DOZENS OF DOVES ARE RELEASED AS NAGASAKI MARKS 80 YEARS SINCE ATOMIC BOMB DESTROYED JAPANESE CITY

The southern Japanese city of Nagasaki on Saturday released dozens of doves as it marked 80 years since the US atomic attack that killed tens of thousands. The United States launched the Nagasaki attack on August 9, 1945, killing 70,000 by the end of that year, three days after the bombing of Hiroshima that killed 140,000.
Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, ending World War II and the country's nearly half-century of aggression across Asia.
About 2,600 people, including representatives from more than 90 countries, attended a memorial event at Nagasaki Peace Park, where Mayor Shiro Suzuki and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba spoke, among other guests.
At 11:02 a.m., the exact time when the plutonium bomb exploded above Nagasaki, participants observed a moment of silence as a bell rang.
Dozens of doves, a symbol of peace, were released after a speech by Suzuki, whose parents are survivors of the attack.
He said the city's memories of the bombing are 'a common heritage and should be passed down for generations' in and outside Japan.
'The existential crisis of humanity has become imminent to each and every one of us living on Earth,' Suzuki said.
'In order to make Nagasaki the last atomic bombing site now and forever, we will go hand-in-hand with global citizens and devote our utmost efforts toward the abolition of nuclear weapons and the realization of everlasting world peace.'
Survivors and their families gathered Saturday in rainy weather at Peace Park and nearby Hypocenter Park, located below the bomb's exact detonation spot, hours before the official ceremony.
'I simply seek a world without war,' said Koichi Kawano, an 85-year-old survivor who laid flowers at the Hypocenter monument decorated with colorful paper cranes and other offerings.
Some others prayed at churches in Nagasaki, home to Catholic converts who went deep underground during centuries of violent persecution in Japan's feudal era.
The twin bells at Urakami Cathedral, which was destroyed in the bombing, also rang together again after one of the bells that had gone missing following the attack was restored by volunteers.
Despite their pain from wounds, discrimination and illnesses from radiation, survivors have publicly committed to a shared goal of abolishing nuclear weapons.
But they worry about the world moving in the opposite direction.
The number of survivors has fallen to 99,130, about a quarter of the original number, with their average age exceeding 86.
Survivors worry about fading memories, as the youngest of the survivors were too young to recall the attack clearly.
Survivors are frustrated by a growing nuclear threat and support among international leaders for developing or possessing nuclear weapons for deterrence.
They criticize the Japanese government’s refusal to sign or even participate in the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons because Japan, as an American ally, needs U.S. nuclear possession as deterrence.
In Ishiba’s speech, the prime mininister reiterated Japan’s pursuit of a nuclear-free world and pledged to promote dialogue and cooperation between countries with nuclear weapons and non-nuclear states at the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons review conference scheduled for April and May 2026 in New York City.
Ishiba, however, did not mention the nuclear weapons ban treaty.
Nagasaki invited representatives from all countries to attend the ceremony Saturday.
 China notably notified the city it would not be present without providing a reason.
The ceremony last year stirred controversy due to the absence of the U.S. ambassador and other Western envoys in response to the Japanese city’s refusal to invite Israel.