Hundreds of survivors of the notorious Bergen Belsen concentration camp assembled at the site near here today to pay homage to their comrades who did not survive and recall the day 25 years ago when the camp was liberated by Allied forces. The gathering was arranged by the World Federation of Bergen Belsen Associations. It brought together former inmates from the United States, Canada, Britain, Israel, West Germany, France and other European Countries. They were joined by various dignitaries, among them Brig. Gen. Glyn Hughes; Michael Peled, Counsellor of the Israel Embassy in Bonn; and Dr. Gerhard M. Riegner and Dr. S.J. Roth representing the World Jewish Congress. Gen. Hughes was the British second Army medical officer who took charge of the rehabilitation of Bergen Belsen survivors after their liberation. One of the survivors, Norbert Wollhelm, vice president of the Federation, said, “Individually we can decide whether to forgive the Germans or not. Collective forgiveness is impossible…It was the Germans who brought Hitler to power and we can never feel the same again on German soil.”
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.
