REYKJAVIK, Aug. 7 Kyodo, A Hiroshima-based citizens group presented to Iceland's President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson on Friday a stone hit by the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima, engraved with an image of a woman praying for peace.

''The stone that was found 200 meters away from the ground zero is a witness which has firsthand knowledge of atomic holocaust,'' Michio Umemoto, head of the Stone for Peace Association of Hiroshima, said at a ceremony in the Icelandic capital.

''I'd like to rejoice that the stone has gained a new life here as a symbol of telling the importance of peace,'' Umemoto said.

The granite stone -- 50 centimeters square and weights about 50 kilograms -- presented to the Icelandic president was one of 200 tramway paving stones donated by Hiroshima Electric Railway Co. that were exposed to radiation from the bombing.

As part of its efforts to promote world peace, the Hiroshima group has presented these stones to many world leaders since 1991.

In receiving the stone, Grimsson said he has decided to exhibit the stone in a park in Reykjavik so that citizens can learn how precious peace is.

The president also said lasting peace is a common aspiration of all the people in the world.

According to the nongovernmental organization, 97 countries have accepted or expressed a desire to receive the stones with peace images, which were engraved and polished by about 100,000 citizens in Hiroshima.

Last year the group donated the stones to Angola and Zambia.

2004-08-07 16:31:12JST