Phyllis Greenberg Heideman[Missing Credit]
Speaking to the JC, Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, president of the International March of the Living, said the spirit of resistance in the face of oppression lived on.
“With antisemitism now so prevalent we need to be braver and bolder in our fight. Today we are showing courage, together with dozens of survivors from around the world who experienced first hand the attempt to annihilate the Jewish people.”
That message was reinforced by the fact that Israel’s ongoing war against a regime which strives to destroy the world’s Jewish state prevented many Shoah survivors from flying in to join the march.
A small delegation of ten Israeli Holocaust survivors aged between 90 and 100 took part after arriving at the last minute following a ceasefire in hostilities.
They walked alongside survivors of some of the most horrific recent antisemitic attacks.
Catherine Szkop[Missing Credit]
Eva Wietzen, who survived the Chanukah massacre at Bondi Beach in Sydney, where 15 people were killed including her husband and a close friend, took part in the march.
Taking part from Britain was Yoni Finley, who was injured in the terror attack on Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester last Yom Kippur.
Another participant, Catherine Szkop, survived the Washington embassy attack, in which her colleagues, Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky, were killed.
She told the JC: “People were amazed at how fast my reaction time was to the bullet – 2.5 seconds, as I had heard a pop and moved, running taking cover under an SUV. It turns out it was instincts honed by ice-hockey which really helped here.
“Today, my fifth time at Auschwitz, I am really proud to stand here as a survivor, and alongside Holocaust survivors.”
During the ceremony, Wietzen, Finley, Szkop and Talmoud lit the first torch dedicated to combating antisemitism alongside the United States Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, Ambassador Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun.
Sylvan Adams, President of the World Jewish Congress Israel, said: “My message to Jews in Britain is to stand strong. Even though Labour is weak and offering empty words, there is hope. Be proud. Wear your kippah. Know that we have your back.
“The enemies are clear – Iran, Qatar which is backing terrorists, and China. And the battlefield is clear too, it is mosques where radical Imams, funded by our enemies, are being placed, and it is social media, with rampant antisemitism on social media, especially on TikTok. We have to fight.”
Adams, a second-generation Holocaust survivor, led the march.
Dr Ellie Cannon and Lottie Cannon, wife and daughter of JC Publisher Adam Cannon, at the March of the Living[Missing Credit]
A delegation of 130 senior law enforcement figures – including police chiefs and intelligence officials from multiple countries – also took part, pledging stronger action and security measures to protect Jewish communities.
At the closing ceremony in Birkenau, Holocaust survivor Irene Shashar lit a torch dedicated to the State of Israel alongside former hostages Agam Berger and Omri Miran, and Rabbi Shmuel Slotki, who lost his two sons during the October 7 attacks on Kibbutz Alumim.
The Torch of Rebirth was then lit by Holocaust survivor Sami Steigmann, who later served in the United States Air Force.
