Auschwitz survivors join march to mark Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day

by Mick the Ram

Thousands of people have marched through the infamous former Nazi-German concentration camp at Auschwitz in Poland, marking 80 years since its liberation.

Organisers said around 8,000 participants were joined by 80 survivors of the Holocaust, as well as survivors of the 7 October 2023 massacre in Israel.

The “March of the Living” as it is known, followed a 3km route to the crematorium as those involved paid tribute to the millions of Jews who were killed.

The crowd, many draped in Israeli flags, called for an end to antisemitism and intolerance as they passed through the notorious “Arbeit macht frei” (work sets you free) gate at the camp’s entrance.

More than 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, died in gas chambers or from starvation, cold and disease at the horrific death camp, which Nazi Germany set up in occupied Poland during World War II.

Israel also came to a standstill as sirens echoed across the country and a two minute silence was observed on what is its official Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Must not forget

Survivors who attended the march warned world leaders not to forget the lessons of the past and spoke of the hundreds of millions – even billions – of people who are Holocaust deniers.

Sol Nayman, 89, escaped from Poland with his family during World War II to the woods where they fled to the Soviet Union. He challenged those unbelievers to “come and walk with me through Auschwitz, come and walk me through Treblinka or Majdanek or any camp of your choice – that’s where the proof is.”

Increase in anti-Semitic behaviour

Between 1941 and 1945 Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically killed six million Jews across German-occupied Europe, along with gypsies, sexual minorities, people with disabilities and others singled out by genocidal ideology.

In recent years anti-Semitic incidents have increased along with protests against Israel in many parts of Europe, North America and Australia, particularly since the war against Hamas in Gaza.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said: “In days when anti-Semitism is raising its ugly head, when there is hatred towards Israel, and when cries rise for the destruction of Israel, we must stand strong and remind and promise the world: never again.”

Much significance for all Poles

Polish President Andrzej Duda described Auschwitz as not only a site of Jewish tragedy, but also of deep significance for Poland.

“This place is hugely important not only for Jews, but also for us, Poles” reminding people that Auschwitz was originally a Polish village overtaken by the Nazi Germans, who first imprisoned Poles as forced labourers before it became a death camp.

He remarked that the camp must stand as a warning amid ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, stating that the “march” should be seen as a “manifestation of life and remembrance” and a “dramatic call” of “never again”.

Israel stops for two minutes

Traffic stopped, pedestrians stood still, and daily life paused across Israel in symbolic honour of all of those who perished in the holocaust.

They observe the commemoration each year in April or May in accordance with the Hebrew calendar, and it is separate from International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is always marked on 27 January.