Archive Events 2021

August 2021

26.08.2021

Movie tip: Walter Kaufmann - What a life!

Feature documentary only in movie theatres. Walter Kaufmann died on April 15, 2021 at the age of 97 in Berlin.

30.08.2021

International Auschwitz Committee Memorial Ceremony for Roman Kent in Berlin

Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier paid tribute to the former President of the International Auschwitz Committee, Roman Kent, as a champion of the rights of the Shoah survivors.

October 2021

17.10.2021

2.-18.11.2021: Reading tour Christoph Heubner

Christoph Heubner, author and vice president of the International Auschwitz Committee, will go on a reading tour with his new book "Durch die Knochen bis ins Herz" in November.

November 2021

15.11.2021

Auschwitz Visit 2022

Remembrance and educational visit to Kraków, Oświęcim and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum.

30.11.2021

International Holocaust Survivors Night 2021

The claims conference invites you to a special program honoring Holocaust survivors worldwide. Holocaust survivors from around the world – from Israel, the U.S., Germany, Russia, Canada and dozens of other countries – will join together in a digital, global gathering.

Archive Announcements 2021

January 2021

29.01.2021

Name streets and squares after Walter Lübcke!

On the first anniversary of the murder of Walter Lübcke in June 2020, the International Auschwitz Committee already symbolically named a street in Berlin-Tiergarten after him in memory of this important patriot and European.

28.01.2021

Verdict in the trial for the murder of Walter Lübcke: Sentence for Stephan E. is important and the right message

Commenting in Berlin on the verdict in the trial for the murder of the District President of Kassel, Dr Walter Lübcke, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, Christoph Heubner, stated:

26.01.2021

76th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz: Acutely aware of the current dangers

On the occasion of the 76th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz and International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, Christoph Heubner, stressed in Berlin:

21.01.2021

Remembering the 76th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz: Igor Levit plays pieces chosen by Auschwitz survivors

During these days, Auschwitz survivors around the world are commemorating the 76th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz and International Holocaust Remembrance Day. To mark this occasion the International Auschwitz Committee is collaborating with the Federal State Representation of Lower...

20.01.2021

Exhibition: What have I achieved? – Auschwitz survivors take stock

In cooperation with the Federal State Representation of Lower Saxony, the International Auschwitz Committee is marking the run-up to the worldwide remembrance ceremonies for the 76th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Starting on Wednesday 20 January, the IAC will be showing the exhibition...

13.01.2021

On the arrest of Robert Keith Packer in the USA: Nazi scene glorifies Auschwitz with increasing openness and aggression

In Berlin the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, Christoph Heubner, commented on the arrest of the American Robert Keith Packer, who took part in the storming of the Capitol in Washington wearing an Auschwitz T-shirt:

05.01.2021

Scarred by pain and horror: The Auschwitz survivor Renate Lasker-Harpprecht has died

It is with sadness, great respect and gratitude that Auschwitz survivors around the globe are bidding farewell to their fellow sufferer and companion Renate Lasker-Harpprecht. In Berlin Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, paid tribute as follows:

February 2021

20.02.2021

100th birthday of Auschwitz survivor Leon Schwarzbaum

Auschwitz survivors around the world are happy to be sending their best wishes today to their friend, fellow sufferer and companion Leon Schwarzbaum in Berlin. And they are expressing their deepest gratitude on his 100th birthday. In Berlin Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the...

16.02.2021

Statement on the two new trials in Germany of two Nazi perpetrators

The survivors, who are all now very old, have waited throughout their lives for the perpetrators to be brought to justice for their actions. The fact that this is only happening now is a clear sign of failure and neglect on the part of the German judicial authorities over many decades. Knowing that...

14.02.2021

Ban with a signal effect

Commenting on the effort to ban Generation Identitaire in France, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, Christoph Heubner, said in Berlin:

08.02.2021

The prosecution of SS perpetrators should continue despite old age

Trial of a former SS guard at Sachsenhausen concentration camp for accessory to murder in more than 3,000 instances.

March 2021

22.03.2021

International Auschwitz Committee warning: democracy under threat

Auschwitz survivors are very concerned about the steadily increasing propensity to violence and the overt contempt of democracy manifested by the current demonstrations of the Querdenker movement in Kassel and other German cities.

