Abe Assassin Sentenced as Japan Reckons With Fallout (Full Transcript)

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: This is the moment that changed Japan, when a former leader was assassinated in broad daylight with a homemade gun. Ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was speaking at a political rally when Tetsuya Yamagami, pictured here, fired two shots and killed him. Today, more than three years later, Yamagami was sentenced to life in prison, a crime he admitted to in court. He said he resented what used to be known as the Unification Church, after his mother's donations to the religious organization bankrupted his family. Yamagami originally targeted church leaders, but chose Abe instead, reportedly because he believed Abe's influence helped legitimize the group. I remember covering Abe's funeral three years ago and seeing thousands of people, young and old, lining the streets to watch his hearse go by. Since Abe's death, we've seen security for politicians overhauled and lawmakers publicly cut ties with the former Unification Church, exposing years of political links. And inside the ruling party, Abe's absence created a power vacuum and political uncertainty that we still feel today.