Japan is in shock after the shots that targeted the country’s former prime minister Shinzo Abe in Nara. In the middle of an electoral meeting for the senatorial elections, he was seriously injured by bullets, finding himself in serious condition. The Japanese media, relayed by AFP, now claim that the 67-year-old politician, who resigned two years ago for health reasons, is dead. Footage of the drama shows the politician speaking into the microphone, then abruptly collapsing.
“I learned that he was in a very serious condition (…). It is a barbaric act in the middle of an election campaign, which is the basis of democracy, and it is absolutely unforgivable“, denounced the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida who considered him as his mentor in politics, during a press conference at the beginning of the afternoon. According to the public television channel NHK, Shinzo Abe was taken to the hospital and appeared to be in cardio-respiratory arrest – a term used in Japan indicating the absence of signs of life, and usually preceding an official death certificate.Married since 1987 to Akie Matsuzaki, the couple had no children.
A suspect arrested
A man in his 40s has been disarmed and arrested for attempted murder, according to NHK, citing police sources. According to several local media, the suspect is a 41-year-old Japanese man who in the past belonged to the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, the Japanese Navy.
In NHK footage showing the moment of the attack, Shinzo Abe is seen standing on a podium, then a loud bang is heard and smoke billows. While the spectators surprised by the detonation bend down, several people tackle another one to the ground. Shinzo Abe”was giving a speech and a man came up from behind“, told NHK a young woman present at the scene.The first shot sounded like a toy. He didn’t fall and there was a big bang. The second shot was more visible, you could see the spark and some smoke“, she added. “After the second shot, people surrounded him and gave him heart massage“, she testified again.
Japan’s longest-serving prime minister (from 2006 to 2007 and then from 2012 to 2020) collapsed and was bleeding from the neck, a source from the ruling nationalist right-wing Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) said. to Jiji News Agency. Local PLD officials said they had received no threat before the attack and that Mr. Abe’s speech had been announced publicly.