Displaying items by tag: Holocaust

At London’s Guildhall on Holocaust Memorial Day, Rishi Sunak and others condemned the alarming rise in antisemitism. The day's theme, 'Fragility of Freedom,' highlighted the importance of freedom from fear for all, especially Jewish and Muslim communities. Sunak, in his video address, directly addressed the disturbing increase in antisemitism, emphasising the need to act on the lessons of the Holocaust. He described the resurgence of antisemitism as 'despicable' and 'sickening’. The Chief Rabbi also expressed concern over the ongoing threat of antisemitic attacks. This ceremony comes amid a significant rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia, often connected with the Gaza conflict. Survivors of the Holocaust and other genocides shared their harrowing experiences at the ceremony. Peter Lantos, a Holocaust survivor deported to a Nazi concentration camp at the age of five, recounted the horrors he witnessed, underscoring the day's message of 'never again’.

92-year-old Bruno Dey will be tried in Germany for complicity in mass murder of 5,230 people in the Stutthof Nazi death camp during World War Two. The former guard admitted knowledge of atrocities of murder in gas chambers, where over 65,000 died before Stutthof was liberated on 9 May 1945. This trial is likely to be one of the last against a former Nazi guard. Dr Efraim Zuroff who campaigns for the rights of Holocaust survivors, welcomed the decision to bring Mr Dey to trial. ‘The passage of time in no way diminishes the criminal responsibility of those guilty of aiding and abetting the implementation of the Final Solution,’ he said. There have been two more recent trials of Stutthof guards after 20+ survivors of the camp were located, most of whom are currently residing in Israel.