Japan police chief to resign over former PM Shinzo Abe's assassination
Tetsuya Yamagami, the alleged gunman, was arrested at the scene and is currently under mental evaluation until late November. Speaking to police, Yamagami said that he targeted Abe because of the former leader's link to the Unification Church
FollowJapan's national police chief on Thursday said he will resign to take responsibility over the fatal shooting of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at a campaign speech last month. National Police Agency Chief Itaru Nakamura's announcement came as his agency released a report on how it failed to save the former prime minister's life on July 8 when he was assassinated in Nara in western Japan.
The police report found holes in Abe's police protection that allowed the alleged attacker to shoot him from behind. Nakamura did not say when his resignation would be official.
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Tetsuya Yamagami, the alleged gunman, was arrested at the scene and is currently under mental evaluation until late November. Speaking to police, Yamagami said that he targeted Abe because of the former leader's link to the Unification Church. Abe's family paid tribute to him in a private Buddhist ritual Thursday marking the 49th day of his assassination.
Police said he was conscious immediately after being shot from behind, but then, during transportation, his condition became critical, with cardiac and pulmonary arrest.
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Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Japan to attend the state funeral of Shinzo Abe next month. According to a report with the Japanese media, the country has scheduled the state funeral for Abe on September 27.Â
The ceremony will take place at the Nippon Budokan arena in the Kitanomaru National Garden in Tokyo.
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PM Modi will attend the official farewell ceremony, according to media reports in Japan. He is also likely to hold a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the report added.
Abe's funeral on September 27 will be the second state funeral for a former prime minister since World War 2. The first one was held in 1967 for Shigeru Yoshida.
