Rivlin opens Paris exhibition honoring diplomats who saved Jews in Holocaust
Ahead of Sunday’s International Holocaust Remembrance Day, museum displays stories of 200,000 people rescued through diplomatic efforts in WWII
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President Reuven Rivlin, who is visiting France, on Thursday opened a museum exhibition highlighting the stories of diplomats who saved Jews during the Holocaust.
The Paris exhibition, called “Beyond Duty: Saving Jewish Lives and Showing the Way,” is a collaboration between Israel’s Foreign Ministry and Yad Vashem. and is opening in Israeli diplomatic missions worldwide ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Sunday.
“Some 200,000 people were saved by the actions of these diplomats,” Rivlin said. “Their stories are a unique part of the history of the Holocaust. They prove that we always, as individuals, as representatives of our people and as countries, have the ability and the responsibility to make choices.”
Thirty-six diplomats in roughly 20 countries used their authority and influence to rescue Jews during the Holocaust and have been recognized by Israel as Righteous Among the Nations, according to Israel’s Government Press Office.
“There is no such thing as loving Israel and hating Jews, just like there's no such thing as loving Jews and hating Israel. Jew-hatred and anti-Zionism are anti-Semitism” Opening the Beyond Duty exhibition in Paris with @JY_LeDrian
Photo: Haim Zach (GPO) pic.twitter.com/nJKXmFYsz4
— Reuven Rivlin (@PresidentRuvi) January 24, 2019
Rivlin was accompanied by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves le Drian at the event.
“They simply ignored the rules and regulations and gave Jews under threat passports, visas and diplomatic refuge in their embassies,” le Drian said. “The exhibition we are opening today shows us the obligations of humanity.”
The Times of Israel Community.