Open navigationClose navigationHome All the major chapters in the American story from Indigenous beginnings to the present day History from countries and communities across the globe resulting finally in Japan’s unconditional surrender The United States had already planned to drop their second atom bomb nicknamed “Fat Man,” on August 11 in the event of such recalcitrance but bad weather expected for that day pushed the date up to August 9th called “Bockscar,” after its usual commander took off from Tinian Island under the command of Maj the United States dropped two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki What happened to people on the fringes of the blasts the very industry intended for destruction The explosion unleashed the equivalent force of 22,000 tons of TNT The hills that surrounded the city did a better job of containing the destructive force but the number killed is estimated at anywhere between 60,000 and 80,000 (exact figures are impossible the blast having obliterated bodies and disintegrated records) After the devastating bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki the leadership of Japanese emperor Hirohito was put to the test The explicit reason was to swiftly end the war with Japan. But it was also intended to send a message to the Soviets. By: Sarah Pruitt Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on August 9th In one of the most decisive battles in history, a large Roman army under Valens, the Roman emperor of the East, is defeated by the Visigoths at the Battle of Adrianople in present-day Turkey. Two-thirds of the Roman army, including Emperor Valens himself, were overrun and slaughtered by the mounted barbarians. Crowned in 364 A.D., […] On August 9, 1854, Henry David Thoreau’s classic Walden, or, A Life in the Woods is published. It is required reading in many classrooms today, but when it was first published, it sold just around 300 copies a year. The American transcendentalist writer’s work is a first-person account of his experimental time of simple living […] Having refused government demands that they move to a reservation, a small band of Nez Perce tribesmen clash with the U.S. Army near the Big Hole River in Montana. The conflict between the U.S. government and the Nez Perce was one of the most tragic of the many Indian wars of the 19th century. Beginning […] At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, African American track star Jesse Owens wins his fourth gold medal of the Games in the 4×100-meter relay. His relay team set a new world record of 39.8 seconds, which held for 20 years. In their strong showing in track-and-field events at the XIth Olympiad, Jesse Owens and other African […] 1969 Early in the morning of August 9, 1969, members of Charles Manson’s cult kill five people in movie director Roman Polanski’s Beverly Hills, California, home, including Polanski’s pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate. Less than two days later, the group killed again, murdering supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary in their home. The savage […] 1974 Richard M. Nixon officially ends his term as the 37th president of the United States and former Vice President Gerald R. Ford is sworn in. 1988 On August 9, 1988, Edmonton Oilers center Wayne Gretzky is traded to the Los Angeles Kings along with Mike Krushelnyski and Marty McSorley in return for Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas and first-round draft picks in the 1989, 1991 and 1993 drafts. At age 27, Gretzky was already widely considered the greatest player in hockey history […] On August 9, 1995, legendary Grateful Dead guitarist and cultural icon Jerry Garcia dies of a heart attack in a residential drug-treatment facility in Forest Knolls, California. Like his band, which was still going strong three decades after its formation, Garcia defied his life-expectancy not merely by surviving, but by thriving creatively and commercially into […] On August 9, 2010, JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater quits his job in dramatic style by sliding down his plane’s emergency-escape chute while the aircraft is stopped near the terminal gate at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. Slater, who claimed his actions were prompted by the behavior of a rude passenger, quickly became […] On August 9, 2014, police officer Darren Wilson shoots and kills Michael Brown, an unarmed Black teenager, in Ferguson, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. Protests and riots ensue in Ferguson and soon spread across the country. There are many different accounts of the incident, including the testimonies of Wilson and of Brown’s friend, Dorian […] Learn why the holiday is so significant in Russia—and what distinguishes it from V-E Day. While the war raged overseas, soldiers and civilians worked furiously to protect the capital against rising waters. Many Allied bombings released the equivalent energy of 300 lightning strikes and temporarily weakened the ionosphere, say researchers. The Los Alamos Historical Museum halted a Japanese exhibition on the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki because of a controversy over its message of abolishing nuclear weapons. We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate Uncover fascinating moments from the past every day Learn something new with key events in history from the American Revolution to pop culture you agree to receive emails from HISTORY and A+E Global Media You must be 16 years or older and a resident of the United States 10 March 2025—A new ‘nanoball’ vaccine platform developed by experts in Japan will be tested as part of new research looking for promising tools that could help fight an infectious disease outbreak with pandemic potential Researchers at Nagasaki University have developed the pioneering innovation as a novel approach to aid the delivery of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines in the body mRNA vaccines came to light in the COVID-19 pandemic as a rapid and flexible platform that can help the world rapidly respond to a fast-spreading viral outbreak they work by introducing a piece of mRNA into the body that teaches cells how to make a viral protein helping protect the body from infection.  there are limitations with how mRNA molecules are typically transported into cells the fragile mRNA pieces are encased in ‘fatty shells’ which can result in poor vaccine stability So that the LNPs can stay intact and effective the vaccines need to be stored and delivered at ultra-low temperatures Such requirements can make these vaccines inaccessible to remote areas or low-resource settings that lack the infrastructure and technologies to maintain these temperatures.  With up to US $5 million in new funding from CEPI the Nagasaki team will conduct preclinical studies to investigate whether their next-generation technology—where the mRNA is instead encased in nano-sized negatively-charged particles—could overcome these challenges and confront the next worrisome threat.  With support from NEC Oncoimmunity (NOI), the new research will focus on testing an AI-enabled nanoball mRNA vaccine to protect against severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV). The emerging tick-borne virus, a member of the Phenuivirus family poses a serious public health threat in Japan and wider East Asia.  the platform has the potential to be rapidly adapted to develop vaccine candidates against other pathogens including a novel or as-yet-identified ‘Disease X’ that could cause a serious epidemic or pandemic.  Findings could therefore support the 100 Days Mission an ambitious goal spearheaded by CEPI and embraced by Japan and other G7 and G20 nations to develop a vaccine against a new virus with outbreak potential in as little as three months The innovation could also be freeze-dried and stored for extended periods of time at either fridge or room temperature Without the need for complex cold-chain requirements this could open up the possibility of expanding access to nanoball vaccine doses in low- and-middle income countries “We don’t know when or when the next Disease X will strike – but we know that it is coming”, says Dr Richard Hatchett CEO of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) we need to be more prepared and act more quickly when responding to an emerging threat We are delighted to be working with our partners in Japan to carry out this new research looking at whether Nagasaki University’s ‘Nanoball’ technology could provide an improved mRNA delivery vehicle thereby offering faster and more effective vaccine protection in an outbreak.” developed using Nagasaki University’s proprietary nanoball technology can contribute to CEPI’s efforts and the global 100 Days Mission pursued by leading nations Rapid vaccine development is crucial in preparing for future pandemics and we are proud that our research can play a role in this initiative We look forward to further collaboration in advancing innovative technologies to strengthen global health security and pandemic preparedness.” “NEC OncoImmunity is honoured to collaborate with CEPI and Nagasaki University in the fight against emerging infectious diseases We are confident that our advanced AI technology will play a pivotal role in designing a vaccine for the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) a deadly tick-borne pathogen with high mortality rates This partnership underscores our commitment to harnessing our cutting-edge AI for innovative vaccine development.” CEPI and Nagasaki University are committed to enabling equitable access to the outputs of their partnership, in line with CEPI’s Equitable Access Policy including data generated as part of this project will be published open access for the benefit of the global scientific community ambassador to Japan skipped this year’s atomic bombing memorial service in Nagasaki after Israel was not invited Ambassador Rahm Emanuel instead honored the victims of the Aug atomic bombing at a ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo and British Ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom attend an annual ceremony at the Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel offers prayers during an annual ceremony at Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims Doves fly over the Peace Statue during a ceremony to mark the 79th anniversary of the U.S atomic bombing at the Peace Park in Nagasaki Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the 79th anniversary of the U.S prays as he attended an annual ceremony at a Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims along with Israeli and British ambassadors arrives to attend an annual ceremony at Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims along with Israeli and British counterparts British Ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom and Israeli Ambassador to Japan Gilad Cohen are escorted by a Buddhist monk to offer prayers during an annual ceremony at the Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims during an annual ceremony at Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims speaks to the media after attending an annual ceremony at the Zojoji temple to honor the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims TOKYO (AP) — Nagasaki marked the 79th anniversary of its atomic bombing at the end of World War II at a ceremony Friday eclipsed by the absence of the American ambassador and other Western envoys in response to the Japanese city’s refusal to invite Israel called for nuclear weapon states and those under their nuclear umbrellas “You must face up to the reality that the very existence of nuclear weapons poses an increasing threat to humankind and you must make a brave shift toward the abolition of nuclear weapons,” Suzuki said He warned that the world faces “a critical situation” because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and accelerating conflicts in the Middle East The atomic bomb dropped by the United States on Nagasaki on Aug three days after the bombing of Hiroshima killed 140,000 ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression across Asia Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reiterated his pledge to pursue a nuclear-free world say it’s a hollow promise as Japan relies on the U.S nuclear umbrella while building up its own military the moment the plutonium bomb exploded above the southern Japanese city participants observed a moment of silence as a peace bell tolled including representatives from 100 countries and five other Group of Seven nations — Canada Their governments sent lower-ranking envoys in response to Suzuki’s decision not to invite Israel They said that treating Israel like Russia and Belarus Ambassador Rahm Emanuel instead attended a ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo honoring the Nagasaki atomic bombing victims joined by his Israeli and British counterparts “We are obviously in Tokyo but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a responsibility to think and to reflect and to remember” what happened 79 years ago in Nagasaki and Hiroshima Suzuki denied that his decision to exclude Israel was political and said he feared that possible “unforeseeable situations” such as violent protests over the war in Gaza might disrupt the ceremony 9 anniversary is the most important day for Nagasaki and must be commemorated in a peaceful and solemn environment given the prime minister’s attendance,” which required high security He said excluding Israel drew “a moral equivalency between Russia and Israel one country that invaded versus one country that was a victim of invasion,” and that “my attendance would respect that political judgment in a statement on the social media platform X expressed his “gratitude to all the countries that have chosen to stand with Israel and oppose its exclusion from the Nagasaki Peace Ceremony Thank you for standing with us on the right side of history.” The anniversary comes shortly after the United States and Japan reaffirmed the U.S commitment to provide “extended deterrence” under its nuclear umbrella for Japan amid growing tension in the region That is a shift from Japan’s previous reluctance to openly discuss its protection under the nuclear umbrella as the world’s only country to have suffered atomic attacks We use cookies on our website to support technical features that enhance your user experience We also use analytics & advertising services By Richard Pietras | 3.10.25 | BC Brief Masako Wada visited the college as part of her work with the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization Brooklyn College bore witness to a remarkable moment in history on March 6 a survivor of the Nagasaki atomic bombing during World War II she shared her harrowing experience of devastation and loss—while offering a powerful testament to hope Masako Wada is the assistant secretary general of Nihon Hidankyo the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization which was awarded the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize for its tireless advocacy in eliminating nuclear weapons Wada spoke with both urgency and conviction in front of an audience of more than 100 students recounting the unimaginable destruction she lived through and the lessons humanity must heed She also addressed pressing concerns about today’s turbulent world as students asked how her past might serve as a warning for the present and future Assistant Professor of Health and Nutrition Sciences Kiyoka Koizumi played a key role in organizing and moderating the event which was made possible by the Brooklyn College Cancer Center and the Center for Health Promotion of the Department of Health and Nutrition Sciences Additional support came from the departments of History you'll make your mark in the world and inspire others along the way Hamline is the top-ranked Regional University in Minnesota and 16th in the Midwest region by U.S From real-world job experience to service projects you'll get the essential skills to succeed throughout your career we're the top-ranked Regional University in Minnesota and 16th in the Midwest according to U.S As 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki and St Paul's 70th year as a sister city to Nagasaki Paul Mayor and Hamline professor Jim Scheibel led a group of nine Hamline students to Nagasaki on Jan This transformative experience offered students time and opportunity to deeply reflect on the impact the atomic bombing had on Nagasaki The trip included multiple days at Nagasaki Peace Museum read first-hand accounts and heard survival testimonials “Before this trip I didn't know about the specifics of what happened to the people under the mushroom cloud so seeing the testimonials and the damage hit me,” said Zaid Alwaisi ’26 “It's given me a better understanding of how to view just how harmful nuclear weapons are to people and why they should never be used or exist in our world.” who traveled to Nagasaki multiple times during his term as mayor was accompanied on the trip by Lisa Nordeen Hamline Assistant Provost for Student Success and Faculty Development Nordeen said the trip evolved into a reflection on how to promote peace back home “There was an element of recognizing that this pressure and threat still exists so how do we collectively find ways to make a difference?” Nordeen said.  students met the Mayor of Nagasaki and had discussions with Japanese college students about developing practical ideas for promoting peace in each of their parts of the world Ideas included joining the sister cities committee and developing a story book for elementary students “They were talking about how to get fellow students involved and understanding the power that a collective voice has “It was refreshing to hear voices of peace when we’re not often exposed to that we’re often exposed to rhetoric around conflict and not around de-escalating and finding common ground.” which is now adorned with statues from countries and cities around the world promoting peace – including a statue from St Paul that was gifted during Scheibel’s mayoral term The trip also included a broader understanding of Nagasaki’s history as a leading port city in Japan In traveling to Japan and learning about the culture and events of the city students also learned valuable lessons from one another each of the students remarked upon how important it was for them to get to know each other They were very intentional about finding conversations with each other even though they were coming from very different backgrounds,” Nordeen said “This was an incredibly diverse group of students who took full advantage of the opportunity to learn across differences.” “I will carry the dropping of the atomic bomb with me in my field of political science as a reminder that a man-made disaster that disproportionately affects citizens like this can never be normalized,” Alwaisi said “The trip inspired me to push hard on denuclearization throughout my career in political science.” In association with Mitchell | Hamline School of Law ® WASHINGTON (OSV News) — A scholar who has written about the moral implications of atomic weapons and now is writing a book on the historic legacy of faith of Catholics of Nagasaki Catholics to support the casting of a new bell for Nagasaki’s Urakami Cathedral as a sign of solidarity and faith in time for the bell to ring out on Aug the Washington Gladden 1859 professor of sociology at Williams College in Williamstown was inspired to undertake the project while visiting the city in the spring of 2023 and doing research and interviews for a book he is writing on how Catholics in Nagasaki have experienced suffering through