<p>Hiroshima A-bomb survivor Sunao Tsuboi, who became a prominent campaigner for nuclear disarmament and met Barack Obama on his historic visit to the city, has died aged 96, his advocacy group said Wednesday.</p>.<p>Tsuboi was on his way to engineering school in 1945 when the first nuclear bomb attack was launched by the United States, turning the bustling metropolis into an inferno.</p>.<p>"I suffered burns all over my body," he told <em>AFP</em> in 2016. "Naked, I tried to run away for about three hours on August 6 but finally could no longer walk."</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/nagasaki-marks-76th-anniversary-of-atomic-bombing-1017776.html" target="_blank">Nagasaki marks 76th anniversary of atomic bombing</a></strong></p>.<p>Then aged 20, he picked up a small rock and wrote on the ground "Tsuboi dies here", before losing consciousness and waking up several weeks later.</p>.<p>He later developed cancer and other diseases but became a prominent advocate for atomic bomb survivors and a lifelong campaigner for a nuclear-free world.</p>.<p>"I can tolerate hardships for the sake of human happiness. I may die tomorrow but I'm optimistic. I will never give up. We want zero nuclear weapons," he said.</p>.<p>Tsuboi was among a handful of Hiroshima survivors who met then US president Obama when he visited the city in 2016.</p>.<p>He smiled broadly as he shook Obama's hand, with the two men conversing for upwards of a minute. "I was able to convey my thoughts," a satisfied Tsuboi said afterwards.</p>.<p>Tsuboi "passed away on Saturday due to anaemia", an official from Nihon Hidankyo -- a group that represents survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, of which Tsuboi was a key leader -- told <em>AFP</em>.</p>.<p>There are 127,755 survivors of both attacks still alive and their average age is 84, according to the health ministry.</p>.<p>Around 140,000 people died in the bombing of Hiroshima, a toll that includes those who survived the explosion but died soon after from radiation exposure.</p>.<p>Three days later the US dropped a plutonium bomb on the port city of Nagasaki, killing about 74,000 people and leading to the end of World War II.</p>.<p><strong>Check out latest DH videos here:</strong></p>
<p>Hiroshima A-bomb survivor Sunao Tsuboi, who became a prominent campaigner for nuclear disarmament and met Barack Obama on his historic visit to the city, has died aged 96, his advocacy group said Wednesday.</p>.<p>Tsuboi was on his way to engineering school in 1945 when the first nuclear bomb attack was launched by the United States, turning the bustling metropolis into an inferno.</p>.<p>"I suffered burns all over my body," he told <em>AFP</em> in 2016. "Naked, I tried to run away for about three hours on August 6 but finally could no longer walk."</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/nagasaki-marks-76th-anniversary-of-atomic-bombing-1017776.html" target="_blank">Nagasaki marks 76th anniversary of atomic bombing</a></strong></p>.<p>Then aged 20, he picked up a small rock and wrote on the ground "Tsuboi dies here", before losing consciousness and waking up several weeks later.</p>.<p>He later developed cancer and other diseases but became a prominent advocate for atomic bomb survivors and a lifelong campaigner for a nuclear-free world.</p>.<p>"I can tolerate hardships for the sake of human happiness. I may die tomorrow but I'm optimistic. I will never give up. We want zero nuclear weapons," he said.</p>.<p>Tsuboi was among a handful of Hiroshima survivors who met then US president Obama when he visited the city in 2016.</p>.<p>He smiled broadly as he shook Obama's hand, with the two men conversing for upwards of a minute. "I was able to convey my thoughts," a satisfied Tsuboi said afterwards.</p>.<p>Tsuboi "passed away on Saturday due to anaemia", an official from Nihon Hidankyo -- a group that represents survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, of which Tsuboi was a key leader -- told <em>AFP</em>.</p>.<p>There are 127,755 survivors of both attacks still alive and their average age is 84, according to the health ministry.</p>.<p>Around 140,000 people died in the bombing of Hiroshima, a toll that includes those who survived the explosion but died soon after from radiation exposure.</p>.<p>Three days later the US dropped a plutonium bomb on the port city of Nagasaki, killing about 74,000 people and leading to the end of World War II.</p>.<p><strong>Check out latest DH videos here:</strong></p>