Mayor defends Israel snub at A-bomb memorial

Keeping the harmony: A view of the Peace Statue at the Peace Park in Nagasaki. Suzuki said he made the decision not to invite Israel on grounds of a possible risk that the ceremony would be disturbed. — AP

Nagasaki’s mayor said it was “unfortunate” that US and British ambassadors have refused to attend a ceremony marking the 1945 atomic bombing of the Japanese city because Israel was snubbed.

But he defended the decision not to invite Israel to today’s annual event, repeating that it was “not political” but to avoid possible protests related to the Gaza conflict.