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What’s New |
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Original Plans for
Auschwitz Presented to Yad Vashem |
Marking the 70th
Anniversary of the Outbreak of WWII |
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Last month at a special ceremony in
Berlin, the Germany newspaper Bild presented original
architectural
plans of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp to Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, for safekeeping at Yad Vashem. The blueprints were
discovered in an apartment in Berlin, and then purchased by the
newspaper. Some of the 29 documents bear notes in the margins, or
signatures by senior Nazis, including Himmler. The plans will be
displayed at Yad Vashem in January 2010, marking 65 years since the
liberation of Auschwitz. |
An international
symposium marking the
70th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II and looking at its
significance for the fate of the Jews was recently held by Yad
Vashem’s International Institute for Holocaust Research and the
Embassy of Poland in Israel. Pulitzer Prize winner Prof. Saul
Friedlander delivered the keynote lecture, and a special event marking
the Hebrew publication of his book, The Years of Extermination: Nazi
Germany and the Jews, 1939-1945 (Yad Vashem and Am Oved, 2009) was
held at Yad Vashem. |
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Spotlight on the Web |
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From Our Collections:
Marking the New Year |
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The holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom
Kippur are traditionally a time for introspection, asking for and
giving forgiveness, resolving to do better, and praying for a healthy
and happy year to come. Through testimony, artifacts, photos, cards
and prayer books from Yad Vashem’s collections, this
online exhibition, also available in
Spanish, offers a glimpse into some of the ways that Jews before,
during and immediately after the Holocaust marked these special days. |
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Names Recovery |
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Message from Rabbi Lau for
Rosh Hashanah |
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Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council, drawing on
biblical sources, delivers an
inspirational drasha (homily) on the
importance of commemorating the Jews who perished during the Shoah.
Rabbi Lau, himself a child survivor of Buchenwald, powerfully calls upon
Jews across the world to join Yad Vashem's efforts to recover the
names of each individual Shoah victim by filling out Pages of
Testimony in their memory and submitting them to Yad Vashem. This is a
race against time. Act now before those who still remember them are
gone forever. Search for information or submit names of people who
perished during the Shoah on Yad Vashem's
Central Database of Shoah Victims' Names. |
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Recent Events |
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Jewish Soul Music at Yad
Vashem |
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Maestro Giora Feidman and his masterclass students from around the
world joined him for a concert of “Jewish Soul Music” (Klezmer),
captivating an eclectic group in the Valley of Communities at Yad
Vashem. The musicians ranged from talented Israeli high school
students to seasoned professionals from abroad. The towering walls of
the Valley, etched with the names of Jewish communities destroyed
during the Holocaust, made a perfect and imposing setting - the music
soaring out across the hills on the cool air of the Jerusalem summer
evening. The music, performed here in Jerusalem, was a living memorial
to the Jewish world destroyed during the Shoah, and the celebration of
Jewish life that continues. |
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With Your Support... |
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Yad Vashem’s activities and programs would not
be possible without the support of our many donors and friends. In these
difficult days, when pursuing the important mission of commemoration of
the Holocaust has never been more necessary, Yad Vashem more than ever
needs you to join us in our efforts to transform commemoration into a
lasting commitment to the Jewish people, to moral values and to
responsible action.
New website makes donating to Yad Vashem easy
Yad Vashem’s website has been revamped to offer visitors a new,
easy-to-access interface, enabling all surfers wishing to make a
contribution in any amount towards our ongoing work the opportunity to do
so. With 8 million visits in 2008 from all over the globe, it is clear
that Yad Vashem’s website remains a much sought-after destination for
people seeking information about both Yad Vashem, and wider research on
the Holocaust itself.
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The website also offers the opportunity to
view current projects of interest for which we seek your support, such as
last-minute efforts to record Survivor Testimonies, and the uploading of
names to the Central Database of Shoah Victims’ Names. Additionally, the
website continues to offer the popular option of making a meaningful gift
in memory or in honor of someone special.
It is Yad Vashem’s hope that via the new website, more of our friends will
be able to continue their partnership with us, even in these times of
financial hardships. Your generous support remains deeply appreciated.
Yad Vashem welcomes the ongoing
partnership and visits from its friends and supporters: |
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For more information on Friends of Yad Vashem please
click here
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Yad Vashem Quarterly Magazine |
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The quarterly magazine Yad Vashem Jerusalem has a new online format.
You can now easily scroll through the
summer issue online or download the
articles to read it in a print format. The summer issue surveys Pope
Benedict XVI’s historic visit to Yad Vashem including a look at the
special gift he received during his visit. In addition to information
about new educational endeavors and publications, read about a special
concert performed at Yad Vashem. The Israel Philharmonic performed
Bernstein’s “Kaddish -Symphony No. 3” with a text written and performed by
Holocaust Survivor Dr. Samuel Pisar. |
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Copyright © 2009 Yad Vashem The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority
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