Hiroshima marks 73rd anniversary of atomic bombing in World War II

Hiroshima marked the 73rd anniversary of the August 6th, 1945, atomic bombing with a sombre ceremony to remember the people killed and injured and to call for the elimination of nuclear weapons amid hopes of denuclearising North Korea. Mayor Kazumi Matsui raised concerns in his peace address on Monday about the rise of egocentric policies in the world and warned against the idea of nuclear deterrence as a threat to global security. Matsui urged leaders to steadily work toward achieving a world without atomic weapons. The anniversary comes amid hopes to denuclearise North Korea after its pledge to do so at the Singapore summit in June. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who also was at the ceremony, reiterated Japan's pledge to maintain its pacifist and non-nuclear principles. The US attack killed 140-thousand in Hiroshima and the Nagasaki bombing killed 70-thousand, three days later, with Japan soon surrendering to end World War II.