Hiroshima remembers A-bomb victims as ‘global tragedies’ unfold

Around 140,000 people died in the western Japanese city of Hiroshima when the United States dropped an atomic bomb there in August 1945 – Copyright JIJI Press/AFP JAPAN POOL

The mayor of Hiroshima said Tuesday that wars in Ukraine and Gaza were deepening fear and distrust worldwide, on the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombing that devastated the Japanese city.

Kazumi Matsui made a sombre speech at a memorial event to commemorate the victims of the US nuclear attack on August 6, 1945 that left around 140,000 people dead.

“Russia’s protracted invasion of Ukraine and the worsening situation between Israel and Palestine are claiming the lives of countless innocent people and shattering normal life”, he said.

“These global tragedies are deepening distrust and fear among nations, reinforcing the public assumption that to solve international problems we have to rely on military force, which we should be rejecting.”

Days after the 1945 Hiroshima attack, a second US nuclear bomb hit Nagasaki in southwest Japan, killing around 74,000 people.

The two strikes led to the end of World War II, and to this day Japan remains the only country to be hit by atomic weapons in wartime.

During Tuesday’s ceremony, dignitaries including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida — all clad in black suits — bowed deeply and laid wreaths at the memorial cenotaph featuring the inscription “rest in peace”.

Today, Hiroshima is a thriving metropolis of 1.2 million people, but the ruins of a domed building stand in the city centre as a stark reminder of the attack’s horrors.

For the third year running, Russia and Belarus were not invited to the ceremony because of the Ukraine crisis.

It was the city’s first peace memorial since Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza last year following an attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas on the country.

The Israeli ambassador attended the ceremony as usual, but according to local media, Hiroshima has never invited a Palestinian representative.

“That an invitation wasn’t extended to Palestine is shocking”, the Permanent General Mission of Palestine to Japan said on social media platform X last month.

A city official told AFP in June that Hiroshima had called for a “ceasefire as soon as possible and resolution through dialogue” in its invitation letter to Israel.

Israel’s ambassador has not, however, been invited to the Nagasaki peace ceremony this year.

Nagasaki has said the decision was not politically motivated, but rather taken to avoid any unexpected trouble.