TOKYO, August 6. /TASS/. Japan observed a moment of silence to commemorate the victims of the Hiroshima atomic bombing perpetrated by the US, which took tens of thousands of lives 78 years ago.

The memorial ceremony took place in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in the center of the city. A moment of silence was traditionally announced throughout the country at exactly 08:15 a.m. local time (02:15 a.m. Moscow time) — the time when an atomic bomb exploded over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The ceremony is attended by Kazumi Matsui, mayor of the city of Hiroshima, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

The US Armed Forces carried out the first-ever atomic bombing in history, striking the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki toward the tail end of World War II. The bombings were justified as a way to accelerate the capitulation of the Empire of Japan. These attacks are the sole instance of nuclear weapons ever being used in a military conflict in the history of humanity.

According to various estimates, the explosion of the atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima, in one day killed between 70,000 and 100,000 people. By the end of 1945, the number of victims had increased to 140,000 due to those who died in hospitals from wounds and radiation.

Every year this sad list is replenished when a survivor dies. Almost 5,000 new names have been added to this list over the past year. Besides that, the names of those people who died during the blast but whose death has not been confirmed until now are added to the list. Currently, the total number of victims surpasses 350,000.