6.2 What was it like to survive the Holocaust?
6.2 What was it like to survive the Holocaust? Liberation
Source 6.2
The Second World War ended in Europe on 8 May 1945. For those Jews who had survived, liberation was the start of a long journey. Jews had been living in fear for years; they were physically and mentally exhausted, starving, and suffering from diseases due to the terrible conditions in the camps. Now, they had to gather up the strength to face what had happened.
Source 6.1
My bones stuck out from under my skin. All my joints were full of pus, my knees, my elbows, my throat … They thought it was diphtheria; it wasn’t … it was the onset of death [...] And suddenly Lusia came and said ‘The war is over.’ I still remember the feeling. I thought ‘Now? What for? It’s no longer possible to live, there’s nothing anymore. Where were they before? What’s the use of it now?’ From the testimony of Miriam Akavia
Activities 1 Why do you think Yitzhak felt so sad
That day …, was the saddest day of my life. I wanted to cry, not from joy but from grief.
on the day of his liberation?
2 How would you describe Miriam’s
From the testimony of Yitzhak Zuckerman
feelings on the day of liberation?
Figure 6.4 A survivor sitting alone after his liberation at Bergen-Belsen, April 1945.
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