Assassination of Shinzo Abe

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Assassination of Shinzo Abe
Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station, several hours after the shooting
LocationNear Yamato-Saidaiji Station, Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan
Date8 July 2022 (2022-07-08)
c. 11:30 JST (UTC+9:00)
Attack type
Murder by shooting, assassination
WeaponsHomemade shotgun[1]
Deaths1
VictimShinzo Abe
MotiveA grudge against the Unification Church, with which Abe was connected[2]
AccusedTetsuya Yamagami
ChargesMurder gun law violations

On 8 July 2022, former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe was killed after being shot twice in the chest and neck during a campaign speech near in Nara, Japan.[3]

His assassination was the first of a former Japanese prime minister since Saitō Makoto and Takahashi Korekiyo during the February 26 Incident in 1936, as well as the first of a former G7 leader since Italy's Aldo Moro in 1978.[4]

Shooting[change | change source]

Abe was making a speech for the upcoming elections. He was shot twice from behind with an improvised shotgun, hitting his chest and neck.[5][6]

Death[change | change source]

Abe was transported to a local hospital unconscious.[7] It was said he went into cardiopulmonary arrest shortly after being shot while other sources said he was having heart failure.[8][9]

Hours later, Abe's younger brother and Japan's defence minister Nobuo Kishi said Abe was having a blood transfusion.[10]

At 5:03 pm JST the news was broken that he had died, about five hours after the shooting happened. The doctors said that because he had lost a lot of blood, and the bullet had gone in deep enough to enter his heart. This news was reported by the public broadcaster NHK citing the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. It was also reported in a news conference at the medical hospital.[11]

The police autopsy found that Abe died from loss of blood after a bullet damaged an artery under his collarbone.[12]

Suspect[change | change source]

Tetsuya Yamagami, the shooter, was arrested by police at the scene.[13][14] Yamagami had created the shotgun used for the attack.[1]

Yamagami was a former member of the Maritime Self-Defense Force from 2002 to 2005.[15][16][17] Yamagami told investigators that he wanted to kill Abe because of a personal bad feelings toward a "certain religious group" that Abe had supported.[18][19] He said that this religious group had "brainwashed" his mother and that killing Abe was not because of his political beliefs.[20]

Aftermath[change | change source]

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who was in Yamagata Prefecture for the election campaign, cancelled campaigning and returned to Tokyo to deliver a national address, as did other Kishida cabinet members.[21] In his speech, he said that Abe was in critical condition and called the shooting "unforgivable".[22]

Many world leaders reacted to the shooting by hoping Abe recovered and condemned the shooting such as Emmanuel Macron, Joe Biden, Justin Trudeau, Jacinda Ardern, Boris Johnson, Anthony Albanese, Narendra Modi, Joseph M. Alberts, Ursula von der Leyen, Charles Michel, Jens Stoltenberg, Sauli Niinistö, Lee Hsien Loong, Jair Bolsonaro and Tsai Ing-wen along with former leaders such as Donald Trump, Barack Obama and Yoshihide Suga.[23]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Kim, Chang-Ran (June 7, 2022). "Shinzo Abe shot while making election speech in Japan". Reuters. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  2. ↑ Fisher, Marc (12 July 2022). "How Abe and Japan became vital to Moon's Unification Church". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  3. ↑ "Man taken into custody after former Japanese PM Abe Shinzo collapses". NHK World. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  4. ↑ Landers, Peter. "Shinzo Abe Shooting Recalls Japan's Prewar History of Political Violence". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  5. ↑ "Shinzo Abe, former Japan prime minister, shot during speech – report". TheGuardian.com. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-07-08. Retrieved 2022-07-08.
  6. ↑ Auto, Hermes (2022-07-08). "Japan's ex-PM Shinzo Abe collapses in Nara after being shot, shows no vital signs: Media | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 2022-07-08.
  7. ↑ Ex Japan PM Shot, Shows "No Vital Signs" After Attack: Reports | NDTV 24x7 Live TV, retrieved 2022-07-08
  8. ↑ Japan's ex-PM Shinzo Abe shot, reportedly in cardiac arrest
  9. ↑ Japan's former PM Shinzo Abe reportedly shot, is in heart failure
  10. ↑ Ex-Japan PM shot live updates: 'Shinzo Abe receiving blood transfusion, efforts being made to save his life'
  11. ↑ "Shinzo Abe dies after shooting in Japan". CNN. CNN. 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  12. ↑ "Police: Abe died from loss of blood due to single bullet | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News". NHK WORLD. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  13. ↑ Nakamaru, Ryotaro (7 July 2022). "Former Japan PM Abe Unconscious After Shooting; Man in Custody". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  14. ↑ "Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe unconscious after being shot in Nara". Japan Times. Kyodo News. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  15. ↑ "Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe unconscious after being shot in Nara". Japan Times. Kyodo News. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  16. ↑ 日本放送協会. "安倍元首相銃撃 41歳男"殺そうと思って狙った"【速報中】 | NHK" [Former Prime Minister Abe Shooter, 41-year-old man, “I intended to kill him.”]. NHKニュース (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2022-07-08. Retrieved 2022-07-08.
  17. ↑ "【速報】山上徹也容疑者は元海上自衛隊員 安倍首相、心肺停止" [[Breaking news] Tetsuya Yamagami is a former Maritime Self-Defense Force member Prime Minister Abe, cardiopulmonary arrest]. FNN (in Japanese). Fuji News Network. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  18. ↑ "Police: Suspect 'intended to kill' former PM Abe". NHK. NHK. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  19. ↑ 安倍元首相銃撃で山上容疑者「ある特定の宗教団体に恨み」 [Former Prime Minister Abe shoots Yamagami "grudge against a specific religious group"]. FNNプライムオンライン (in Japanese). 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  20. ↑ 【独自】山上容疑者「殺すため銃を作った」、宗教団体の名前挙げ不満も…安倍元首相銃撃. 読売新聞オンライン (Yomiuri Shimbun) (in Japanese). 2022-07-09. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-08.
  21. ↑ "東京に戻るよう閣僚に指示と官房長官" [Directed ministers to come back to tokyo — Chief Cabinet Secretary] (in Japanese). Kyodo News. 8 July 2022. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  22. ↑ Shinzo Abe shooting unforgiveable
  23. ↑ Japan’s ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shot: World reacts
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