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What Happens to Holocaust Memory When There Are No Living Survivors?
Anti-Israel protesters hold flags on the route of the annual International March of the Living, outside former Auschwitz Nazi German death camp, in Oswiecim, Poland, May 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Kuba Stezycki
It was reported in The Times of Israel that 70% of the 200,000 Holocaust survivors alive today will be gone in the next 10 years. How will the Holocaust be remembered when there are no survivors? Two recent experiences have given me a sobering glimpse of possible answers.
I live in a city in Canada, with a diverse Jewish community. Every Passover, Chabad organizes the delivery of a box containing three hand-made Shmurah Matzahs to every Jewish household in the area. The matzahs come in a handsome box with the picture of a matzah on the top, and the three things Jews are obliged to explain during the Passover Seder: Pesach (the Passover offering), Matzah, and Bitter Herbs.
This Passover, I noticed that the information on the side of the box indicates the matzahs were made in Dnepr, Ukraine. The street address caught my attention — Bogdan Khmelnitsky (also spelled Bohdan Khmelnytsky) Street.
Dnepr is a city of about one million people in eastern Ukraine, about 75 miles from the frontline of the ongoing war instigated by Russia. Although a very large number of Ukrainian Jews immigrated to Israel after the demise of the Soviet Union, a substantial and active Jewish community remains in Dnepr, centered around a large multifunction Jewish community center, the Menorah Center. It is located on Sholom-Aleikhema (Shalom Aleichem) Street.
However, the matzah factory, a large enterprise a few miles away, is located on Bogdan Khmelnitsky Street.
Bogdan Khmelnitsky is Ukraine’s national hero. Khmelnitsky led a Cossack rebellion against Ukraine’s Polish rulers in the mid-17th century. While successful initially, the revolt ended with an exchange of Polish rule for Russian domination. Today, monuments to Khmelnitsky are found throughout Ukraine, and streets named after him are a feature of most Ukrainian cities. Yet, to Jews his name is an abomination.
As is often the case in Jewish history, the Jews of Ukraine were scapegoats in the Khmelnitsky uprising. Thousands (estimates of Jewish deaths range to 100,000) were slaughtered alongside Poles. In Sabbatai Ṣevi, Gershom Scholem attributes the widespread rise of messianic fervor among Jews at this time to the sense of vulnerability induced by the Khmelnitsky massacres.
Khmelnitsky was not the last Ukrainian leader to receive the adulation of his compatriots and the condemnation of Jews. Symon Petlura was a Ukrainian military commander during the Russian civil war following World War I. The Jews of Ukraine suffered from pogroms carried out by all sides. However, the largest number of deaths (the total number of Jews killed is estimated to be well over 100,000 — see Jeffrey Veidlinger, In the Midst of Civilized Europe) were by Ukrainians under Petlura.
Sholom Schwarzbard, a Jew, assassinated Petlura in Paris in 1926 to avenge their deaths. He was acquitted after a trial that included testimony from witnesses of the massacres. Nevertheless, Petlura’s exploits are the subject of several Ukrainian folksongs and a number of Ukrainian cities have erected monuments to him.
(Remarkably, the current Ukrainian hero, to Ukrainians and many others, is a Jew, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.)
Ukrainians are not unique when it comes to collective memory loss in relation to Jewish calamities. At about the same time that I was thinking about Khmelnitsky, it was reported in Haaretz that the Prosecution Office of the Republic of Latvia had decided to close the investigation into the Latvian Nazi collaborator Herberts Cukurs for lack of legal evidence of war crimes or genocide.
Cukurs’ active role in the killing of thousands of Jews in Latvia in late 1941 is indisputable. He was the deputy commander of the infamous Arajs Kommando, an auxiliary military force created by the Germans to assist in the rounding up and murder of Jews and other undesirables, including assisting in the slaughter of most of the Jews of Riga at Rumbula Forest outside Riga.
Nazi hunter Ephraim Zuroff, writing in response to earlier Latvian efforts to sanitize Cukurs’ story, describes the evidence against Cukurs in detail, including sworn testimony from witnesses in Yad Vashem archives, noting that Cukurs personally tortured and murdered Jewish men, women, and children.
The effort to revise Cukurs’ (and Latvia’s) role in the Holocaust may be a harbinger of more to come. Recently, Zuroff was cited in an article on Holocaust memory in The Media Line saying, “there are no more trials coming. All we have left is memory — and even that is under siege.”
There have been extensive efforts made to perpetuate the memory of the Holocaust by way of museums, monuments, and recordings by survivors. Is it enough? Will the Holocaust continue to be viewed as a unique and tragic event specific to the Jewish people, or will the fading memory of the Holocaust be distorted and manipulated to suit the stories told by others?
Jacob Sivak, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, is a retired professor, University of Waterloo.
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Israel Announces Daily Pauses in Gaza Fighting as Aid Airdrops Begin
Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, July 27, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Israel on Sunday announced a halt in military operations for 10 hours a day in parts of Gaza and new aid corridors as Jordan and the United Arab Emirates airdropped supplies into the enclave, where images of starving Palestinians have alarmed the world.
Israel has been facing growing international criticism, which the government rejects, over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and indirect ceasefire talks in Doha between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas have broken off with no deal in sight.
US President Donald Trump, on a visit to Scotland, said Israel would have to make a decision on its next steps in Gaza, and he did not know what would happen after the collapse of ceasefire and hostage-release negotiations with Hamas.
