The former leader appeared to be unresponsive at the scene, according to Kyodo News. Shinzo Abe, former prime minister of Japan, collapsed during a speech after gunshots were reportedly heard, according to Japanese public broadcasting agency NHK.
Japan’s ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been rushed to the hospital after apparently being shot while giving a speech, local media reports said, noting that bystanders heard two loud bangs before Abe collapsed.
Abe, 67, fell to the ground during a speech in the city of Nara on Friday morning and was seen bleeding.
“Former prime minister Abe was shot at around 11.30 am in Nara. One man, believed to be the shooter, has been taken into custody. The condition of former prime minister Abe is currently unknown,” chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters, adding that the attack was “unforgivable.”
The official also said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had canceled his campaign stops and would soon return to Tokyo.
#BREAKING Former Japan PM Abe showing no vital signs after attack. pic.twitter.com/uubDlA6OsT
— Sumit Kumar (@SumitLegal) July 8, 2022
“[Shinzo Abe] was giving a speech and a man came from behind,” one witness told NHK, adding that “the first shot sounded like a toy. He didn’t fall and there was a large bang. The second shot was more visible, you could see the spark and smoke.”
Local media reported that Abe was in a state of “cardiopulmonary arrest” afterward, citing local fire officials. The term is often used in Japan to indicate a person has no vital signs, but has not yet been certified dead by a coroner.
Video of the scene where Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe was shot. Paramedics actively working on Abe and reportedly the suspect being carried out.
https://twitter.com/Global_Mil_Info/status/1545241035995074560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Photos and footage circulating online purported to show the aftermath of the incident, including what appeared to be a homemade firearm.
It looks like Shinzo Abe was shot by a guy with a very rudimentary home made shotgun.
It looks like Shinzo Abe was shot by a guy with a very rudimentary home made shotgun. pic.twitter.com/RujcrMKDns
— james stout (@jamesstout) July 8, 2022
Paramedics were also seen working on Abe before he was taken in for treatment, while bystanders watched nearby.
A suspected shooter has been apprehended for attempted homicide, a man said to to be in his 40s, who is being interrogated by police.
Abe collapsed in the western Japanese city of Nara around 11:30 a.m Friday, according to NHK. A NHK correspondent reportedly heard two gunshot sounds and saw Abe fall over while bleeding from his chest.
BREAKING: Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been shot in the city of Nara, NHK reports. pic.twitter.com/R6vshJ4Elh
— The Japan Times (@japantimes) July 8, 2022
The former prime minister was reportedly rushed to the hospital after the incident. Abe is showing no vital signs after the reported gunshot, according to Japanese media.
#BREAKING Former Japan PM Abe attacked, left bleeding: local media pic.twitter.com/HQeqFY8N84
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) July 8, 2022
The Associated Press reports: “In Japan, officials sometimes use the term [heart failure] to describe situations where victims are no longer alive but before a formal declaration of death has been made.”
Japan’s longest serving prime minister, Abe was campaigning for an upcoming parliamentary election this weekend, speaking in favor of the ruling Liberal Democratic party.