Israel submitted its candidacy for the presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance in 2025, Foreign Ministry Director-General Alon Ushpiz announced on Wednesday.
A different country holds the presidency of IHRA each year and hosts meetings of the plenary, IHRA’s decision-making body, up to twice a year. Sweden is currently the presiding country.
The year 2025 will mark the 25th anniversary of IHRA’s establishment and 80 years to the end of World War II.
Ushpiz made the announcement during a ceremony at the Foreign Ministry ahead of Yom Hashoah honoring diplomats recognized as Righteous Among the Nations for saving Jews during the Holocaust.
“In the darkest hours of the Holocaust, the light of morality was lit in the form of the brave acts and altruistic courage of those who helped save the lives of thousands of Jews,” Ushpiz stated. “Among them were 38 diplomats…We, the people and the government of Israel, thank them with all our hearts.”
Diplomats stationed in Israel and foreign government officials responsible for combating antisemitism attended the ceremony, which was planned in cooperation with the World Jewish Congress, as well as “Zikaron Basalon,” an organization that brings Holocaust survivors into people’s homes to tell their stories. Holocaust survivor Aliza Landau, who lost her entire family in the Holocaust, spoke at the event.
Ushpiz also spoke of the rising antisemitism around the world.
“In recent years, we are witness to a disturbing change in the expressions of antisemitism, Holocaust denial and calls to destroy the State of Israel as the national home of the Jewish people. They have reached a level that is unprecedented since the end of World War II,” he said.
The ceremony was part of a Foreign Ministry-WJC conference for envoys for fighting antisemitism. The forum gathers twice a year; this week’s meeting focused on Holocaust denial and online antisemitism.
Among the participants were EU Coordinator on Combating Antisemitism Katharina von Schnurbein, Canadian Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism Irwin Cotler and UN Focal Point on Antisemitism Miguel Moratinos.