Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe was shot at about 11:30 a.m. in the prefecture of Nara, chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said on Friday.
"Former prime minister Abe's condition is not currently known, and we are checking the situation," Matsuno told reporters at an emergency news briefing at the prime minister's office.
Authorities have arrested one man who appeared to have shot Abe, 67, in the back.
(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
