Holocaust victims laid to rest in Britain

The remains of six Holocaust victims who were murdered at the Auschwitz death camp were laid to rest in Britain on Sunday.

It was the first funeral service in Britain for victims of the Holocaust. Around 50 Holocaust survivors were in attendance.

The ashes and bones of the six unknown victims were sent from Auschwitz to the Imperial War Museum in London in 1997.

Scientific tests later discovered they were five adults and one child, but nothing else is known about who they were.

They were laid to rest at the United Synagogue New Cemetery in Bushey, on the northwest edge of London. A small coffin containing all the remains was buried with earth from Israel.

“The message that you convey through the presence of your remains before us today is that if anti-Semitism exists, and it goes by unchecked, then hate speech can easily be translated into hate crime,” said Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis.

“And when anti-Semitism is allowed to thrive, some people can do anything and some people can reach the lowest end of human conduct.”

Britain’s communities minister James Brokenshire, Israeli ambassador Mark Regev and Queen Elizabeth II’s representative in the local county were in attendance.

A memorial garden is set to be established on the site.