Lt. Gen. Zamir: “From the ashes and destruction rose the State of Israel, and from it rose the IDF – the defending army of the Jewish people.”

By David Brummer

Members of the IDF General Staff Forum, led by Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, held a seminar on Monday at Yad Vashem in honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day and 80 years since the end of World War II.

The event opened with remarks by Yad Vashem Chairman Dani Dayan, followed by a lecture from Rabbi Tamir Granot, head of the Orot Shaul Yeshiva, according to the IDF website. Granot, whose son fell in the line of duty in October 2023, reflected on “the ability to rise from the depths of pain and loss and to hold on to life, growth, and rehabilitation.”

Commanders later met with Holocaust survivor Lea Balint, who, as a child, was hidden in a Franciscan convent in Poland. She had been smuggled from the Ostrowiec ghetto with her mother, who was later killed. Balint arrived in Haifa with her father after the war. She was honored with a certificate as part of the “A Flower for a Survivor” initiative, in a ceremony attended by Limor Livnat, chair of the Foundation for the Welfare of Holocaust Victims.

Participants also visited the “Book of Names” exhibit, that emphasizes hope as a key value during and after the Holocaust. The day concluded with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Hall of Names.

Lt. Gen. Zamir said the Holocaust was not only a story of destruction but also of “resilience, spirit, courage, and inner strength,” noting that the State of Israel and the IDF rose from its ashes. “The IDF is the guardian of this revival… the decisive response to the horrors of the Holocaust: never again shall the people be without a protector. We will continue to fight and defend – the State of Israel, the Jewish people, and the generations to come.”

“May the memory of the fallen be blessed,” he concluded.