Floods leave 13 people dead at Hindu pilgrimage in Kashmir

NEW DELHI: India noticed a day of nationwide mourning on Saturday over the demise of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated whereas giving a marketing campaign speech a day earlier.
Abe, 67, Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, was pronounced useless on Friday night after a gunman shot him within the western Japanese metropolis of Nara.
His demise prompted a flood of tributes from present and former world leaders, and anger {that a} politician could possibly be gunned down in broad daylight in one of many world’s most secure societies, the place weapons are strictly managed.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to social media to mourn Abe, whom he referred to as certainly one of his “dearest associates.” He tweeted: “I’m shocked and saddened past phrases on the tragic demise.”
Abe was acknowledged in India for his function in strengthening bilateral ties and help for New Delhi’s function within the Indo-Pacific area.
He was additionally pivotal to the formation of the Quad, a strategic grouping comprising Australia, India, Japan and the US.

“Complete India mourns with Japan,” Modi tweeted. “We stand in solidarity with our Japanese brothers and sisters on this troublesome second.”

Modi, who declared July 9 a day of mourning following affirmation of Abe’s demise, stated the Japanese chief made an “immense contribution” in elevating bilateral relations.

Abe’s efforts in that regard have been additionally acknowledged by different distinguished figures in India, together with Dr. Manmohan Singh, former prime minister and chief of the principle opposition Congress Social gathering.

“He was buddy of mine. Throughout my tenure as prime minister, we labored to boost each our nations’ ties to the extent of a world and strategic partnership,” Singh stated.

Abe, who had visited India 4 occasions whereas he was prime minister of Japan, was honored as chief visitor through the Republic Day parade in 2014 and was given the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second-highest civilian award, in 2021.

He performed a key function within the India-Japan civilian nuclear pact. Reached in 2016, it marked the primary time that Japan, the one nation to have suffered a nuclear assault, concluded such an accord with a nation that isn’t a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

“Shinzo Abe was a futuristic one that believed in harnessing the immense potential within the bilateral relationship between India and Japan. The civil nuclear settlement was the by-product of that perception,” Dr. Swasti Rao of the Institute of Defence Research and Evaluation, a New Delhi-based suppose tank, advised Arab Information.

He stated Abe had thought of India as Japan’s “pure accomplice,” not solely by way of countering China’s rising affect and assertion in Asia, but in addition by means of proximities in tradition, civilization and their democratic programs.

“It’s just like the passing of an period,” Rao stated. “He was somebody who cherished India. It was not superficial, he was a real buddy.”