Germany recognised the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) as an international institution, strengthening in law its commitment to fighting antisemitism.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said his country’s one-year presidency of IHRA will come to a close next month, “ending a year in which denial and playing down of the Holocaust reached new, shameless lows.”
Maas mentioned examples such as protesters against COVID-19-related restrictions comparing their situation to concentration camps, and someone wearing a “Camp Auschwitz” sweatshirt storming the US Capitol last month.
“These images made us all the more determined in our work for the IHRA,” Maas said.
Germany will put IHRA “on equal footing with other international organizations,” Maas explained, saying this is “a signal of international cooperation.”
“For only by joining forces can we take action against the growing trend to distort the historical record and discriminate,” he stated.
