Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, finishes to speak to media at the Prime Minister's official residence Friday, July 8, 2022, in Tokyo. Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was shot during a campaign speech Friday in western Japan and was airlifted to a nearby hospital but he was not breathing and his heart had stopped, officials said. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Japan Abe Shot
NARA, Japan (AP) — Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, one of Japan’s most powerful politicians, has died after being shot during a campaign speech.
Abe was shot from behind minutes after he started his speech Friday in Nara in western Japan. He was airlifted to a hospital for emergency treatment but was not breathing and his heart had stopped.
He was pronounced dead later at the hospital. The 67-year-old Abe was Japan’s longest-serving leader before stepping down for health reasons in 2020.
Police arrested the suspected gunman at the scene of the attack, which shocked people in a country known as one of the world’s safest.
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