Zelensky along with rabbis condemns Nazism and commemorates Babi Yar victims

Volodymyr Zelensky in front of the "Menorah" memorial in Babi Yar. Photo: Facebook page of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine

On September 29, 2023, on the 82nd anniversary of the Babi Yar tragedy, President Volodymyr Zelensky, along with Jewish rabbis from various regions of Ukraine, paid tribute to the memory of tens of thousands of Jews and representatives of other nationalities who were killed by the Nazis in Kyiv during World War II. This information was reported by the President's press service and the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine.

The mourning ceremony at the Babi Yar National Historical Memorial Reserve was attended by rabbis from Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Bila Tserkva, Berdychiv, and Cherkasy, as well as relatives of the Nazi victims, former ghetto and concentration camp prisoners. Deputy Chairman of the Federation of Jewish Communities, Rabbi Rafael Rutman, read memorial prayers.

"Thank you for finding the opportunity to be here today, at the commemoration of the victims of Babi Yar, Nazi repression, and the Holocaust," said the President to the event's participants. "It is very important always to remember history, not to forget. Because 'Never Again!' is not just words."

In his speech, Volodymyr Zelensky noted that Judaism thrives and develops in Ukraine today without discrimination and greeted the Jewish community celebrating the holiday of Sukkot.

As reported, after a scandal in American media, Metropolitan Boris Gudziak of the UGCC ordered the "temporary closure" of the monument to the soldiers of the SS "Galicia" division located on the territory of the Uniate cathedral in Philadelphia.

Read also