Crime & Courts

Japan Police Chief Expresses Remorse over Death of Ex-Pm Shinzo Abe

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
National Police Agency Commissioner General Yasuhiro Tsuyuki speaks to reporters in Hiroshima in April.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:17 JST, July 7, 2023

National Police Agency Commissioner General Yasuhiro Tsuyuki expressed remorse over the July 8, 2022, fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, ahead of Saturday’s one-year anniversary.

Speaking at a regular press conference on Thursday, Tsuyuki said, “Thinking back on the incident, I feel extremely bitter that the attack occurred while we were guarding him.”

He also referred to an incident in April in which an explosive device was thrown toward Prime Minister Fumio Kishida as he was about to deliver a stump speech at a fishing port in Wakayama, saying, “We must take this incident very seriously.”

Regarding the role of police at the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May, Tsuyuki said: “Security measures were carried out successfully, but that doesn’t mean we achieved a perfect score. We’ll share the lessons learned with police departments nationwide and steadily promote efforts to strengthen protection.”