Since the news broke this morning, messages have been pouring in from friends and contacts, all asking the same question: how could this have happened in Japan?
I felt much the same myself. Living here you get used to not thinking about violent crime.
The identity of the victim only makes the news more shocking.
Shinzo Abe may no longer be Japan's prime minister, but he's still a huge figure in Japanese public life, and probably the most recognisable Japanese politician of the last three decades.
Who would want to kill Abe? And why?
When I say people don't think about violent crime here, I'm not exaggerating.
Abe's death an irreplaceable loss, Putin tells former PM's family
Vladimir Putin has contacted Shinzo Abe's family to offer his condolences, the Russian president has said.
Abe was an "outstanding statesman" who "did a lot for the development of good neighbourly relations between our countries," he said.
"I wish you and your family strength and courage in the face of this heavy, irreplaceable loss," Putin said on the messaging app Telegram.
The shooting has shocked a country known for its strict gun laws and where violence involving firearms is very rare.
It’s extremely hard to own a weapon in Japan legally.
Although there are some exceptions, including for hunting, those applying for a licence are subject to mental health and drug checks, as well as criminal record checks.
In addition, those wanting to own a gun need a full day’s training and have to undergo a written test and pass a shooting range evaluation.
In 2020, there were 32 deaths attributed to firearms in Japan, according to the Small Arms Survey which tracks gun violence globally.
That’s about the same number of gun killings as recorded in England and Wales in the year up to year up to the end of March 2020.
But at about 125 million, Japan’s population is more than twice the size of that of England and Wales.
Shinzo Abe was such an influential figure in Japan - someone who gave huge amounts of advice to his successor Fumio Kishida, who has just paid tribute to "a personal friend".
Of course, the current administration is fully functioning without his advice, but he had become one of the most powerful politicians in the country.
He was also very passionate about changing Japan's pacifist constitution - a divisive issue within the country and one that also angered neighbours South Korea and China.
Those views are still echoed by his colleagues and friends in the ruling Liberal Democrat Party - a conservative party that has been in power for most of Japan's post-war history.
As tributes pour in from high-profile figures around Japan, I am pretty sure his influence will not subside.
Images from the scene where Shinzo Abe spoke earlier appear to show the suspect moments before he opened fire.
The shooter - who has been named by Japanese media as 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami - can be seen standing a short distance behind Abe as he steps up to the podium to speak to voters outside Yamato-Saidaiji Station of Kintetsu Railway in Nara, southern Japan.
He can be seen wearing cargo trousers with a strap around his shoulders.
The man who is suspected to have carried out the shooting has been identified by Japanese media as 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, a resident of Nara city.
He is reported to be a former member of Japan's Maritime Self-Defence Force, the country's navy, but the defence ministry has not officially confirmed this.
Japanese broadcaster NHK reports Yamagami as telling police he was "dissatisfied with Abe and wanted to kill him".
The suspect is now in police custody. Eyewitnesses said they saw a man carrying what they described as a large gun and firing twice at Abe from behind.
Photographs taken as the suspect was being apprehended show what looks like an improvised weapon lying on the ground nearby.
It is unclear how the shooter came to know about Abe's attendance at the campaign in advance, as the visit was only confirmed late last night.
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