Germany remembers Holocaust victims with ceremony

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN (AA) - Germany’s parliament speaker on Thursday called on citizens to take a stronger stance against anti-Semitism, racism and discrimination in everyday life.

Speaking at a memorial service held at the parliament for the victims of Nazi dictatorship, Wolfgang Schaeuble said it was “shameful” for Germany that Jewish people do not feel safe in the country, more than 70 years after the Holocaust.

"But it is not enough to feel shame. Besides ensuring the full rigor of the law, there is a need to stand up, especially in our everyday life, against anti-Semitism, racism and all forms of discrimination,” he stressed.

The German parliament holds a memorial service annually on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp by the Soviet Army on Jan. 27, 1945.

Around 1.1 million people, mostly Jews from across Europe, were killed at the Auschwitz camp between 1940 and 1945.