International
Shinzo Abe murder suspect: What we know
AFP
The man accused of assassinating Japan’s former prime minister Shinzo Abe has been arrested and named by police as Tetsuya Yamagami.
Police say the unemployed 41-year-old admits shooting Abe with a homemade gun at a campaign event on Friday, but what else do we know about the suspect so far?
Who is Yamagami?
Yamagami told police he had served in Japan’s navy, the Maritime Self-Defense Force, for three years from 2002.
More recently, he worked at a factory in western Japan for around a year and a half, but quit in May this year, local media reports said.
“His attitude towards work had not been a problem. I’m surprised and shocked,” his former manager at the plant told the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.
Yamagami spoke to police after the attack in a “matter-of-fact” way, according to officers.
Former middle school classmates interviewed by public broadcaster NHK said the suspect had been quiet but not a loner, and was good at both sports and academics.
What could the motive be?
“The suspect stated that he held a grudge against a particular organisation, and that he committed the crime because he believed former prime minister Abe had a connection to it,” police said Friday.
They did not give the name of the organisation in question, but Japanese media said it was a religious group, citing unnamed investigative sources.
NHK and the Mainichi Shimbun said Yamagami’s family had suffered troubles as a result of his mother’s financial donations to the organisation.
Yamagami had originally planned to target the head of the group but then switched focus to Abe, who he believed had promoted the organisation in Japan, Kyodo News reported, also citing anonymous investigative sources.
How was the crime carried out?
Yamagami said he had used a handmade gun to carry out the attack, and images from the scene showed a crude, boxy weapon with two barrels, covered in heavy-duty black tape.
Police searched his home and confiscated “several handmade gun-like items”.
He is suspected of making at least one of the weapons several months ago, Jiji news agency said. Jiji also reported that Yamagami had taken part in live-fire shooting exercises in the Navy.
The officers said Yamagami had found out about Abe’s visit to Nara online.
He is believed to have taken a train to the station where the former prime minister was giving a stump speech.
International
7 in 10 mexicans born poor stay poor, new report finds
Seven out of ten Mexicans born into poverty remain poor throughout their lives, highlighting an urgent need for public policies focused on promoting social mobility through equal opportunity, according to civil society organizations.
The 2025 Social Mobility Report in Mexico, published by the Espinosa Yglesias Center for Studies (CEEY), reveals that 73% of individuals born into the bottom 20% of income households in Mexico — Latin America’s second-largest economy — continue to live in poverty based on income.
The report signals a worrisome stagnation in social mobility, defined as the ability of individuals to improve their socioeconomic standing compared to that of their parents. This lack of upward movement indicates that one’s economic origins are largely inherited, according to CEEY.
Geographically, disparities are stark:
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In northern Mexico, 37% of those born in poverty remain there.
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In the south, that number rises dramatically to 64%.
Gender gaps are also evident. Among those born in wealthier households, women experience less upward mobility, with a rate of 47% compared to 53% for men.
The report also notes that 48% of economic inequality in Mexico stems from inequality of opportunity — placing Mexico among the top ten countries with the highest opportunity inequality across 50 nations analyzed globally.
International
Spain hits record 46°C in June amid scorching heatwave
Spain registered a record-breaking temperature of 46°C (114.8°F) on Saturday, June 28, in El Granado, Huelva — a southern town near the Portuguese border — marking the highest temperature ever recorded in June in the country, according to Spain’s national meteorological agency, Aemet.
The temperature was officially recorded at 4:40 p.m. local time, surpassing the previous June record of 45.2°C (113.4°F)set in Seville back in 1965, also in the Andalusia region.
Like many parts of Southern Europe, Spain is experiencing a severe heatwave, with large areas of the country facing temperatures above 40°C even though summer has just begun.
As one of Europe’s countries most vulnerable to climate change, Spain has endured its three hottest years on recordfrom 2022 to 2024, marked by repeated heatwaves and temperature extremes.
Climate scientists have long warned that global warming is amplifying the intensity, frequency, and duration of extreme weather events such as heatwaves and droughts — trends now evident across the Iberian Peninsula and the broader Mediterranean region.
International
Trump administration sues Los Angeles over sanctuary city policies
The Republican administration of Donald Trump filed a lawsuit on Monday against Los Angeles officials, challenging the city’s sanctuary policies as illegal amid an intensifying federal immigration crackdown.
The Department of Justice accused the Democratic-led city of interfering with federal immigration enforcement, arguing that its sanctuary policies have contributed to “violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement” recently seen in Los Angeles.
“The sanctuary city policies were the cause of violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement that Americans recently witnessed in Los Angeles,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi in an official statement.
The lawsuit, filed in a California federal court, names Mayor Karen Bass, City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, and the entire City Council as defendants.
While Los Angeles had long been considered a sanctuary city for immigrants, the City Council officially adopted the designation through a municipal ordinance in November last year, following Trump’s election to the presidency.
The legal action seeks to limit local authorities’ cooperation with federal immigration agents under Trump’s policies.
With over one-third of its population being immigrants, Los Angeles has become a flashpoint in the battle against Trump’s anti-immigration agenda, which began with his campaign promise to deport millions.
Tensions in the city escalated earlier this month after an increase in workplace immigration raids, sparking mass protests downtown. The situation further intensified when Trump overrode California Governor Gavin Newsom and ordered the deployment of thousands of National Guard troops and 700 U.S. Marines to the area.
7 in 10 mexicans born poor stay poor, new report finds
Spain hits record 46°C in June amid scorching heatwave
Trump administration sues Los Angeles over sanctuary city policies
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