ADDS REMARKS FROM NAGASAKI MAYOR, UN CHIEF, CHANGES HEADLINE LEDE
By Alperen Aktas and Riyaz ul Khaliq
ISTANBUL (AA) – Nagasaki, Japan on Friday commemorated the US atomic bombing of the city in 1945, while refusing to invite Israel to the ceremonies amid its continuing war on Gaza.
At 11.02 a.m. local time (0202GMT), the exact moment a US B-29 airplane released its bomb over Nagasaki, the city fell silent in remembrance.
The tragic event at the end of World War II is especially significant as Nagasaki remains the last place in history to have suffered an atomic bomb attack.
"The government of Japan, the only state attacked by atomic bombs in war, must express a serious attitude of pursuing a world without nuclear weapons," Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki told a ceremony marking the anniversary.
"As a step toward this, we call for the Japanese government to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as soon as possible," he said, as quoted by Japan’s Mainichi daily.
He also called for the Japanese government "to firmly uphold the principle of peace embodied in the Constitution of Japan and to demonstrate its leadership in international efforts to ease the heightened tension in Northeast Asia and advance disarmament in the region, such as the Northeast Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone initiative."
Ahead of the commemoration, Nagasaki decided not to invite Israel to the event, despite pressure from the Group of Seven (G7) nations.
The mayor said the decision was taken to ensure security and peace during the event.
The decision was “not politically motivated,” he added.
The central government of Japan, one of the members of G7, refused to comment on Nagasaki’s decision not to invite Israeli officials.
US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel and British Ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom are both skipping the ceremony this year in response to Nagasaki not inviting Israel.
The no-show by the two countries drew protests outside their diplomatic missions in Tokyo on Thursday.
- Hiroshima, Russia, and Belarus
Hiroshima, which was bombed by the US on Aug. 6, 1945, invited Israeli officials to its event on Tuesday, drawing widespread criticism.
Since Moscow the start of Russia’s war on Ukraine in February 2022, Russia as well as Belarus have also been excluded from the events.
Peace activists and pro-Palestine supporters slammed Hiroshima for its double standards.
The event in Nagasaki saw the participation of some 2,300 guests, including representatives from 100 nations, including Palestine.
But the ambassadors of G7 nations, including the US, UK, France, Germany, Canada, Italy and EU, did not attend the ceremony.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also remarked on X: "Nearly 80 years have passed since Nagasaki was incinerated by an atomic weapon. It is not enough to remember what happened."
"We must never allow such devastation again. The only way to eliminate the nuclear risk is to eliminate nuclear weapons," he added.