South Koreans remembered a tragic moment in their history yesterday as the country marked the 62nd Memorial Day.

The national holiday, which falls on June 6 every year, is a day to remember and honour those who died in the 1950-53 Korean War.

At 10am, a siren was sounded all over the country for people to observe a minute of silence.

A memorial ceremony at the National Cemetery in Seoul, where more than 172,000 war heroes are buried, was attended by thousands from all walks of life, including veterans, policemen and firefighters, reported broadcaster Arirang.

At the sombre event, President Moon Jae In made his first Memorial Day speech since taking over the top job around four weeks ago, and laid a wreath at the cemetery.

Families were also seen decorating the graves with flowers and placing offerings of fruit, rice cakes and soju, a traditional rice wine.