A series of activities are set to take place today in the city of Nanjing to mark the 2nd National Memorial Day for the Nanjing Massacre.

Ceremonies are taking place this morning at the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall.

A series of other events will take place later this morning at 17 different mass grave sites around the city.

Around 300-thousand people were killed by Japanese troops after they occupied the former Chinese capital, Nanjing, on December 13th, 1937.

The 6-week slaughter, which included mass rapes and indiscriminate killings, has long been an area of contention between Japan and China, with conservative elements in Japan continuing to deny the massacre or white-wash it from the history books.

However, every Japanese government since the War has conceded a massacre did take place in Nanjing.

December 13th officially became a National Memorial Day for the first time last year.