The Unification Church is the first religious group in Japan to face a revocation order under civil law. Two other groups have lost their status previously but due to criminal cases – Aum Shinrikyo, which carried out the Tokyo subway sarin attack, and Myokakuji, whose leaders were convicted of fraud.

A court in Japan has ordered the disbandment of the controversial Unification Church, which came under scrutiny after the shock killing of former prime minister Shinzo Abe in 2022.

The assassination in 2022 of Shinzo Abe, the country’s former prime minister, led to an investigation into the group’s political ties and manipulation of its followers to raise funds.