The EAJC welcomes the decision of the German government to issue compensation payments to Jewish survivors of the Siege of Leningrad

Pictured: Claims Conference Special Representative Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat during negotiations with the German government in 2018. Photo: Jason Colston (Claims Conference)

The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) has announced a significant achievement for Holocaust survivors: for the first time, monthly pensions have been approved for Jewish survivors of the Siege of Leningrad, as well as for Jewish individuals who went into hiding in France and those who survived persecution in Romania, who currently do not receive Holocaust-related pensions.

Approximately 6,500 Holocaust survivors who endured the Siege of Leningrad, along with those who hid in France or faced persecution in Romania, will begin receiving a monthly pension for the first time.

The newly negotiated, region-specific pension program is open and currently accepting applications. The payments will amount to €375 ($443 USD) per month. Payments from the Child Survivor Fund — a symbolic, one-time payment of €2,500 ($2,930 USD) — will also be distributed to those who meet the persecution criteria and were born in 1928 or later.

“With each passing year, these negotiations become increasingly critical as this generation, the last generation of survivors, ages, and their needs grow. We are very pleased to be able to expand the criteria again this year, including providing pensions for the first time to nearly 6,500 victims. Even 75 years after the Holocaust, these symbolic payments offer recognition and restore a measure of dignity to survivors that was stolen from them in their youth,”  stated Claims Conference President Gideon Taylor.

“We welcome this decision and express our gratitude to our colleagues at the Claims Conference for their ongoing efforts. Caring for those who survived the Holocaust and the harrowing events of World War II is a key priority of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress. We support several organizations representing World War II veterans living in Israel, including the Association of Leningrad Siege Survivors in Israel, and this is without a doubt wonderful news for those who endured those horrific times and are in need of support,”  said Dr. Haim Ben Yakov, EAJC Director General and member of the Claims Conference Board of Directors.

As a reminder, the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress previously supported the initiative of the World War II Veterans Council and the Association of Leningrad Siege Survivors in Israel to erect a monument dedicated to the heroes and victims of the Siege of Leningrad in Jerusalem. The 'Candle of Remembrance' monument was inaugurated on January 23, 2020, with the participation of senior officials from Israel and Russia.

150,000 Jewish people shared the fate of the residents of besieged Leningrad; many went to the front, and approximately 70,000 lost their lives. Today, over 1,300 siege survivors reside in Israel. At the monument's opening ceremony, EAJC President Mikhail Mirilashvili, along with Viktor Vekselberg, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, announced the launch of a special program aimed at preserving historical memory and deepening mutual understanding between nations.

As part of the program, the compilation 'Pages of Leningrad Siege Memory', comprised of memoirs from individuals who survived the siege as children, was translated into Hebrew and distributed to universities, schools, and libraries. The book was also presented to 30 members of the Knesset. Currently, efforts are underway to collect testimonies that will be published in a separate volume.

On the anniversary of the end of the siege, a special page titled 'Memory of the Besieged Leningrad' was launched, featuring video testimonies of the city residents who survived the siege.