Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba resigns

Tokyo: Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announced Sunday he will step down following growing calls from his party to take responsibility for a historic defeat in July's parliamentary election, reports PTI.

Ishiba, who took office in October, had resisted demands from mostly right-wing opponents within his own party for more than a month.

The resignation comes one day before his Liberal Democratic Party will decide whether to hold an early leadership election – a virtual no-confidence motion against him if approved.

Ishiba said he would start a process to hold a party leadership vote to choose his replacement and that there was no need for Monday's decision.