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1st LD Writethru: UNGA special meeting kicks off to commemorate victims of WWII

Xinhua, May 5, 2015 Adjust font size:

A UN General Assembly (GA) special meeting kicked off here on Tuesday to commemorate victims of the Second World War.

The special solemn meeting was proposed in a UNGA resolution, which was adopted by consensus at the 69th session of the 193- member assembly in February, aiming to urge the international community not to forget wartime sacrifices and atrocities.

UNGA President Sam Kutesa said in his remarks to the meeting that the Second World War was a time of "unspeakable atrocities," and to prevent the recurrence of such tragic events, the UN was established to ensure unity and harmony among nations.

"Today, we honor the countless victims that lost their lives in the war," he said. "This special session also affords us the opportunity to recall the General Assembly's firm desire to make every possible effort to prevent and mitigate the human suffering that results from war."

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the end of the WWII and also marks UN's 70th founding anniversary. The world's biggest international organization is going to hold a series of commemoration events through the year.

Ahead of the meeting, Kutesa and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon planted a weeping cherry in front of the UNGA buildings to deliver the message of peace and unity in commemoration of the end of WWII and the establishment of the UN.

Ban said in his remarks in the tree-planting ceremony that "in establishing the United Nations 70 years ago, the founders planted the seeds of an organization they hoped would lead the human family out of horror and into a better future."

"The soil at that time ran deep with blood -- the blood of the brave soldiers of many nations who died fighting fascism, and of the millions of victims of the Holocaust and the other crimes of the Second World War," he added.

"In planting this tree today, we remember all those who have died and sacrificed in pursuing the mission set out in the Charter of the United Nations and we re-dedicate ourselves to the founding aims and ideals of the United Nations," he said. Endite