Obama: Holocaust Day time for commitment

• Tweet

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- President Obama Sunday said International Holocaust Remembrance Day must be a day for mourning those killed and for resolving to fight hatred and persecution.

The Holocaust was the systematic killing of 6 million Jews and approximately 5 million others, including political prisoners, homosexuals and Romani, by Adolph Hitler and Germany's Nazi regime during World War II.

"Those who experienced the horrors of the cattle cars, ghettos, and concentration camps have witnessed humanity at its very worst and know too well the pain of losing loved ones to senseless violence," the president said.

"On this day, we recall the courage, spirit, and determination of those who heroically resisted the Nazis, exemplifying the very best of humanity. And like these courageous individuals, we must commit ourselves to resisting hate and persecution in all its forms" he said.

"The United States, along with the international community, resolves to stand in the way of any tyrant or dictator who commits crimes against humanity, and stay true to the principle of "Never Again," he concluded.