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Israel marks Holocaust Remembrance Day

Israel marks Holocaust Remembrance Day
Copyright  Pool via Reuters/Debbie Hill/
Copyright Pool via Reuters/Debbie Hill/
By Euronews
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Two minutes of silence were observed nationwide in memory of the six million Jews killed by the Nazis during the Second World War

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Israel has marked Holocaust Remembrance Day - an annual commemoration for the six million Jews killed by the Nazis in the Second World War.

At 10 o'clock on Thursday morning, daily activities ground to a halt for two minutes nationwide, to the sound of a lamenting siren.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu laid a wreath during a ceremony at the Yad Vashem World Holocaust Remembrance Centre in Jerusalem.

In a Holocaust memorial speech on Wednesday, he called for action against Syria following the suspected poison gas attack.

The US has threatened air strikes against Syria over the use of chemical weapons that Damascus and its ally Russia deny.

"The events of the last days teach that standing up to evil and aggression is a mission that is incumbent upon every generation," Netanyahu said, without explicitly referring to the standoff between Washington and Moscow.

"We saw the Syrian children who were slaughtered with chemical weapons. Our hearts were rent by the horrific sights."

Netanyahu also invoked the lessons of World War Two and the Holocaust to urge action against Iran, criticising the nuclear deal it signed with world powers.

He warned the Islamic Republic not to test Israel's resolve.

with Reuters

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