Dubai: Holocaust survivor to tell her story in UAE for the first time

Eve Kugler was only seven years old when the Holocaust happened more than 80 years ago. Now 91 years old, she is set to tell her story for the first time to an audience in the UAE.

The event will be held November 9 at the Crossroads of Civilisations Museum in Dubai, marking the 84th anniversary of Kristallnacht or the November Pogrom.

On November 9 to 10 in 1938, hundreds of synagogues were burned across Germany and thousands of Jewish-owned businesses were damaged or destroyed during the infamous Kristallnacht pogroms. Approximately 100 Jews were reportedly murdered and around 30,000 more were rounded up and sent to concentration camps, marking an ominous turning point in world history.

Ahmed Obaid AlMansoori, founder of the Crossroads of Civilizations Museum: “As a Muslim, I cannot standby and allow the memory of the victims, and the voices of the survivors, to fade into history.”

On the sidelines of the Dubai event, Eve will also visit a school where she will meet a number of Jewish and Muslim children.

It will also stand as the inaugural event of the new March of the Living (MOTL) chapter in the Gulf, together with the MOTL ambassador in the region, Eitan Neishlos.

“As a grandson of a survivor, who was saved by a Christian family later murdered by the Nazis, I have a responsibility to hold the torch of memory, and feel a deep duty to bring the lessons and the memory of the Holocaust to all communities and all faiths," said Neishlos.

"All humanity must hear the stories and learn the lessons of the Holocaust. I am grateful to the Emirati leadership for their courage and clear voice promoting tolerance. I am hopeful, thanks to the work of March of the Living, and with the inspiration of Eve’s story in particular, we will greatly contribute to promoting understanding and mutual respect for all peoples," he added.

Along with the keynote address by Eve Kugler, speakers at the event in Dubai will include: Paul Goldenberg, senior representative of the Miller Center for Community Protection and Resilience at Rutgers University and former member of the US Government Homeland Security Advisory Council; commissioner Karl Heeren, chief of external and international relations for Antwerp Police in Belgium; and Jordana Cutler, director of Public Policy - Israel and the Jewish Diaspora at Meta.

In addition to this special event, the International March of the Living is launching its third interfaith campaign of unity to remember Kristallnacht under the title, “Let There Be Light”.

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• Dubai