Prayers with him…: PM Modi 'distressed' by attack on 'Dear Friend' Shinzo Abe

NewDelhi, July 08: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed deep distress at the attack on former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe, who is in a critical condition after being shot during a campaign speech on Friday in western Japan.

Abe was airlifted to a hospital but he was not breathing and his heart had stopped, officials in Japan said.

"Deeply distressed by the attack on my dear friend Abe Shinzo. Our thoughts and prayers are with him, his family, and the people of Japan," Modi tweeted.

Abe was addressing a gathering for elections to the country's upper house on Sunday. One of Japan's longest-serving Prime Ministers, Abe resigned in 2020 after a chronic illness cut short his career at the helm of the government. However, the 67 year old still holds considerable influence in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

Shinzo Abe served as Japan's PM for about eight years, and during his tenure, PM Modi had often addressed him as a "dear friend".

Earlier, PM Modi had said that Abe was the one of the first world leaders to congratulate him for the 2019 Lok Sabha election win. "...You were the first friend of India who congratulated me, on phone. I also express my gratitude for the warm welcome you and Japan Government have accorded to us," he had said during a visit to Japan for the G20 summit in 2020. He had visited the country to meet Abe in 2018 too.