Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeared to have been shot during a campaign event in the Nara region on Friday, according to local media.

The Japanese government clarified Abe’s shooting but said his situation was “currently unknown.”

“Former prime minister Abe was shot at around 11:30 am in Nara. One man, believed to be the shooter, has been taken into custody. The condition of former prime minister Abe is currently unknown,” chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told local media.

According to national broadcaster NHK and the Kyodo news agency, the former leader was delivering a stump speech at an event ahead of Sunday’s upper house elections when the noise of gunshots was heard. According to a ruling Liberal Democratic Party source, Abe, 67, collapsed and was bleeding from the neck.