Events for the annual Holocaust Remembrance Day got underway on Wednesday evening at a state ceremony at the national memorial Yad Vashem, in Jerusalem.
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Speaking at the event, President Reuven Rivlin called on Israelis to embrace Holocaust survivors as they struggle with their old age and the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Some 900 died because of the virus; they survived the death camp and the ghettos, the detention and the journey to Israel, but they waged their final battle behind masks, frightened," Rivlin said. "They were thirsty for contact with others, and tonight our thoughts and prayers go out to them and their families," he continued.
On Thursday, Israelis will observe a two-minute moment of silence as a siren will sound all across the nation, in memory of the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. Various events and ceremonies will take place throughout the day, with special programming on the media, including testimonies of survivors and documentaries retelling their ordeal.
Speaking about his upcoming departure from office as his term ends, Rivlin vowed that he would not relinquish his duties to keep Holocaust survivors in mind. "Despite my presidency coming to an end, I will never end my commitment as a human being, Jew and Israeli to remember you and to remind others about the Holocaust and teach people the values you have instilled on all of us. "
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