09.03.2021

Mengele’s boss honoured on memorial in his home town

“In memory of our fallen and missing brothers”. This is the inscription on the war memorial in the town of Geroldshausen, Lower Franconia. The list of names includes Eduard Wirths, who was born in the town and from 1942 to 1944 was chief SS doctor at Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and...

03.03.2021

Hungarian MEPs from Orban’s Fidesz party quit EPP group

Commenting on the Hungarian MEPs from the Fidesz Party leaving the EPP group in the European Parliament, Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, said in Berlin:

01.03.2021

Trump and the Nazi symbol of the Odal Rune

At the Conservative Political Action Conference, former president Trump gave his comeback speech on a stage based on the widespread Neo-Nazi symbol of the Odal rune that was once incorporated into SS uniforms. In Berlin Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz...

April 2021

29.04.2021

Durch die Knochen bis ins Herz ("Through the Bones to the Heart") – the new book by Christoph Heubner

The new stories by Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee: "There were railway tracks, there were furnaces, and it was very hot and very dangerous."

25.04.2021

President Biden recognizes Armenian genocide

In a statement about President Biden’s recognition of the Armenian genocide, Christoph Heubner, the Executive President of the International Auschwitz Committee said in Berlin:

21.04.2021

Volkswagen AG supports memorial work in Auschwitz with 600,000 euros

Volkswagen is again supporting the International Auschwitz Committee. The company is providing 600,000 euros for the committee’s work at the Memorial in Oswiecim/Auschwitz

11.04.2021

The Eichmann trial 60 years later: no escape for perpetrators of genocide

On the 60th anniversary of the start of the trial against Adolf Eichmann, a key designer in the genocide of the Jews of Europe, Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee said in Berlin:  

May 2021

21.05.2021

President of the International Auschwitz Committee Roman Kent died

Roman Kent, the President of the International Auschwitz Committee, died today in New York at the age of 96, following a brief, severe illness.

June 2021

24.06.2021

Award for outstanding commitment to psychosocial support for Holocaust survivors

The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is awarded to Dr. Giselle Cycowicz and Dr. Martin Auerbach.

22.06.2021

Lest we forget the crimes against Russian soldiers

Today, Auschwitz survivors around the globe are remembering that day in June 1941, when the German Wehrmacht invaded the die Soviet Union.

21.06.2021

A prime example of how the far right ridicules the democratic state

In Berlin Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, made a statement focussing on the decision of Rostock city council and the voting behaviour of its various groups concerning the planned performance by the singer Xavier Naidoo in the Hanseatic city:

14.06.2021

Marian Turski is elected new president of the International Auschwitz Committee

Following the death of their President Roman Kent, who passed away on 21 May 2021 in New York, the members of the IAC Presidium have elected the Polish-Jewish Auschwitz survivor and journalist Marian Turski from Warsaw as the new president of the International Auschwitz Committee.

09.06.2021

Grounds of the Free University in Berlin possible Holocaust crime scene?

Based on the latest research by the Berlin historian Götz Aly (see Berliner Zeitung, 6.6.2021), Auschwitz survivors are outraged at the lack of willingness and insensitivity on the part of the Free University in Berlin (FU) to investigate and clarify the nature of the human remains discovered in...

05.06.2021

Fears are mounting: Attack on the synagogue in Ulm

In Berlin Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, made a statement on the attack against the synagogue in Ulm:

July 2021

28.07.2021

The Srebrenica genocide: Denial punishable at last

In Berlin Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, commented on the decision of the UN High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina to make the denial of the Srebrenica genocide punishable:

22.07.2021

High award for Felix Kolmer

Professor Felix Kolmer from Prague, Holocaust survivor and Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, has been awarded the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria by the Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen.

10.07.2021

Auschwitz survivor Esther Bejarano has died

In Berlin Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, paid tribute to Esther Bejaranos who has died:

August 2021

05.08.2021

Former members of the army and the police are radicalizing the ‘Querdenker’ movement

Holocaust survivors are deeply shocked by the revelations of journalists concerning the leading organizational and ideological involvement of former members of the military and the police in the so-called Querdenker movement. In Berlin Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the...

September 2021

27.09.2021

AfD results in Saxony and Thuringia a dramatic wake-up call for the democratic parties and society as a whole

Survivors of the Holocaust have been following the German federal elections with special interest. Commenting in Berlin, Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee said:

25.09.2021

Late justice – History returns: The Stutthof Trial in Itzehoe

An act of late justice for their murdered family members is what survivors of the Holocaust and their descendants are hoping for in the Nazi trial of Irmgard Furchner in Itzehoe.

