International Holocaust Remembrance Day: Wreaths laid at Kazerne Dossin memorial museum

Among commemorations around the world to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in 1945, Kazerne Dossin in Flanders staged a solemn wreath-laying ceremony on Monday.

In the presence of politicians, ambassadors and delegates from 20 different countries, wreaths were placed to honour the 25,843 individuals deported from the former barracks in Mechelen during the Second World War.

Between 1942 and 1944, 25,490 Jews and 353 Roma and Sinti were transported by train to Auschwitz-Birkenau in occupied Poland. Only 5% of them survived the war. Today, the former military barracks serves as a memorial museum and space for remembrance and reflection.

Among the nations represented at the ceremony were Norway, Israel, Chile, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and the United States, said the museum in a statement.

Claude Marinower, vice president of Kazerne Dossin, told guests: “This is a moment of deep reflection, awareness and recognition. We not only honour the countless victims of the Holocaust, but we also acknowledge that this past holds a significance that impacts us all.”

The museum’s director Tomas Baum highlighted the importance of remembrance with the phrase "Never again." He said the words resonated powerfully as a promise. “History calls on us to keep listening, to remain open to the stories of others, and to show empathy for perspectives beyond our own. It also demands that we critically reflect on our own actions, the choices we make and the world we shape together."

It was on 27 January 1945 that the Auschwitz concentration camp was finally liberated.  Since then, International Holocaust Remembrance Day has commemorated victims of the genocide every year.

Photos: ©Kazerne Dossin/Jeroen Van Looyvoor