EVENTS

In October 1943, most Danish Jews managed to escape to Sweden in a heroic rescue operation. 476 Jews were caught by the Germans and deported to Ghetto Theresienstadt. The online conference to mark the 80^th anniversary of the deportation of Danish Jews to Ghetto Theresienstadt was held on December 10^th.

The event begab with the lighting of Hanukah candles by Shani Shavit and her family. Shavit is the granddaughter of Reuven (Robert) Fischermann, a survivor of Ghetto Theresienstadt.

Reuven (Robert) Fischermann was born in 1928 in Denmark, the son of Malka and Leopold who had 6 children. On Saturday, October 2, 1943 Reuven, his mother, and three of his brothers were arrested by the German police at their home. Three days later, they arrived at Ghetto Theresienstadt. After several weeks’ detention, the family was allocated space in a room together with 2 other families, where they lived for 18 months. In April 1945 they were liberated by the Swedish Red Cross. Upon reaching Sweden the family discovered that Reuven’s father and eldest brother had drowned while attempting to escape to Sweden in a boat in 1943. After the war, the remaining family members returned to Denmark. In 1972 Reuven immigrated to Israel with his wife and two daughters.

After the greetings of the Danish and Swedish ambassadors, Dr. Orna Keren Carmel gave a lecture on “Saving the Jews of Denmark – also in Ghetto Theresienstadt”. Dr. Dov Levitan gave a lecture on “The white buses”, dedicated to his uncles Cilla & Bernhard Cohn who were deported from Copenhagen to Theresienstadt in October 1943, survived and returned to Copenhagen in the “White Buses” operation.

Watch the event