Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe has died after being shot during a campaign speech, according to NHK television.
Mr Abe was shot from behind minutes after he started his speech on Friday in Nara in western Japan, it has been reported. He was airlifted to a hospital for emergency treatment but was not breathing and his heart had stopped. The 67-year-old was pronounced dead later at the hospital.
Mr Abe was Japan's longest-serving leader before stepping down for health reasons in 2020. Police arrested the suspected gunman at the scene of the attack, which shocked people in a country known as one of the world's safest.
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Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Cabinet ministers hastily returned to Tokyo from campaign events around the country after the shooting, which he called "dastardly and barbaric". "I'm praying for former prime minister Abe's survival from the bottom of my heart," Mr Kishida told reporters at his office before news of Mr Abe's death was announced.
Public broadcaster NHK aired a dramatic video of Mr Abe giving a speech outside a train station in Nara. In it, he is standing, dressed in a navy blue suit, raising his fist, when two gunshots are heard. The video then shows Mr Abe collapsed on the street, with security guards running toward him. He holds his chest, his shirt smeared with blood.
A moment later, security guards leap on top of a man in a grey shirt who lies face down on the pavement. A double-barrelled device that appears to be a handmade gun is seen on the ground.
Nara prefectural police confirmed the arrest of Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, on suspicion of attempted murder. NHK reported that the suspect served in the Maritime Self-Defence Force for three years in the 2000s.
Other videos from the scene showed campaign officials surrounding Mr Abe. The former leader was still highly influential in the governing Liberal Democratic Party and headed its largest faction, Seiwakai.
Elections for Japan's upper house, the less powerful chamber of its parliament, are on Sunday. "I use the harshest words to condemn (the act)," Mr Kishida said as he struggled to control his emotions.
He said the government planned to review the security situation, but added that Mr Abe had the highest protection. Opposition leaders condemned the attack as a challenge to Japan's democracy and had prayed for Mr Abe's recovery.
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