A man suspected of shooting Shinzo Abe told police he was unhappy with the Japanese former prime minister and intended to kill him, national broadcaster NHK said, citing police. The suspect, who is reported to have been a former Maritime Self-Defense Force member, is currently in police custody. Abe was rushed to hospital on Friday after being shot during a campaign speech. The shooting was an unforgiveable act, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Friday, condemning it in the "strongest terms" as having happened during an election exercise, one of the foundational elements of democracy. Abe, 67, was in a grave condition, Kishida said, expressing his wishes for the country's longest-serving prime minister to survive the ordeal.

Source: The Standard July 08, 2022 19:02 UTC