Michael Sidko, the last known survivor of the Babyn Yar Massacre in 1941, received a medal from the Knesset on Sunday marking 80 years since the atrocity.
Sidko was presented the medal by Knesset Speaker Mickey Levy.
"I was honored to present him with a medal of recognition on behalf of the Knesset, on behalf of Israeli democracy. I reassured Michael that the memory of his family, along with all the victims of Babyn Yar and the Holocaust, will be safeguarded forever," said Levy.
The massacre took place in Kyiv, Ukraine where more than 33,000 Jews were killed in just two days by the Nazis – their killing spree accounted for almost all of the Jews of Kyiv.
Sidko was reportedly six years old when he witnessed the murder of his sister, and mother.
His testimony can be seen in the video below:
The Knesset ceremony to mark the anniversary included representatives from Yad Vashem, the World Zionist Organization and the Jewish Agency.
Natan Sharansky, chairman of the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center, said: "In order to understand the entire story of the extermination of the Jews in-depth, I call on the Israeli government and anyone who has visited Poland to visit Babyn Yar as well." Sharansky promised Michael that the names of his family members who perished would be mentioned at the official ceremony in October in Kyiv to mark the 80th anniversary of the massacre.
Sidko and his brother managed to escape death along with his brother due to a Polish neighbor who passed them off as her own sons for the duration of the war.