Eighty years after the liberation of Auschwitz, thousands gathered at the former Nazi death camp in Poland for the annual March of the Living, a solemn event honoring the memory of the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust. This year’s march was especially poignant, as 80 Holocaust survivors—one for each year since the camp’s liberation—led the procession, joined by families of hostages and released captives from recent conflicts, as well as dignitaries from around the world. The march began at Birkenau and concluded at Auschwitz, retracing the path once walked by prisoners on their way to the gas chambers.
The event drew roughly 8,000 participants from 40 countries, including delegations from Israel, Europe, North America, and beyond. Survivors and their families toured the camp’s infamous sites, such as Block 27, home to the Book of Names listing millions of Holocaust victims, and the “Death Wall,” where countless prisoners were executed. For many survivors, the return was deeply emotional. Ella Katz, an Israeli survivor, broke down in tears upon finding her grandmother’s name among the victims, recalling the freezing cold and the trauma of hiding as a child.
This year’s march unfolded amid a surge in antisemitic incidents worldwide, following the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas. The presence of former hostages and bereaved families underscored the enduring relevance of the Holocaust’s lessons. Israeli President Isaac Herzog, attending alongside Polish President Andrzej Duda, emphasized the need for vigilance: “In these times when antisemitism is emerging again… we must remain resolute and remind the world: never again”. Survivors, some participating for the first time since the war, expressed both sorrow and hope, determined to pass on the responsibility of remembrance to younger generations.
For aging survivors like Arnold Klebbs and Nathan Leipciger, the march is a final opportunity to bear witness and to urge the world not to forget. “This is a once-in-a-generation march,” said Revital Yakin Krakovsky, deputy CEO of the International March of the Living. As the survivors walked the route once marked by death, they were accompanied by their children and grandchildren, ensuring that the memory of the Holocaust—and the call to resist hatred and intolerance—endures for generations to come.
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(Source: Times of Israel | Reuters | BBC | Israrel Hayom)
