Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, seen here in 2020, was assassinated. Photo by Getty Images By Forward Staff July 08, 2022 Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated early Friday while giving a speech near Kyoto, improved his country’s diplomatic and economic ties with Israel after decades of distance. Interim Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid joined other world leaders in sending condolences Friday, saying on Twitter that Abe, Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, “was a fierce and distinguished leader and a key architect of modern Israel-Japan relations.” Abe, who was 67, served twice, from 2006 to 2007 and...