Press releases

“In the early 20th century, over half of the city’s population were Jews. Their destiny makes a tragic part of the history of Brest. We need to build a lapidarium that would symbolize our memory,” Alexander Rogachuk said.

He told that the memorial has already been designed. It will be located on the site of the former Jewish cemetery.

A document was signed at Brest City Hall on 15 June to hand over four tombstones from the former Jewish cemetery in Brest to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

“This event is of much significance to us for two reasons. The Nazis wanted to destroy not only the Jewish people, but also any traces of their religion and culture. Besides, your city is famous in the world for its heroic resistance to the Nazi invaders,” Radu Ioanid stressed.

U.S. Charge d’Affaires to Belarus Scott Rauland also attended the meeting at Brest City Hall. “This means that a part of the Belarusian history will be displayed at the museum in Washington for a long time. I hope that our cooperation will continue to grow stronger,” Scott Rauland stressed. The countries have plans to establish mutually beneficial exchange of information and archive documents related to the Holocaust.

With nearly 1.7 million annual visits, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is one of the most popular museums in the country.