Latest news with #PeaceMemorial
NHK
16-07-2025
- General
- NHK
Underground vault at atomic bomb memorial in Hiroshima shown to media
An underground vault at the Atomic Bomb Memorial Mound in Hiroshima City, western Japan, has been shown to journalists for the first time in a decade. The mound in the Peace Memorial Park houses the remains of about 70,000 people killed by the atomic bombing of the city on August 6, 1945. They include 812 individuals who have been identified but whose remains have not been claimed by relatives. The underground vault opened on Wednesday has a floor space of 27 square meters. Urns about 10 centimeters high and labeled with individual names are placed on the shelves in an orderly manner. The vault's walls and ceiling were repainted for the first time in 20 years. City officials have been searching for families of those whose remains are in the mound. They have displayed the register of names at the municipal office building and on the city's website, but the discovery of relatives has become rare in recent years. City official Uemoto Shinji says that as this year marks 80 years since the atomic bombing, they are stepping up efforts to find relatives of the 812 people whose remains are unclaimed.
The Independent
02-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Hiroshima mayor invites Trump to visit after ‘that hit ended the war' crack comparing WWII atom bomb to Iran strike
The mayor of Hiroshima has invited President Donald Trump to visit the city after his comments comparing the atomic bombing of 1945 to his own decision to strike Iran's nuclear facilities. The nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 preceded the end of the Second World War, with the U.S. and its allies defeating Japan. As he attended the NATO summit in the Netherlands last week, Trump compared the American strikes on Iran to the nuclear attack on Japan. 'That hit ended the war. I don't want to use an example of Hiroshima, I don't want to use an example of Nagasaki, but that was essentially the same thing,' said Trump. 'That ended that war and this ended' this war, he added. Trump's comments incited an angry backlash in Japan, with Hiroshima's city assembly passing a resolution condemning statements that 'justify the use of atomic bombs.' Survivors also held a small protest at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. The mayor of the city, Kazumi Matsui, has pushed for nuclear disarmament for years. 'It seems to me that he does not fully understand the reality of the atomic bombings, which, if used, take the lives of many innocent citizens, regardless of whether they were friend or foe, and threaten the survival of the human race,' he told reporters on Wednesday, according to The Japan Times. 'I wish that President Trump would visit the bombed area to see the reality of the atomic bombing and feel the spirit of Hiroshima, and then make statements,' Matsui added. About 140,000 people died in Hiroshima and 74,000 in Nagasaki from the bombings and the effects of radiation. Last month, Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, issued a warning against the use of nuclear weapons after visiting Hiroshima. 'I recently visited Hiroshima in Japan and stood at the epicenter of a city that remains scarred by the unimaginable horror caused by a single nuclear bomb dropped in 1945, 80 years ago,' she said in a video shared on social media. 'It's hard for me to find the words to express what I saw, the stories that I heard, the haunting sadness that still remains. This is an experience that will stay with me forever,' she added. Gabbard faced criticism from Trump after saying that Iran wasn't building a nuclear weapon ahead of the U.S. strikes. She subsequently said that Iran would be able to build a weapon within weeks. In October last year, the Japanese anti-nuclear weapon group Nihon Hidayanko was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The group consists of survivors from the bombings. The Norwegian Nobel Committee said at the time that the group was given the award 'for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons' and for 'demonstrating, through witness testimony, that nuclear weapons must never be used again.' Nuclear weapons are yet again a source of unease across the world amid conflicts in the Middle East and between Ukraine and Russia, one of the world's foremost nuclear powers. "The nuclear powers are modernizing and upgrading their arsenals; new countries appear to be preparing to acquire nuclear weapons; and threats are being made to use nuclear weapons in ongoing warfare," the committee said in October. "At this moment in human history, it is worth reminding ourselves what nuclear weapons are: the most destructive weapons the world has ever seen."
The Sun
11-06-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
US intel chief denounces ‘warmongers' after Hiroshima visit
WASHINGTON: US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard warned Tuesday after a trip to Hiroshima that 'warmongers' were pushing the world to the brink of nuclear war, in an extraordinary, if veiled, pitch for diplomacy. Gabbard did not specify her concerns, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly brandished the specter of nuclear war as he cautions Europe and the United States against support for Ukraine. Gabbard, a former congresswoman who has faced criticism in the past for her views on Russia, posted a video of grisly footage from the world's first nuclear attack and of her staring reflectively at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. On August 6, 1945, the United States obliterated Hiroshima, killing 140,000 in the explosion and by the end of the year from the uranium bomb's effects. Three days later, a US plane dropped a plutonium bomb on Nagasaki, leaving around 74,000 people dead by the end of the year. Japan surrendered on August 15. 'This one bomb that caused so much destruction in Hiroshima was tiny compared to today's nuclear bombs,' Gabbard said. 'A single nuclear weapon today could kill millions in just minutes.' 'As we stand here today closer to the brink of nuclear annihilation than ever before, political elites and warmongers are carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers,' she said. 'Perhaps it's because they are confident that they will have access to nuclear shelters for themselves and for their families that regular people won't have access to.' Taking a tone more customary for a politician or activist than the director of national intelligence, Gabbard said: 'So it's up to us, the people, to speak up and demand an end to this madness.' Japanese media reports said the comments were 'extremely rare' for an incumbent US government official, and at odds with Washington's past justification of the bombings. Yoshimasa Hayashi, Japan's top government spokesman, declined to comment directly on Gabbard's video. But he said an 'accurate understanding' of the destruction and suffering caused by atomic bombs would 'serve as the basis for various efforts toward nuclear disarmament'. 'It's important for Japan to continue its realistic, pragmatic efforts with the United States to realise a nuclear-free world, based on the belief that the carnage in Hiroshima and Nagasaki must not be repeated,' Hayashi said. Gabbard's remarks come as aides to President Donald Trump voice growing frustration with Putin, who has refused US-led, Ukraine-backed calls for a temporary ceasefire. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whom Gabbard criticized before the two entered Trump's cabinet, has warned that the United States could walk away from diplomacy over the Ukraine conflict if there are no positive signs. Gabbard, a former Democrat, faced a heated confirmation hearing but ultimately prevailed after Democrats and some Republicans questioned her past statements, including some supportive of Russian positions. She has said that the European Union and Washington should have listened to Russian security concerns about Ukraine joining NATO. Gabbard's visit to Hiroshima comes ahead of the 80th anniversary of the world's only atomic bombings. The United States has never apologized for the attacks.
Japan Today
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Japan Today
U.S. intel chief Gabbard denounces 'warmongers' after Hiroshima visit
US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard warned Tuesday after a trip to Hiroshima that "warmongers" were pushing the world to the brink of nuclear war, in an extraordinary, if veiled, pitch for diplomacy. Gabbard did not specify her concerns, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly brandished the specter of nuclear war as he cautions Europe and the United States against support for Ukraine. Gabbard, a former congresswoman who has faced criticism in the past for her views on Russia, posted a video of grisly footage from the world's first nuclear attack and of her staring reflectively at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. On August 6, 1945, the United States obliterated Hiroshima, killing 140,000 in the explosion and by the end of the year from the uranium bomb's effects. Three days later, a U.S. plane dropped a plutonium bomb on Nagasaki, leaving around 74,000 people dead by the end of the year. Japan surrendered on August 15. "This one bomb that caused so much destruction in Hiroshima was tiny compared to today's nuclear bombs," Gabbard said. "A single nuclear weapon today could kill millions in just minutes. "As we stand here today closer to the brink of nuclear annihilation than ever before, political elites and warmongers are carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers," she said. "Perhaps it's because they are confident that they will have access to nuclear shelters for themselves and for their families that regular people won't have access to." Taking a tone more customary for a politician or activist than the director of national intelligence, Gabbard said: "So it's up to us, the people, to speak up and demand an end to this madness." Gabbard's remarks come as aides to President Donald Trump voice growing frustration with Putin, who has refused U.S.-led, Ukraine-backed calls for a temporary ceasefire. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whom Gabbard criticized before the two entered President Donald Trump's cabinet, has warned that the United States could walk away from diplomacy over the Ukraine conflict if there are no positive signs. Gabbard, a former Democrat, faced a heated confirmation hearing but ultimately prevailed after Democrats and some Republicans questioned her past statements, including some supportive of Russian positions. She has said that the European Union and Washington should have listened to Russian security concerns about Ukraine joining NATO. Gabbard's visit to Hiroshima comes ahead of the 80th anniversary of the world's only atomic bombings. The United States has never apologized for the attacks. © 2025 AFP
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US intel chief denounces 'warmongers' after Hiroshima visit
US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard warned Tuesday after a trip to Hiroshima that "warmongers" were pushing the world to the brink of nuclear war, in an extraordinary, if veiled, pitch for diplomacy. Gabbard did not specify her concerns, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly brandished the specter of nuclear war as he cautions Europe and the United States against support for Ukraine. Gabbard, a former congresswoman who has faced criticism in the past for her views on Russia, posted a video of grisly footage from the world's first nuclear attack and of her staring reflectively at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. On August 6, 1945, the United States obliterated Hiroshima, killing 140,000 in the explosion and by the end of the year from the uranium bomb's effects. Three days later, a US plane dropped a plutonium bomb on Nagasaki, leaving around 74,000 people dead by the end of the year. Japan surrendered on August 15. "This one bomb that caused so much destruction in Hiroshima was tiny compared to today's nuclear bombs," Gabbard said. "A single nuclear weapon today could kill millions in just minutes." "As we stand here today closer to the brink of nuclear annihilation than ever before, political elites and warmongers are carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers," she said. "Perhaps it's because they are confident that they will have access to nuclear shelters for themselves and for their families that regular people won't have access to." Taking a tone more customary for a politician or activist than the director of national intelligence, Gabbard said: "So it's up to us, the people, to speak up and demand an end to this madness." Gabbard's remarks come as aides to President Donald Trump voice growing frustration with Putin, who has refused US-led, Ukraine-backed calls for a temporary ceasefire. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whom Gabbard criticized before the two entered President Donald Trump's cabinet, has warned that the United States could walk away from diplomacy over the Ukraine conflict if there are no positive signs. Gabbard, a former Democrat, faced a heated confirmation hearing but ultimately prevailed after Democrats and some Republicans questioned her past statements, including some supportive of Russian positions. She has said that the European Union and Washington should have listened to Russian security concerns about Ukraine joining NATO. Gabbard's visit to Hiroshima comes ahead of the 80th anniversary of the world's only atomic bombings. The United States has never apologized for the attacks. sct/aha
