TOKYO — Shinzo Abe, the former prime minister of Japan, was left unconscious after being wounded on Friday while he was giving a speech in western Japan, according to a fire official.
Mr. Abe, 67, collapsed and appeared to be bleeding after a gunshot was heard in the city of Nara near Kyoto, according to a reporter for NHK, the public broadcaster, on the scene.
A man was believed to be in custody at the site, the broadcaster reported.
Seigo Yasuhara, an official in the command center at the Nara Fire Department, said that Mr. Abe had been taken by an ambulance to a medical evacuation helicopter and then to a regional medical center.
He was unconscious and not showing any vital signs, the official said.
Mr. Abe was the country’s longest-serving prime minister and served two terms, from 2006 to 2007 and 2012 to 2020. He resigned in 2020 because of ill health.
Mr. Abe was in Nara campaigning, ahead of lections for the Upper House of Parliament scheduled for Sunday, NHK reported.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
