Memorial services for Jewish martyrs were held recently in the Soviet cities of Vilna and Minsk, Jewish sources here said today. In Vilna on April 24, at the site of the World War II murder of numerous Jews, hundreds of Jews turned out for a ceremony that included the laying of wreaths, the lighting of six torches and the reciting of Kaddish. The wreaths were laid in the form of a Mogen David. In Minsk on May 2, around 100 Jewish youths convened at the stone marking the site of the former ghetto. They laid flowers, recited prayers and cleaned up the area. Last year at this time, only 40 persons showed up for the Minsk ceremony. Which was then considered a notably large turnout.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.