Court Orders Japan Church Dissolved

TOKYO (AP) — The Unification Church in Japan was ordered dissolved by a court after a government request spurred by the investigation into the 2022 assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The church said it was considering an appeal of the revocation order, which would take away its tax-exempt privilege and require liquidation of its assets. The order followed a request by the Education Ministry in 2023 to dissolve the sect, citing manipulative fundraising and recruitment tactics that hurt followers and their families. The church called the court order regrettable and unjust. The investigation into Abe’s assassination revealed cozy ties between the South Korea-based church and Japan’s government. The man accused of killing Abe blamed the church for his family’s troubles.