A two-minute siren sounded across Israel at 10 a.m. Tuesday, bringing traffic and daily life to a standstill as the country paused in silence to honor the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust.
Immediately afterward, a state wreath-laying ceremony was held at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and Supreme Court President Isaac Amit, along with Holocaust survivors and other dignitaries. The ceremony was held without a public audience due to the security situation, with protective shelters placed at the site.
Moment of silence on the Ayalon Highway
(Video: Mickey Schmidt)
Tuesday’s events began earlier in the morning with a memorial candle-lighting ceremony at the Knesset at 8 a.m.
Later in the morning, a public ceremony titled “Unto Every Person There Is a Name” is set to take place at Yad Vashem, during which victims’ names will be read aloud — a central tradition of Holocaust Remembrance Day. A recorded ceremony from the Knesset is being broadcast simultaneously in Israeli media. A public wreath-laying ceremony is scheduled for 11:30 a.m., followed by the official state memorial service at 1 p.m.
In Poland, the annual March of the Living is set to take place later Tuesday at the Auschwitz-Birkenau memorial site. Now in its 38th year, the march brings together Holocaust survivors and participants from around the world to commemorate the victims and honor those who survived.
About 50 Holocaust survivors from Israel and abroad are expected to lead the march, joined by survivors of antisemitic attacks from the United States, Britain and Australia. Participants will also take part in a ceremony highlighting the fight against antisemitism alongside U.S. envoy Yehuda Kaploun and businessman Sylvan Adams.
Holocaust Remembrance Day will conclude Tuesday evening with a closing ceremony at the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum at Kibbutz Lohamei HaGetaot in northern Israel — a museum established by Holocaust survivors — held without a live audience and broadcast online. Six Holocaust survivors are scheduled to light memorial torches as part of the annual tradition.
The observances began Monday evening with a state opening ceremony at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, held in Warsaw Ghetto Square and pre-recorded due to the security situation. Netanyahu and Herzog delivered remarks, and six Holocaust survivors lit memorial torches.
First published: 08:22, 04.14.26