Bulgarian MPs ‘regret’ Holocaust deportations
By JTA
03/10/2013 22:57
Resolution published by Bulgarian parliament issued ahead of 70th anniversary of start of deportations of 11,000 Jews.
Members of the Jewish community pray during a service at the Sofia Synagogue March 10, 2013. Photo: REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov
Bulgaria’s parliament has, for the first time, expressed regret for the
deportation of 11,000 Jews to their deaths during the Holocaust.
The
resolution, published on Friday by Bulgaria’s parliament, was issued ahead of
the 70th anniversary of the start of deportations from areas controlled by
Bulgaria, an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The text of the
resolution reads: “Beyond dispute, 11,343 Jews were deported from northern
Greece and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. We denounce this criminal act, undertaken
by Hitler’s command, and express our regret for the fact that the local
Bulgarian administration had not been in a position to stop this act.”
It
also lauded Bulgarian authorities for having “refused the deportation of over
48,000 Jews, Bulgarian citizens, to the death camps” – a historical event that
is a source of pride to many Bulgarians.
President Shimon Peres and his
Bulgarian counterpart, Rosen Plevneliev, opened an exhibition on Wednesday of
archival material called “Tough choices that make a difference: The fate of the
Bulgarian Jews,” at the European Parliament in Brussels.