1972 US bombing victims commemorated A commemorative ceremony for the victims of US bombings in December 1972 during the Vietnam War took place solemnly on December 26 at Kham Thien Memorial Site in Hanoi’s inner Dong Da district. The ceremony, organised by the Municipal Party Committee, People’s Council and People’s Committee of Hanoi, was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan, Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, and Secretary of Hanoi Municipal Party Committee Pham Quang Nghi, among others. In the night of December 26, 1972, Hanoi’s densely-populated residential areas, including Kham Thien street, the workers’ living quarter in An Duong street and even Bach Mai hospital, were relentlessly attacked by a large number of US B52 aircraft. As many as 278 people, including 91 women, 40 elderly and 55 children were killed and 178 children became orphans during the air raid. In remembrance of the victims, a memorial was erected on the used to be House 51 on Kham Thien street. In the December 26 bombing, house 51 vanished and none of seven people living in it survived. Addressing the ceremony, Secretary Pham Quang Nghi said the historical victory of the “Hanoi – Dien Bien Phu battle in the air” stands out as an immortal heroic epic in Vietnam’s national building and defence history. The sacrifice and losses of those fallen in Kham Thien historical street have tempered the heroic firmness of Vietnamese revolution, Nghi said. He affirmed that generations of Hanoians today are determined to do their best to build and develop the capital city to be wealthier, more beautiful, civilised and modern. Source: VNA/Photo: HNMO and Internet