Those who, by chance, survived the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki became known in Japanese as hibakusha, or “explosion-affected people”.

Many endured life-long pain and discomfort due to their injuries, along with psychological trauma. Some developed thick scar tissue over their bodies and faces or lived for decades with fragments of glass embedded deep in their flesh.

Women faced particular hardship and stigma because of fears that genetic damage caused by the bombs would be passed on to their children and grandchildren.

Within a few years of the attacks, survivors began developing cancers and other illnesses at unusually high rates as a result of the delayed effects of radiation. Leukaemia was especially common in the early years.

To alert the world to the danger of nuclear weapons, many survivors have publicly shared their personal testimonies of what happened in 1945. Some who were children at the time of the attacks are still alive today and continue this truth-telling work.

Their message has been clear and consistent over the decades: Nuclear weapons and humanity cannot coexist.

In 2024, Nihon Hidankyo – a Japanese confederation of organisations representing survivors – won the Nobel Peace Prize “for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again”.

The courageous, unstinting advocacy of survivors has inspired many people around the world to join the movement for nuclear abolition.