VIENNA, 27 January 2025 – Around 300 staff members and permanent representatives of the diplomatic corps and the Jewish community in Vienna joined this year’s ceremony in the Vienna International Centre to honour the six million victims of the Holocaust. Jointly organized by the Permanent Mission of Israel to the UN in Vienna and the United Nations Information Service (UNIS) Vienna with the support of the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme and in cooperation with the US Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, this year’s commemorative ceremony served as a reminder and responsibility to ensure this part of history is never forgotten.
The ceremony started with a musical performance by Israeli sopranist Miriam Hajiyeva, accompanied by pianist Almog Aharoni who played the song “A Walk to Caesarea”, also known colloquially in Hebrew by its first words as “Eli Eli”, which translates to “My God, my God”. After the moving performance, a prayer by Chief Cantor Shmuel Barzilai was recited to mourn the lives of those lost.
Officer-in-Charge of UNIS Sonja Wintersberger moderated the ceremony which reflected this year’s theme “Holocaust Remembrance for Dignity and Human Rights”.
Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV) Ghada Waly read out the message of UN Secretary General António Guterres to mark this important day: “We must condemn antisemitism – just as we must condemn all forms of racism, prejudice, and religious bigotry.” Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations Vienna, Ambassador David Roet, Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. of the US Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, Howard Solomon, and Yad Vashem Senior Academic Advisor, Dina Porat, also spoke at the event, followed by the testimony of the Holocaust survivor Dirk Adler. His presence, speaking about his experiences, was an important reminder that as a society we must listen to the victims’ voices and stories to learn from the past and ensure a better future.
You can watch the whole ceremony here.
After the ceremony, the audience was invited to view the poster exhibitions “Auschwitz - A place on Earth. The Auschwitz Album”, created and curated by Yad Vashem, and “Lest We Forget” created by the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme. The audience was also invited to a film screening of the documentary “UnBroken” by Beth Lane. After the film, a short interview with Holocaust Survivor Avraham Roet produced by UNIS was shown, leaving an impactful reminder that as a society, we should keep defending the dignity and human rights of all. In the evening, the documentary was shown again as part of the monthly Cine-ONU initiative at the Top Kino where various panelists were invited to a discussion after the film.
You can see the interview with Avraham Roet here.
