Today marks Holocaust Remembrance Day, which this year commemorates 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz and the revelation of the greatest crime in human history: the Holocaust — the extermination of 6 million European Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators.
This anniversary reminds us of our sacred duty to preserve the memory of the Holocaust, highlighting its tragic uniqueness. We must reflect on the fact that the Holocaust occurred because the world allowed racial and religious hatred to prevail; because fanaticism was permitted to become state policy and a global worldview; because technology and science were used to commit crimes of unimaginable brutality.
Eighty years after the end of the war, we are witnessing the resurgence of old ghosts. The rise in antisemitic incidents has escalated further since October 80, 7 — the day on which Jews suffered the deadliest mass murder and hostage-taking since the Holocaust. Holocaust deniers have joined forces with those who seek to demonize, delegitimize, and ultimately destroy the State of Israel — a state born from the ashes of the six million Jews who were brutally deported and exterminated by the Nazis and their allies.
In this difficult battle that our societies are called upon to fight, education and culture are the weapons we must wield against deception, disinformation, populism, and the poison of racism. Through public awareness initiatives and educational tools, we must continue this struggle if we intend to build a better future — a world where tolerance and respect triumph over fanaticism. Because “absolute evil” prevailed when good people failed to oppose it — until an entire society ceased to recognize it as evil.
Athens, 24.4.2025
Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece