Hungarian Jews mark anniversary of Budapest Ghetto’s liberation

The Hungarian Jewish community has commemorated 76 years since the liberation of the Budapest Ghetto with 76 hours of programming to mark the occasion.

Holocaust survivors’ recollections and thought-provoking conversations were interspersed with music, documentaries, short films and videos of public figures such as artists and celebrities explaining their connection to Judaism.

The Jewish community holds its candle lighting ceremony each year to commemorate the liberation at the Budapest Ghetto Memorial Wall on Dohány Street, but coronavirus restrictions meant no outdoor ceremony this year.

“While the pandemic may prevent us from our annual remembrance in-person, we can still be together, watching and listening to a variety of engaging and inspiring programmes online,” said Rabbi Slomó Köves.

More than 70,000 were packed into the ghetto, it only lasted from November 1944 until liberation in January 1945, but for two months conditions were horrific, with overcrowding, food shortages, and frequent deadly raids by Hungarian fascists. Thousands of buried corpses were found buried adjacent to the ghetto.