the centuries and despite that their faith has endured and been marked by a spirit of hope One of the parishioners at Urakami Cathedral suggested to him that it would be wonderful if American Catholics gave a bell for the church’s left tower to replace the bell that had been destroyed in the bombing That man said he would like to hear the new bell ringing there in his lifetime Nolan said he thought that was a fantastic idea and he has been working on that project since then leveling buildings and killing more than 70,000 people Others died from the lingering effects of radiation The Nagasaki bomb detonated about a third of a mile from the city’s Immaculate Conception Cathedral known as the Urakami Cathedral after the district of the city where it was built The structure — at that time believed to be the largest Catholic church in East Asia — lay in ruins About 8,500 of the cathedral’s 12,000 parishioners were killed a prominent Catholic who was a physician and radiologist While suffering from a serious head injury in the aftermath of the bombing he cared for survivors and witnessed the bomb’s horrific effects on the dead and on the living He returned home to find his house destroyed and his beloved wife he found a melted rosary that she prayed with Nagai encouraged fellow Catholics to dig in the cathedral’s ruins for a bell that had called them to prayer from one of its two bell towers While one bell was found damaged and unusable the volunteers unearthed a second bell and found it intact and relatively unscathed and they rang it out on Christmas Eve in 1945 offering the city’s surviving Catholics an enduring sign of hope A new Urakami Cathedral was rebuilt and dedicated in 1959 on that site Nagai became a world famous advocate for peace and forgiveness after the war before dying of leukemia six years later Nagai offered an inspiring witness of faith Nagai) was right near the epicenter and sustained injuries and he sought to help rebuild the church (and) the community.” A sainthood cause for Nagai and his wife is underway the Nagasaki Bell Project had raised just under $52,000 of the estimated $125,000 it will cost to cast The new bell’s design will include some of the Latin that was inscribed on the original bell that Nolan said references “the years of faithful suffering and the martyrdom of the many Catholics (there) who stayed true to the faith.” More than 400 martyrs of Japan have been recognized with beatification by the Catholic Church Those beatified include 205 missionaries and hidden Christians persecuted and executed for their faith between 1598 and 1632 188 additional priests and Catholics were persecuted and martyred 26 Catholics were executed by crucifixion in Nagasaki Nagai wrote a book about the Nagasaki bombing and its aftermath “The Bells of Nagasaki,” which he hoped would inspire people to work for peace and oppose war he was invited to speak at a requiem Mass for the victims of the atomic bomb there He noted the history of faith of Nagasaki’s Christians and he contended that the deaths of so many of them in the bombing ultimately could be seen as a sacrifice to God for peace “Our church of Urakami kept the faith during 400 years of persecution when religion was proscribed and the blood of martyrs flowed freely,” Nagai said at the Mass this same church never ceased to pray day and night for a lasting peace the one unblemished lamb that had to be offered on the altar of God many millions who would otherwise have fallen victim to the ravages of war have been saved.” Nolan noted that Nagai offered a Catholic perspective on suffering emphasizing the need for forgiveness and peace and the need to rebuild “That’s how he could understand the bombing as a kind of peace offering to end the war and to bring peace to the world,” Nolan told the Catholic Standard In the last chapter of “The Bells of Nagasaki,” Nagai issued a heartfelt plea for peace and against nuclear war war can only mean suicide for the human race the people of Urakami confront the world and cry out: No more war Let us follow the commandment of love and work together The people of Urakami prostrate themselves before God and pray: Grant that Urakami may be the last atomic wilderness in the history of the world.” The way Nagai endured suffering with faith and grace offers an example to Catholics today hopeful and offered a narrative of peace and forgiveness Nolan’s interest in Nagasaki’s Christians was spurred by trips to that city and to Hiroshima when he was writing “Atomic Doctors: Conscience and Complicity at the Dawn of the Nuclear Age.” he received a box containing the personal papers of his grandfather an OB-GYN radiologist who served as a doctor for the Manhattan Project government’s top-secret World War II program to develop and deploy the first atomic bombs scientists and military officials who went to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the month after the bombings to assess the damage Writing that book inspired Nolan to write a book on the history of Catholics in Nagasaki Noting how they kept the faith during times of persecution and passed it on from generation to generation for 250 years without priests “It’s a legacy of suffering but staying faithful If the Nagasaki Bell Project is successful Nolan hopes to be at Urakami Cathedral next August to mark the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki by hearing the new bell ring out there I want to join with the parishioner who asked me and said that he wants to hear that The ringing of that new bell in the Urakami Cathedral would continue a goal of Dr who in “The Bells of Nagasaki” wrote about what it meant when the unearthed bell from the cathedral’s ruins rang out once again: “I pray and strive for this bell of peace to continue ringing until the last day of the world.” More about the The Nagasaki Bell Project can be found at https://stkateriinstitute.org/nagasaki-bell-project  Print Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media Catholic Media Assocation Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association The Associated Church Press Share price 8416.00p 2 May 2025 at 16:42 News releases The fifth Hotel Indigo in Japan and the first Hotel Indigo branded hotel in Kyushu opens 13 December 2024 Hotel Indigo, part of IHG Hotels & Resorts’ luxury and lifestyle portfolio, has continued its expansion in Japan with the opening of Hotel Indigo Nagasaki Glover Street marking the brand’s 5th neighborhood hotel in the country Hotel Indigo Nagasaki Glover Street is located in the Minami-Yamate area of Nagasaki and brings the brand’s strength as a neighborhood storyteller to life with unique guest experiences inside and around one of the city’s most iconic 19th Century redbrick buildings The hotel’s opening was celebrated with an ‘open the umbrella’ ribbon cutting ceremony using local umbrellas with patterns reminiscent of Nagasaki a nod to the city’s vibrant past as the place where Western-style umbrellas were first introduced The opening moment was an expression of the hotel weaving together its history and celebration of the future The Minami-Yamate area of Nagasaki is a rich tapestry of Japanese and Western culture offering hilltop views overlooking Nagasaki Bay The historic townscape is home to Glover Garden an important cultural asset and a World Heritage Site a national treasure of Japan – offering a host of stories and guest experiences for guests to immerse in the town’s history Each of the hotel’s 66 guestrooms are inspired by the liveliness of the town while the lobby area is reminiscent of the social gatherings of former merchants features soaring 10-meter ceilings and impressive stained-glass windows enchanting guests as they dine in the once-Cathedral setting The hotel celebrates a ‘Wa-Ka-Ran’ labyrinth philosophy which is the merging of the individual uniqueness of Wa (Japan) Ka (China) and Ran (Dutch) to create a new culture Everything from the city’s festivals to the locals’ clothing sights and food are a mix of these cultures and as guests walk around the town there is an unforgettable sensation of exploration Each Hotel Indigo is as unique as its location drawing vibrant inspiration and energy from the local culture aiming to immerse guests in authentic experiences and forge genuine connections with its neighborhoods With 162 open hotels across the world, Hotel Indigo currently stands as the second largest brand within IHG’s luxury & lifestyle portfolio. The brand will continue to debut in new markets in 2025, including the opening of Hotel Indigo Palau Guests can also benefit from IHG One Rewards offering enhanced opportunities to earn and redeem points across IHG Hotels & Resorts including exclusive benefits tailored to their preferences supported by leading technology on the IHG mobile app For more information on Hotel Indigo Nagasaki Glover Street, please visit the hotel website IHG Hotels & Resorts (tickers: LON:IHG for Ordinary Shares; NYSE:IHG for ADRs) is a global hospitality company with a purpose to provide True Hospitality for Good With a family of 19 hotel brands and IHG One Rewards one of the world’s largest hotel loyalty programmes IHG has over 6,500 open hotels in more than 100 countries and a development pipeline of over 2,200 properties InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group’s holding company and is incorporated and registered in England and Wales Approximately 375,000 people work across IHG’s hotels and corporate offices globally For our latest news, visit our Newsroom and follow us on LinkedIn A Catholic professor whose grandfather had an important role in the Manhattan Project has spearheaded an effort to replace a bell in the Urakami Cathedral destroyed by the atomic bombing in Nagasaki Through discovering his grandfather’s history a sociology professor at Williams College in Williamstown said he also learned about the resilience of a Catholic community and the voices of some who viewed the tragedy as an opportunity to share in Christ’s sufferings as they rebuilt their cathedral Nolan spoke about the bell project in October at several parishes in the Archdiocese of St The project is being funded completely through donations and the Archdiocese of Nagasaki plans to install the donated bell next year in time for the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings It’s an “expression of our American Catholics’ admiration respect and gratitude for the incredible example of the Urakami Catholics who throughout history endured unimaginable suffering and yet have remained steadfast in their faith,” Nolan said at a talk Oct “It would be a great honor for us to show our solidarity with the Nagasaki Catholics through this gift.” The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 killed as many as 250,000 people It was completed in 1925 and was the largest Catholic cathedral in east Asia It’s estimated that 8,500 of the city’s 12,000 Catholics perished but the south tower’s bell was found nearly intact in the ruins; it eventually was restored and placed in the reconstructed bell tower and its remnants are displayed in a nearby museum After Nolan’s father died about 10 years ago he received a box of materials from his family containing a treasure trove of information about the role of his grandfather “Atomic Doctors: Conscience and Complicity at the Dawn of the Nuclear Age,” in 2020 that examined the moral and professional dilemmas faced by doctors and others who participated in the Manhattan Project an OB/GYN and radiologist who was trained at Washington University in St served as the post surgeon at the Los Alamos facility where the atomic bomb was developed He helped coordinate the safety procedures for the Trinity Test (the first test detonation of an atomic bomb) accompanied the “Little Boy” bomb to the Pacific Islands and was one of the first Americans to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki to assess the damage has visited Nagasaki several times to interview Japanese Catholics including descendants of the bombing victims he met a Urakami Cathedral parishioner who asked what Americans thought about the bomb the man suggested: “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if some American Catholics would give as a gift a replacement bell for the left tower?” Maryland Heights-based McShane Bell Company is overseeing the casting of the bronze bell which will be 31.5” in diameter and weigh about 750 pounds which states: “I sing to God with a constant ringing in the place where so many Japanese martyrs called their brothers and sisters and their descendants to the fellowship of the true faith and of heaven.” the first North American Indigenous saint who fled to Canada to the mission of St Francis Xavier — who led the first Christian mission to Japan also dove into the history of Christian persecution in Japan stretching back to the “hidden Christians” of the 16th century and the 26 holy martyrs of Japan “This history still informs the faith of the people today,” he said “It’s part of their collective consciences a prominent radiologist at Nagasaki Medical College and a convert to the Catholic faith who interacted with his grandfather as part of a joint commission formed to examine the effects of the bombing Nagai’s conversion came in part through a connection with a medical school roommate who was a descendant of the “hidden Christians,” a reference to the Christians of that time who practiced their faith underground as a result of the government’s persecution of Catholics it was reported that several dozen Catholics were in line for confession at Urakami Cathedral in preparation for the feast of the Assumption including trauma to his head and radiation exposure he mobilized a group of people to set up a mission to help others who were injured a Mass was held at the site of the ruined cathedral to pray for all of those who died The bishop asked Nagai to give a talk on behalf of the laity He noted the history of Christian persecution in Japan and a connection between the destruction of Nagasaki and the announcement of Japan’s surrender Nagai believed that “Urakami Catholics who died had been a sacrifice of atonement for the sin of war” and that Urakami was “chosen as a pure lamb He referred to it as a “great Holocaust” and urged his fellow mourners to look for the beauty “He urged his fellow Catholics to look to Christ who shouldered the cross up the hill to Calvary,” Nolan Jr they could find strength and find deep meaning in their sufferings and they were given the opportunity to share in Christ’s sufferings.” The reactions to Nagai’s message were mixed “He continued to maintain that this was the proper way to think about how they should respond to the bomb to see it as an opportunity to share in Christ’s suffering.” missionaries converted as many as 300,000 Catholics the Japanese government increasingly saw Catholicism as a threat and began persecuting Catholics and those Japanese who refused to abandon their faith were killed A group of 26 Japanese Catholics — known as the Holy Martyrs of Japan — were executed by crucifixion on Feb It wasn’t until Christian missionaries returned to Japan 250 years later (St Maximilian Kolbe among them) that a community of “hidden Catholics” practicing their faith underground was discovered To learn more about the bell project at the Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki or to make a donation, visit stkateriinstitute.org/ nagasaki-bell-project/ All readers receive 5 stories to read free per month If you are currently receive the St. Louis Review at your home or office, please send your name and address (and subscriber id if you know it) to subscriptions@stlouisreview.com to get your login information If you are not currently a subscriber to the St. Louis Review, please contact subscriptions@stlouisreview.com for information on how to subscribe. Discover the latest regional and national news, insightful articles on spiritual growth, and topics central to the Catholic faith with the St. Louis Review. We strive to report on the news from within our archdiocese and throughout the world that is most meaningful and helpful to St. Louis area Catholics. We provide information for your Catholic formation to assist you in living the joy of the Gospel in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Japanese survivors of the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have begun sharing their horrific experiences as this year marks the 80th anniversary of the nuclear attacks, Jiji Press reported Monday. Japan's Welfare Ministry this month launched a nationwide effort to collect testimonies from approximately 106,000 remaining survivors, known as hibakusha, of the 1945 bombings. It is the first time in 30 years that the government has requested the cooperation of all living survivors for testimony collection. Prefectural governments distribute leaflets asking survivors to provide written accounts. The ministry is also gathering portraits of deceased survivors, clothing that was exposed to the atomic blasts, and photographs taken during the bombing. The collected materials will be stored at the National Peace Memorial halls for atomic bomb victims in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With consent from owners or families, some of the items will be displayed to the public. Japan’s previous full-scale effort to collect survivor accounts occurred in 1995, when there were about 320,000 living survivors. Additional testimony collections were conducted from randomly selected people in 2005 and 2015. On Aug. 6, 1945, the US dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, killing an estimated 140,000 people. A second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later, resulting in about 70,000 additional deaths. