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Jewish leaders and supporters of Israel say this year\u2019s International Holocaust Remembrance Day is a time to not only remember the victims of the Nazi genocide but also to fight antisemitism in a post-Oct. 7 world that has grown more hostile to the Jewish people. \u00a0<\/p>\n
International Holocaust Remembrance Day is held annually on Jan. 27, the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Poland. It falls on Saturday this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Some 6 million Jewish people died at the hands of the Nazis during the Holocaust.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we are witnessing an alarming rise of antisemitism around the globe, it is more important than ever for us to recognize the critical lessons of Holocaust history as we commemorate the victims and honor the survivors,\u201d the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum\u00a0said<\/a> in a statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mark Weitzman, the chief operating officer of the World Jewish Restitution Organization, said Oct. 7 was a major event in Jewish history. The terrorist group Hamas attacked Israel that day, killing some 1,200 and taking more than 200 hostage.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSince the Holocaust 80 years ago, we haven’t faced anything like this, like we’re facing today,\u201d Weitzman\u00a0said<\/a> in an interview with the American Jewish Committee.\u00a0<\/p>\n Referencing the United States, he added, \u201cJews are in an unprecedented situation in this country in terms of antisemitism.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think there are clear connections between people who are downplaying or distorting the events of Oct. 7,\u201d he said, \u201cand those that engage in Holocaust distortion or hardcore Holocaust denial, because both are linked by an attempt to try to explain what is for them an uncomfortable historical reality that targeted Jews, whether the Holocaust or the events of Oct. 7, to justify their preconceived political agenda, which often includes an antisemitic conspiracy theory, either as its base or as its method to achieve their goals.\u201d<\/p>\n