The Holocaust

The memorial prayer (Askava) and the laying of wreaths at the annual event commemorating the National Day of Remembrance of the Greek Jewish Martyrs and Heroes of the Holocaust on January 28 was among the last to be held on the pavement of Nikis Avenue, in central Thessaloniki.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis marked International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Saturday, describing the extermination of millions of European Jews by the Nazis as "the darkest chapter of modern history."

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou on Saturday observed International Holocaust Remembrance Day, describing the genocide of European Jews during World War II as "an atrocious crime that has left an indelible mark on world history."

The Greek Foreign Ministry marked International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Saturday, emphasizing the need to safeguard collective memory as a defense against racism and bigotry.

"We honor the victims of Nazi brutality, including tens of thousands of Greek Jews," the ministry said in a statement.

With the slogan #WeRemember, the facade of the Greek Parliament was lit up on Friday as part of the global events held to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

In the leadup to International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27, the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece (KIS) underlined the responsibility to pass on the memory of the Holocaust "so that the darkness of oblivion does not prevail over the light of memory and hope."

Almost 80 years after the Holocaust, about 245,000 Jewish survivors are still living across more than 90 countries, a new report has revealed.

Author: Prof. Piotr GLIŃSKI
Professor of Humanities. Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Culture and National Heritage. In 2005 - 2011, President of the Polish Sociological Association. Has cooperated with the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, Polish Academy of Sciences. In 1997 -2005, Head of the Civic Society Department.

Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city, commemorated on Sunday the 80th anniversary of the departure of the first train convoy for the Auschwitz camp.

They were lucky to even survive the brutal train ride, with 80 people crowded into a single wagon with only a small window and bucket of water. But any luck ended at the ramp in Auschwitz. Questions of life and death were decided in an instant: upon arrival, she was separated from her mother and sister, who - as she learnt later - were murdered in the gas chambers right next door to her.