Eighty children from seven countries and territories, including some who lost parents in the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States and others who lost theirs amid the U.S.-led bombing against terrorist targets in Afghanistan, gathered Monday in Tokyo to share their experiences.
At the ceremony, held at the National Olympics Memorial Youth Center and sponsored by the Ashinaga Scholarship Society and other organizations, the children spoke about the hardships they have faced.
They also assembled colored paper squares to form the word "hope."
Some of the children had lost their parents in devastating earthquakes in Turkey, Taiwan and Colombia, the organizers said.
On Tuesday, the children will visit Hyogo Prefecture to take part in activities with children who lost their parents in the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake that destroyed much of Kobe and surrounding areas.
They are scheduled to leave Japan on Aug. 12.