deputy Ambassador
of Israel to poland
Charge d'affaires
Tal Ben-Ari Yaalon
76 years ago, on January 27, 1945 the Red Army liberated the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp, symbolizing the end of the most awful and horrific period humanity has ever experienced.
Among the close to one million Jews who were murdered in Auschwitz-Birkenau, were also most of my grandfather's family. As I will light candles later on today in their memory, I will think of Itzhak and David Judkowich who were just little kids, when in the spring of 1944 their childhood ended abruptly. And soon after, their lives were ended as well, in the gas chambers of the camp. As a mother, I can begin to imagine the horror of knowing what fate awaited the children and the understanding you can't do anything to save them.
As for the children themselves, even those who were fortunate enough to survive had their childhood stolen from them. The basic belief that every child is born with, that he or she is loved and safe and protected was shattered by the cruel reality of the Holocaust, affecting all of us, till this day.
Last year, we had important words of Holocaust survivor - Marian Turski, warning us all from dangers of indifference. Imagining being indifferent to the cries of children being separated from their mothers, being able to actively participate in the murder of children, or simply being aware of it and going on with your day without giving it a second thought. Can we even call those people human beings?
Luckily, not all were indifferent. Not all chose to look the other way or in same cases to actively assist the Nazis in murdering Jews. Some were willing to risk their own lives, to risk their families in order to help their Jewish neighbors, and at times even complete strangers. Simply because it was the humane thing to do. These people, who I had the honour to commemorate many times since arriving in Poland, not only saved human lives, but also the very basis of humanity itself. Today, while commemorating the victims of the Holocaust, we must also remember those Righteous Among the Nations.
Many things have changed in the years that have passed, but hatred and antisemitism are still an issue we have to face today. Antisemitism isn't just a Jewish problem. It is everyone's responsibility to fight it. Hatred, xenophobia and intolerance towards others are things that tend to spread, poisoning societies,