Holocaust survivors gather at Auschwitz 71 years after its liberation

On Wednesday, dozens of Holocaust survivors gathered at Auschwitz to commemorate its liberation by the Soviet army in 1945.

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They lit candles, and some wore striped scarves and hats that recalled the clothing they were forced to wear as prisoners, The Associated Press reports. More than 1 million people, primarily Jews, were killed at Auschwitz. As part of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, official commemorations were held across Europe, and survivor Ruth Klueger, 84, told the German Parliament that she heard many people deny the atrocities of the Holocaust at the end of World War II, but now, "Two or even three generations have grown up here since then and this country, which was responsible 80 years ago for the worst crimes of the century, has today won the applause of the world thanks to its open borders and the generosity with which it has taken in Syrian and other refugees, and still is."

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In the United States, President Obama posthumously honored two Americans, Roddie Edmonds and Lois Gunden, and two Polish citizens, Walery and Maryla Zbijewski, who risked their lives to protect Jews during the Holocaust.