Japan ex-leader Abe shot dead

Shocking scene: (Left) Abe delivering his speech at Kintetsu Yamato-Saidaiji station square in Nara moments before he was shot. (Right) The suspect being tackled to the ground after the shooting. — AFP

NARA: Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, a divisive arch-conservative and one of his nation’s most powerful and influential figures, has died after being shot during a campaign speech in western Japan, hospital officials said.

Abe, 67, was shot from behind minutes after he started his speech in Nara yesterday.