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, 1945, bringing an end to World War II. Earlier this year, Nihon Hidankyo, the Japanese atomic bomb survivors’ organization that won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, urged the government to attend a United Nations meeting on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as an observer. Japan chose not to participate in the meeting, held March 3–7 at UN headquarters in New York. In August 1945, the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan, one on Hiroshima and one on Nagasaki. The bombings on these cities several days apart killed more than 210,000 and led to a lifetime of serious health issues for thousands of others. The devastating attack led to the end of World War II, when shortly afterward, Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced that Japan would surrender. As the 80th anniversary of the bombings approaches, there are a number of ways that Union will connect with this consequential moment in world history. These include movie screenings, guest speakers and course material across interdisciplinary offerings. “We are bringing science and humanities together in a powerful way to highlight a critical moment in our history,” said Jennifer Matsue, professor and chair of music, Asian studies and anthropology. She is helping coordinate all events. “We need to keep reminding people to be fully aware of the dangers of atomic weaponry at a time when we are experiencing heightened global conflict.” The first event is a free private screening for the campus community at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 3, of the documentary, “Okurimono” at Bowtie Movieland. The Canadian director, Laurence Lévesque, will host a Q & A after the screening. The film tells the story of Noriko Oi, who decides to reconstruct the past of her mother, Mitsuko, a survivor of the atomic bomb, in the hope of passing down her cultural heritage to her children and healing the dark reminiscences of a tragic past. “The film ‘Oppenheimer’ failed to transport audiences to the sites of devastation,” said organizer Jim de Sève, senior artist-in-residence, film studies, and co-director of the Film Studies program, sponsor of the event. “Okurimono does. And it does it with heart, civility and thoughtfulness.” Co-sponsors are Asian studies, the Templeton Institute and the departments of History and Music. Other films to be shown during winter term include “Gojira” in Matsue’s class, From Bombs to Buddhism: Fatalism, Technology and Modern Japanese Culture, and “Black Rain,” in Remembering World War II in Asia, a class taught by Joyce Madancy, professor of history. A 1954 classic by the director Ishiro Honda, “Gojira” is the original appearance by Godzilla and considered a metaphor for the end of World War II and the detonation of nuclear weapons onto Hiroshima and Nagasaki. “Black Rain” is a 1989 masterpiece from Shohei Imamura that centers on the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and its effect on a surviving family. Also, 1983’s “Barefoot Gen,” an animated film from director Mori Masaki, will be discussed in Madancy’s class and Japanese Manga and Anime, taught by Junko Ueno, professor of Japanese. The film “revolves around the life of 6-year-old Gen Nakaoka, who must grow up quickly due to the harsh reality of living through wartime food shortages and constant air raids in Hiroshima.” Zakuro-Daiko, the Japanese Drumming and Global Fusion Band, will premiere a new musical work commemorating the 80th anniversary of the bombings at its winter concert Friday, Feb. 28, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, March 1, at 1 p.m. in Emerson Auditorium in the Taylor Music Center The ensemble (whose name translates to Garnet Drums) was established in 2007 by Matsue to bring Japanese music and culture to life on campus. The group performs a type of Japanese ensemble drumming that is popular in Japan and throughout the world. In the spring, Joshua Pilzer, award-winning author of “Quietude: A Musical Anthropology of ‘Korea’s Hiroshima,’” will speak to students in Music and Trauma in World War II, a new class taught by Jin Byun, director of music performance. Details are being finalized. Union’s expansive focus on the anniversary of the bombings follows the awarding of last fall’s Nobel Peace Prize to Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese group of atomic bomb survivors that was recognized for its efforts to rid the world of nuclear weapons. Matsue acknowledged today’s students may not be aware of the first — and so far, only — wartime atomic bombings. But she believes it’s imperative to raise awareness of the dangers of nuclear war, in hopes of never repeating the atrocities of the past. “As educators, it’s important for us to get our students to think about that what’s happened in the past is relevant to what’s happening today,” she said. “That story can be told so much better through humanity.” (518) 388-6000 Admissions: (518) 388-6112 Metrics details Lyme disease and severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome caused by Ixodidae species are endemic fundamental understandings in tick ecology are crucial this study aimed to analyse tick species richness and abundance across Nagasaki prefecture including its remote islands from a wide range of environments A total of 74 sampling points screening during winter 2021–2022 using dragging method resulted in 14,883 tick samples (279 adults 7148 nymphs and 7456 larvae) in 11 species belonging to four genera Haemaphysalis flava dominated adult populations Both species are possible vectors of Japanese spotted fever and severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome The ecological analysis revealed more complex species distribution in the remote islands compering to the main island in both adults and nymphs the ground temperature was a significant regulatory factor for both adults and nymphs The research provides valuable insights on tick distributions ecological groupings and environmental preferences in Nagasaki These findings contribute to the fundamental understanding of tick ecology and could contribute to design strategies for tick population control and tick-borne disease prevention in Nagasaki or possibility to nearby areas These settings resulted in the increased attention towards SFTS comparing to the other two TBD in Japan The Kyushu region consists of seven prefectures and Nagasaki is at the westernmost part of both the region and mainland Japan Nagasaki encompasses the highest number of remote islands in Japan and is geographically proximate to Korea and mainland China This unique setting suggests that Nagasaki has increased chances of harbouring ticks and TBD due to human and bird migrations across borders studying the basics on ecology and entomology in Nagasaki is essential for Nagasaki and nearby areas this study aims to sample ticks across Nagasaki prefecture including its remote islands from a wide range of environments and analyse tick species richness and abundance using ecological methods to address the current gap in knowledge (a) The map shows the location of Nagasaki prefecture in relation to the capital city The broken line surrounds the Kyushu region where Nagasaki belongs and the nearby areas (b) An enlarged map of the area is enclosed by the broken line in panel A The prefectures of the Kyushu region are highlighted in grey while the Nagasaki is coloured in darker grey (c) Eight sub-areas in Nagasaki are coloured Each cubic dot represents the sampling site with numbers connected to each dot indicating the sequence of sampling order A total of 74 sampling sites across Nagasaki are displayed The base map used a dataset (N03-20230101_GML) distributed by the National Land Information Division National Spatial Planning and Regional Policy Bureau Ecological classifications based on Sørensen index of dissimilarity (b) the dendrogram of the dissimilarity in adults (c) nymph classification in 70 points and (d) the dendrogram of the dissimilarity in nymphs Nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) plots for (a) adult ticks (stress = 0.075) and (b) nymph ticks (stress = 0.141) Sampling sites are indicated in black dots Statistically significant ecological indexes are indicated by arrows pointing in the direction of increasing values Species positions were shown in red with triangle symbols Their study was primarily focused on tick fauna in the Kyushu but lacked detailed ecological analyses involving environmental factors such as temperatures While direct comparisons are limited due to differences in sampling season location and method of not collecting ticks from wild animals the observed faunal differences could be elucidated by these methodological and temporal variations species-specific temperature preferences were observed with some species preferring cooler conditions and others favouring warmer temperatures These findings could be referred to when establishing laboratory colonies for further in-depth research such preference differences may help to estimate distribution siftings in tick species and consequently TBD formosensis could play an important role of SFTS virus transmission in winter in Nagasaki prefecture The pathogen prevalence in these two species during winter could be addressed in further studies this study described tick ecology across Nagasaki prefecture These findings not only contribute to our fundamental understanding of tick ecology but also could serve as a basis for developing countermeasures of controlling tick population and responding TBD the results could help to assess the risk of tick-borne diseases Since the findings are obtained from geologically close to other southeast Asian countries the study may contribute to more effective strategies for the prevention and control of TBD in Japan and potentially in neighbouring countries As global environmental changes continue to impact ecosystems worldwide such detailed ecological studies become increasingly crucial for predicting and managing the future distributions of disease vectors These birds may follow flyways to other Asian regions which are located in close proximity to Nagasaki and various climatic conditions influenced by their geographical settings The dragging equipment and sampling process in the field (a) The dragging equipment consists of four parts: a double clip (3.2 cm wide) tied with a polypropylene packing rope (1–1.5 m) Φ1.3 cm x 46 cm) fitted with two silicon tube caps (3 cm) at both ends a rectangular white flannel fabric (78 cm x 48 cm) with two casings at the top (5 cm) for the metal rod and bottom (3 cm) for a flexible weight respectively; (b) The dragging equipment utilised in the field where the sampler pulled the rope connected to the double clip pinching the metal weight rod through the fabric The sampler dragged the fabric parallel on the ground surface; (c) An extendable stick (22–114 cm) is occasionally used to align the fabric; and (d) the process of transferring landed ticks into a collection tube (15mL) using a forceps The tube is connected to the sampler body to prevent unintended loss When mapping the Sørensen dissimilarity indices major and subgroups were defined based on the first and second levels of hierarchical separation All data used in this study is available in tables Effects of climate change on ticks and tick-borne diseases in Europe Distribution of tick-borne diseases in Japan: past patterns and implications for the future NIID & MHLW. Notifiable diseases number of cases by suspected place of infection, prefecture, and week. https://www.niid.go.jp/niid/images/idwr/ydata/2022/Syuukei/Syu_02_1.xlsx (2024) NIID & MHLW. Notifiable diseases number of cases by suspected place of infection, prefecture, and week. https://www.niid.go.jp/niid/images/idwr/ydata/2021/Syuukei/Syu_02_1.xlsx (2023) Diagnosis and treatment of rickettsioses in Japan: tsutsugamushi disease and Japanese spotted fever Clinical practice guidelines for severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) version 2024 Infectious agents surveillance report (IASR) Fever with thrombocytopenia associated with a novel Bunyavirus in China Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome The first identification and retrospective study of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome in Japan Serological evidence of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus and IgM positivity were identified in healthy residents in Vietnam Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus: the first case report in Thailand The first discovery of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus in Taiwan Genotypic heterogeneity of Orientia tsutsugamushi in scrub typhus patients and thrombocytopenia syndrome co-infection Geographical distribution of Ixodes persulcatus and associated pathogens: analysis of integrated data from a China field survey and global published data Diversity between spotted fever group rickettsia and ticks as vector Comprehensive meta-analysis of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus infections in humans A checklist of the ticks (Acari: Argasidae Survey of tick fauna in the Kyushu mainland Survey of tick fauna and tick-borne rickettsiae in Goto Islands of Nagasaki prefecture In Proceedings of the 63rd Annual Meeting of the Japan Society of Medical Entomology and Zoology 69 (The Japan Society of Medical Entomology and Zoology landscape connectivity and host community in tick-borne pathogen ecology Medical Entomology for Students (Cambridge University Press and molting after immunization of mice and sheep with recombinant Ixodes ricinus salivary proteins IrSPI and IrLip1 Ticks as soil-dwelling arthropods: an intersection between disease and soil ecology Haemaphysalis flava ticks as a competent vector of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus Japanese spotted fever: report of 31 cases and review of the literature Isolation of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus from various tick species in area with human severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome cases Contribution to Acarology in Japan (Hokuryukan Optimal collection methods for Asian longhorned ticks (Ixodida: Ixodidae) in the Northeast United States Nagasaki (Nagasaki prefecture) climatological normal values (annual and monthly values) main elements https://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/view/nml_sfc_ym.php?prec_no=84&block_no=47817&year=&month=&day= Search past weather data: Nagasaki (Nagasaki prefecture) https://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/index.php?prec_no=84&block_no=00&year=&month=&day=&view= The state of migratory landbirds in the east Asian flyway: distributions The immature stage and notes on hosts and distribution Reinstatement of Dermacentor bellulus (Acari: Ixodidae) as a valid species previously confused with D Taiwanensis and comparison of all parasitic stages Illustrations of common adult ticks in the mainland Japan in Acari and Emerging/Reemering Infectious Diseases 39–42 (Zenkoku Noson Kyoiku Kyokai Publishing Posit team. RStudio: Integrated development environment for R. http://www.posit.co/ (2024) R Core Team. R: A Language and environment for statistical computing. https://www.r-project.org/ (2023) Oksanen, J. et al. vegan: Community ecology package. https://cran.r-project.org/package=vegan (2024) QGIS Development Team. QGIS geographic information system. https://www.qgis.org (2023) Download references This study could not be conducted without administrative supports and permission to access the official vehicle at the Institute of Tropical Medicine Rio Sugino and another anonymous staff greatly contributed the project The project was partially founded by Osimo foundation (No School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine preformed the data analyses and wrote the first draft The final draft was prepared through discussion with E.I. All authors reviewed and approved the manuscript The authors declare no competing interests The maps were created using data from the National Land Information Division Their data may be used for research purposes with acknowledgements Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-87085-6 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science By Scott D. Sagan, Gina Sinclair | August 5 sit on the ground amid rubble and burnt trees the United States had dropped an atomic bomb on the city--three days later a second one was dropped on Nagasaki (Photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt/The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty Images) This reduction in atomic bombing approval over time has been cited as evidence of a gradual normative change in public ethical consciousness, the acceptance of a “nuclear taboo” or what Brown University scholar Nina Tannenwald has called “the general delegitimation of nuclear weapons.” This common interpretation of US public opinion but most Americans remain supportive of the 1945 attacks albeit wishing that alternative strategies had been explored These conclusions can be clearly seen in the results of a new that asked a representative sample of Americans about their views on the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki examined alternative strategies for ending the war and provided follow-on questions to determine how the public weighs the costs and benefits of different strategies does not display an ethically based taboo against using nuclear weapons or killing enemy civilians but rather has a preference for doing whatever was necessary to win the war and save American lives and Emperor Hirohito was told he would not be subject to war crimes trials US public opinion in 2015 and 2024. A 2015 replication of the 1945 Roper poll found that 14.4 percent of Americans felt the United States should not have used atomic bombs at all that 31.6 percent thought a bomb should have been dropped in a demonstration strike on an unpopulated area but that almost no one (less than 3 percent) wanted to use more bombs before Japan had a chance to surrender we replicated the 1945 Roper poll again with a representative sample of 2,000 Americans on June 21 but then asked follow-on questions to help us determine what the public really meant when answering the survey Such follow-on questions are necessary to understand the public’s deeper set of commitments and preferences Did those opposing any use of the atomic bombs really support such a policy even if it meant ending the war without a Japanese government surrender Or would they support dropping the bomb if Japan did not surrender Would those who favor a demonstration strike today support bombing cities if the demonstration strike failed to compel Tokyo to surrender or did they oppose atomic attacks against Hiroshima and Nagasaki under all circumstances The percentage of respondents who said that the United States shouldn’t have used any atomic bombs at all increased from 4.3 percent in 1945 The percentage of respondents who preferred the demonstration strike option decreased from 31.6 percent to 20.9 percent But what do these trends reveal about US opinion Our follow-on questions were designed to measure the public’s true willingness to use nuclear weapons and kill enemy civilians The respondents who chose “we should not have used any atomic bombs at all” were reminded that there was no immediate Japanese surrender and were therefore prompted with this follow up question: “The United States has warned Japan that it may face ‘prompt and utter destruction’ if it does not accept ‘unconditional surrender,’ but the Japanese government refuses to surrender Which of the following options do you think the U.S less than half (45.8 percent) of respondents who said they favored not using any nuclear weapons then chose to end the war immediately and let Japan keep its government while 19.19 percent opted for the demonstration strike option and 10.5 percent chose to continue conventional bombing of Japanese cities until Japan surrenders The respondents who chose Option 2 (the demonstration strike option) in this follow-up question were then given another follow-on question to answer: “The U.S has dropped the first bomb on an unpopulated area but the Japanese government refuses to surrender Of the respondents who chose the demonstration strike option in this follow-on survey only 16.17 percent chose to end the war immediately and let Japan keep its government; 40.58 percent supported dropping one atomic bomb; and another 4.35 percent supported dropping two bombs 15.22 percent respondents wanted to continue conventional bombing of Japanese cities until the government in Tokyo surrendered Those who chose the demonstration strike option in the original polling question were also given a follow-on question: “The U.S the majority (64.45 percent) the respondents who chose the demonstration strike option in the original question 1 chose the option to drop one atomic bomb on one city and a second one on a city only if Japan didn’t surrender Almost 10 percent wanted to drop two bombs and 8.11 percent supported more conventional bombing attacks on Japanese cities when reminded of the Japanese refusal to surrender the strong majority (82.33 percent) of those who originally favored the demonstration strike then accepted nuclear or conventional attacks on Japanese cities The basic finding that over 36 percent of Americans said today that the United States should not have used any atomic bombs cannot reasonably be interpreted as an indication of a widespread nuclear taboo less than half of those respondents maintained that position after they were reminded (as was the case in 1945) that Japan had not accepted unconditional surrender prior to the atomic bomb attacks A second novel finding relates to the public’s willingness to attack cities and thereby violate the basic law of armed conflict and the just war principle of non-combatant immunity While only 41.3 percent of respondents were ultimately willing to use nuclear weapons against cities many other respondents favored continuing the conventional bombing of Japan Reasons given by respondents who had at first stated that they opposed nuclear attacks but then favored continued conventional bombing once reminded that Japan had not accepted unconditional surrender included: “Because if humane tactics don’t work then you gotta do what you Gotta do;” “Since they refuse to heed to the warning then they deserve war;” and “If Japan doesn’t surrender than it’s time to show them what we can do.” who posit that a decrease in willingness to use nuclear weapons is a result of broader acceptance of the just war principle of non-combatant immunity   ) But many responses in the 2024 Roper Poll revealed something else: a notable percentage of respondents (15.92 percent) cited their beliefs on the importance of US isolationism and avoiding any engagement in foreign affairs Respondents noted that the United States should “stop meddeling [sic] in other countries business and take care of poverty in their own home!” or that “the US spends too much time and energy on foreign affairs;” “I don’t know why we would care about japan’s government we need to focus on our own country.”  “I think we should stay out of other countries’ business.” “U.S interference is such war wasn’t necessary at all.” One respondent even argued: “We’ve spent a lot of funds meant for the nation and Americans on unnecessary external conflicts we should have stayed neutral as we did during the first world war.” such as protection of friendly forces or an increased likelihood of victory not through the deeply problematic instincts of the American public The Bulletin elevates expert voices above the noise. But as an independent nonprofit organization, our operations depend on the support of readers like you. Help us continue to deliver quality journalism that holds leaders accountable. Your support of our work at any level is important we promise our coverage will be understandable Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" would pale on the planned assaults of the main Japanese Islands If the purpose of the article is to shame us I suggest you acquaint yourself with Paul Fussell’s “Thank God for the Atom Bomb.” To ask these questions now or even many years after the end of WW II is not realistic for any number of reasons Second and so important: the Japanese were fighting to the death So if we had to invade Japan we would have lost a million more men we in America did not fully understand the total effect and long-term human cost of nuclear weapons We are sleep walking!… Read more » What gets lost in the atomic bombing of Japan is the daily death rate from starvation (Japan city firebombing where some bombing raids killed more people than the nuclear weapons and all of the other combat Any alternative option that delayed the fast decisive end to the war implies lots of dead people I suspect that if one asked China or Korea one would find almost universal agreement that atomic bombing of Japan was a great idea because it quickly ended the continuing bloodbath The Japanese Code of Bushido would not have allowed them to surrender unless they truly thought Japan would be annihilated Part of the change in opinion is that history is so poorly taught these days in the public schools and history at the university level starts off with “the US is responsible for every evil thing that’s ever happened in the world.” How many of us would not be here now if our ancestors were killed in the invasion of the Japanese home islands I really love how today’s “thinkers” apply their anti-military beliefs to… Read more » It is well documented that after the Battle of Leyte Gulf the Japanese were backed into a corner on their Homeland The Emperor declared that he would instruct that every man and child be trained and weaponized to fight the “American Savages” at every point as they arrived The US leaders concluded that they had already lost so many troops and marines ashore in Japan would be a virtual bloodbath They had the nukes and decided to end this unprovoked Pacific war at that time Mission accomplished and countless… Read more » The selection of the survey questions seems irrationally constrained While the option of a demonstration blast on a mountain top was certainly considered (as Jacob Brunovski later discussed with my parents) but was dismissed for its potential counter-productivity the prime alternative to a nuclear strike was of course a massive seaborne invasion Yet there are no survey questions reflecting that reality Had such questions been included in the survey along with the official projected casualty figures of subduing all hostile forces – around 600,000 allied troops and up to 6 million Japanese – respondents’ awareness would… Read more » Very disappointing to see handwaving arguments here about the militaristic Japanese and the supposed US invasion Most of Truman’s generals advised him not to do it Here is a sample of their views: The Japanese had in the defeat of Japan.— Fleet Admiral Chester W Pacific Fleet, [101]The use of [the atomic bombs] at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan The Japanese were already defeated and ready to… Read more » When the United States dropped the atomic bombs on Japan we dropped the nuclear age on the entire world What most people don’t realize is how many Americans have suffered and died as a result of nuclear weapons (I was surprised to learn this when I began reading about nuclear history and policy several years ago.) This aspect of the story might change our perspective or at least give our opinions sturdier legs to stand on American perceptions of the bomb were shaped by the post-war public information campaign that is the basis for traditional nuclear history https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debate_over_the_atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki Gina Park Sinclair is a research assistant the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) at Stanford University. She is a 2024... Read More Copyright © 2025 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. All rights reserved. Registered 501(c)(3). EIN: 36-2136497 Terms of UsePrivacy Policy 10:50am Nagasaki / 11:50am Sydney / 1:50pm Auckland / /9:50pm(August 8) New York The two atomic bombs dropped on Japan in 1945 killed and maimed hundreds of thousands of people and their effects are still being felt today the Peace Memorial Ceremonies are held in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and around the world to remember the victims and ensure not to repeat the evil Peace Boat and local partners for two live streams to show the atmosphere in Hiroshima and Nagasaki reflect on the significance of this anniversary The August 9th stream will include a unique series of historic photos of some of the people whose lives were lost due to the atomic bombing and take you back to what daily life was actually like at the time The hosts will also show you the Sanno shrine a site heavily marked the atomic blast in Nagasaki its surviving camphor trees and the one-legged Torii have become monuments to what was lost The livestreams are free, and will remain online to accommodate people across different time zones. But if you would like to receive a reminder when the livestream is about to start, please RSVP. Learn more about the Hiroshima livestream on August 6th here Please note you can find more information about the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Victims Memorial Prayer, organised by the City of Nagasaki here ICAN will treat your information with respect. Read more about our Privacy Policy The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) is a coalition of non-governmental organisations in one hundred countries promoting adherence to and implementation of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.This website was made possible thanks to the generous support of New Zealand and Swiss Loterie Romande 2024 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is outraged by reports that Canada’s Ambassador to Japan will be boycotting Friday’s memorial service for the US  atomic bombing of Nagasaki over the fact that Israel was not invited The City of Nagasaki had declined to invite the Israeli Ambassador whose government is involved in the mass killing of civilians in Gaza whose current Ministers have called for dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza and condemns Canada for this deeply offensive diplomatic statement “We condemn this grotesque political stunt by Canada Boycotting the Nagasaki memorial service to protest the exclusion of Israel a state which is actively committing genocide is incredibly disrespectful to the civilian victims of mass killing in both Japan and Gaza,” said Michael Bueckert “It is absurd that Canada is standing up for Israel’s right to attend a memorial ceremony for the victims of the United States' nuclear bomb on Nagasaki while its ministers casually call for dropping the same weapons on civilians in Gaza Canada is demonstrating that its priority is not a ceasefire but defending the sensibilities and reputation of a genocidal regime,” Bueckert added The Associated Press reports that Canada will be joining other Western countries including France and the US in sending a political statement to Nagasaki by refusing to send Ambassadors to the event and will only send “lower-ranking envoys.” The countries reportedly signed a joint letter complaining that Israel was being treated similarly to Russia and Belarus and urged Nagasaki to reverse its decision and invite Israel while other Ministers have made similar genocidal statements unsurrendered Territory of the Kanienʼkehá꞉ka (Mohawk) whose presence here reaches back to time immemorial CJPME recognizes the Kanienʼkehá꞉ka as the customary keepers and defenders of the St Lawrence River Watershed and its tributaries We honour their long history of welcoming many Nations to this beautiful territory and uphold and uplift the voice and values of our Host Nation CJPME respects and affirms the inherent and Treaty Rights of all Indigenous Peoples across this land CJPME has and will continue to honour the commitments to self-determination and sovereignty we have made to Indigenous Nations and Peoples CJPME also acknowledges the historical oppression of lands cultures and the original Peoples in what we now know as Canada and fervently believes that its work should contribute to the healing and decolonizing journey we all share together Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) 580 Sainte-Croix Ave Created with NationBuilder Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. Shigemi Fukahori is interviewed at the Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki, southern Japan, on July 29, 2020. Shigemi Fukahori, a survivor of the 1945 Nagasaki atomic bombing, who devoted his life to praying for peace and the souls of the victims, has died. He was 93. (Kyodo News via AP, File) Fukahori died at a hospital in Nagasaki, southwestern Japan, on Jan. 3, the Urakami Catholic Church, where he prayed almost daily until last year, said on Sunday. Local media reported he died of old age. The church, located about 500 meters from ground zero and near the Nagasaki Peace Park, is widely seen as a symbol of hope and peace, as its bell tower and some statues and survived the nuclear bombing. About 15 years ago, he became more outspoken after encountering, during a visit to Spain, a man who experienced the bombing of Guernica in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War when he was also 14 years old. The shared experience helped Fukahori open up. “On the day the bomb dropped, I heard a voice asking for help. When I walked over and held out my hand, the person’s skin melted. I still remember how that felt,” Fukahori told Japan’s national broadcaster NHK in 2019. He often addressed students, hoping they take on what he called “the baton of peace,” in reference to his advocacy. When Pope Francis visited Nagasaki in 2019, Fukahori was the one who handed him a wreath of white flowers. The following year, Fukahori represented the bomb victims at a ceremony, making his “pledge for peace,” saying: “I am determined to send our message to make Nagasaki the final place where an atomic bomb is ever dropped.” Funeral services were planned on Monday at Urakami Church, where his daughter will represent the family. 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All rights reserved Please enter the e-mail address you used to register to reset your password The 12th edition of the International Conference on Hard and Electromagnetic Probes attracted 346 physicists to Nagasaki Delegates discussed the recent experimental and theoretical findings on perturbative probes of the quark–gluon plasma (QGP) – a hot and deconfined state of matter formed in ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions The four main LHC experiments played a prominent role at the conference presenting a large set of newly published results from studies performed on data collected during LHC Run 2 as well as several new preliminary results performed on the new data samples from Run 3 A number of significant results on the modification of jets in heavy-ion collisions were presented Splitting functions characterising the evolution of parton showers are expected to be modified in the presence of the QGP providing experimental access to the medium properties A more differential look at these modifications was presented through a correlated measurement of the shared momentum fraction and opening angle of the first splitting satisfying the “soft drop” condition in jets energy–energy correlators have recently emerged as promising observables where the properties of jet modification in the medium might be imprinted at different scales on the observable The first measurements of the two-particle energy–energy correlators in p–Pb and Pb–Pb collisions were presented showing modifications in both the small- and large-angle correlations for both systems compared to pp collisions A long-sought after effect of energy exchanges between the jet and the medium is a correlated response of the medium in the jet direction measurements of hadron–boson correlations in events containing photons or Z bosons showed a clear depletion of the bulk medium in the direction of the Z boson providing direct evidence of a medium response correlated to the propagating back-to-back jet the first direct measurement of the dead cone of beauty quarks using novel machine-learning methods to reconstruct the beauty hadron from partial decay information Several new results from studies of particle production in ultraperipheral heavy-ion collisions were discussed These studies allow us to investigate the possible onset of gluon saturation at low Bjorken-x values with measurements of incoherent and coherent J/ψ mesons Photonuclear production cross-sections of di-jets covering a large interval of photon energies to scan over different regions of Bjorken-x These measurements pave the way for setting constraints on the gluon component of nuclear parton distribution functions at low Bjorken-x values in the absence of significant final-state effects New experiments will explore higher-density regions of the QCD–matter phase diagram a significant enhancement of charm and beauty-baryon production in proton–proton collisions was observed compared to measurements in e+e– and ep collisions These observations have challenged the assumption of the universality of heavy-quark fragmentation across different collision systems Several intriguing measurements on this topic were released at the conference In addition to an extended set of charm meson-to-meson and baryon-to-meson production yield ratios the first measurements of the production of Σc0,++(2520) relative to Σc0,++(2455) at the LHC obtained exploiting the new Run 3 data samples New insights on the structure of the exotic χc1(3872) state and its hadronisation mechanism were garnered by measuring the ratio of its production yield to that of ψ(2S) mesons in hadronic collisions strange-to-non-strange production-yield ratios for charm and beauty mesons as a function of the collision multiplicity were released pointing toward an enhanced strangeness production in a higher colour-density environment Several theoretical approaches implementing modified hadronisation mechanisms with respect to in-vacuum fragmentation have proven to be able to reproduce at least part of the measurements but a comprehensive description of the heavy-quark hadronisation A glimpse into the future of the experimental opportunities in this field was also provided A new and intriguing set of physics observables for a complete characterisation of the QGP with hard probes will become accessible with the planned upgrades of the ALICE both during the next long LHC shutdown and in the more distant future or in other facilities like the Electron–Ion Collider in the US and J-PARC-HI in Japan will explore higher-density regions of the QCD–matter phase diagram The next edition of this conference series is scheduled to be held in Nashville CERN Courier is essential reading for the international high-energy physics community Highlighting the latest research and project developments from around the world CERN Courier offers a unique record of the ongoing endeavour to advance our understanding of the basic laws of nature In the United States the atomic bombssignaled military victory In Japan the remaining survivors have been left to contemplatewhether the world has learned anything fromtheir trauma — or whether the world powersare on a collision course to repeat it In the United Statesthe atomic bombs signaledmilitary victory In Japan theremaining survivors havebeen left to contemplatewhether the world has learnedanything from their trauma— or whether the worldpowers are on a collisioncourse to repeat it Hennigan and Spencer CohenPhotographs by Kentaro Takahashi Hennigan and Spencer Cohen Photographs by Kentaro Takahashi Share full article383383 The waiting room of the Red Cross hospital in downtown Hiroshima is always crowded often by elderly people waiting for their names to be called Many of these men and women don’t have typical medical histories They are the surviving victims of the American atomic bomb attack 79 years ago but it’s a day that the Japanese can’t forget 180 survivors — known as hibakusha — of the blasts each day When the United States dropped an atomic weapon on Hiroshima on Aug the entire citizenries of both countries were working feverishly to win World War II the bomb represented a path to victory after nearly four relentless years of battle and a technological advance that would cement the nation as a geopolitical superpower for generations Our textbooks talk about the world’s first use of a nuclear weapon where the United States detonated a bomb just three days later talk about how those horrible events must be the last uses of nuclear weapons A view across the Motoyasu River of the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima The bombs killed an estimated 200,000 men, women and children and maimed countless more. In Hiroshima 50,000 of the city’s 76,000 buildings were completely destroyed. In Nagasaki nearly all homes within a mile and a half of the blast were wiped out In both cities the bombs wrecked hospitals and schools Americans didn’t dwell on the devastation. Here the bombings were hailed as necessary and heroic acts that brought the war to an end. In the days immediately after the nuclear blasts, the polling firm Gallup found that 85 percent of Americans approved of the decision to drop atomic bombs over Japan Even decades later the narrative of military might — and American sacrifice — continued to reign This article is part of the Opinion series At the Brink,about the threat of nuclear weapons in an unstable world. Read the opening piece here This article is part ofthe Opinion series At the Brink,about the threat of nuclearweapons in an unstable world.Read the opening piece here Countries like the United States, China and Russia are spending trillions of dollars to modernize their stockpiles. Many of the safeguards that once lowered nuclear risk are unraveling, and the diplomacy needed to restore them is not happening The threat of another blast can’t be relegated to history it is necessary for Americans — and the globe really — to listen to the stories of the few human beings who can still speak to the horror nuclear weapons can inflict before this approach is taken again Chieko Kiriake was on a break from her job at a tobacco factory in Hiroshima People were walking around with their clothes burned off so much so that you couldn’t tell who was who Their skin would fall right off and hang off their hands at the fingernails It was almost like they had black seaweed hanging from their hands But I was thankful that some of my classmates were alive that they were able to make their way back Swarms of flies came and laid eggs in the burns and the larvae would start squirming inside the skin The maggots would feast on the blood and pus and get so plump and squirm so I brought my chopsticks and picked them out one by one I spent hours picking those maggots out of my classmates.” Hiroe Kawashimo’s mother was at home in Hiroshima She was in utero; her mother was around 1 kilometer from ground zero when she was exposed to the bomb’s radiation in Hiroshima according to her mother — apparently so small She was one of numerous children exposed to the bomb while in utero and diagnosed with microcephaly Seiji Takato was at home with his mother in Hiroshima And I don’t really remember the immediate symptoms Later the lymph nodes in my armpits and legs swelled up and I had to have them cut open three times.” Seiichiro Mise was at home in Nagasaki playing the organ people would say that if you married an atomic bomb survivor I got a call from the hospital saying my baby had been born ‘Is it a boy or girl?’ I didn’t even ask that ‘Does my baby have 10 fingers and 10 toes?’ But then he smiled and said it was a healthy boy Kunihiko Sakuma was at home with his mother in Hiroshima There are people today who still find it difficult to talk about what they experienced where were you during the bombing?’ People died or got sick not just right after the bombing I realized their suffering was still ongoing The atomic bomb is such an inhumane weapon and the effects of radiation stay with survivors for a very long time That’s why they need our continued support.” His father was at work next to Hiroshima Station and never came home I was officially recognized as an atomic bomb survivor I hated even looking at the Atomic Bomb Survivor’s Health Handbook and I quickly put it away in my desk drawer I didn’t tell anyone that I was a survivor.” Masao Tomonaga was asleep on the second floor of his home in Nagasaki at the time of the bombing and she suffered a severe thigh bone fracture We examined her blood and found that acute leukemia was quickly growing inside her body ‘I have long believed the atomic bomb was living surviving inside.’ Maybe she had a feeling that the atomic bomb had entered her body She didn’t use ‘radiation’ — a special term ‘The atomic bomb entered me and survived until now.’” Shigeaki Mori was crossing a bridge on his way to school in Hiroshima I speak as someone who suffers until this day: The world needs to stop nuclear war from ever happening again I see politicians talk about deploying more weapons Keiko Ogura was standing on a road near her home in Hiroshima ‘For we shall not repeat the evil’ — this is the pledge of survivors Now what survivors worry about is to die and meet our family in heaven On this planet there are still many many nuclear weapons and then I’ll meet my daughter I couldn’t save what did you do to abolish nuclear weapons?’ A small pink booklet fits squarely in Shigeaki Mori’s breast pocket — a cherished possession that over the years has become more closely tied to his self-identity The Atomic Bomb Survivor’s Health Handbook grants him access to free medical checkups and treatment Flip open the first page to see his distance from the bomb when it detonated that bright August morning and flip another page to begin tracing years of his health history in 2016 — in sharp contrast to the regular visits of American leaders to Europe to commemorate major battles there Mori was one of two survivors who spoke briefly with Mr leading to an emotional embrace between the two men Mori proudly displays a photograph of that moment alongside dozens of other mementos — including a photo with the pope — from his work over decades to remind the world of what happened in Hiroshima Obama’s visit would bring an official apology for the bombings; it did not did not shy away from recognizing the destruction of that day The camphor trees at Sanno Shrine in Nagasaki survived the bombing and continue to grow “We stand here, in the middle of this city, and force ourselves to imagine the moment the bomb fell. We force ourselves to feel the dread of children confused by what they see. We listen to a silent cry,” Mr. Obama said “Mere words cannot give voice to such suffering but we have a shared responsibility to look directly into the eye of history and ask what we must do differently to curb such suffering again.” “Someday the voices of the hibakusha will no longer be with us to bear witness,” Mr That memory allows us to fight complacency The Smithsonian is in the midst of planning an exhibition on World War II It’s time for the next generation to bear witness and demand change Listen to Chieko Kiriake and Keiko Ogura tell their stories in an audio essay from Times Opinion Kathleen Kingsbury is the Opinion editor of The New York Times overseeing the editorial board and the Opinion section Hennigan writes about national security issues for Opinion from Washington Spencer Cohen is an editorial assistant in Opinion Cohen spent a week in Japan reporting for Opinion’s series At the Brink Kentaro Takahashi is a photographer based in Kyoto Source footage by Science Photo Library and Forrest Brown This Times Opinion series is funded through philanthropic support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Outrider Foundation and the Prospect Hill Foundation. Funders have no control over the selection or focus of articles or the editing process and do not review articles before publication. The Times retains full editorial control. Share full article383383Share full article383383Read 383 CommentsRead 383 CommentsShare full article383383Advertisement Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Clarence Fernandez You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed After Israel was not invited to Friday’s Nagasaki memorial observance Japan’s G7 allies all boycotted the ceremony marking the 79th anniversary of the U.S atomic bombing of the city in the final days of World War II.  “After comprehensively considering the matter, including the risk that an unexpected situation may arise, I made the decision to refrain from inviting the Israeli ambassador,” Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki said according to Japanese media on Thursday.  Suzuki first decided not to invite Israel in July saying the decision was not politically motivated He said he feared that protests against the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza would overshadow the ceremony which commemorates the victims of the atomic bomb dropped by the U.S. The decision spurred a backlash from the six other G7 countries — the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Canada — and the EU. They sent a letter to Suzuki last month warning that they would not attend if Israel was not invited, CNN reported.  On Friday, those diplomats boycotted the ceremony, Japanese media reported Israel’s ambassador to Japan, Gilad Cohen, instead visited a Nagasaki ceremony in Tokyo together with his American and British counterparts.  Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he was not in a position to comment on the diplomatic spat, as the memorial is hosted by the city of Nagasaki, according to Japanese media But “we are engaged in various exchanges with diplomatic corps from various countries and the city of Nagasaki,” he added.  Israel’s Cohen was invited to a memorial ceremony for victims of the Hiroshima bomb on Tuesday which was met by people protesting the Israel-Hamas war Despite Donald Trump’s lurch into protectionism and coercion Friedrich Merz believes a transatlantic trade deal can still be done Berlin wants more robust military spending following a bombshell move by the Trump administration to negotiate a peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin president faces outrage from Arab countries and key European capitals over his “dangerous” proposal that Palestinians should be removed from the coastal enclave Billionaire’s animosity toward German mainstream politicians and his affection for the AfD could bode poorly for Germany’s next government Envoys of the United States and other Western nations sent a letter to Nagasaki in mid-July expressing concern over the city not inviting Israel to its peace ceremony on the anniversary of the 1945 atomic bombing by the United States the document showed Wednesday as multiple ambassadors pulled out of the event dated July 19 and sent ahead of Nagasaki's formal decision "it would become difficult for us to have high-level participation" in the event the United States and the European Union said it "would result in placing Israel on the same level as countries such as Russia and Belarus," which have not been invited to the ceremony for a third consecutive year Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel will no longer attend the Nagasaki peace ceremony on Friday in response to the city not inviting Israel a source familiar with the matter said the same day British Ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom also announced the previous day that she would be absent from the ceremony as she disagreed with the decision by the southwestern Japan city Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki said on July 31 that the city decided not to include Israel over fears that protests against the country's ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip could affect the ceremony's solemnity Consulate Fukuoka said its Principal Officer Chuka Asike will represent the United States at the Nagasaki ceremony Emanuel will instead attend a peace ceremony at Tokyo's Zojoji Temple on Friday which on Tuesday held its ceremony for the 79th anniversary of the city's atomic bombing allowing Israeli representation while not inviting Palestine on the grounds it is not a state recognized by the Japanese government nor a U.N including an event attended by around 100 people at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in the evening after the anniversary ceremony was held on the site Activists protest Hiroshima's invitation to Israel to A-bomb ceremony Nagasaki mayor says Israel not invited to A-bomb peace ceremony Israel to attend Hiroshima peace ceremony amid call for cease-fire To have the latest news and stories delivered to your inbox Simply enter your email address below and an email will be sent through which to complete your subscription Please check your inbox for a confirmation email Thank you for reaching out to us.We will get back to you as soon as possible The US embassy said the peace event had been “politicized” because of the exclusion ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel is reportedly skipping an annual memorial ceremony for the U.S.’s atomic bombing of Nagasaki after organizers of the event decided to exclude the Israeli ambassador from the event due to pressure from activist groups will reportedly attend a different ceremony in Tokyo Advocates for Palestinian rights noted that the U.S.’s decision to pull out of the event is not only a failure to recognize the U.S.’s own role in the attack that killed, by some estimates, over 70,000 civilians in Nagasaki; it is also a show of how far U.S foreign policy officials will go to capitulate to Israel while it is actively committing one of the worst atrocities of the 21st century so far The August 9 ceremony will commemorate the 79th anniversary of the bombing of Nagasaki; Hiroshima, where 140,000 were killed, held its ceremony on August 6 and did invite Israel The Israeli ambassador to Japan, Gilad Cohen, accused Suzuki of “hijacking this ceremony for his political motivations.” The U.K. ambassador to Japan is also skipping the Nagasaki event because of Israel’s omission. The U.K. and U.S. sent a letter last month saying that “it would become difficult for us to have high-level participation in this event” if Israel wasn’t invited Italy and the European Union also signed the letter This highlights a double standard in Western countries’ attitude toward violence and occupation; the exclusion of Russia and Belarus from the event for the past two years due to the invasion of Ukraine has not caused similar boycotts The British embassy said in a statement that excluding Israel “creates an unfortunate and misleading equivalency with Russia and Belarus — the only other countries not invited to this year’s ceremony.” Israel’s ambassador also protested the idea that Israel’s assault on Gaza — and escalating violence in the occupied West Bank — is comparable to Russia’s invasion Experts have indeed said that the Gaza genocide isn’t equivalent to other conflicts — because humanitarian workers and historians have noted that Israel has created the worst humanitarian crisis ever seen in modern times Other sources have noted that the number of bombs dropped by Israel has surpassed the firepower of the bombs dropped in Dresden Hamburg and London combined during World War II we are witnessing a terrifying array of anti-democratic tactics to silence political opposition increase surveillance and expand authoritarian reach Truthout is appealing for your support as Trump and his sycophants crack down on political speech Nonprofits like Truthout could be caught in Trump’s crosshairs as he attacks dissenting groups with bad faith lawsuits and targeted harassment of journalists these attacks come at a time when independent journalism is most needed The right-wing corporate takeover of media has left reliable outlets few and far between with even fewer providing their work at no cost to the reader Who will be there to hold the fascists to account We ask for your support as we doggedly pursue justice through our reporting Truthout is funded overwhelmingly by readers like you Please make a tax-deductible one-time or monthly donation today Sharon Zhang is a news writer at Truthout covering politics, climate and labor. Before coming to Truthout, Sharon had written stories for Pacific Standard, The New Republic, and more. She has a master’s degree in environmental studies. She can be found on Twitter and Bluesky As Trump and his sycophants work to silence political dissent independent media is a key part of the resistance Support our work by making a one-time or monthly donation to Truthout today Nagasaki called for a shift toward abolishing nuclear weapons on the 79th anniversary of the U.S in the absence of ambassadors from the United States and other key nuclear states at its peace ceremony after they took issue with the city's decision not to invite Israel In a Peace Declaration delivered during the annual event Mayor Shiro Suzuki underscored mounting concerns over the potential use of nuclear weapons due to increasing geopolitical uncertainties while not directly mentioning Israel or Palestine "Amid uncertainty about when the Russian invasion of Ukraine will come to an end and growing concern about the expansion of armed conflicts in the Middle East we are currently facing a critical situation with the increased likelihood of the disappearance of the important norm that we have conformed to thus far," he said He also called on leaders of the nuclear states and states under the nuclear umbrella to "face up to the reality that the very existence of nuclear weapons has posed an increasing threat to humankind and you must make a brave shift toward the abolition of nuclear weapons." A moment of silence was held at 11:02 a.m. bomber and exploded over the port city in 1945 It remains the last place in the world to have suffered from an atomic bomb attack Suzuki demanded that the Japanese government sign and ratify a U.N and called for Japan to lead discussions to ease tensions and advance disarmament in Northeast Asia Prime Minister Fumio Kishida noted the "widening division" in the international community over approaches to nuclear disarmament and Russia's nuclear threat "Now is the time for us to continue with our passionate appeal to the world The ceremony at the Nagasaki Peace Park was attended by some 2,300 participants including representatives from a record-high 100 countries and regions People pray during a memorial mass at Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki on Aug atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city Ambassador Rahm Emanuel and British Ambassador Julia Longbottom skipped the ceremony in response to the city not inviting Israel The members of the Group of Seven were instead represented by ministers and consul generals the diplomats expressed concern that the lack of an invitation "would result in placing Israel on the same level as countries such as Russia and Belarus," which have been effectively barred from the ceremony over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine Speaking to reporters after attending the ceremony French Minister-Counselor Nicolas Thiriet said "It's very unfortunate that Israel was not invited and was put on the same level as Russia." "The situation in the Middle East is very different from Russia's war aggression against Ukraine...Israel has been a victim of a terrorist attack and has every right to defend itself," he said Suzuki reiterated his explanation that Israel was not invited over fears that protests against the country's ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip could affect the ceremony's solemnity During a press conference later in the day Kishida declined to comment on the nonattendance of some of the ambassadors saying the ceremony was organized by the city of Nagasaki The move is in direct contrast with Hiroshima which allowed Israeli representation at its ceremony while not inviting Palestine read out a Pledge for Peace and called for the abolition of nuclear weapons as he shared the English phrase "Peace is a world heritage shared by all humankind." "As we look at the international situation we see wars such as those in Ukraine and Palestine dragging on rather than ending and many children are losing their lives," he said "With this sad reality right before our eyes we cannot look away from the foolishness of war." undersecretary general and high representative for disarmament affairs "Eliminating these weapons is our highest disarmament priority...And yet I worry the lessons of nearly eight decades ago have not been learned." "We are seeing nuclear weapons -- and the threat of their use -- re-emerging as tools of coercion," he wrote Among those who came to pay their respects at the Hypocenter Park was Chibako Ota Her mother was around 2 kilometers north of the bomb in Nagasaki I feel like nuclear weapons may be used again," she said "I want people to come here to see what really happened and realize that it's not okay." who experienced the atomic bombing of Nagasaki while at school as a student in junior high "It goes without saying to be against nuclear weapons," the 92-year-old said after the event "What we can do as individuals regarding nuclear nonproliferation is limited," he added "We must make the movement larger as an organization." Kishida met with hibakusha and a person representing those who have not received official designation as survivors under current standards who are not eligible for the same health care as hibakusha called for recognition as they become older The attack on Nagasaki came three days after a uranium bomb was dropped on Hiroshima some 300 kilometers to the northeast An estimated 74,000 people were killed by the end of 1945 with many others suffering from the effects of burns and radiation-related illnesses long after the attack The combined number of officially recognized survivors of the two nuclear attacks stood at 106,825 as of March this year Nagasaki mayor says Israel exclusion from A-bomb event not political U.S., Europe aired concern over no Israel presence at Nagasaki A-bomb event FEATURE: Nagasaki anti-nuke sit-ins take on new gravity as threat grows We want to make sure you get the best viewing experience for the content you are viewing Our goal is to improve each visit with data that creates this experience for you and those you share it with Global Security Review The anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima is frequently marked by historians and commentators for its historic significance Less frequent in discussion is the commemoration of the bombing of Nagasaki three days later But it could be argued that the latter event was equally or more significant than the former Doubtless the significance of Hiroshima speaks for itself The bomb had previously been tested successfully in the New Mexico desert but it had yet to be used under operational conditions Scientists and military experts offered various predictions about whether the bomb would detonate as expected and what it might cause The bombing of Hiroshima turned theory into practice The United States created a new weapon of unprecedented and terrifying power the Japanese political and military leadership was not prepared to surrender Anticipating an eventual American invasion of the Japanese home islands the imperial government prepared their civilian population for protracted urban warfare and other means of diehard resistance to foreign occupation large contingents of the imperial Japanese armed forces remained capable of fighting Japanese leaders may have also doubted whether the United States was capable of repeating the destruction inflicted on Hiroshima The US might have only one of these unprecedented weapons in its arsenal and would need to defeat Japan’s military by an inevitable invasion costly to Americans as well as to Japanese The bombing of Nagasaki changed this optimistic calculus to a more pessimistic one Now it seemed possible that the US may have many of these weapons ready for immediate use if the war lasted well beyond August of 1945 the US could have manufactured and used additional atomic weapons against Japan Emperor Hirohito made an unprecedented radio address calling on his population and armed forces to surrender Japanese to accept the “unthinkable” surrender A number of military officers committed ritual suicide and a small coterie of fanatics tried to overthrow the government and continue the war most accepted that there was no alternative to surrender The US wisely agreed to spare the life of the emperor and to avoid treating him as a war criminal despite calls for his incarceration and execution on the part of many Americans It was judged correctly that Hirohito would be a necessary legitimizing symbol useful in establishing a postwar democratic regime under the governance of Douglas MacArthur The bombing of Nagasaki is significant in other ways as well It shows that deterrence is based not only on the experience of pain and destruction already inflicted but also on the expectation of more pain to come if the demands of an adversary are not met The future unknown can be more terrifying than the known past British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was able to rally parliament and the British public in 1940 to resist Hitler at all costs regardless of the pessimism of some in the political establishment many of whom preferred to make a deal with Hitler It was not only the immediate peril of British forces deployed in France that mattered but also the unknown fate of Britain under German rule that caused leaders and most of the British public to stand fast despite seemingly impossible odds The bombing of Nagasaki is significant in another way Contrary to the predictions of many experts it represented the last use of the atomic bomb fired in anger Nuclear deterrence proved to be more durable and less brittle than expected even during the worst moments of the Cold War but Khrushchev’s reckless gamble in America’s backyard was discovered by US intelligence and exposed in time for crisis management to succeed Can we assume that deterrence will hold firm in a new world order of rising competition and conflict among three nuclear-armed great powers; one rogue nuclear weapons state; a potential rogue nuclear weapons state; and possible additional nuclear proliferation in the Middle East This question has special significance for Japan and takes us back to its singular experiences of atomic bombing an allergic reaction to the development of an indigenous nuclear arsenal Japan has depended upon the nuclear umbrella of the United States to deter adversaries against nuclear coercion or first use As the military configuration of Asia changes leaders in Japan may begin to entertain the notion of a nuclear deterrent: modest in size but sufficient to create the expectation of unprecedented Japan will come full circle from the attack on Nagasaki is a Senior Fellow at the National Institute for Deterrence Studies Stephen Cimbala is Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Penn State university He is currently a senior fellow with the National Institute for Deterrence Studies This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. A Japanese group representing atomic bomb survivors have appealed for a world without nuclear weapons at a UN nuclear disarmament meeting in New York The speeches were delivered at Wednesday's meeting of the preparatory committee for next year's review conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Kanamoto Hiroshi is an executive board member of Nihon Hidankyo which won last year's Nobel Peace Prize He said they have high expectations for the forthcoming NPT review conference at a time when the decline of the "nuclear taboo," which holds that nuclear weapons must not be used Hiroshima Mayor Matsui Kazumi spoke on behalf of Mayors for Peace a group of municipal leaders seeking the abolishment of nuclear weapons He called on global representatives to heed civil society's call for peace and refrain from relying on nuclear deterrence He also urged world leaders to advance reliable nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation measures in good faith Nagasaki Mayor Suzuki Shiro expressed sympathy over the passing of Pope Francis who visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 2019 Suzuki said the only way for humanity to escape the nuclear risk is through abolition "Nagasaki must remain the last wartime atomic bombing site." President Harry Truman announced to the world that one U.S had “dropped one bomb on Hiroshima.” The bomb had the equivalent “power of 200,000 tons of T.N.T.” That single bomb killed 140,000 people in a matter of minutes Truman went on to say that “We are now prepared to obliterate more rapidly and completely every productive enterprise the Japanese have above ground in any city.” And to prove the point The Japanese then rapidly complied with the Allied ultimatum to surrender unconditionally the Japanese would be “spared utter destruction … the raining of ruin from the air the likes of which has never been seen on this earth.”  there has been a lot of ambivalence over the dropping of the atomic bombs At least one member of Truman’s team of advisers suggested ways around using the Atomic Bomb used and subsequently there has been a real sensitivity to questions and criticism in January 1995 the Smithsonian Institution was forced to cancel a planned exhibit of the Enola Gay due to opposition from both veterans groups and members of Congress to the exhibition’s “dwelling in excess on horrible effects of the atomic bombs” and “raising the question as to whether the bombings were necessary to end the war.” Efforts at compromise on the content of the exhibition program could not silence the opposition of what veterans groups labelled “revisionist history” and so the entire program was dropped commemoration of the bombing of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki is never questioned Their anniversaries are the occasion for solemn ceremonies that are also pleas for world peace Much of the rest of the world at least superficially honors these pleas by diplomatic attendance at the ceremonies they recognize the sheer brutality of such acts of war without having to officially address the question of their necessity marked the 79th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bombs This one was not about whether such horrific bombing should take place should the Japanese invite to their ceremonies a representative of a country presently using air power to commit genocide declined to invite the Israeli ambassador to Japan to the city’s commemoration ceremony Simultaneously the organizers in Hiroshima did invite the Israelis but under “outside pressure,” failed to invite a Palestinian representative because the violence in the Middle East may expand “we are currently faced with the possibility of losing the peace we have long taken for granted.” By singling out the Israeli ambassador the mayor was explicitly indicating who he believed was the instigator threatening the peace It would just be hypocritical to follow the Hiroshima lead government and its partners that Suzuki’s judgment was objectively accurate That according to every reputable human rights organization on the planet the Zionist regime is culpable of not only genocide Nor did it seem to matter that a good majority of the Jewish population of Israel is gung-ho for wholesale exile or outright annihilation of the Palestinian people they (the Palestinians) have fought back against their persecutors He sees Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip in the same light Israel is fighting in Gaza in self-defense and you shouldn’t confuse the victims with the perpetrators This was all dissimulation on the part of the Israeli ambassador and the mayor of Nagasaki knew it—the Israelis stayed uninvited and the Palestinians had reserved seats Emanuel’s argument is actually “a shroud of talk” to hide us from the truth In fact it was much like the argument of those who opposed the Smithsonian program years earlier there was/is a need to rationalize the massacre of the innocent it is all about “self-defense” against a “sneaky enemy” who carried out a surprise attack if the mayor of Nagasaki won’t adhere to that allegation Saying that something is true (such as the Israel’s Gaza campaign is a defensive act or the dropping of the atomic bombs was an unquestionable necessity) It may not even make it logical or sensible But then the Big Lie has always been a force in history it is a con that governments are often able to pull off it is easier to do so if the audience lives within a relatively closed system if you are brought up in a community that holds itself together with one or more repetitive themes chances are pretty good that you aren’t going to analyze them That is certainly the case of most Israeli Jews and their Zionist supporters in the diaspora (like Joe Bidden) that Israel is an innocent party in constant danger from Palestinians) is used to rationalize the need to eliminate the threat can override everyday ethics that make for a livable society It frees up the predatory  potential embedded in our genetic makeup and directs it outward we speak of strategies and tactics as if they were an exercise in map making We mix up offense with defense in order to make things easier on our conscience To gloss over such facts is to falsify history that is why many Americans cannot abide “revisionist history” when it comes to the annihilation of the residents of Hiroshima and Nagasaki having grown up in an informational bubble that equates Palestinians with Nazis the Israelis now “swarm” into Gaza “with passion like a plain devoured by locusts.” It takes poetic language to find the right analogies Here is how great English essayist Samuel Johnson put it in compliance with inveterate prejudice and prevailing passions.” When you become aware of this sort of lying you have to ask yourself as to the spokespeople at the State Department how much do they pay these people to speak in contradiction to observable facts Then you can move down the line and ask the same question of college and university presidents when it comes to defending Israel from protesters they all sound like they are justifying 74,000 dead at Nagasaki The denial of responsibility has become an official art We not only deny the obvious nature of our offensive actions as a group (say but also are determined to deny the documentable consequences of those actions The folks who objected to the Smithsonian contextualization of the use of the atomic bombs literally refused to countenance any presentation that did not relieve the U.S and its collective leadership of responsibility for the observable—visible—consequences of the use of a weapon that may yet destroy civilization They deny the apartheid character of their society de-development and “lawn mowing” (assassination etc.) could possibly justify Palestinian resistance—resistance which is transformed into “terrorism.” They thus deny all responsibility for the present program of genocide in Gaza and express shock and indignation when others call them on their Big Lie Most nations of the world likewise deny any responsibility to stop Israel’s genocide though they do a lot of verbal hemming and hawing at the most appalling … exhibitions of human stupidity and wickedness.” 74,000 dead at Nagasaki and 40,000 and counting in Gaza not everyone can look on unmoved—the world’s relatively small cadre of protesters against genocide insist there be no denial of responsibility For this we get furious and criminalize them the future of truth now lies in their hands By Erik English | August 5 Nagasaki in November 1945. (US Army Air Forces via japanairraids.org) The only instances of atomic weapons being used against a civilian population occurred in 1945 at the tail end of World War II “Little Boy” was detonated above the Japanese city of Hiroshima The aftermath of the bombings was the complete devastation of both cities in which countless numbers of people lost their lives nuclear historian Alex Wellerstein published original research with the Bulletin describing the challenges of tabulating the casualties of the bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki Without accurate records of the population prior to the bombings Allied forces and the Japanese government relied on proxy figures to come up with their estimates those estimates were revisited to account for information that was excluded at the time The result is a recognition that we may never be able to fully account for the devastation of one of the world’s deadliest weapons Learn more in the Bulletin’s latest video and read more in Alex Wellerstein’s original piece for the Bulletin, Counting the dead at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel “How many American lives were saved by the dropping of these two bombs by not having to send in Allied troops onto the Japanese mainland where a long and very bloody war would have continued” We cannot lose sight of the fact that Japan instigated this Pacific war and therefore Japanese civilian blood is on the emperor’s hands A more pertinent question would be How many lives have been lost The number of people who died at Hiroshima and Nagasaki pales in comparison to those who have suffered and died while mining of uranium (in America Yellow Cake Miners); as a result of nuclear tests (in America Downwinders and Atomic Vets); and as a result of hazardous waste storage — in American cities like St Your premise is false and simply your assumption I do not defend the nuclear industry as I know he they poisoned us knowingly even resulting in terrible deaths in some cases as well as debilitating conditions to different degrees But those numbers are known and people damages are compensated by an act of Congress I am myself a Cold War Warrior enriching ursnuoim for a brief period before developing new plastics that took me into both Russia and China and my five business ventures to Japan got me to even Hiroshima for a day where Japanese people were… Read more » Erik English is an associate multimedia editor at the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. He has worked at the International Atomic Energy... Read More and the European Union signed a joint letter expressing their shared concern about Israel’s exclusion saying that treating the country on the same level as Russia and Belarus — the only other countries not invited — would be misleading Mayor of Nagasaki Shiro Suzuki said it was a decision made too make sure “that we can conduct the ceremony smoothly under a solemn atmosphere.” Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel speaks to media after meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa at the foreign ministry in Tokyo Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki speaks to the media at the city hall in Nagasaki western Japan FILE - Doves fly over the Peace Statue during a ceremony to mark the 77th anniversary of the U.S Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel will skip this year’s atomic bombing memorial service in Nagasaki on Friday because Israel was not invited Emanuel will not attend the event because it was “politicized” by Nagasaki’s decision not to invite Israel He will instead honor the victims of the Nagasaki atomic bombing at a ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo An atomic bomb dropped by the United States on Hiroshima on Aug A second bomb dropped three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 more ending World War II and the country’s nearly half-century of aggression in Asia Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki on Thursday said his decision not to invite Israel is unchanged despite announcements by the U.S and five other Group of Seven countries and the European Union that they will send lower-ranked envoys instead of ambassadors to the ceremony “We only want to hold the ceremony in a peaceful and solemn atmosphere” to honor the atomic bomb victims “It is absolutely not because of political reasons.” “It is unfortunate that ambassadors won’t be able to join us this year but I hope they will attend from next year,” Suzuki added Suzuki had indicated his reluctance in June to invite Israel noting the escalating conflict in the Middle East He announced last week that Israel was not invited because of concern over “possible unforeseen situations” such as protests Suzuki said he made the decision based on “various developments in the international community in response to the ongoing situation in the Middle East” that suggested a possible risk that the ceremony would be disturbed 9 is the most important day for Nagasaki City .. and we must not let the ceremony be affected,” he said Hiroshima invited the Israeli ambassador to Japan to its memorial ceremony on Tuesday which was attended by 50,000 people including Emanuel and other envoys though Palestinian representatives were not invited Nagasaki officials said they were told that an official of the U.S Consulate in Fukuoka will represent the United States at Friday’s ceremony The envoys urged Nagasaki to reverse the decision and invite Israel to preserve the universal message of the city’s ceremony The exclusion of Israel would make their “high-level participation” difficult Your browser does not support JavaScript, or it is disabled．