Hiroshima, the Japanese city devastated by a US atomic bomb in 1945, is at the center of a growing controversy after local officials dismissed calls to disinvite Israel from its annual ceremony promoting world peace as war rages in Gaza.
Every year on August 6, Hiroshima gathers foreign officials, along with locals, in a minute of silence at 8:15 a.m. to mark the exact moment the bomb dropped, killing tens of thousands of people and leading to the end of World War II.
Some activists and atomic bomb survivors’ groups say the ceremony is no place for Israel, which is pounding Gaza with strikes as it seeks to eradicate Hamas in response to the Palestinian militant group’s devastating attack on October 7 last year.
They say the Hiroshima city government should exclude Israel from this year’s ceremony, as it has Russia and Belarus for the past two years over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
But Hiroshima authorities say they have no intention of excluding Israel.
“It is not a double standard. Our policy is to invite all countries. However, Russia and Belarus are exceptions due to the invasion of Ukraine,” a Hiroshima city government spokesperson told CNN.
“Russia and Belarus are not invited in order to ensure the ceremony goes smoothly.”
Authorities in Nagasaki, the Japanese city hit by an atomic bomb just days after Hiroshima, told CNN they haven’t decided whether to invite Israel to their peace ceremony on August 9.
Israel’s war in Gaza may “prevent the smooth execution of the ceremony,” they said, stressing the move was not a gesture of protest but a practical consideration.
Calls for Israel’s exclusion
Of the two ceremonies, Hiroshima’s is the largest with representatives from 115 countries and the European Union set to attend this year.
Envoys from Russia and Belarus haven’t attended since Hiroshima excluded them in 2022 following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February that year. Russia used Belarus as one of the launch pads for its assault and later moved some of its tactical nuclear weapons there.
This year’s Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony takes place against the backdrop of the war in Gaza, where Israel’s bombardment has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced nearly the entire enclave’s more than 2 million people, who now face severe shortages of food, shelter, water and medical supplies.
“Why invite Israel if they are committing genocide-like crimes, just like Russia and Belarus?” said Tetsuji Kumada, executive director of Hiroshima’s Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization, one of the groups opposing Israel’s presence.
“It is very disappointing that our request wasn’t taken into account,” he told CNN, adding that the organization wrote to the Hiroshima government in June to ask for Israel to be disinvited.
Another group, Hiroshima-Palestine Vigil Community, launched an online petition in May, calling for Israel’s representatives to be excluded, saying that “current global protests against Israel clearly outnumber those against Russia in both scale and frequency.”
The petition has since amassed more than 30,000 signatures.
Israel has repeatedly rejected accusations from critics as well as rights groups and experts that it has broken international humanitarian law with the breadth of its response to Hamas’ attacks. It argues its war is against Hamas, not Palestinians, although anger over the extent of the destruction and civilian deaths in Gaza has swelled globally.
CNN has reached out to the Israeli embassy in Japan for comment.
Japan has taken a strong stance in Russia’s war on Ukraine, pledging to stand with Kyiv, offering billions of dollars in humanitarian aid and military vehicles and equipment for mine-clearing operations. It has also imposed sanctions on Russia.
Meanwhile, Tokyo has offered humanitarian aid to Gaza, expressed “deep concern” for the critical situation in the strip and supports a two-state solution to the conflict.
According to Japanese news agency Kyodo News, the Hiroshima government referred to the war in Gaza in its invitation to Israel, urging the country to cease its offensive.
The invitation said it was “deeply regrettable that the lives and everyday existences of many people are being taken away,” Kyodo reported.
Palestinians not invited
The bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, and Nagasaki three days later led to Japan’s unconditional surrender and brought an end to World War II. But it also killed tens of thousands of people, both instantly and in the months and years to come due to radiation sickness.
Every year, diplomats in Japan are invited to Hiroshima to join the commemoration that highlights the importance of peace and cautions against the use of nuclear weapons.
But while some advocacy groups urged Hiroshima to shun Israel, others supported its presence.
“As a city of international peace, Hiroshima city needs to invite all nations, regardless of whether they are at war or not,” said Kunihiko Sakuma, president of Hiroshima Hidankyo, an atomic bomb survivors’ advocacy group.
However, the Permanent General Mission of Palestine in Tokyo complained on social platform X that it had not been invited to the ceremony. “This decision is a double standard,” it said. Its envoy was never invited to the ceremony, the office told CNN.
Hiroshima authorities said they only send invitations to countries with embassies in Japan and have never invited Palestinian representatives to the ceremony.
At a news conference last week, Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa reiterated Japan’s support for a two-state solution.
“We continue to comprehensively consider the recognition of Palestinian statehood, taking into account how to advance the peace process,” she said.
Junko Ogura contributed to this report.
