The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced Friday it will be presenting its annual Peace Prize to a group of atomic bomb survivors from both Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Known as Nihon Hidankyo, the Japanese group is dedicated to ensuring that the bomb is never used again.
“Is it really true? Unbelievable!” screamed Hidankyo chairperson Toshiyuki Mimaki to Newsweek.
He teared up when he heard the news, overcome with emotion as he literally pinched himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.
“(The win) will be a great force to appeal to the world that the abolition of nuclear weapons and everlasting peace can be achieved,” he said. “Nuclear weapons should absolutely be abolished.”
The committee warned the “unthinkable” is becoming more of a possibility with global conflicts escalating worldwide.
“The hibakusha (bomb survivors) help us to describe the indescribable, to think the unthinkable, and to somehow grasp the incomprehensible pain and suffering caused by nuclear weapons,” the committee said, according to Reuters.
NBC News reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned he would use nuclear weapons if allies joined the war in Ukraine.
Most experts believe Israel has nuclear weapons and it has been exchanging missile fire with Iran which has the capabilities of developing its own destructive weapons.
North Korea, India, China and Pakistan are also thought to have nuclear weapons with tensions noticeable between India and China and India and Pakistan.
The award will be presented December 10 in Oslo, Norway with winners typically receiving $1.06 million.
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As the daughter of a Hiroshima Hibakusha,I am so happy to read this. Nihon Hidankyo being chosen for Nobel Peace Prize honors all the victims that died, like those in my family as well as the thousands that lived, like my mother. They endured emotional and physical scars that then passed down to future generations(like myself). But they had and still have a message of peace in a world without nuclear weapons. Nihon Hidankyo is an amazing group of people with great courage and perseverance. My mother would have been so amazed with this news. And because of my mom and other Hibakusha, I will continue to speak with students about my mother’s story, so that future generations will know why nuclear weapons should never be used again.I feel that as a 2nd gen Hibakusha it is my way of honoring my family.