Mayor Erion Veliaj accompanied Israeli President during the ceremony at the Holocaust memorial at Tirana’s Lake Park.

Tirana Mayor Veliaj said in his remarks that “whole world reflects on Holocaust on a day like this so that it never happens again.”

“Today we commemorate one of the most tragic events in our human history; the extermination of 6 million Jews. The mistakes of the past should not be repeated. ‘Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,’ George Santayana once wrote. Therefore, it is very important not to repeat the mistakes of the past, but to learn from them,” Veliaj said.

Israel’s head of state Herzog expressed gratitude to Albanian citizens for saving Jews during WWII   and praised Mayor Veliaj for his contribution to commemorate heroic generations.

“People of different faiths stood together against evil, refusing to allow ignorance and hatred to distort their emotions and beliefs in human beings. Today, while the tide of hatred, anti-Semitism and terror has turned again against Jews around the world and in Israel, Albania further extends its tradition of tolerance, dignity and respect. I would like to thank the entire Albanian nation and I thank you, dear mayor, and your city, for such an incredible, fruitful and strong friendship. This country has remained a beacon of goodwill and decency. Albania reminds us that Jews and Muslims, Bektashi and Christian faithful can live together in harmony and mutual respect. The Albanian experience proves that peace between people is possible,” he said.

During WWII, some 2000 Jewish people sought refuge in Albania and were protected by the local population. They were sheltered in Albanians’ homes, sometimes even given local names to hide their identity and others were hidden in mountain communities, away from advancing enemy forces.  Albania’s first Holocaust memorial, in remembrance of all the Jewish people who sought refuge and were given shelter in Albania during the Second World War, has been built in Tirana’s Artificial Lake Park few years ago.

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