The silence at the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp doesn't let you rest and prompts disturbing thoughts of the horrors that took place here 70 years ago when the last of the camp's survivors were liberated. Some 100 Holocaust survivors from all over the world who had come to Poland to mark the anniversary of the camp's liberation were greatly moved upon arriving at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Some recited kaddish (the Jewish prayer of mourning) for relatives who had been murdered there and broke down in tears; others danced in victory. Hundreds of representatives of the international media were on hand to witness the ceremony. Thunderous applause greeted the survivors. One of them, Halina Birnbaum, said, "Auschwitz was a pit of hell I couldn't escape. There was no scrap of humanity and death sentences were handed out for anything, but I was privileged to stay alive and see the Nazis punished for their horrible acts." Roman Kent, chairman of the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Their Descendants, gave a speech, his voice trembling. "Even after 70 years, the image of the Nazis' laughter and enjoyment while they were abusing and murdering Jews is unforgettable. How can the stench of burnt human flesh be forgotten? We were face to face with death and absolute evil," Kent said. "We must remember and teach others so that there is no room on earth for the other horrors taking place in our world. It's not enough to remember, we must take action. We are obligated to teach our children tolerance and to understand others. Hate is never right and love is never a mistake. We don't want our past to be our children's future," Kent said. Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski said: "Pure evil was demonstrated at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Every one of you survivors preserves the memory of Auschwitz. The Germans turned my country into a center for the systematic murder of Jews, so it is important to preserve the memory of the Holocaust and Auschwitz." "The Holocaust is still an open wound," Komorowski said. ""Auschwitz reminds us how important it is to protect human dignity and freedom." President of the World Jewish Congress Ronald Lauder told the participants in the ceremony that once again, Jews are being targeted in Europe just because they are Jews. "It looks more like 1933 than 2015," he said. "Once again, young Jewish boys are afraid to wear yarmulkes on the streets.
Once again, Jewish businesses are targeted. And once again, Jewish families are fleeing Europe," Lauder said. "How is this happening again after 70 years? The European governments must stand up and resist the new wave of hatred. Anti-Semitism led to Auschwitz. Don't let it happen again." National Infrastructure Minister Silvan Shalom, who headed the Israeli delegation to the ceremony, said: "Only a short while ago in Paris we got proof that anti-Semitism is once again rearing its head. The fact that leaders from all over the world are here is proof that the world is no longer remaining silent. I'm here to say proudly: Am Yisrael chai [the people of Israel lives]!" Meanwhile Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took part in a symposium for the diplomatic corps at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum. Touching on recent events in Europe, Netanyahu said, "Preserving the memory of the Holocaust is more important today than ever. We live in a time of growing, violent, anti-Semitism, and the commemorations like the one being held today remind us where the oldest, most consistent hatred known to man can lead." "Hatred of Jews was suspended for a short while after World War II and now it's back, as strong as ever. But not only the Jewish people are being slandered and attacked -- the Jewish state is, too," the prime minister warned. "My job as prime minister of Israel is to make sure that there won't be any more threats of destruction against the state of Israel. My job is to ensure that there won't be any reasons to establish any more memorial sites like Yad Vashem," the prime minister declared. Israel's central ceremony marking International Holocaust Memorial Day took place at the Massuah Institute for Holocaust Studies at Tel Yitzhak. Supreme Court Deputy President Elyakim Rubinstein, the son of Holocaust survivors, spoke at the event. "Today, more than ever, there is importance to a Jewish state whose doors are open to Jews from all over the world," Rubinstein said. Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid participated in a commemorative event of the Yad Ezer Lahaver association, which helps impoverished Israelis -- particularly Holocaust survivors -- held in Haifa. Lapid told the hundreds of survivors who attended the event that "our job is to ensure that you find your way out of distress."
