At the premises of the Institution of the Head of the Albanian State, for the second year in a row Hanukah was celebrated in the Office of the President of the Republic with the presence of members of Parliament, government, leaders of religious communities, representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in our country, the Jewish-Albanian association, of the Albanian-Israeli Friendship Association, as well as various personalities.
The participants in the ceremony visited a photo exhibition of Albanians who rescued Jews during the Holocaust as well as enjoyed a short musical program with Albanian and Israeli dance group of young dancers “Mimoza Dance Centre“.
In his speech for the occasion, The President of the Republic Bujar Nishani stated: “Today’s celebration in the Office of the President of the Republic takes a special meaning in the best traditions of Albanian people: those of hospitality and religious harmony. Albanian and Jewish peoples we bound by an historical and traditional friendship, which was further tested and proven during the horrible Holocaust period when the Jews living through existentialist moment got to know BESA – the Albanians code of honor and like nowhere else in Europe found shelter and rescue in our country. Today we Albanians feel proud to have offered our hospitality during that terrible period of Jewish extermination and persecution”.
Geri Kureta, President of the Albanian Jewish Community, full-member of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress, expressed his gratitude to the Head of State and the First Lady for celebrating Hanukah at the Institution of the President. He stressed that “the small but also old community of the Albanian Jews will continue on the steps and faith of their ancestors who once sought refuge in this blessed country by becoming a dignified part of it, enriching even more the diversified Albanian mosaic of coexistence and religious harmony”.