Hiroshima in Japan marks 80 years since the American atomic bombing | Nuclear weapons

The mayor of Hiroshima, Kazumi Matsui, warns against the dangers of the increase in global militarism.

Thousands of people gathered Hiroshima To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the first world use in wartime of a nuclear bomb – as survivors, civil servants and representatives of 120 countries and territories marked the milestone with calls renewed to disarmament.

The Western Japanese city was flattened on August 6, 1945, when the United States abandoned a uranium bomb, named little boy. About 78,000 people were instantly killed. Tens of thousands of others would die by the end of the year due to burns and exposure to radiation.

The attack on Hiroshima, followed three days later by a plutonium bomb, was abandoned on Nagasaki, led to the surrender of Japan on August 15 and at the end of the Second World War. Hiroshima had been chosen as a target partly because its surrounding mountains were considered by American planners to amplify the strength of the bomb.

On Wednesday, at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, where the bomb exploded almost directly above the head eight decades ago, the delegates of a record number of international countries and regions attended the annual memorial.

Reporting the park, Fadi Salameh of Al Jazeera said that the ceremony took place in a sequence similar to that of previous years.

“The ceremonial procedure is almost the same over the years that I cover it,” said Salameh. “It starts at eight hours with children and people offering flowers and then water to represent the victims who survived the atomic bomb at that time.

“Then at exactly 8: 15 … A moment of silence. After that, the mayor of Hiroshima reads the declaration of peace in which they call for the abolition of nuclear weapons from around the world,” he added.

The schoolchildren of all Japan participated in the “promise of peace” – declarations of reading hope and memory. This year’s ceremony also included a message from the representative of the United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, urging world peace.

The mayor of Hiroshima, Kazumi Matsui, warned the dangers of the increase in world militarism, criticizing the world leaders who argue that nuclear weapons are necessary for national security.

“Among the political leaders of the world, there is an increasing belief that the possession of nuclear weapons is inevitable in order to protect their own country,” he said, noting that the United States and Russia still have 90% of the world’s nuclear warheads.

“This situation cancels not only the lessons that the international community has learned from the tragic history of the past, but also seriously undermines the executives that have been built for peacebuilding,” he said.

“To all the leaders of the world: please visit Hiroshima and witness for you the reality of atomic bombing.”

Many participants echoed this call. “It is more and more like history is repeated,” Yoshikazu Horie, 71, told the Reuters news agency. “Terrible things happen in Europe … Even in Japan, in Asia, it goes in the same way – it’s very scary. I have grandchildren and I want peace so that they can live their happy life.”

The bombing survivors – known as Hibakusha – faced discrimination on unsuccessful fears of illness and genetic effects. Their number fell below 100,000 for the first time this year.

Japan maintains a declared commitment to nuclear disarmament, but remains outside the United Nations Treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons.