HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE 2026
Every year on 27 January, the international community comes together to commemorate the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. This Day was chosen by the United Nations General Assembly to mark the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp in 1945.
The United Nations Office at Geneva and its partners will mark the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust (27 January) reflecting the theme of this year's commemoration: “Holocaust Remembrance for Dignity and Human Rights”
Date: 27 January 2026
Time: 1 p.m.
Venue: Palais des Nations, Room XVI
Theme: Holocaust Remembrance for Dignity and Human Rights
A portrait of Emanuel Rosenthal, age two, and his brother, Avram, age five in the Kovno ghetto, Lithuania, February 1944.
In 2026, the theme “Holocaust Remembrance for Dignity and Human Rights” will guide United Nations Holocaust remembrance and education.
Remembrance dignifies the victims and survivors of the Holocaust. It keeps alive their memories of the communities and traditions and loved ones the Nazis sought to erase.
The Holocaust warns us of the deadly consequences of antisemitism and hatred, dehumanization and apathy left unchallenged. Over eighty years after the Holocaust, we witness daily assaults on our fellow global citizens. Antisemitism and hatred surge.
Denial and distortion of the Holocaust persist. Remembrance of the Holocaust defies denial and distortion, rejects falsehoods, confronts hatred, and insists on the humanity of the victims.
The defence of universal rights is essential for sustainable peace and lies at the heart of the United Nations. In remembering the victims of the Holocaust, we affirm our shared humanity and pledge to defend the dignity and human rights of all.
PROGRAMME
The official ceremony of the United Nations Office at Geneva will pay tribute to those who perished in Nazi death camps.
Musical performance by Sergey Ostrovsky, accompanied by Eliron Czeiger, violinist.
Welcome and introduction by Master of ceremony, Ms. Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the UN Information Service Geneva.
Message of Mr. António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General.
Musical performance by Sergey Ostrovsky accompanied by Eliron Czeiger, violinist.
Remarks by Ms. Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva.
Remarks by His Excellency Mr. Daniel Martin Meron, Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
Remarks by Ambassador His Excellency Mr. Michele Cervone D’Urso, Deputy Permanent Observer of the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
Lighting of the candles.
Minute of silence.
Musical performance by Sergey Ostrovsky, accompanied by Eliron Czeiger, violinist.
Keynote address by Ms. Leonie de Picciotto Holocaust survivor, with the support of Mr. Daniel Johnson, UN Information Service.
With thanks to the Permanent Mission of Israel and the Permanent Delegation of the European Union for their kind support.
The ceremony will also be streamed live on :
- UN Web TV platform http://webtv.un.org/
- Facebook (@UNGeneva)