Israel paralyzed for two minutes in memory of Holocaust victims

Israel I know this Thursday paralyzed for two minutes under the sound of anti-aircraft sirens, on the occasion of Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom Hashoah), What honors the memory of the six million Jews exterminated by the Nazi regime and its allies during WWII (1939-1945).

Sirens started ringing at ten in the morning (07:00 GMT) and spread 120 seconds during which the whole country interrupted its activities to be silent.

Who walked down the street they stopped their march, the drivers stopped their vehicles and many of them got out.

This tradition is honored year after year by the Israelis, many of whom are they shudder to tears hear the sirens, while others are praying, filming or just nodding.

This symbolic act of mourning is also accompanied in Israel by a series of official events, which began last night with the lighting of six torches by six survivors, during a ceremony at Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem.

“Whether we like it or not, the memory of the Holocaust shapes our identity as a people. The Holocaust imposes on us, its victims, the Jewish people and the State of Israel an endless task that we must remember. Carrying this burden of memory is not an easy task “, the Israeli president said on Wednesday evening, Reuven Rivlin, during the ceremony at Yad Vashem.

In his speech, the Head of State also referred to the 900 Holocaust survivors who died from the coronavirus pandemic, and that “they fought the last battle of their lives between confusion and isolation, wearing masks and gloves and separated from loved ones.”

Events will continue this Thursday in schools, military bases and public offices across the country, including a ceremony in Parliament (Knesset) during which MPs will read the names of Holocaust victims.

(With information from EFE)

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