Envoys representing Group of Seven (G7) nations in Japan said on Wednesday they would not attend Nagasaki바카라s annual peace memorial ceremony this week, which marks the day the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the city, because Israel had not been invited.
This year바카라s ceremony will take place at Nagasaki Peace Park on Friday, where diplomats from more than 100 countries will observe a minute of silence to mark the moment the US dropped the second atomic bomb in Japan during World War II.
An atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroyed the city, killing 140,000 people. A second bomb dropped three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 more. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, 1945, ending World War II and the country바카라s nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.
Envoys from the U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the U.K. and the European Union signed a joint letter expressing their shared concern about Israel바카라s exclusion, saying that treating the country on the same level as Russia and Belarus 바카라 the only other countries not invited 바카라 would be misleading. These two countries have been left off the list because of their invasion of Ukraine.
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.
바카라We only want to hold the ceremony in a peaceful and solemn atmosphere바카라 to honour the atomic bomb victims, Suzuki said. 바카라It is absolutely not because of political reasons.바카라
바카라It is unfortunate that ambassadors won바카라t be able to join us this year, but I hope they will attend from next year,바카라 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 바카라possible unforeseen situations바카라 such as protests, sabotage or attacks on attendees.
Suzuki said he made the decision based on 바카라various developments in the international community in response to the ongoing situation in the Middle East바카라 that suggested a possible risk that the ceremony would be disturbed. 바카라Aug. 9 is the most important day for Nagasaki City ... and we must not let the ceremony be affected,바카라 he said.
In contrast, Hiroshima invited the Israeli ambassador to Japan to its memorial ceremony on Tuesday, which was attended by 50,000 people, though Palestinian representatives were not invited.
(With AP Inputs)
