Greece
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The Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece (KIS) thanked Russia for returning the pre-war archives of the Greek Jewish community.

In December, Russia agreed to return to Greece the community’s archives, which were stolen by the Nazis during the occupation of the country in 1942. The documents include archives, books and religious items from 30 synagogues, libraries and other community buildings in Thessaloniki, which had a large Jewish population.

In May 1945, at the end of the war, the Soviet army removed the archives from Berlin and took them to Moscow.

In a letter addressed to Russian President Vladimir Putin, KIS President David Saltiel and Secretary General Victor Eliezer expressed the appreciation of the organization – the umbrella coordinating group of Greek Jews – on behalf of the community.

“We wish to express our all hearted thankfulness for your decision to return to Greece the pre-war archives of the Greek Jewish Communities that were looted by the Nazis during the German occupation of our country and were transported to Moscow by the Red Army after the takeover of Berlin in May 1945,” they wrote.

“Your statement during the joint press conference with the Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis on December 8, 2021, is of great importance to our community, and we congratulate you upon your determining role in the return of the Jewish archives to Greece.”

The letter continued: “Your words filled us with joy and emotion as these archives represent our bond with our very own history and tradition. They are the sacred heirlooms of our identity, of our thriving past as well as the documents of the Nazi crimes during the Holocaust. Thank you for giving back to us our history.”

“We look forward to the realization of this decision and to receiving the archives back to our country,” KIS added.