State funeral for ex-PM Abe draws protesters as well as mourners

Thousands gathered in the streets of Tokyo on Tuesday to voice opposition to a state funeral for slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, while mourners formed long lines to lay flowers for the late Japanese leader and praised his diplomatic and economic accomplishments.Many people brought flowers to special stands set up in a park near the Nippon Budokan arena, the funeral's venue, but some people were seen shouting protest slogans against the state-funded ceremony.The stands in the park were originally scheduled to open at 10 a.m., but organizers opened 30 minutes earlier as the number of …READ FULL ARTICLE