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Jan. 27, 2021
Hundreds of Holocaust survivors in Austria and Slovakia were poised to get their first coronavirus vaccination Wednesday, acknowledging their past suffering with a special tribute 76 years after the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp, where the Nazis killed more than 1 million Jews and others.
“We owe this to them,” said Erika Jakubovits, the Jewish Community of Vienna organizer of the vaccination drive. “They have suffered so much trauma and have felt even more insecure during this pandemic.”
More than 400 Austrian survivors, most in their 80s or 90s, were expected to get their first coronavirus shot at Vienna s largest vaccination center set up in the Austrian capital s convention center. Some were being brought by shuttle or by ambulance, while others were being brought in by their children. The fittest among them were even planning on taking the subway.
More broadly, a majority of elderly Austrians living in nursing homes have already received the first shot of a vaccine against COVID-19, the Austrian news agency APA reported.
Earlier this week, the president of the European Jewish Congress, or EJC, called on all countries in the European Union to ensure that Holocaust survivors have access to coronavirus vaccines as quickly as possible.
With the end of World War II now more than seven decades ago, the world s approximately 240,000 Holocaust survivors are all elderly. Since many were deprived of proper nutrition when they were young, they suffer from numerous medical issues today. In addition, many live isolated lives, having lost their entire families and also have psychological stresses because of their persecution under the Nazis.
By Reuters Staff
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BRATISLAVA (Reuters) - Nearly 60 survivors received their COVID-19 vaccination on Holocaust Remembrance Day in Bratislava on Wednesday, completing the inoculation of the city’s entire survivor community.
The vaccination was held at the city’s Jewish Community Centre as Slovakia began inoculating people over 75 - an age group that includes those born before the end of World War II.
“Symbolically on this day, Holocaust survivors received as a reward something that I believe they were not expecting a week ago,” said Tomas Stern, head of Bratislava’s Jewish community.
Stern said there were 128 Holocaust survivors in Bratislava, and 330 in Slovakia in total.
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