Holocaust Survivor Urges German Police to Combat Antisemitism at Berlin Event

Senior law enforcement representatives from Germany, the United States and other European countries gathered in Berlin on Thursday for a Kristallnacht commemoration. The event, titled "Not on Our Watch: Operationalizing Never Again," marked the 88th anniversary of the November 1938 pogroms.

The International March of the Living organized the gathering at the New Synagogue–Centrum Judaicum. Partners included the German Police Union, the European Federation of Police Unions and the Jewish Community of Berlin.

“My message to them is clear: Learn from what happened and commit to ensuring it never happens again.”

Jochen Kopelke, federal chairman of the German Police Union and president of the European Federation of Police Unions, delivered the keynote address. He warned of rising homegrown antisemitism and called for greater political support and resources for police.

Holocaust survivor George Shefi, 94, traveled from Israel to speak at the event in the city he fled as a child. He was almost seven during the pogroms and remained inside his Berlin home as the violence unfolded. When he emerged, he found that the synagogue housing his school had been burned to the ground.

After the pogroms, Shefi's mother sent him alone to Britain on a Kindertransport. He never saw her again; she was murdered at Auschwitz. Shefi later lived in the United States before settling in Israel, where he volunteered for years with the Israel Police.

Shefi told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency before the event that Germany's responsibility to preserve Holocaust memory is eternal. He said today's generations of Germans are not guilty of what happened but have an enormous responsibility and duty to learn from the past.

The New Synagogue was set on fire during Kristallnacht but was not completely destroyed thanks to Wilhelm Krützfeld, head of the local police precinct, who called the fire brigade. His memory was honored at the event on Thursday night.