Friday was the eve of Kristallnacht, a day when Jewish people and their properties were attacked in pogroms in Germany in 1938.
It was no coincidence that Friday was the day chosen for Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to meet with members of the Central Jewish Council of Greece to look at ways in which to fight antisemitism.
David Saltiel and members of the Council’s board attended the meeting, as did Efstathios Lianos Liantis, special secretary for Anti-Semitism and Anti-Defamation of the Holocaust.
Mr Mitsotakis was briefed on the country’s adoption of working definitions of what antisemitism is and Holocaust deniers, according to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) which Greece will assume the presidency of in 2021. Greece’s hosting of the IHRA presidency was decided according to a unanimous decision by the body’s plenary.
READ MORE: Jewish mayor’s victory hailed as rejection of anti-Semitism in Greece
“Greece is the first country to adopt the working definition of Holocaust denial, a landmark act,” a statement from the premier’s office said.
Greece’s presidency term will coincide with the 200th anniversary of the start of Greece’s War of Independence.
READ MORE: Israeli officials call out Greek church on antisemitism
Mr Mitsotakis has appointed Deputy Premier Panagiotis Pikrammenos as coordinator of the events that will be aimed at showcasing Greece’s 2,000-year Jewish history. There will also be work done to incorporate related definitions to Greek legislation and education, said the statement.
