ANKARA
Turkey will commemorate the International Holocaust Remembrance Day in Ankara Tuesday in memory of the millions of people killed by the Nazi regime.
"We once again respectfully commemorate millions of innocent people who lost their lives, primarily the Jews, and convey our condolences to their relatives," a Turkish foreign ministry statement said Tuesday.
The International Holocaust Remembrance Day has been observed in Turkey for the last four years with various activities under the Turkish Jewish Community organization.
On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Jan. 27, 1945, incident when prisoners were freed from the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camps that were established in Poland, Turkish Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek will attend a ceremony at Bilkent University in Ankara.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will also head to Poland to represent Turkey in the commemoration ceremony to be held Tuesday at the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camps.
The delegation accompanying Cavusoglu will include representatives of the Turkish Jewish Community.
"We hope every person develops an understanding of the holocaust, which constitutes one of the darkest times of human history, and we hope every person considers the importance of working together so that such a tragedy, and the conditions that made this inconceivable crime possible, will never reemerge," the statement said.
"However, we observe that anti-Semitism, which formed a basis for the inhuman Nazi ideology, still survives today and, therefore, we believe in the importance of fighting tirelessly against this phenomenon," the statement added.
Turkey has been participating in the activities of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance as an observer country since 2008.
Also, Turkey carries out a number of activities aimed at raising the awareness of citizens about the holocaust and the country reinforces efforts in this direction through a variety of educational activities.
"Turkey tried to help innocent people as much as possible during the years of World War II when the holocaust was cruelly put into practice. Turkish diplomats serving in several European countries at that time managed to save a considerable number of people from being taken to the concentration and death camps by displaying great examples of courage," it added.
Turkey, which maintains that international relations need to be conducted on a more humanitarian basis and always adopts a principled attitude on humanitarian issues, clearly enunciates its sensitivity in all humanitarian matters, including the holocaust, on every occasion, the statement added.
The International Holocaust Remembrance Day was designated by the United Nations General Assembly in 2005.
