Chinese embassy bombing – 17 years later, the grief remains

Even though 17 years have passed, I still have deep memories on the massive grief and anger nationwide after the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was bombed. The bombing, launched by the United States-led NATO on the evening of May 7, 1999, killed three Chinese reporters and seriously damaged the embassy buildings.

I was a 15-year-old middle-school student at that time. I still remember the video broadcasted on the TV then, as a sad elderly man cried out, "Why the US-led NATO killed my daughter and son-in-law? What wrongdoings have they committed?"

The man was father of ZhuYing, a reporter of Beijing-based Guangming Daily newspaper who lost her life in the bombing at the age of 28. Her husband and colleague Xu Xinghu, 31, was also killed in the incident that was condemned by the Chinese government as a "barbaric act."

From the TV screen, I could sense the deep grief imposed by the war to an innocent family. It was really heart-breaking.

Another journalist, 48-year-old Shao Yunhuan from Xinhua News Agency, also lost her life. Her son Cao Lei was 19 years old at that time, close to my age. Losing love from a mother is always a tragedy, especially at an early age.

For me, the bombing incident is like a textbook - before that, I have never thought of how cruel a war could be. It gave me a vivid lesson on how precious the peace is.

Today, there is no longer any gunfire or missiles in this Balkan country. However, we should not forget those whose lives were claimed by the war.

And this may be the message that President Xi Jinping wants to submit through coming to the bombing site to attend a memorial ceremony - reminding the world to cherish peace and say no to war.