Saturday marked one year since former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated, with several controversial issues unresolved, including ties between lawmakers and the Unification Church, and the rules for holding a state funeral.
A memorial service was held at Zojoji, a Buddhist temple in Tokyo, to mourn Japan's longest-serving prime minister, who was fatally shot at the age of 67 while giving an election campaign speech, with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Abe's widow, Akie, among the attendees.
At a gathering following the memorial, Kishida said he would "put all efforts into resolving national issues and continue to sow the seeds of the future," referring to unaccomplished Abe goals, including revising the pacifist Constitution to spell out the legal status of the Self-Defense Forces.