UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged world leaders on Friday to commit to eliminating all nuclear weapons, which he condemned as “devices of death,” following the Nobel Peace Prize win by Japanese atomic bomb survivors.
Known as the hibakusha, the survivors have long advocated for a world free of nuclear weapons, representing the tragic legacy of the 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
“The hibakusha are selfless witnesses to the horrific human toll of nuclear weapons,” Guterres said in a statement, emphasising that their advocacy is a powerful reminder of the need for disarmament. “It’s time for leaders to recognize that nuclear weapons provide no real security—only the threat of devastation.”
The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded on Friday to Nihon Hidankyo, a grassroots anti-nuclear group founded in 1956 by survivors from the US atomic bombings. The recognition underscores the tireless efforts of the hibakusha to advance nuclear disarmament despite their dwindling numbers.
Guterres expressed the UN’s commitment to supporting the hibakusha, calling their courage “the backbone of the global disarmament movement” and an inspiration to the world’s shared goal of eradicating nuclear threats.
