, on Friday, July 8, 2022. Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had heart failure after being apparently shot during a campaign speech on Friday in western Japan, public television NHK said on Friday. . (Kyodo News via AP) (AP)
Abe has had ulcerative colitis since he was a teenager and has said the disease was controlled with treatment.
At the time, he told reporters it was “heartbreaking” to leave many of his goals unfinished.
He spoke of his failure to resolve the issue of the Japanese abducted years ago by North Korea, a territorial dispute with Russia and a revision of the Japanese constitution renouncing war.
This last goal was a great reason why he was such a divisive figure.
His ultranationalism irritated Korea and China, and his drive to normalize Japan’s defensive stance angered many Japanese.
Abe failed to achieve his beloved goal of formally rewriting the pacifist constitution drafted by the U.S. due to lack of public support.
Abe was taken to hospital. (Associated Press) Shinzo Abe in 2019. He is the longest-serving Japanese prime minister for two separate terms. (EPA)
Abe’s supporters said his legacy was a stronger relationship between the United States and Japan that aimed to strengthen Japan’s defense capacity.
But Abe also became enemies by forcing his defense goals and other controversial issues through parliament, despite strong public opposition.
Abe is a blue-blooded politician who was prepared to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather, former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi.
His political rhetoric often focused on making Japan a “normal” and “beautiful” nation with a stronger military and a more important role in international affairs.
The U.S. ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, expressed his sadness and shock at the shooting.
“Abe-san has been a prominent leader in Japan and an unwavering ally of the U.S.,” he wrote on Twitter.
“The U.S. government and the American people are praying for the well-being of Abe-san, his family, and the people of Japan.”
Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has tweeted that he was “horrified by this terrible news from Japan”, calling Abe “one of the greatest leaders of our time”.
Japan is one of the safest countries in the world, with some of the strictest arms control laws in the world.