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| With the approach of the Japanese troops,the captial Nanjing was threatened with a catastrophe.Citizens of Nanjing as well as foreign residents were leaving in a hurry.However,more than 20 Westerners decided to stay behind regardless of their embassies' advice to evacuate.Based on the experience of establishing a Refugee Zone by a French Catholic Father Rao after the fall of Shanghai,they decided to set up an international rescue organization called "The International Committee for Nanjing Safety Zone" in the hope that there would be a sheltering place for the people who did not manage to evacuate when the war broke out.The Zone was located in the northwest part of Nanjing,covering an area of 3.86 square kilometers.It had highways on four sides.Inside the zone were the embassies of the United States,Italy,Japan and the Netherlands as well as some Western church agencies.During that particular period,25 refugee camps were set up in that zone.At the maximum,they accommodated as many as 250,000 refugees. |
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