Hiroshima on Wednesday marked the 80th anniversary of the US atomic bombing of the Japanese city, with many survivors expressing frustration about the growing support of global leaders for nuclear weapons as a deterrent. With the survivors' numbers rapidly declining (the average age now exceeds 86), the anniversary is considered the last milestone event for many, per the AP. "There will be nobody left to pass on this sad and painful experience in 10 years or 20 years," Minoru Suzuto, a 94-year-old survivor, said. "That's why I want to share [my story] as much as I can."
The bombing of Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroyed the city and killed 140,000 people. A second bomb dropped three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, ending World War II and Japan's nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.
- Mayor's take: Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui warned against a growing acceptance of military buildups and of using nuclear weapons for national security during Russia's war in Ukraine and conflicts in the Mideast. "These developments flagrantly disregard the lessons the international community should have learned from the tragedies of history," he said.
- Survivors: They want nuclear abolishment, not deterrence. Some survivors said they were disappointed by President Trump's recent remarks justifying Washington's attack on Iran in June by comparing it to the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and on the mild response from the Japanese government.
- Japan: The nation's government has rejected survivors' requests to sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons or attend its meetings as observers, as it's under the protection of the US nuclear umbrella. Matsui on Wednesday urged Japan's government to sign and ratify the treaty. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reiterated in a speech his government's pledge to work toward a world without nuclear weapons, but he didn't mention the treaty and again indicated his government's support for nuclear weapons possession for deterrence.
- Tributes: About 55,000 people attended Wednesday's ceremony. A minute of silence was held as a bell rang out at 8:15am local time, when a US B-29 bomber dropped the bomb. Hours before the ceremony, survivors and their families paid tribute to the victims at the Peace Memorial Park, near the hypocenter of the blast. "We do not need nuclear weapons," said Kazuo Miyoshi, who came to honor his grandfather and cousins who died in the bombing.
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