Please check the site policy for more information National Report NAGASAKI—About a thousand people attended a memorial Mass at the Urakami Cathedral here on April 27 for Pope Francis who had visited Nagasaki and called for a world without nuclear weapons footage of the pope’s visit to the city in November 2019 was shown on a screen at the cathedral Archbishop Michiaki Nakamura of the Archdiocese of Nagasaki presided over the Mass using a chalice that the pope had gifted to the church during the visit “He lived for the sake of others until his end,” Mitsuaki Takami a 79-year-old former archbishop of the Archdiocese of Nagasaki I’m grateful for his constant advocacy for the abolition of nuclear weapons I hope his successor will carry on this mission.” Takami was exposed to radiation from the atomic bomb while he was in his mother’s womb was exposed to the atomic bombing when she was 3 including his effort regarding the atomic bombing,” she said “I believe the next pope will also wish for peace.” called for the elimination of nuclear weapons at the Atomic Bomb Hypocenter Park in Nagasaki in 2019 about 30,000 people gathered at a prefectural baseball stadium where the pope offered Mass Japanese mourn the loss of Pope Francis who visited in 2019 Information on the latest cherry blossom conditions Please right click to use your browser’s translation function.) A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II In-house News and Messages No reproduction or republication without written permission This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page City’s mayor says Israel not invited because of risk of protests at event honouring victims of 1945 nuclear blast The US ambassador to Japan will skip this year’s memorial service for the nuclear attack on Nagasaki because Israel has not been invited View image in fullscreenRahm Emanuel Photograph: Behrouz Mehri/AFP/Getty ImagesRahm Emanuel would not attend the event on Friday because it had been “politicised” by Nagasaki’s decision not to invite Israel he would honour the victims of the Nagasaki bombing at a ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo and a lower-ranked US official would attend the Nagasaki event The US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945, killing 140,000 people and destroying the city. A second bomb dropped three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 people. Japan surrendered on 15 August, ending the second world war and the country’s near-half-century of aggression in Asia. The mayor of Nagasaki, Shiro Suzuki, said his decision not to invite Israel was unchanged despite announcements by the US, five other G7 countries and the EU that they would send lower-ranked envoys instead of ambassadors to the ceremony. Read more“We only want to hold the ceremony in a peaceful and solemn atmosphere” to honour the victims “It is absolutely not because of political reasons but I hope they will attend from next year.” He announced last week that Israel had not been invited because of concerns over “possible unforeseen situations” such as protests Free newsletterGet the most important US headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning View image in fullscreenShiro Suzuki Photograph: Jiji Press/EPASuzuki said he had made the decision based on “various developments in the international community in response to the ongoing situation in the Middle East” that suggested there was a risk the ceremony could be disturbed “August 9 is the most important day for Nagasaki city … and we must not let the ceremony be affected,” he said Hiroshima invited the Israeli ambassador to its memorial ceremony on Tuesday, which was attended by 50,000 people including Emanuel and other envoys Nagasaki officials said they had been told an official of the US consulate in Fukuoka would represent the US at Friday’s ceremony the UK and the EU signed a joint letter expressing their shared concern about Israel’s exclusion saying that treating the country the same way as Russia and Belarus – the only other countries not invited – would be misleading The envoys urged Nagasaki to reverse the decision and invite Israel to preserve the universal message of the city’s ceremony While wishing for a world without nuclear weapons UNITAR and Hiroshima/Nagasaki partners for live streams on the morning of August 6 and August 9 the days the atomic bombs were dropped on the cities in 1945 two atomic bombs indiscriminately killed tens of thousands of people profoundly disrupting and altering the lives of the survivors the Peace Memorial Ceremonies are held to remember the victims and ensure not to repeat the evil Peace Boat and local partners will share with you live the atmosphere from the moments of silence on the 79th anniversaries in Hiroshima and Nagasaki speak with Hibakusha on that very morning from several venues that commemorate the consequences of the atomic bombings they will introduce how younger generations try to learn and take over the legacy of survivors Watch the Livestream (on Youtube) Watch the Livestream (on Youtube) monthly sit-ins by atomic bomb survivors and others in the Nagasaki Peace Park calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons and a world without war have been held on the ninth day of each month as a rallying cry for peace Although more than 500 sit-ins have been held to date by hibakusha nuclear weapons are not only still in existence but have only grown as a threat to humanity participants in the city in Japan's southwestern prefecture -- the site of the atomic bombing in the final stages of World War II on Aug 1945 -- continue their rallies in front of the Nagasaki Peace Statue in the face of the growing threat nuclear weapons pose to humanity chairman of the Hibakusha Liaison Council of the Nagasaki Prefectural Peace Movement Center describing the devastation wrought by the atomic bomb to about 420 participants -- four times the usual number of hibakusha high school students and others who attend the monthly events The aftermath of the bombing of Nagasaki saw many of the injured survivors wandering the streets "like a parade of ghosts," Kawano told the gathering quoting what his grandmother had witnessed "Humanity will perish unless nuclear weapons are gotten rid of," he told the participants The sit-ins have their origin in an event that took place on March 16 then chairman of the Council of Labor Unions in Nagasaki Prefecture and some 30 others to protest a port call by Japan's first nuclear-powered ship due to an accidental radiation leak caused by the vessel in 1974 After the ship embarked from Sasebo Port in 1982 people began gathering for sit-ins on the ninth of each month to remember the atomic bombing of the city and to call for the abolition of nuclear weapons Sit-ins in front of the park's peace memorial became the norm following a protest against nuclear tests by hibakusha and four other Nagasaki school teachers in 1974 who began to fully join the monthly sit-ins after retirement "We can express our opposition to nuclear weapons even through a sit-in of a few minutes It is a movement that is easy to take part in." the day that marks the atomic bombing of the city when the Peace Memorial Ceremony is held the sit-in rallies have continued without fail on the ninth of each month even on snow days and during the COVID-19 pandemic While skeptics are doubtful that sit-ins can lead to the abolition of nuclear weapons still finds "meaning in expressing opposition to nuclear weapons." Tsuiki had taken part in the monthly sit-ins before becoming physically unable to do so a decade ago due to his advanced age maintain policies of nuclear deterrence and are not moving toward abolition there are also moves to push states to ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons But the United States as well as other countries with nuclear arsenals have not signed on since the treaty was adopted by the U.N citing the fact that it is "not likely to produce any results" as the treaty has not been ratified by any of the states in possession of nuclear weapons Though discouraged by nuclear powers and other countries that have so far stuck to a policy based on the promise of retaliation and possibly mutually assured destruction "I feel that anti-nuclear sentiment has spread somewhat compared to when we started our protest movement." only accounting for some 10 percent of participants in recent years But young people have been attending and are ready to pick up the mantle a student at Chinzei Gakuin High School in Nagasaki Prefecture who attended the 500th sit-in "I will pass on what I have learned from hibakusha down to my juniors and strive to keep this movement active among future generations," she said FEATURE: Nagasaki survivor-doctor works for nuke-free world into his 80s Hiroshima survivor who broke silence at 70 seeks "blue sky" of peace The mayor of the southwestern Japan city of Nagasaki reiterated Thursday that the lack of an invitation for Israel to attend an annual ceremony commemorating the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombing of the city was not politically motivated and there would be no change to the decision The remarks by Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki came a day after it was revealed that the envoys of Britain the United States and the European Union had sent a letter to Nagasaki in mid-July saying "it would become difficult for us to have high-level participation" in the event if Israel was excluded They expressed concerns that the move "would result in placing Israel on the same level as countries such as Russia and Belarus," which have not been invited to the ceremony for a third consecutive year over Russia's invasion of Ukraine Suzuki cited security reasons as behind the decision including potential demonstrations against Israel's attendance and told reporters that he hoped the ceremony would be "conducted smoothly under a solemn atmosphere," as aging atomic bomb survivors make great efforts to attend the ceremony "I will continue to persevere and ask for understanding of the decision as often as necessary," he said The mayor had initially postponed a decision on Israel's participation before announcing on July 31 that the country would not be invited The announcement was followed by envoys pulling out of the event who said that Nagasaki's lack of an invite "left me no choice" in a letter sent to Suzuki after attending the Hiroshima peace ceremony on Tuesday "I believe your decision is a political one and has nothing to do with the security and safety of the event especially in light of the caliber of attendees," wrote Emanuel "I am also confident you are aware that I will not be the only ambassador not attending this year's ceremony in Nagasaki for similar reasons and concerns," he added The Canadian Embassy on Thursday said its ambassador Ian McKay would abstain from the ceremony as the lack of an invitation equated Israel with Russian and Belarus although it said it understood the importance of the event The French Ambassador to Japan Philippe Seton will also not be attending British Ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom also expressed her intention earlier this week to skip the annual peace ceremony in response to the city's decision The ambassadors that have pulled out are slated to be represented instead by respective ministers and consul generals Suzuki said the decision of some ambassadors to pull out of the ceremony was "unfortunate," adding that he hoped that they would participate again from the following year onward declined to comment on the issue concerning Nagasaki at a news conference in Tokyo Ambassador of Israel to Japan Gilad Cohen expressed gratitude on X to the representatives that pulled out of the ceremony "I would like to extend my gratitude to all the countries that have chosen to stand with Israel and oppose its exclusion from the Nagasaki Peace Ceremony Thank you for standing with us on the right side of history," he said Israel has come under criticism for the scale of civilian casualties and humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza caused by its assault in response to the militant group Hamas' surprise attack on Israel on Oct representative of the Permanent General Mission of Palestine in Japan said he was "deeply appalled and outraged by the disgraceful decision of the few ambassadors." Noting the United States dropped the atomic bomb to Nagasaki Siam said its refusal to participate in the city's ceremony "out of allegiance to a nation currently committing genocidal crime is a profound disrespect to the victims and their families." While Israel was invited to attend the peace ceremony in Hiroshima some criticized its inclusion as reflecting double standards given that Russia and Belarus were barred for the third consecutive year over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine Palestine was also excluded from the event But international concerns have grown over the deaths and injuries of many civilians in the Palestinian enclave as well as the dire humanitarian situation there protesting their respective ambassadors' decision to pull out of the Nagasaki peace ceremony "Shame on you" in English and "Stop blackmailing Nagasaki," as they held Palestinian flags and banners the 58-year-old head of the Network Against Japan Arms Trade said the move by the ambassadors was "outrageous." "The ceremony is supposed to be an occasion to commemorate the atomic bomb victims and reaffirm the commitment to never tolerate genocide and I cannot forgive that the United States and other Western democratic nations for skipping it just to show support to Israel," he said (Risako Nakanishi contributed to this story from Tokyo) The mayor of Nagasaki on Wednesday said Israel will not be invited to its annual peace ceremony in August commemorating the 1945 atomic bombing of the Japanese city opting to take a different path from Hiroshima which has asked the Middle Eastern country to join its ceremony Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki said in June that he had sent a letter to Israel calling for a cease-fire in the conflict in the Gaza Strip 9 ceremony on hold due to the risk of "unexpected situations" such as protests amid international condemnation of the country's war conduct Suzuki said he has not seen any moves that will mitigate such risks even as the ceremony nears He said the "wrenching decision" not to invite Israel is "not a political one but is based on our hope that we want the ceremony conducted smoothly under a solemn atmosphere." The latest development prompted Israeli Ambassador to Japan Gilad Cohen to express his disappointment Noting that Israel has attended the ceremony "for many years to honor the victims and their families," the ambassador said on social media platform X that Nagasaki's decision is "regrettable" and "sends a wrong message to the world." "Israel is exercising its full right and moral obligation to defend itself and its citizens and will continue to do so," he also said Following the surprise attack on Israel on Oct Israel began military operations in the Gaza Strip in retaliation 6 ceremony marking the 79th anniversary of the A-bomb attack there with a message calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza Some residents and others have accused the Hiroshima city government of having a double standard as Russia and Belarus have been barred from the ceremony for three consecutive years over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine Nagasaki also has no plans to invite Russia and Belarus for the third straight year The Nagasaki mayor said he has already notified Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui of his decision adding that the "desire to pay respects to the (atomic bomb) victims is the same." an 87-year-old survivor of the Nagasaki bombing said he is furious over Israel's actions but still wants all countries -- whether it be Israel Russia or Belarus -- to be invited to the ceremony to "show them how cruel things happened in Nagasaki 79 years ago." the 83-year-old head of the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Survivors Council was against inviting representatives from countries waging armed conflicts in defiance of calls from the international community He also said the southwestern city should unabashedly take Israel to task over its excesses in Gaza wondering why the mayor had to insist that the decision was not political "Maybe it took heed to the Japanese government and the United States," a key ally of Israel Hiroshima and Nagasaki invite delegates from countries and regions across the world to attend their respective peace ceremonies to pray for the victims and affirm that humanity cannot coexist with nuclear arms The United States dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug and the second on Nagasaki three days later Around 210,000 people -- mostly civilians -- are estimated to have died as a result of the attacks by the 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disappearance of the important norm that we have conformed to thus far," namely "never using a nuclear weapon again." His speech in the sweltering heat of Peace Park was punctuated by verses by the poet Sumako Fukuda (1922-1974) a bomb survivor and anti-nuclear activist You have 78.91% of this article left to read Lecture du Monde en cours sur un autre appareil Vous pouvez lire Le Monde sur un seul appareil à la fois Ce message s’affichera sur l’autre appareil Parce qu’une autre personne (ou vous) est en train de lire Le Monde avec ce compte sur un autre appareil Vous ne pouvez lire Le Monde que sur un seul appareil à la fois (ordinateur En cliquant sur « Continuer à lire ici » et en vous assurant que vous êtes la seule personne à consulter Le Monde avec ce compte Que se passera-t-il si vous continuez à lire ici Ce dernier restera connecté avec ce compte Vous pouvez vous connecter avec votre compte sur autant d’appareils que vous le souhaitez mais en les utilisant à des moments différents Nous vous conseillons de modifier votre mot de passe Votre abonnement n’autorise pas la lecture de cet article merci de contacter notre service commercial September 2024By Shizuka Kuramitsu The conflict in Gaza cast a shadow on the recent memorial ceremony recognizing the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the European Union skipped the ceremony in Nagasaki on Aug The annual ceremony is designed