Pope Francis, speaking on the eve of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz, said the Holocaust must never be forgotten.
“The horror of the extermination of millions of Jews and people of other faiths in those years can neither be forgotten nor denied,” the pope said on Sunday to believers gathered at St Peter’s Square in the Vatican.
On January 27, 1945, Soviet soldiers liberated the German concentration and extermination camp in Nazi-occupied Poland.
The 80th anniversary of the date falls on Monday, with delegations from more than 40 countries expected to attend the main ceremony at the memorial on the site of the former camp.
The Nazis had deported around 1.3 million people to the camp. Approximately 1.1 million were murdered, including about 1 million European Jews.
Francis said the anniversary was a reminder that building a more fraternal and just world must remain a priority. He said young people must also be taught to have an open heart for everyone.
