Yom HaShoah is observed annually on the 27th of Nisan. In 2025, it begins on the evening of Wednesday, April 23, immediately after sunset, and continues until the evening of Thursday. During these 24 hours, all entertainment events are canceled, cafes, bars, and theaters are closed, and television programs are entirely dedicated to the memory of the Holocaust.

The central state ceremony will take place at the Yad Vashem memorial complex in Jerusalem. It starts at 20:00. In the presence of the President and Prime Minister of Israel, as well as Holocaust survivors and their families, six torches are lit — in memory of the six million perished Jews.

The next morning, at 10:00, a two-minute siren sounds across the country. Israel comes to a halt: people get out of their cars, stop in the streets, stand by screens — the country plunges into silence. This is one of the most powerful and recognizable symbols of national memory.

Memorial ceremonies are not only held at Yad Vashem. On this day, other memorial centers are also active — the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum in Kibbutz Lohamei HaGeta’ot, Kibbutz Yad Mordechai, and dozens of municipal institutions. Schools, military bases, government organizations, and businesses remember the names of the deceased and conduct memorial events.

This year, the March of the Living from Auschwitz to Birkenau takes on special significance. For the first time, not only Holocaust survivors lead the march, but also those who survived the tragedy of October 7, 2023 — the most terrible disaster of the Jewish people since the Shoah. Along with them are relatives of the fallen, hostages, and those who are still in captivity by Hamas. The march becomes not only an act of memory but also a sign of living resistance to evil.