TOKYO: A protest group in Japan has criticized the Hiroshima Declaration of the63rd Pugwash Conference World Congress that ended in Hiroshima on Wednesday for failing to include explicit language condemning the ongoing genocide and occupation in Palestine.

The Hiroshima Palestine Vigil said it was “disappointed” that the only focus at the conference was on nuclear threats, pointing out that the declaration “fails to take into account realities of genocide which rival the devastation of nuclear weapons.”

A statement by the group said: “No reference is made to the ongoing genocide being perpetrated by a nuclear-armed Israel using advanced military technology comparable to its nuclear weapons capability, a genocide in which bombs containing enriched uranium are reportedly used.”

It added that the declaration avoided naming specific countries and failed to communicate that Israel struck nuclear facilities and targeted scientists and engineers in Iran, while continuing its “genocide in Gaza, targeting men, women, children, doctors and journalists.”

It also said that conventional weaponry rivals the devastation of nuclear weapons, adding, “Now is the time to name the source of this structural violence, condemn it unequivocally, and participate in co-resistance toward its end.”

Despite the group’s protests, the conferenceincluded a session titled, “Rethinking Middle East Security in a changing environment,” with a keynote address by former Iranian Foreign MinisterJavad Zarif,as well as contributions fromPugwash PresidentDr. Hussain Al-Shahristani,and retired ColonelItamar Yaar,a former IDF Commander and former Deputy National Security Adviserof Israel.

In the Hiroshima Declaration at the end of the conference,the Pugwash Council declared, “Theglobal order based on the UN Charter and international law is increasingly threatened. Nuclear-armed states are expanding and modernizing their arsenals.The targeted killing of scientists and engineers further undermines international laws.”

“Eliminating reliance on nuclear weapons is both a moral duty and a strategic necessity. The Nobel-recognized efforts of Pugwash, ICAN, IPPNW and Nihon Hidankyo demonstrate that citizens and scientists canawaken conscience and shape the future.”