Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has led a ceremony to mark the 85th anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre, paying tribute to the tens of thousands of Jews murdered by the Nazis in one of the biggest single war crimes of the Second World War.
Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, commemorated the victims by placing a memorial lamp at the Menorah Memorial at the Babyn Yar National Historical and Memorial Reserve near Kyiv.
The ceremony was attended by Ukrainian officials, rabbis, foreign ambassadors from more than 50 countries and representatives of international organisations, while representatives of Jewish organisations recited a memorial prayer.
On September 29 and 30, 1941, Nazi forces and their local collaborators murdered 33,771 Jewish men, women and children at Babyn Yar.
The massacre took place on the eve of Yom Kippur, after Kyiv’s Jews had been ordered to assemble and were marched to the ravine.
The killings were among the largest single massacres of Jews during the Holocaust. They also demonstrated the murderous process of the Nazi “Holocaust by bullets”, in which Jewish communities across occupied Eastern Europe were systematically rounded up and shot rather than deported to extermination camps.
Speaking at the ceremony, Zelenskyy stressed the importance of remembering the victims and recognising the value of human life.
“The Babyn Yar tragedy is an absolutely tragic, bloody example. This tragedy reminds us how painful it is to lose those we hold dear, our loved ones, and, in general, how human life can be devalued.”
He also drew a connection between the historical tragedy and Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine, saying: “I want to thank you for understanding the value of all life. This is especially felt in Ukraine during this shameful, unprovoked war that Russia is waging against Ukraine.”
He argued that the lesson of the massacre is the importance of refusing to become indifferent when civilians are threatened, and lives are destroyed.
Zelenskyy said that remembering events such as Babyn Yar remains important so that “evil does not escape punishment”.
The president also thanked the diplomats and international representatives who attended the ceremony, saying their presence demonstrated solidarity with Ukraine at a time when the country remains at war.
The ceremony took place beside the Menorah, unveiled on September 29, 1991 – shortly after Ukraine gained independence from the Soviet Union.
It was the first monument erected in Ukraine after independence and remains one of the most significant Jewish memorials at the Babyn Yar site.
Zelenskyy concluded his commemoration by remembering those who died in the Nazi shootings and stressing the enduring importance of preserving their memory.
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