🌏 Japan's Former Primer Minister Assassinated, Another British Woman Attacked And Murdered While Walking Home and More

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Japan’s former prime minister Shinzo Abe has died after he was shot in the chest while giving a speech at a campaign event, according to national broadcaster NHK. He was 67.

A 42-year-old man had opened fired with a handmade handgun while Abe was giving a speech in Japan’s Nara at around 11:30 am local time on Friday July 8, according to authorities.

State media NHK, which had been touring alongside Abe, reported the man had approached Abe from behind and shot twice.

It was after the second shot that witnesses saw the 67-year-old collapse to the ground.

Fire and Disaster authorities confirmed that Abe had gunshot related injuries on his right neck and left chest, according to the New York Times.

Officials reported that Abe was taken to the hospital and he remained “unconscious” and “showing no vital signs”.

Former Tokyo governor, Yoichi Masuzoe, tweeted Abe remained “in a state of cardiopulmonary arrest” while several media outlets reported he was in “grave” condition throughout the afternoon.

Japanese state media reported about five hours later that Abe had died.

The suspect, a former Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force member, who was apprehended at the scene, had reportedly told authorities he was dissatisfied with Abe and had aimed to kill him.

Gun violence is usually rare in Japan, where handguns are usually banned.

Abe was the longest serving prime minister in Japan, holding office in 2006 and again from 2016 to 2020, when he resigned due to health reasons.

Also Happening Around The World

🇬🇧 The UK’s prime minister, Boris Johnson, has announced he will resign after more than 50 ministers led a series of resignations in protest of his leadership.

🇦🇺 Authorities have ordered around 50,000 people in New South Wales, mostly in Sydney, to evacuate after days of rainfall have cause major flooding in Eastern Australia.

🇮🇹 At least six people are dead after a mountain glacier in the Italian Alps collapsed during record high temperatures due to heatwaves.

People are demanding justice for Zara Aleena, a 35-year old British woman and aspiring lawyer, who died after she was attacked while walking home in East London in the early morning of Sunday June 26.

Aleena, a law graduate from the University of Westminster, was walking in Ilford when she was assaulted by a man authorities believe was a complete stranger.

Police found her around 02:44 a.m. and paramedics were called to the scene, but she died in the hospital soon after.

A postmortem showed Aleena had suffered from multiple serious injuries, including to the head, but concluded no weapons had been used.

The Metropolitan police arrested Jordan McSweeney, a 29-year-old man, on Monday.

The man has been charged with allegedly trying to rape and rob her, according to a press release from the Met Police.

“She walked everywhere. She put her party shoes in a bag and donned her trainers. She walked. Zara believed that a woman should be able to walk home. Now, her dreams of a family are shattered, her future brutally taken,” Aleena’s family said in a statement.

On Saturday July 2, hundreds of people dressed in white showed up at a vigil for Aleena.

Last year, the murder of Sarah Everard, a 33-year-old British marketing executive, by a police officer in London ignited nationwide protests and demands for reform.

But many say little has changed since.

Six months after Everard’s death, Sabina Nessa, a 28-year-old elementary school teacher, was attacked and killed after she left her house in another part of London to meet her friends at a pub five minutes away.

More Women You Should Know About

🇸🇱 Sierra Leone’s president says his government has unanimously approved a bill that would decriminalize abortion and overturn the country’s colonial-era abortion law.

Antigua and Barbuda’s high court has ruled that criminalizing consensual same-sex acts is unconstitutional.

In Antigua and Barbuda, a British colonial-era law that banned “buggery” and “indecency” influenced the Sexual Offense 1995 Act banning same-sex acts, according to the BBC.

The court determined on July 5 that the law cracked down on people’s individual rights such as freedom of expression and privacy.

Individuals can be given a 15 year prison sentence for performing same-sex acts in the country, but other Caribbean nations, such as Barbados, could sentence people for life.

The case was brought forward by a gay man and two human rights groups, including Women Against Rape and Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality (ECADE).

Activist have said that although the ruling is rarely enforced, it marginalizes and discriminates LGBTQ people.

Activists hope the ruling will cause other Caribbean nations to overturn their anti-gay legislation.

More Good News For Your Week

🇨🇭Multiple same-sex couples got married in Switzerland on Friday July 1 after the country officially legalized same-sex marriage.

🇮🇳 India has imposed a national ban on single-use plastics to reduce pollution on Friday July 1.

🇺🇸 Noah Conk, a 31-year-old designer based in San Francisco has created a viral Spotify playlist “Kimchi Fried Rice” that actually doubles as a recipe for the dish.

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