19.09.2021

The Holocaust Memorial Amsterdam is unveiled by the Dutch Auschwitz Committee and King Willem-Alexander

76 years after the end of World War II, and after more than 15 years of controversy and delays concerning the site, the Dutch Auschwitz Committee and King Willem-Alexander are today unveiling the Dutch Holocaust Memorial of Names in Amsterdam:

15.09.2021

Irresponsible decision by the administrative court in Chemnitz on the III Weg posters

Commenting on the decision of the administrative court in Chemnitz on the III Weg posters, Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee said in Berlin:

14.09.2021

Saul Friedländer is awarded the Balzan Prize 2021 for Holocaust and Genocide Studies

On the award of the prestigious international Balzan Prize to the historian and Holocaust survivor Saul Friedländer, Christoph Heubner, executive vice-president of the International Auschwitz Committee said in Berlin:

12.09.2021

Pope Francis travels to Hungary and Slovakia, and once again meets with Holocaust survivors and Roma families

Holocaust survivors around the world are following Pope Francis’ journey to Hungary and Slovakia with great interest and respect. During his travels Pope Francis will again be meeting with Holocaust survivors and Roma families. Commenting in Berlin Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the...

08.09.2021

Election posters published by the aggressive fascist group "Der III Weg" bearing murder threats against Green politicians and voters

In response to the activities of the fascist party "Der III Weg" (The Third Path) in the run-up to the German parliamentary elections, Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee stated:

07.09.2021

September 7 - Rosh ha-Shanah 2021

Celebrating the Jewish New Year 5782, we wish everyone Shanah Tovah! A happy and prosperous new year!

October 2021

30.10.2021

Auschwitz survivor Albina Moimas celebrates her 100th birthday

In honour of her 100th birthday the Auschwitz Committee presents the commemorative medal marking the 75th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz to Albina Moimas.

27.10.2021

The artist Gerhard Richter is presenting an edition of his Birkenau Paintings and four Grey Mirror paintings to the International Auschwitz Committee.

The exhibition ensemble of works by the world-famous German artist includes not only these mirror paintings but also four reproductions of the original photographs taken by a prisoner in Birkenau.

04.10.2021

Opening of the newly conceived and designed memorial exhibition of the Republic of Austria in Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial centre

Today, following many years of discussion on contents and design, the Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen will open the Republic of Austria’s new memorial exhibition at the Auschwitz Memorial, together with the Polish Auschwitz survivor and President of the International Auschwitz Committee...

December 2021

29.12.2021

Russia’s Supreme Court orders closure of the human rights organization Memorial.

Commenting on the continuing efforts to suppress Russian institutions and to destroy Memorial, Christoph Heubner, the Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee said in Berlin:

18.12.2021

Auschwitz survivors around the world congratulate Steven Spielberg on his 75th birthday.

In Berlin Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, congratulated and paid tribute to the film director Steven Spielberg on his 75th birthday:

17.12.2021

Amsterdam verdict: Far right populist not to compare Coronavirus rules with the Holocaust

Auschwitz survivors are welcoming the ground-breaking court judgement handed down yesterday in Amsterdam against the MP Thierry Baudet. Baudet had made repeated references in his statements comparing the coronavirus measures taken by the Dutch authorities with the persecution of Jewish families...

11.12.2021

Carry van Lakerveld, former Dutch vice president of the International Auschwitz Committee died.

Sadly and full of gratitude, the International Auschwitz Committee says goodbye to its former Dutch Vice-President Carry van Lakerveld, who has died in Amsterdam at the age of 83.

10.12.2021

AfD bid to chair Bundestag interior committee: fatally thoughtless signal

The survivors of the German concentration and extermination camps are following the first steps taken by the new government in Germany with great interest. Commenting in Berlin Christoph Heubner, the der Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee said:

08.12.2021

Christoph Heubner honoured for his great commitment

During a ceremony held under Coronavirus restrictions, Reinhard Naumann, Mayor of the district of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf in Berlin, presented the Great Cross of Merit to Christoph Heubner.

04.12.2021

Holocaust survivors thank Pope Francis

In a statement concerning the present journey of Pope Francis to Cyprus, his clear words during his meeting with refugees in Nicosia, and his subsequent journey to Greece with his renewed visit to the refugee camp on Lesbos, Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz...