Nagasaki observes 62nd anniversary of A-bomb attack

Nagasaki marked the 62nd anniversary of the world’s second atomic bomb attack with a sombre ceremony today and calls for the elimination of nuclear weapons.

The city observed a moment of silence at 11.02am (3.02am Irish time), when the B-29 bomber Bock’s Car dropped its atomic payload, killing about 74,000 people.

The attack on Nagasaki came three days after the US bomber Enola Gay dropped a bomb on Hiroshima on August 6 1945, the world’s first atomic attack. That bombing killed at least 140,000.

To mark the Nagasaki anniversary, prime minister Shinzo Abe and other officials, diplomats and survivors attended a ceremony at the city’s peace park.

Mayor Tomihisa Taue urged all countries that possessed nuclear weapons to abolish their stockpiles and to ask the Japanese government to work to make north-east Asia a nuclear-free zone, following North Korea’s first nuclear test explosion last October.

The anniversary comes amid signs of change in Japan, the only country to suffer nuclear attacks, as memories of the tragedies fade and survivors become older.

Some prominent Japanese politicians have suggested that Japan should at least discuss developing nuclear weapons and former defence minister Fumio Kyuma said recently the US nuclear bombings in 1945 may have been inevitable.

Kyuma’s remarks were particularly upsetting to many Nagasaki residents because he is from the state. He resigned under pressure in June and was not attending this year’s memorial despite an invitation sent earlier, according to the city.

Abe has repeatedly said Japan will stick to its long-standing principles of not possessing, developing or allowing nuclear weapons on Japanese soil.

Japan surrendered on August 15 1945, bringing the Second World War to an end.