Hiroshima: A Japanese government panel on Friday proposed the designation of the Atomic Bomb Dome in the western city of Hiroshima as a special historic site. It is anticipated to become the first such site in Japan's modern history. According to Philippines News Agency, the Atomic Bomb Dome, a UNESCO World Heritage site, stands as a symbol of atomic-bombed remnants, illustrating the horror of the first atomic bomb used in warfare. The United States dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, during the closing days of World War II. Originally completed in 1915, the Dome was built to showcase products from Hiroshima Prefecture, promoting local industrial development. A preservation report from the Hiroshima municipal government, released in March, highlighted the building's maintained appearance from that fateful day and emphasized the need for enhanced preservation efforts. The Cultural Affairs Council, advising the education and culture minister, also recommended the Kosakayama site in Saku, Nagano Prefecture, one of the oldest archaeological sites illustrating modern humankind's expansion from the Eurasian continent to the Japanese archipelago. Additionally, the council suggested the Machikane Crocodylidae fossil in Toyonaka, Osaka Prefecture, western Japan, as a natural monument and six sites, such as the Fugetsuro garden in Shizuoka Prefecture, associated with Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the 15th and last shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate, as registered monuments. All these recommendations are expected to be accepted soon, leading to a total of 3,390 historic sites, places of scenic beauty, and natural monuments in Japan, with the number of registered monuments increasing to 143.