to honor the victims of the U.S 1945; renew a commitment to nuclear disarmament; and honor a long-standing vow never to let such a tragedy happen again 75,000 people died from the bombing on Nagasaki The bombing of Hiroshima three days earlier killed an estimated 140,000 people The ceremonies are hosted by the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and their respective mayors have authority to decide who should receive invitations Belarus and Russia have been the only countries to be disinvited from both ceremonies Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui invited Israel after attending the Hiroshima memorial ceremony told journalists she would not attend the Nagasaki ceremony because disinviting Israel “created an unfortunate and misleading equivalency with Russia and Belarus,” the only other countries not invited to this year’s ceremony according to multiple Japanese media sources Ambassador Rahm Emanuel announced his absence from the Nagasaki ceremony saying “the mayor of Nagasaki politicized the event by snubbing Israel.” White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment on Emanuel’s decision but State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Aug 8 that “[n]o country should be singled out Nagasaki’s mayor told a press conference that “the decision to disinvite Israel was not for a political reason.” He confirmed that he received a joint letter from Group of Seven (G7) and EU ambassadors on July 25 stating that “it would be difficult for us to have high-level participation” in the ceremony if Israel were excluded 8 that it was regrettable that the ambassadors could not understand that “the reason why we did not invite Israel was solely because we wanted to conduct the ceremony smoothly in a peaceful solemn atmosphere.” After Hiroshima invited Israel to its ceremony this year its decision was met with public criticism and protests declined to comment on the controversy at an Aug 9 that the Japanese government privately warned Nagasaki city officials that uninviting Israel “could develop to a diplomatic issue.” a president of Nagasaki A-Bomb Bereaved Families Association 8 that he “wanted the [G7] ambassadors to visit the A-bombed city and feel Nagasaki’s desire for peace especially because the war is still ongoing.” It is “very regrettable that the ambassadors will not be attending,” Honda said Billionaire businessman Elon Musk fueled more controversy on Aug. 13 when he described Hiroshima and Nagasaki as “bombed but now…full cities again” during a live streaming interview with former U.S. President Donald Trump on X. “It is not as scary as people think, basically,” Musk said of nuclear war. (See ACT, June 2024.) The Arms Control Association depends on the generous contributions of individuals who share our goal of promoting public understanding of and support for effective arms control policies and your financial support makes a difference Your membership comes with a 12-month subscription to Arms Control Today DC 20005            Tel: (202) 463-8270 | Fax: (202) 463-8273 How does Japanet envision regional revitalization through Nagasaki Stadium City Discover the insights you need to make better decisions today EY helps clients create long-term value for all stakeholders our services and solutions provide trust through assurance and help clients transform EY.ai - A unifying platform Strategy, transaction and transformation consulting Technology transformation Tax function operations Climate change and sustainability services EY Ecosystems EY Nexus: business transformation platform Experienced professionals EY-Parthenon careers Student and entry level programs Talent community our purpose is building a better working world The insights and services we provide help to create long-term value for clients An even more complex geopolitical environment is on the horizon Learn how businesses need to innovate and adapt their strategies to stay ahead Confident CEOs embrace corporate transformation mindset using M&A and technology to navigate challenges and create long-term value began working on Nagasaki Stadium City in 2017 EY leveraged its knowledge of the sports business and regional cooperation to participate in this private-sector-led megaproject representing an investment of approximately 100 billion yen is intended to revitalize the region but also has to be sustainable it was essential to design digital services that can be updated over the long term and to utilize ICT to achieve greater efficiency in the delivery of complex services Japanet Holdings is best known in Japan for its Japanet Takata teleshopping business but it launched its sports and regional revitalization business as a new pillar within the group It has expanded sports and entertainment opportunities in the region since 2017 through its management of hometown professional soccer club V-VAREN NAGASAKI and established Nagasaki’s first professional basketball club This marked the start of Japanet’s sports business there was talk of repurposing the site of the former Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works Saiwaimachi Plant This site would eventually become Nagasaki Stadium City Akita Takata was keen to take charge of this project He believed that creating a ‘one-of-a-kind city never previously seen in Japan,’ with a soccer stadium at its core would energize V-VAREN NAGASAKI and ultimately the people of the city And Nagasaki would have a brighter future.” Nagasaki Stadium City was conceived as a “city” that would serve as the core for regional revitalization At its heart is a soccer stadium with a capacity of approximately 20,000 people Nagasaki Stadium City now has about 80 stores This large-scale project was led by Akito Takata who was assigned to manage the project on site in Nagasaki is passionate about the project alongside Mr Orime recalls that he often heard negative comments at the start of the project about this unprecedented and ambitious initiative from people around him I heard from many quarters that there was no way this model could succeed in Nagasaki Let’s call these people ‘dream killers,’ happy to make statements that shatter dreams and ideas we adopted ‘beat the dream killers’ in our internal messaging for the year and partly to prove that something like this could succeed in Nagasaki we maintained our belief in the power of sports and did everything we could to bring the project to fruition.” which is also active in regional development through professional sports and working to create sustainable long-term value joined the project in 2021 as a PMO tasked with the overall management of ICT EY’s knowledge of regional development driven by the sports business allowed it to come on board with a team of professionals already familiar with the field government and public-private partnerships The team was responsible for the PMO work to fully manage ICT for the entire facility complex Mr.Orime “I think Nagasaki Stadium City will be seen in future as something unique in Japan making a visit to Nagasaki a must-do so that people can see it for themselves A hotel attached to a soccer stadium is also a first in Japan As soccer games will only be played there about 20 days a year I think our model of surrounding the stadium with facilities such as hotels which allow you to generate stable profits relatively easily is an idea that only the private sector could come up with we wanted to incorporate cutting-edge field tests and case studies something that would probably have been difficult for the government to do ICT can offer a sports business approach that is unique to the private sector.” when we were thinking about how to deliver convenience and comfort in Nagasaki Stadium City we had a vision and goals for the kind of experience that the facility would need to offer we employed the latest ICT to design services from scratch I think the decision to invest in ICT delivered great value for the project and that’s something unique to the private sector.” Orime went on to explain that one notable outcome of the project is that a single app provides access to every aspect of the visitor experience Mr.Orime “There are already 350,000 registered users of the Nagasaki Stadium City app we worked with EY on how to make use of this big data to sort information based on preferences use it for analysis and to make improvements we had high hopes for employing ICT to optimize operations and reduce labor by visualizing shift management during events when in-person staffing is most necessary and at normal times when fewer people are needed Orime added that when negotiating larger orders working with EY people as a single team also paid dividends Japanet Holdings launched Nagasaki Stadium City with the support of EY working as one team The aim is to contribute to the revitalization of Japan at the local level by being a long-term presence that continues to generate sustainable value 10 to 20 years into the future and by also being a pioneering example for local governments grappling with similar issues investments in sports businesses and venues seem to be getting larger I believe this is due to of the power of sports and because of the involvement of the community in urban development projects which enhances corporate value and creates the conditions for successful businesses I am confident we will see greater adoption of these practices in Japan.” Mr Orime “Now that the facility has been completed and tickets for the first concert have been selling well almost all of the so-called dream killers have disappeared They all worked hard to prepare for the opening.” but ensuring the long-term viability of the facility will be the key challenge It will attract a lot of attention in its first year but we want to keep delivering what customers want and continue to grow over the next 10 to 20 years I also don’t think private sector-led projects are necessarily the only answer I believe that increasing the number of examples like this where the project involves cooperation with public institutions and where the regional and local context is reflected in the plan Orime hopes that this new approach to regional revitalization which straddles the line between public and private sectors will spread from Nagasaki to the rest of Japan represents a market of about 400,000 people It is not that large by national standards but if we can make a large investment and guide an exciting project to success there it is an example that can be repeated in any city I would be happy if we can become a pioneer in re-invigorating cities through the power of sports It has been four years since Japanet Holdings and EY overcame corporate boundaries to unite forces in a team to co-create this project And Nagasaki Stadium City has finally opened people & services and learn how they can help your business succeed in the Transformative Age Learn how we are building a better working world for governments and citizens of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel speaks to the media during a press conference in Tokyo on January 18 and Australia are also expected to boycott the event The American and British ambassadors to Japan have announced they will skip an upcoming ceremony commemorating the victims of the US’s 1945 atomic bombing because the city’s mayor did not invite the Israeli ambassador.  The Russian and Belarusian ambassadors have also been excluded from the event this Friday by Japanese authorities The Nagasaki Peace Memorial Ceremony is intended to mark the 79th anniversary of the US atomic bomb attacks on Nagasaki and Hiroshima that killed tens of thousands of Japanese civilians with many more later dying from radiation poisoning.  The attacks in August 1945 preceded Japan’s unconditional surrender to the US and the end of the Second World War.  Julia Longbottom, the UK’s ambassador to Japan, told local reporters that Israel is exercising self-defence in Gaza and should not be treated in the same way as Russia for its invasion of Ukraine the UK dropped its objection to an International Criminal Court application for arrest warrants targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes and crimes against humanity The American embassy said that Rahm Emanuel does not want to politicise the Nagasaki event by attending.  who was White House chief of staff from 2009 to 2010 under Barack Obama was born to an Israeli father who was at one point a member of Jewish paramilitary group Irgun.  It is understood that Emanuel will attend a separate memorial service for the victims at a temple in Tokyo while the US consulate will send a different representative to the Nagasaki event instead Nagasaki’s mayor, Shiro Suzuki, said last week that Israel was not invited to the memorial event because of “the risk of unexpected incidents during the ceremony” “I would like to emphasise that this decision was not based on political considerations but rather on our desire to hold the ceremony to commemorate the victims of the atomic bombings in a peaceful and solemn atmosphere and to ensure that the ceremony goes smoothly.” But Gilad Cohen, Israel’s ambassador in Tokyo, hit back on Monday accusing the mayor of “inventing” security concerns “I am really surprised by him hijacking this ceremony for his political motivations.” Cohen added that Iran has been invited to the ceremony saying the move was the “opposite message that should be sent to the free world and to civilisation” The Israeli ambassador attended a memorial event in Hiroshima on Tuesday.  During Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, multiple ministers and officials have advocated using a nuclear bomb on Gaza turning the enclave into a “slaughterhouse” and “erasing the Gaza Strip from the face of the earth”.  South Africa has argued these statements are evidence of genocidal intent in its ongoing case at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza The death toll in Gaza since October 2023 has topped 39,677 with more than 91,645 wounded and an estimated 10,000 missing the death toll could exceed more than 186,000 when all war-related deaths are taken into account Health officials report that around 70 percent of the victims in Gaza are children and women Copyright © 2014 - 2025. Middle East Eye Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters Middle East Eye          ISSN 2634-2456                      Tokyo, March 10, 2025 - NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) has announced that it will partner with the Nagasaki University DEJIMA Infectious Disease Research Alliance (Director: Prof Kouichi Morita) for a research and development (R&D) project with support from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) SFTS is a viral infectious disease primarily transmitted to humans through tick bites This project will focus on preclinical research to develop a vaccine that can prevent SFTS onset and severe cases CEPI is an innovative partnership between public Its mission is to accelerate the development of vaccines and other biologic countermeasures against epidemic and pandemic threats so they can be accessible to all people in need The Government of Japan has been a key supporter of CEPI since its inception and is one of CEPI’s largest government supporters in the world Nagasaki University has signed an agreement with CEPI for a three-year $5 million (approximately 750 million JPY) research and development project This marks the third CEPI-supported initiative in Japan NEC is a registered trademark of NEC Corporation Other product or service marks mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners ©myDate = new Date() ;myYear = myDate.getFullYear ();document.write(myYear); NEC Corporation when the US detonated two atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki – the first and last use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict Although the bombings marked the end of WWII Between 150,000 and 246,000 innocent civilians are thought to have lost their lives Every year, Japan hosts memorials to ‘console the souls of those lost to the atomic bombing[s]’ and ‘pray for the realisation of lasting world peace’ Keep reading as we share some of the key events including the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Peace Memorial Ceremonies Following the end of the conflict in mainland Europe the Allies gave Japan a choice – surrender or suffer the consequences The deadline passed without any resolution so the US began planning the deadliest airstrikes the world has ever seen First, the Allies targeted Hiroshima on 6th August 1945 The city was an important supply and logistics base that mass-produced parts for planes Colonel Paul Tibbets was flying the plane that day ‘The whole sky lit up when it exploded… there was nothing but a black boiling mess hanging over the city… you wouldn't have known… Hiroshima was there.’ A few days later, on 9th August 1945, at approximately 11:02am local time, the US bombed Nagasaki – one of the largest seaports in the southern region. Although the bomb was more powerful, the aftermath was localised The rocky hillsides of the Urakami Valley absorbed the blast and prevented the catastrophic firestorms that had swept through Hiroshima the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) estimates the overall death toll was between 60,000 to 80,000 Today, Hiroshima is a vibrant tourist destination overflowing with temples, shrines, green spaces and historically significant monuments. These include the Hiroshima Peace Memorial (the only remaining structure from the bomb's hypocentre) and the Hiroshima Victims Memorial Cenotaph The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony takes place at the latter People of all nationalities gather around the Cenotaph to listen to the Mayor's Peace Declaration which calls for the abolishment of atomic weapons the Peace Bell rings to mark the start of a minute's silence to remember the victims plenty of other events take place across the city Floating lanterns illuminate the Motoyasu River Tourists might be interested in a Hiroshima Peace Tour that tells the story of the bombing through the lens of civilians and their families Similar to Hiroshima, the Nagasaki Peace Memorial Ceremony is held every year on 9th August to honour the dead and ‘spread the prayer for everlasting world peace’. It's held at Nagasaki Peace Park – a tranquil green space just north of the bomb’s hypocentre The Mayor of Nagasaki leads the proceedings family members and anti-nuclear activists from across the globe guests might like to visit the ‘Peace Symbols Zone’ they’ll find a collection of monuments donated from different countries as marks of respect These include ‘Protection of Our Future’ from Middelburg (Nagasaki's sister city in the Netherlands) Minnesota (Nagasaki's sister city in the US) and ‘Triumph of Peace over War’ from San Isidro The Peace Crane Project is a worldwide initiative that invites young people to create an origami crane and then exchange it with someone from a different country The overall goal is to spread love across borders The idea came from the story of Sadako Sasaki who was only two years old when Hiroshima was bombed she later contracted ‘atomic bomb disease’ which is an umbrella term for any injury or illness caused by radiation a friend told her that if someone folded 1,000 paper cranes she began creating the birds from whatever material she could find Although she realised she wouldn't survive she believed the cranes were a symbol of hope and happiness Three years after Sadako died, her loved ones received permission to erect the Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima Peace Park – a sobering reminder of how many babies and children died in the attack