Polish and Israeli presidents jointly lead Auschwitz march

Apr 25, 2025 | History, Politics, Society

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

The presidents of Poland and Israel, Andrzej Duda and Isaac Herzog, have jointly led thousands of participants – including both Holocaust survivors and former Hamas hostages – on the annual March of the Living at Auschwitz.

The event, which this year took place on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the former German-Nazi death camp, both commemorates the Holocaust and seeks to combat contemporary forms of prejudice.

“Never again hatred, never against chauvinism, never again antisemitism,” said Duda. “One must not remain silent in the face of any manifestations of racial or ethnic hatred.”

“Because if one remains silent about it, the final effect may be the same as what happened here, what was done by the Germans here during World War II, when they tried – guided by ethnic hatred, a savage desire for destruction – to wipe out the Jewish nation from humanity.”

In his remarks, Herzog made direct reference to the conflict in Gaza, and in particular the fact that dozens of Israeli hostages remain in the hands of Hamas after being taken during the attack on 7 October 2023 – a day that he noted saw “the most Jews were murdered since the Holocaust”.

“Although after the Holocaust we swore ‘never again’, today…59 of our brothers and sisters are in the hands of terrorist murderers in Gaza, in a terrible and horrific crime against humanity,” he said. “I call from here, from this holy place, on the entire international community to mobilise and put an end to this humanitarian crime”.

Among the participants in the march were not only elderly Holocaust survivors – as every year since March of the Living began in 1988 – but also former Hamas hostages and hostage families, notes the JNS news agency.

“Every representative who has come here is a triumph of light for the Jewish people and a reminder that we are the victory of the spirit,” said Eli Sharabi, who spent almost 500 days as a Hamas hostage in Gaza.

Duda, meanwhile, “expressed hope that the war that is taking place in the Gaza Strip, which began with the Hamas attack on Israel, will end; that the hostages who are still in Hamas’ hands will be able to return home”.

Auschwitz was originally set up by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland in 1940 as a camp to house Polish “political” prisoners, before later becoming primarily a site for the murder of Jews.

At least 1.3 million victims were transported there, with at least 1.1 million of them killed at the camp. Around one million of those victims were Jews, most of whom were murdered in gas chambers immediately after their arrival. The second largest group of victims were ethnic Poles.

Late last year, a dispute broke out between Israel and Poland after a Polish official suggested Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be arrested if he attended the 80th anniversary of the camp’s liberation in January. Eventually, the Polish government guaranteed Netanyahu safe passage, though he chose not to attend.

Earlier last year, Israel’s ambassador to Poland criticised the Polish government for supporting Palestine’s bid to become a full member of the United Nations.


Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Marek Borawski/KPRP

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