On the 8th, a suspect who shot former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with a firearm near the Yamato Nishidaiji area in Nara City, Nara Prefecture, Japan, was arrested. The suspect is known to be Tetsuya Yamagami (41), a former Maritime Self-Defense Force member residing in Nara Prefecture, and the police are currently investigating his motive. Photo by AP Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Japanese media, including Kyodo News, reported on the 8th that the suspect who shot former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo was a former Self-Defense Forces member.
Former Prime Minister Abe was shot and collapsed while campaigning in support of the House of Councillors election in Nara City, Nara Prefecture, on the same day. Abe was quickly transported to the hospital but was reported to be in cardiopulmonary arrest, and the police arrested the suspect at the scene.
The suspect was identified by Kyodo News as a 41-year-old man named Yamagami Tetsuya, who lives in Nara City. The police are investigating the suspect on charges of attempted murder and have confiscated the firearm he possessed.
According to government officials, the suspect Yamagami is known to be a former Maritime Self-Defense Force member. NHK reported that the suspect is making statements to the effect of "having grievances against former Prime Minister Abe and intending to kill him."
Former Prime Minister Abe made amending the constitution to explicitly mention the Self-Defense Forces his lifelong mission and persistently advocated for revising the pacifist constitution during his tenure. Public opinion polls suggest that the pro-amendment forces, including the Liberal Democratic Party, are expected to secure more than two-thirds in this House of Councillors election, meeting the threshold to propose constitutional amendments.
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