Military activity will stop from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (0700-1700 GMT) until further notice in Al-Mawasi, a designated humanitarian area along the coast, in central Deir al-Balah and in Gaza City, to the north.
The military said designated secure routes for convoys delivering food and medicine will also be in place between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. starting from Sunday.
U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher said staff would step up efforts to feed the hungry during the pauses in the fighting.
“Our teams on the ground … will do all we can to reach as many starving people as we can in this window,” he said on X.
In their first airdrop in months, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates parachuted 25 tons of aid into Gaza on Sunday, a Jordanian official said, adding that those were not a substitute for delivery by land.
Palestinian health officials in Gaza City said at least 10 people were injured by falling aid boxes.
Work on a UAE project to run a new pipeline that will supply water from a desalination facility in neighboring Egypt to around 600,000 Gazans along the coast would also begin in a few days, the Israeli military said.
On Saturday, a five-month-old baby, Zainab Abu Haleeb, died of malnutrition at Nasser Hospital, health workers said.
“Three months inside the hospital and this is what I get in return, that she is dead,” said her mother, Israa Abu Haleeb, as the baby’s father held their daughter’s body wrapped in a white shroud.
The Egyptian Red Crescent said it was sending more than 100 trucks carrying over 1,200 metric tons of food to southern Gaza on Sunday. Some had been looted in the area of Khan Younis after entering Gaza, residents said.
A group of 25 states including Britain, France and Canada last week said Israel’s denial of aid was unacceptable.
The military’s spokesperson said Israel was committed to international law and monitors the humanitarian situation daily. Brigadier General Effie Defrin said there was no starvation in Gaza, but appeared to acknowledge conditions were critical.
“When we start approaching a problematic line (threshold) then the IDF works to let in humanitarian aid,” he said. “That’s what happened over the weekend.”
Israel cut off aid to Gaza from the start of March to pressure Hamas into giving up dozens of hostages it still holds and reopened it with new restrictions in May.
It says it has been allowing in aid but must prevent it from being diverted by terrorists and blames Hamas for the suffering of Gaza’s people.
HOPE, UNCERTAINTY
Many Gazans expressed some relief at Sunday’s announcement, but said fighting must end.
“People are happy that large amounts of food aid will come into Gaza,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a business owner. “We hope today marks a first step in ending this war that burned everything up.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would continue to allow the entry of humanitarian supplies whether it is fighting or negotiating a ceasefire and vowed to press on with the campaign until “complete victory.”
Hamas said Israel was continuing its military offensive.
“What is happening isn’t a humanitarian truce,” said Hamas official Ali Baraka.
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‘Israel Is Doing More for Gaza’s Civilians than Hamas,’ Says IDF Spokesperson
IDF Spokesperson Effie Deffrin. Photo: IDF
i24 News – In a press briefing held Sunday morning, IDF Spokesperson Effie Defrin addressed the latest developments in the Gaza conflict, including the implementation of a tactical humanitarian pause and the delivery of aid into the enclave.
Defrin sharply criticized Hamas, accusing the organization of spreading false claims about widespread famine in Gaza while actively obstructing humanitarian efforts.
“Israel initiated the creation of food distribution centers to prevent famine,” he said. “We are securing four aid centers, facilitating convoys, and permitting international airdrops. These humanitarian pauses are designed to allow civilians access to essential supplies.”
He went on to condemn Hamas for its handling of humanitarian aid. “While Hamas steals aid meant for civilians and hides it in tunnels, it runs a deceitful campaign claiming there’s famine in Gaza. Let’s be clear: there is no famine, and Israel is operating fully within international law.”
Defrin argued that Israel is showing greater concern for the welfare of Gaza’s residents than Hamas itself. “Hamas is deliberately worsening the situation and disrupting the delivery of aid. They’re not just fighting us, they’re fighting their own people.”
In closing, he stated: “Hamas is no longer a point of reference for many in Gaza. The IDF has established aid centers, and civilians are turning to them daily. No country confronted with such a brutal terrorist organization has done more to support the civilian population in enemy territory.”
The remarks come amid intensified international scrutiny of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, with Israel seeking to reinforce its narrative of compliance with international law and contrast its actions with those of Hamas.
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Netanyahu: ‘We’re Making Progress Toward Victory and Hostage Release’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the press on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, July 8, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
i24 News – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Ramon Air Force Base on Sunday alongside Defense Minister Israel Katz and Air Force Commander Major General Tomer Bar, as Israel’s military campaign in Gaza continues.
During the visit, Netanyahu praised the Israeli Air Force for its performance in the operation, presenting a certificate of appreciation to the Air Force Commander.
He held a closed discussion with ground and air crews, where operational insights and future directions were reviewed.
Addressing the media after the visit, Netanyahu said Israel is “making progress in the fighting and in the negotiations for the release of our hostages,” and reaffirmed that Israel’s war objective remains the complete dismantling of Hamas.
In a pointed criticism of the United Nations, Netanyahu accused the body of spreading misinformation about Israel’s role in facilitating humanitarian aid. “The UN is creating an excuse and a lie about the State of Israel,” he said. “They claim we’re blocking humanitarian supplies. That’s false. There are secured convoys—there always have been. Now it’s official. No more excuses.”
Netanyahu added that humanitarian aid routes remain operational, but emphasized that “minimal humanitarian supplies” would continue only as necessary, and not at the expense of military objectives.
The Prime Minister ended his statement by reinforcing Israel’s determination: “We will continue to fight, continue to act, until we achieve all of our war goals—until complete victory.”
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