News Holocaust Remembrance Day memorializes lost children Facebook Twitter Email SMS WhatsApp Share By J. Correspondent | May 9, 1997 Sign up for Weekday J and get the latest on what's happening in the Jewish Bay Area. JERUSALEM — A two-minute siren brought Israel to a standstill Monday, as the country remembered the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. In Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremonies held around the country, names of the victims were read aloud as part of the traditional idea that "every person has a name." Most other countries held the observance a day earlier than Israel, where the commemoration was postponed so as not to conflict with the end of Shabbat. Commemorative events for the day known in Hebrew as Yom HaShoah were held in New York and in other cities across the United States. In Berlin, local Jews, politicians and Holocaust survivors gathered Sunday to read aloud the names of that city's nearly 56,000 Jews who were murdered by the Nazis. It took more than 24 hours to read all the names. In Poland, some 2,500 young Jews held an annual March of the Living at the Auschwitz concentration camp. Kaddish was read at a memorial site located near the former death camp's crematorium. In the Knesset in Jerusalem, government members and legislators read out the names of family members and relatives who had perished in the Holocaust. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Ezer Weizman and other top officials were among those presenting a new Torah scroll in the Knesset synagogue. The scroll was dedicated to the 1.5 million children who were murdered in the death camps. The remembrance of these children was the theme of Israel's observances this year. When Israel began Holocaust Remembrance Day with a somber state ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, both Weizman and Netanyahu discussed children in their addresses. "The infant is still calling out, even if we cannot hear it," Weizman said. "There were some who died even before they were weaned of their mothers' milk, before they said their first words, before they stood." He warned that now, more than a half century after the end of World War II, it was still impossible to say that certain regimes, armed with weapons of mass destruction and unhindered by morality, would not bring the world to ruin again. Weizman stressed that it was important not only to remember those who had died, but also to identify and empathize with those who had survived. "We pass on the legacy to our children, not to instill sorrow in them, nor to detract from the love and happiness in their lives, but so that they can build a life of security, justice, faith and hope in Israel." Netanyahu called for a strong Israel to achieve peace and hope for future generations. "It is impossible not to wonder about the potential artists, scientists and scholars that were among the murdered children; about the leaders, the generals and the physicians stolen from us in their death," Netanyahu said. "Today we promise them, survivors and victims alike, that we shall dedicate our lives to ensure that the danger of annihilation never hovers over our children's heads, that they shall never know terror or fear, nor die an untimely death. "Today we vow that we will maintain a strong Israel, that we shall achieve peace for our people and that we shall give our children and grandchildren security and hope." Six torches, representing the six million Jews who died, were lit Sunday night by people who had survived the Holocaust as children. Meanwhile, Avraham Burg, chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, said Monday that almost all European nations still had Jewish property looted by the Nazis. He called on all of Europe — not just Switzerland, which has gotten most of the attention in recent months — to examine its wartime behavior. J. Correspondent Also On J. Philanthropy In ’90s, S.F. b’nai mitzvah kids began turning gift cash into grants Politics Newsom signs four state bills protecting Jewish interests Recipe Squash stuffed with spiced lentil and rice is perfect for Sukkot Education Kehillah high school drops ‘Jewish’ from name, sparking backlash Subscribe to our Newsletter I would like to receive the following newsletters: Weekday J From Our Sponsors (helps fund our journalism) Your Sunday J Holiday Bytes