More than 40 delegations and leaders: World Holocaust Forum events open tonight
Dozens of heads of state will land at Ben Gurion Airport to open international forum events at Yad Vashem. The main event will be held tomorrow afternoon, at the "Remember the Holocaust, Fighting Anti-Semitism", on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
More than 40 delegations and leaders: World Holocaust Forum events open tonight
Photo: Airport Authority spokeswoman, Editor: Amit SimchaAbout 49 delegations from around the world and more than 40 international leaders - presidents, prime ministers, kings, princes and presidents of parliament - will launch the events of the International Holocaust Forum hosted by President Rivlin Yad Vashem on Wednesday evening. The main event of the forum will be held tomorrow afternoon at Yad Vashem, at a ceremony entitled "Remembering the Holocaust, Fighting Anti-Semitism", held in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the International Memorial Day for Holocaust Victims, where representatives of all the Powers participating in the liberation are expected . Even earlier this evening, President Rivlin will host the President's House for all the formal dinner leaders to open the events.
Against the backdrop of the rise in anti-Semitism worldwide, the Forum has received a record of leaders from around the world, which necessitated the preparations of the President's House, the Foreign Ministry and the Jerusalem Municipality to host dozens of delegations, which is Israel's largest international event ever.
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Preparations at the President's House for World Leaders to Join the International Holocaust Forum January 10, 2020 (Photo: Mark Neiman / GPO, official website)
The Israel Railways began on Monday, with the arrival of the Governor General of Australia, who was the first visitor to arrive in Israel, and by tomorrow morning Ben Gurion Airport will be a parade of landings and receptions on the red carpet. The leaders of the ceremony will be headed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, President France Emmanuel Macron, German President Frank Walter Steinmeyer, Vice President of the United States Mike Pence, and British Prince Charles, in addition to heads of state and senior representatives from dozens of countries, including almost all EU countries.
Poland is the only one of the Union countries that did not send a senior delegate to the event, and will settle for the Israeli ambassador, in the light of Putin's speech at Yad Vashem, which is part of Russia's ongoing effort to highlight the heroism of the Russian people and the contribution of the Red Army to the Nazi decision in World War II. In the background of severe tensions between Poland and Russia around the historical narratives pertaining to World War II, Polish President Andrzej Aunty announced that he would not attend the ceremony. The President of Lithuania also announced at the last minute that he would not attend the event, in light of the tension between his country and Russia, and sent the parliamentary chairman in his place.
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To the full articleForeign Minister Katz welcomes French President Macaron at Ben Gurion Airport ahead of World Holocaust Forum yesterday
Foreign Minister Israel Katz welcomed French President Emmanuel Macaron at Ben Gurion Airport on his arrival to attend the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Ashwitz, January 21, 2020 (Photo: official website)
On the fringes of events, many of the leaders are expected to hold meetings and side events, and create an extremely tight political schedule. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Meets with French President Emmanuel Macron, Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, and Tomorrow with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Vice President Mike Pence At the same time, President Rivlin will host almost all of the forum's meeting Blue and White Chairman Benny Gantz is also expected to hold meetings with some of the leaders - French President Macron, Romanian President Klaus Johannis, Cyprus President Nicos Anastiades, and the US House of Representatives, chaired by Pelosi. Gantz probably won't have meetings with Putin and Pence, who will pay full attention to Netanyahu.
Netanyahu and Putin will focus on burning policy issues such as the Iranian nuclear program and the Israeli campaign against Iran's establishment in Syria and the region, but the focus will be on Naama Issachar's release, in the background of optimistic assessments in Jerusalem that Putin is expected to announce a pardon. Putin, Netanyahu and Rivlin will also inaugurate a new monument together Thursday morning in Jerusalem, in memory of those killed in the Leningrad battle.
Preparing to open the forum in the president's house (Photo: Omar Miron)
Preparations at the President's House for the Historical Dinner to Be Over 40 of the World Leaders January 16, 2020 (Photo: Omer Miron, official website)
Putin and Macron are also expected to travel to the Palestinian Authority during their visits, and meet with PA chairman Abu Mazen. Vice President Pence, who has been in Israel for less than 24 hours, will also take advantage of his visit to a Western Wall Media tour, which has become a custom for Trump administration officials to visit In Israel, Macron will also meet with members of the French community living in Israel.
The forum will be launched this evening at a formal dinner at the President's House where 250 people will be hosted, including all the leaders except Putin and Pence, who will land in Israel only tomorrow morning. The event will feature a special video produced at the President's House containing statements by 44 of the world's leaders for the fight against anti-Semitism, based on fees sent to the event to be incorporated into the book. Among the leaders is also President Donald Trump's remarks that he was unable to attend the event, which wrote: "To those seeking the annihilation of Israel and the Jewish people we say: never again."
Around 700 people were invited to the main event at Yad Vashem, where the Prime Minister and State Representatives and representatives of all the Powers who fought in the Nazi war - Russia, the United States, France, the United Kingdom and Germany - were invited. Also present at the ceremony were the Chairman of the International Holocaust Forum, the Russian oligarch Moshe Kantor, Chairman of Yad Vashem Avner Shalev, and former Chief Rabbi Israel Lowe, Holocaust survivor.
Schedule - International Holocaust Forum (Photo: Official Website)
