FLocal media reported that Shinzo Abe (the former Japanese Prime Minister) was gunned down in Nara, western Japan. Abe was taken to hospital but is not showing any signs of life. the local fire department said.
NHK, the Japanese public broadcaster, reported that she heard two shots and then saw Abe in pain. Abe gave a speech in preparation for July 10th elections to the upper house.
NHK reports Abe, aged 67, had reportedly been shot in the back, perhaps with a gun. police sources. NHK reports that the man who was on the scene was arrested.
Abe, Japan’s longest serving prime minister, held office from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020. Due to health problems, Abe, aged 67 years old, decided to resign in 2020.
Abe was still the most well-known politician in Japan, even though he left public office. He was campaigning for his Liberal Democratic Party ahead of Sunday’s election in the upper house of Japan’s legislature.
Why is Shinzo abe so crucial to Japanese politics
It’s hard to overstate Abe’s power and influence in Japanese politics—even after he resigned as prime minister.
He ushered in “Abenomics,” a set of aggressive monetary and fiscal policies aimed at pulling Japan out of economic stagnation. The success of Abenomics in its early years raised Abe’s international reputation.
He campaigned for rewriting Japan’s pacifist constitution so that it would allow the nation of 126 million to come to the aid of allies. He also oversaw an expansion of the country’s military—technically the Self-Defense Force—and a more aggressive response to the rise of China in the region.
He also developed Japan’s foreign relations. In his first term, Abe formalized a four-way alliance with India, Australia, and the U.S.—aimed at improving maritime security in the Indo-Pacific region to counterbalance China.
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