Israelis stood in silence in honor of the victims of the Holocaust on Monday, 80 years after six million Jews were murdered by the Nazis in Europe and North Africa.
Following the 2 minute siren the main ceremonies will begin at Yad Vashem and
During the ceremony marking the start of Remembrance Day events, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that if today, as then, Jews would be forced to stand alone, Israel would.
2 View gallery
Prime Minister, President and Mr. Herzog and Yad Vashem chairman observe a moment of silence
(Photo: GPO)
"Eighty years ago, in the Holocaust, the Jewish people were totally defenseless against those who sought our destruction. No nation came to our aid. Today, we again confront enemies bent on our destruction," he said, addressing international opposition to a military operation in Rafah, the threat of arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, and criticism of the conduct of the fighting in Gaza.
"I say to the leaders of the world, no amount of pressure, no decision by any international forum, will stop Israel from defending itself. As the Prime Minister of Israel – the one and only Jewish state – I pledge here today from Jerusalem on this Holocaust Remembrance Day: If Israel is forced to stand alone, Israel will stand alone. But we know we are not alone because countless decent people around the world support our just cause. And I say to you, we will defeat our genocidal enemies. Never again is now," he said.
U.S. President Joe Biden said he was committed to the responsibility learned from the Holocaust. "This Holocaust Remembrance Day, we mourn the six million Jews who were killed by the Nazis during one of the darkest chapters in human history," Biden wrote in a post on X. "And we recommit to heeding the lessons of the Shoah and realizing the responsibility of Never Again.”
The March of the Living will begin at the Auschwitz Death Camp in Poland with the participation of Holocaust survivors and their families, survivors of the Hamas October 7 massacre, Jews from around the world and many more.