Shinzo Abe, Japan’s former Prime Minister, has been confirmed dead.
“Former prime minister Abe died at a hospital in Kashihara city, Nara, where he was receiving medical treatment”, said national broadcaster NHK.
Abe was shot while delivering a speech ahead of the parliamentary election on Sunday.
Abe collapsed after a man opened fire from behind, striking him with two bullets.
The politician was speaking in front of the Yamato-Saidaiji Station of Kintetsu Railway.
Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was campaigning for a Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) candidate.
The 67-year-old was rushed to Kashihara City’s Nara Medical University Hospital.
Abe had no vital signs, according to the local police and emergency services.
He was in cardio-pulmonary arrest, according to the Nara City Fire Department, before being taken to the hospital.
Abe, Japan’s longest-serving Prime Minister, stepped down in August 2020 due to a relapse of chronic intestinal disease.
Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, a former member of the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF), has been arrested for attempted murder.