FORMER Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in heart failure after apparently being shot during a campaign speech Friday, NHK public television said.
The broadcaster aired footage showing Abe, 67, collapsed on the street in Nara, Japan, with several security guards running toward him, the AP reported.
Abe was holding his chest when he collapsed, with his shirt smeared with blood.
The former prime minister was unconscious when he was rushed to the hospital after the attack, Bloomberg reported.
Police captured a male suspected of attempted murder at the scene, NHK said.
Witnesses reported hearing gunshots in the apparent attack in Nara, the AP said.
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Moment ex-Japanese prime minister shot in the chest revealed in shock vid
He was standing while making an election campaign speech ahead of Sunday’s election for the parliament’s upper house.
A shocking video from BNO News shows bystanders rushing to help the former prime minister after he was shot.
In Japan, the term heart failure is used to describe situations where the victim is no longer alive but before a formal declaration of death has been made, the AP reported.
Japan has some of the strictest gun laws in developed nations, so shootings are rare.
The US ambassador to Japan wrote a heartbreaking tribute to the ex-prime minister.
"We are all saddened and shocked by the shooting of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo," said Rahm Emanuel.
"Abe-san has been an outstanding leader of Japan and unwavering ally of the US the US Government and American people are praying for the well-being of Abe-san, his family, & people of Japan."
Abe resigned as prime minister in 2020once he "brought stability to Japan after a revolving door of six administrations," Bloomberg said.
He told reporters when he resigned that it was "gut-wrenching" to leave many goals unfinished.
Described as an ultra-nationalist, supporters lauded his efforts to strengthen Japan's relationship with the US.
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