Site of Japan's germ-warfare headquarters in China reopens

A special exhibition exposing the atrocities of Unit 731, a notorious Japanese germ-warfare unit during World War II (WWII), reopened to the public on Friday at the site of the headquarters of Unit 731 in Harbin, the provincial capital of northeastern China's Heilongjiang Province.

The Special Exhibition of Historical Materials of Invading Japanese Army's Bacterial War in China presents over 2,000 pieces of files, documents, materials and literature related to Unit 731, all evidencing the invaders' crimes, with many newly found items.

"The medical journals on display this time indicate that during WWII, under the background of Japan's war mobilization, the Japanese medical community served the country's policy of colonist aggression, and carried out medical research taking the advantage of military aggression. The Japanese medical community cooperated with the military to conduct medical crimes. They once again prove that Unit 731, as the base of Japan's war-time medical crimes and nexus of personnel turnover, committed crimes which were top-down, massive and organized state crimes of Japan, in the nature of group crimes," said Jin Shicheng, deputy secretary general of the Harbin Research Institute on the History of Bacterial and Gas War of the Japanese Invasion in China.

At the reopened site, the wall of victims' names is updated with 2,805 names inscribed based on further studies on various historical records and materials.

"The reopening of the site of the headquarters of Unit 731 marks that we have achieved the original planning intention to have the site and new exhibition corroborate and complement each other. We are now presenting a multi-dimensional exhibition with relics, oral accounts and files, to warn and educate people, safeguard peace, bear the history in mind, never forget the national humiliation, and strive for a brighter future," said Zhang Yang, deputy director of the exhibition.

As Friday marks the National Memorial Day for Nanjing Massacre Victims, a ceremony was held at the site for visitors to pay tribute to the victims.

Site of Japan's germ-warfare headquarters in China reopens

Hailing the African Union (AU) as a flagship for multilateralism, United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Saturday that the absence of permanent African seats in the UN Security Council is indefensible.

Addressing the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU, which opened Saturday at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, the UN chief said "In a world filled with division and mistrust, the African Union is a flagship for multilateralism. My gratitude runs deep. I will carry with me always the unwavering, decisive support of the African Group in the UN on issue after issue, initiative after initiative, in the shared struggle for justice and equality."

Guterres recalled the cooperation between the UN and the AU over the years.

"Over the last decade, our cooperation has reached new heights. Joint frameworks on peace and security, sustainable development, and human rights. Collaboration during COVID-19. Important new partnerships. And the landmark adoption of Security Council Resolution 2719, creating a pathway for predictable funding for AU-led peace support operations," he said.

"The absence of permanent African seats in the Security Council is indefensible. This is 2026, not 1946. Whatever decisions about Africa and the world are on the table, Africa must be at the table," he stressed.

The two-day AU summit, which brings together leaders from AU members, is held under the theme "Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063."

Absence of permanent African seats in Security Council indefensible: UN chief