Jewish Holocaust survivor visits Iceland

Andras Hamori shared his story from the Holocaust at a well-attended meeting in Reykjavik last week. Andras is a Jew of Hungarian origin who survived the horrors of World War II.

In the spring of 1944, Andras and his family were deported from Hungary to a Nazi concentration camp. He was one of the thousands of Jews in Hungary who were saved by Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, who provided them with a Swedish passport. His family, however, did not survive. Andras fled to Austria and finally received protection as a refugee in the United States where he has lived ever since.

Ásmundur Einar Daðason, Minister of Social Affairs, spoke at today’s meeting: "It must be difficult for Andras to tell us his story, but I thank him for it. We need to hear his story. We need to remember. It is not easy to discuss and recall horrible events, but if we do not remember, we risk taking life and a peaceful future for granted. We cannot afford complacency."

Other speakers at the event were Unnur Dís Skaptadóttir, Professor at the University of Iceland, Morten Kjærum, Managing Director of Raoul Wallenberg Institute and Kristín S. Hjálmtýsdóttir, Secretary General of the Icelandic Red Cross.