Court orders dissolution of Unification Church

A Tokyo court ordered the dissolution of a religious group whose fundraising methods and ties with ruling party politicians came under scrutiny following the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe more than two years ago.

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A spokesperson for the Unification Church, now formally known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, confirmed that the court had ordered them to disband Tuesday.

The Tokyo district court's decision strips the group of its tax-free status as a religious corporation, but doesn’t prevent it from operating in Japan, which has been a major base of its support for decades. The church has the right to appeal the ruling.