A native of what is now the town of Mikawa, Yamagata prefecture in northern Japan, Abe was a graduate of the 40th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1912. He ranked 73rd out of 144 cadets. He served as midshipman on the cruisers and from 1912–1913, and after commissioning as an ensign in 1915, was assigned to the cruiser. He returned to naval artillery and torpedo school later that year, and did not graduate until late 1917, so he was unable to participate in combat operations in World War I. As a lieutenant from 1918, lieutenant commander from 1924, and commander from 1930, he served as chief gunnery officer on the destroyers and, cruisers, and, and battleships, and. He was promoted to captain on 15 November 1934. Abe was given his first command on 15 November 1935, the cruiser. He subsequently served as captain of Naka,,,, and in the 1930s. Abe was promoted to rear admiral on 15 November 1940. He commanded the transport division for the Port Moresby Invasion Force in abortive Operation Mo during the Battle of the Coral Sea.
The Makin Raid incident
From 5 February 1942 – 29 November 1943, Abe was commander of the 6th Base Force at Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands. As such, he was essentially the wartime military governor of the Marshall Islands, Gilbert Islands, Nauru, Ocean Island and Wake Island in the central Pacific Ocean. On 17–18 August 1942, a force of approximately 200 US Marine commandos landed by submarine and raided Makin Island. The Makin Island raid was intended to destroy Japanese installations, gather intelligence data, test raiding tactics, boost home front morale, and possibly to divert Japanese attention from Guadalcanal. At a loss of 30 men, the US Marines killed the 85 - 160 Japanese, destroyed the radio station, fuel depot, supplies and installations. The raid attracted much attention in the American press, spawning a 1942 propaganda movie entitled Gung Ho!. Nine US Marines who had been accidentally left behind during the raid were captured by Japanese forces, and moved as prisoners of war to Kwajalein, where they were held for about a month. The initial plan was to send those American prisoners to Japan for incarceration. However, reportedly over the protests of Captain Yoshio Obara and Commander Hiusakichi Naiki , Abe ordered the execution of the prisoners by beheading on 16 October 1942.
