Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe assassinated

"Former prime minister Abe died at a hospital in Kashihara city, Nara, where he was receiving medical treatment. He was 67,"  said a senior member of Abe's Liberal Democratic Party, according to local reports.

Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters said, "It is absolutely unforgivable. I condemn this act in the strongest terms." On hearing the news, Kishida left his campaign trail and rushed to Tokyo.

Kishida arrived at the Prime Minister's office at 2:30 p.m. local time by helicopter from Yamagata Prefecture where he was campaigning for the upcoming Upper House election and later met the press.

Chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said a man believed to be the shooter has been taken into custody.

According to local media said citing police sources that the man has been identified as 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami.

"He was giving a speech and a man came from behind," a young woman at the scene told NHK.

"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," she added. "After the second shot, people surrounded him and gave him cardiac massage."

Abe, 67, was also campaigning for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in the city of Nara in western Japan when he was shot from the back. He collapsed after a second shot, witnesses said.

Abe reportedly had no vital signs after being shot on the streets of Nara.

The incident happened around 11.30 am local time, shortly after Abe began to speak. Video footage going viral on social media appears to show security guards at the event apprehending someone.

Sources with the investigation told NHK that a gun seized at the scene appeared to be handmade.

Abe, Japan's longest-serving prime minister, held office in 2006 for one year.

He again assumed office from 2012 to 2020, when he was forced to leave office due to the debilitating bowel condition ulcerative colitis.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled Abe's death and descrined him as a leader who was "always passionate about strengthening India-Japan ties".

French President Emmanuel Macron said Japan lost a great PM and a leader who "brought balance to the world".

Macron tweeted in French, which read, " On behalf of the French people, I send my condolences to the Japanese authorities and people after the assassination of Shinzo Abe. Japan is losing a great Prime Minister, who dedicated his life to his country and worked to bring balance to the world."

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a tweet he was “stunned and deeply saddened” by Abe's death, saying the country will "stand close to Japan."

"The deadly assassination attempt on @AbeShinzo stunned and deeply saddened me. My deepest sympathy goes to his family, my colleague Fumio @kishida230 and our Japanese friends. Even in these difficult hours, we stand close to Japan

Israel's leaders also spoke out, with Prime Minister Yair Lapid hailing Abe as "one of the most important leaders of modern Japan, and a true friend of Israel."

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Abe's assassination "shocking," and praised Abe as "a leader with great vision" and an "extraordinary partner," who took US-Japanese relations "to new heights", CNN reported.

“It’s profoundly disturbing in and of itself, it’s also such a strong personal loss for so many people," Blinken said Friday.

Some former leaders who had worked Abe during his primeministership also condoled his death.

Former British Prime Minister David Cameron said Abe was "a good friend personally, a strong partner to the UK, and a thoroughly kind and decent man." He called his death "devastating and truly shocking."

Israel's ex-leader Benjamin Netanyahu said he "will always remember Shinzo Abe and cherish our deep friendship," while Nicolas Sarkozy, the former French prime minister, called him "a great leader who left his mark on Japan."