Families of Japanese killed on 9/11 hold ceremony in Tokyo

Ten years on from the day the 9/11 terrorist attacks, families gathered in Tokyo to pay their respects to the 23 Fuji Bank employees who never made it out of their World Trade Center office. A dozen of the workers were Japanese.

At Mizuho Bank’s Tokyo headquarters, one by one, family members laid flowers in front of an enclosed glass case containing a small section of steel retrieved from Ground Zero. They clasped their hands and bowed their heads. Some took pictures. Others simply stood in solemn silence. There were no tears, just reflection.

Kunitake Nomura, 76, a former Fuji Bank employee who mourns losing his younger co-workers, attended a subsequent memorial service.

“We need to try to understand each other,” Nomura said. “We need to overcome differences in race and religion and learn to live in peace. We are all brothers after all. We must remind ourselves of this today.”

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