TOKYO — Shinzo Abe, the former prime minister of Japan, collapsed and was unconscious after being injured on Friday while giving a speech in western Japan, according to a fire official.
Mr Abe, 67, appeared to be bleeding after a gunshot was heard in the city of Nara, near Kyoto, according to a reporter for state broadcaster NHK. Kyodo News said Mr Abe was shot in the chest.
Seigo Yasuhara, an official with the Nara Fire Command Center, said Mr Abe was transported by ambulance to a medical evacuation helicopter. He was then taken to Nara Medical University Hospital, Nara Fire Department said.
He was unconscious with no vital signs, the official said.
NHK, citing police, said a suspect, 42-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, had been taken into custody. He was a resident of Nara, according to the report.
Mr Abe was the country’s longest-serving prime minister and served two terms, from 2006 to 2007 and 2012 to 2020. He resigned in 2020 due to health issues.
The former prime minister was in Nara campaigning ahead of elections for the Upper House of Parliament scheduled for Sunday. Mr Abe was giving a campaign speech on behalf of Kei Sato, 43, a current member of the Upper House seeking re-election in Nara, when he was shot dead.
Fumio Kishida, the current prime minister, was campaigning in Yamagata prefecture and was due to return to Tokyo, where he was to address the media.
Hirokazu Matsuno, chief secretary to Prime Minister Kishida’s cabinet, said a crisis management center had been set up within the prime minister’s office.
Rahm Emanuel, US Ambassador to Japan, said in a post on Twitter“We are all saddened and shocked,” adding, “Abe-san has been an outstanding leader of Japan and a staunch ally of the United States. The American government and the American people pray for the well-being of Abe-san, his family, & the people of Japan.