Lives and loss

Yad Vashem

When survivors recall stories of incredible strength, a triumphant rejoinder to existence against all hardships shines through their tears. Holocaust survivors have built their lives on years of cruelty and loss, and an empathetic coming together helps communities connect with the universality and uniqueness of grief. January 27 was declared as International Holocaust Remembrance Day by the United Nations to mark the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. In sync with the spirit of the day, Consulate General of Israel in Mumbai in association with St Xavier's College and Museum Society of Mumbai has organised an online event that will focus on survivor Tswi Joseph Herschel's testimony.

Tswi Josef Herschel as a baby

Herschel lost both his parents to the Holocaust. Before his parents were taken to the Sobibor camp, he was handed over to a Dutch family that gave him a non-Jewish identity and took care of him until the War ended. After many years, Tswi's grandmother found out his whereabouts.

Tswi Josef Herschel

At the event, Museum Society of Mumbai will take participants and students of St Xavier's College on a virtual tour of Yad Vashem - Israel's official memorial for Jews. College students who take part in this tour are expected to collaborate and put up an exhibition on survivor stories. Asking one and all to remember and learn, Kobbi Shoshani, consul general of Israel in Mumbai, said, "With the materials on Holocaust available to us, we should highlight that such an occurrence shouldn't be repeated. Never again."

Log on to: @israelinmumbai on Twitter