Ruse Marked the 81st Anniversary of the Rescue of the Bulgarian Jews

Sunday, 10 March 2024

The Regional Organization of the Jews "Shalom" in Ruse, chaired by Panayot Totev, marked the 81st anniversary of the rescue of the Bulgarian Jews with a short ceremony of laying flowers on the memorial plaque dedicated to the citizens of Ruse, which helped and contributed to the prevention of the deportation of thousands of Jews.

The event was attended by the Mayor of Ruse Municipality Pencho Milkov, the Deputy Governor Georgi Georgiev, the Chairman of the Municipal Council Acad. Hristo Beloev, the Deputy Chairman of the local organization of "Shalom" Stela Dionysieva, members of the organization and grateful citizens of Ruse.

"The most important lessons we remember today is that we must always act according to human principles and not lose our dignity. It is our responsibility to remember and pass on the truth about the events to the young generations", said Pencho Milkov.

Bulgaria is one of the few European countries that managed to save Jews living in our lands from deportation. On March 10, 1943, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, represented by Sofia Metropolitan Stefan and Metropolitan Kiril of Plovdiv, prevented the deportation of hundreds of Jews from Plovdiv. At the same time, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Dimitar Peshev and 43 MPs uncover the secret agreement between Bulgaria and the Third Reich for the deportation of tens of thousands of Jews and thwart Nazi Germany's plans.

Four Bulgarians from Kyustendil – Asen Suichmezov, Vladimir Kurtev, Ivan Momchilov and Petar Mihalev – also have a great merit for this act. In Israel, they are recognized by the Yad Vashem Memorial as the "Righteous of the World," an honorary title given to non-Jewish people who risked their lives in rescuing Jews during the Holocaust.

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