China commemorates 85th anniversary of whole-nation resistance war against Japanese aggression

BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhua) -- China on Thursday commemorated the 85th anniversary of the beginning of China's whole-nation resistance war against Japanese aggression.

On July 7, 1937, Japanese soldiers attacked Chinese forces at the Lugou Bridge, marking the beginning of Japan's full-scale invasion of China, and China's whole-nation resistance against the Japanese invaders.

A special exhibition on the resistance war was held Thursday at the Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in Beijing.

A ceremony was held at the museum to commemorate the anniversary, attended by around 300 people, including veteran representatives and family members of military leaders and martyrs in the war. Attendees offered floral tributes and paid their respects to those who laid down their lives in fighting the Japanese aggression.

"In order to defend the motherland, many shed blood and lost their lives. We should cherish the hard-won life, study hard and make a contribution to our country," said Yang Yifan, a 15-year-old student from Shanxi Province, after watching the exhibition.

Memorial activities to commemorate the occasion were also held in other parts of China.

On Thursday morning, over 100 people attended such activities in front of a memorial hall in Zhijiang Dong Autonomous County, central China's Hunan Province. They paid a silent tribute to the martyrs and compatriots who died in the war.

A book on the Nanjing Safety Zone was published Thursday. In 1937, German citizen John Rabe and dozens of foreigners risked their lives to set up an international safety zone in the city, which saved more than 200,000 Chinese people during the Japanese invasion.

Zhang Lianhong, director of the center for Nanjing Massacre studies at Nanjing Normal University, said, "Through the study of the Nanjing Safety Zone, we should not only appreciate the humanitarian spirit, but also further expose the atrocities of invading Japanese troops, refute the absurd remarks of Japanese right-wing forces with compelling evidence, stop the revival of Japanese militarism, and safeguard the lasting peace of the world."

Wang Fei, a 95-year-old veteran of the resistance war, said, "China has stood up and become prosperous today. The young generation should study and work hard for national rejuvenation."