"It's inhuman, it's cruel. The war should be remembered but history should not repeat," said British veteran George Housago with a deep sigh, while looking at a photo showing a Japanese soldier stabbing a Chinese woman with his sword.

"There is no winner in a war," the 84-year-old veteran said as he roamed around the London County Hall to view a photo exhibition of China's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression.

Housago said that at 20, he joined the British army for the war in Far East, and he was taken prisoner by the Japanese army when his ship was hit. During his captivity of three years and a half, he was forced to work in Japanese coal mines for more than two years, an experience he described as "horrible."

Over a dozen of British veterans and some 300 London-based diplomats, Chinese students and businessmen from all over Britain attended the opening ceremony of the exhibition jointly sponsored by the Chinese Embassy and Students and Scholars Association.

The event is held in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Victory of World Anti-Fascist War and China's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

Li Ruining, charge d'affaires ad interim of the Chinese embassy in London, said in his opening speech that the anti-Japanese war in China constituted a very important part of the worldwide anti- fascist war. The Chinese people fought eight years and lost some 35 million lives before they won the war.

History, if not forgotten, can serve as a mirror to the future, Li said, adding that the Chinese government and people will continue to work together with people of other countries for world peace and stability.

The exhibition, with more than 50 photos on display, will remain open to the public in months to come in the old City Hall by the Thames.

Source: Xinhua