New Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has been slammed for an insensitive gaffe as he took to Twitter to declare ex-Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe dead following a gun attack, despite no official confirmation.

The tweet has now been taken down but Twitter users were quick to slap down his dangerous claim, branding the politician as “embarrassing.”

Japan’s longest-serving Prime Minister Mr Abe, 67, is still fighting for his life following a brutal gun attack and has not been announced dead.