The first international gathering of representatives of the World War II allies who took part in liberating Nazi concentration camps in the spring of 1945 will be held at the State Department Oct. 26-28 under auspices of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, it was announced here.
The Memorial Council, headed by Elie Wiesel, was formed in 1980 as the official federal agency to memorialize the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust, as well as the many millions of other victims of the Nazi conquest of Europe.
Delegations from the United States and the other Allied forces who took part in the camp liberations, as well as members of the World War II Jewish Brigade have been invited to participate, according to Miles Lerman of Vineland, N.J. vice-chairman of the Memorial Council and chairman of the conference.
Invitations have been extended to Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, France, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Britain, the USSR and Yugoslavia, Lerman said. Plenary sessions Oct. 27 and Oct. 28 will present eyewitness accounts of the liberations by survivors, high-ranking military personnel, doctors, nurses, chaplains, war correspondents, members of war crimes tribunals and historians.
An appeal to all persons present at the liberation of the camps to give their testimonies to Dr. Paul Crawford, director of the Witness to the Holocaust Project at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., was made by Robert Zweiman, Jewish War Veterans commander.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.