Polovets was joined by Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in planting pomegranate trees, symbolizing righteousness because the fruit is said to contain 613 seeds, corresponding to the 613 commandments of the Torah.
“I was honored to participate and moved by the ceremony, during which German President Steinmeier said he ‘felt shame’ and that the memory of what was done to the Jewish people on this site ‘cannot be erased.’ That is why this Museum is so important. The memory of once-vibrant Greek Jewish community and their near destruction by the Nazis, especially during the current wave of rising global antisemitism, must never be erased.”
The construction of the museum is funded by The Genesis Prize Foundation, along with German and Greek governments. It is located at the site of the Old Railway Station where trains departed for Nazi concentration camps and is scheduled for completion in approximately two years.
“It was important that both Presidents Steinmeier and Sakellaropoulou met with Greek Holocaust survivors who bore witness to the Nazi atrocities. The Museum will now take on the responsibility of transmitting their testimony, and that of precious few other survivors, to the next generation.”
More than 90% of the once-vibrant Thessaloniki Jewish community of 50,000 died in the camps. Only about 1,000 Jews remain in the city today.
The Genesis Prize is a $1 million annual prize awarded to Jewish people or organizations who have achieved significant professional success, in recognition of their accomplishments, contributions to humanity, and commitment to Jewish values.