Washington:

Following the shooting of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, AFP looks at five other political leaders around the world targeted in armed attacks in recent years:

Shinzo Abe: Assassinated

In a drama that sent shock waves through a country with low gun crime, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, who had resigned from his position in 2020 but remained a key political voice, was campaigning for his ruling party when a lone gunman killed him on July 8, 2022.

Abe’s accused killer targeted the former leader believing he had ties to the Unification Church, which he resented over massive donations his mother had made to the sect.

Jovenel Moise: Assassinated

Haitian president Jovenel Moise was shot dead in the middle of the night on July 7, 2021 in his private residence in Port-au-Prince by a band of 28 mercenaries.

His wife Martine was also shot but survived.

His death plunged an already lawless, gang-plagued Haiti deeper into turmoil.

Most of his attackers were former Colombian soldiers.

A US investigation revealed that two men at the head of a Miami security firm had devised a plan to kidnap Moise and replace him with a Haitian-American citizen.

Imran Khan: Attempted Assassination

On November 3, 2022, former Pakistani prime minister and ex-cricket superstar Imran Khan was hit by a spray of gunfire as his open-top truck made its way through a crowded street in the eastern city of Wazirabad. 

Khan, who had been ousted from power earlier that year after losing the support of the military, had been campaigning for a snap election.

The government said the assassination bid was the work of a lone wolf attacker, with police leaking a “confession” video by the junk-shop owner saying he acted because Khan’s rally had interrupted the Muslim call to prayer.

Cristina Kirchner: Attempted Assassination

On September 1, 2022, a man tried to shoot Argentina’s vice president Cristina Kirchner at point-blank range while she greeted supporters gathered outside her home in Buenos Aires — but the weapon failed to fire. 

Kirchner, a centre-left president from 2007 to 2015 who is an extremely polarising figure in Argentina, was at the time fighting corruption charges that had bitterly divided the nation between supporters and opponents of her Peronism movement.

Her attacker, a Brazilian man who grew up in Argentina, was seen on social media bearing tattoos associated with Nazi symbolism.

Jair Bolsonaro: Attempted Assassination

On September 6, 2018 Brazilian far-right presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro was stabbed in the abdomen on the campaign trail by an attacker later deemed mentally unfit to stand trial.

Former army captain Bolsonaro, dubbed the “Trump of the Tropics”, underwent abdominal surgery in the wake of the attack and went on to win the election.

He served a single term before losing his re-election bid to veteran leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Tokyo:

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday met Akie Abe, the wife of Japan’s late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and recalled the late premier’s invaluable contribution to the advancement of India-Japan relations.

Abe, 67, died on July 8, 2022, after being shot during an election campaign speech in Nara, Japan.

“On my visit to Tokyo this time, met with Mrs Akie Abe, wife of late PM Shinzo Abe. Recalled PM Shinzo Abe’s invaluable contribution to the advancement of India-Japan relations,” the minister said on platform X.

“Handed over a personal letter from PM Narendra Modi conveying his condolences on the recent passing away of Mrs Yoko Abe, mother of the late PM,” Mr Jaishankar said.

On my visit to Tokyo this time, met with Mrs Akie Abe, wife of late PM Shinzo Abe.

Recalled PM Shinzo Abe’s invaluable contribution to the advancement of India-Japan relations.

Handed over a personal letter from PM @narendramodi conveying his condolences on the recent passing… pic.twitter.com/5M33NKnht2

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (Modi Ka Parivar) (@DrSJaishankar) March 8, 2024

Abe was Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, having held office from 2006 to 2007, and then again from 2012 to 2020.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an emotional note after Abe’s death in 2022 hailed him as an outstanding leader of Japan.

PM Modi said with Abe’s demise, Japan and the world have lost a great visionary and he has lost a dear friend.

Abe always gave “top priority” to strengthening Japan’s strategic ties with India and the late prime minister took landmark initiatives like signing the bilateral civil nuclear deal, a key trade agreement, and convinced New Delhi to join the Quad grouping.

Abe had also cleared hurdles for the India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IJCEPA), signed on February 16, 2011, and entered into force on August 1, 2011.

The IJCEPA is one of the most comprehensive agreements India has concluded with other countries to date.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

The logo of of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, formerly known as Unification Church, is seen on the wall of the the building housing its headquarters in Tokyo, on Oct. 12, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

The Japanese government said Thursday it was seeking to strip official recognition from the Unification Church, the influential sect under intense scrutiny since the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida last year ordered a probe into the church after it emerged that Abe’s alleged killer was motivated by resentment against the group.

It has been accused of pressuring its followers into making hefty donations and blamed for child neglect among its members.

If granted, the court dissolution order sought by the government would see the church lose its tax-exempt status, among other legal privileges, but still be allowed to continue its religious practices.

“In view of the extensive damage caused, we find that it falls under the grounds for ordering dissolution as stated in the religious corporations law,” Education Minister Masahito Moriyama told reporters after a panel of experts unanimously agreed with the decision.

The church “forced a number of people to contribute donations and buy items… in a way that restricted their free decision-making and sabotaged their sound judgement”, he added.

The minister said the request would be filed to the Tokyo District Court as early as Friday, once “preparations are complete”.

Mr. Kishida said separately that the government’s plan was based on facts and a careful review of the matter.

“Based on the law and in accordance with the objective facts, careful work was done and the Minister of Education made the decision,” he told reporters at his office.

Abe was gunned down in broad daylight last year while giving a campaign speech in the western Nara region.

The suspect, Tetsuya Yamagami, is said to have resented the sect over large donations his mother made that bankrupted his family.

He could face the death penalty if convicted.

Investigations after Abe’s death revealed close ties between the church and many conservative ruling lawmakers in Japan.

Four of Mr. Kishida’s ministers have since stepped down over allegations of financial irregularities or links to the church.