Police are now gathering evidence from security cameras and eyewitnesses, TV Asahi said, adding that an officer who tried to put out the fire was injured and taken to hospital. Shinzo Abe was Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, serving from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020 before stepping down for health reasons. He died of excessive bleeding in July aged 67 after being shot while giving a public campaign speech. News of his assassination reverberated around the world and huge crowds gathered in the streets of Tokyo to pay their respects. The Japanese government has announced it will hold a state funeral for Abe on September 27, with the ceremony expected to cost up to $12 million due to high security and reception fees for hosting foreign dignitaries. Opposition to this move is growing. Some protesters resent what they see as an excessive use of public funds for the event, while others point to Abe’s sometimes divisive politics. State funerals in Japan are usually reserved for members of the imperial family, although former Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida was honored in 1967. Despite his victories at the ballot box, Abe was no stranger to controversy. He has been involved in several scandals during his career and sparked controversy with visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, which includes names of convicted war criminals and is seen by China, North Korea and South Korea as a symbol of Japan’s imperial military past.
