Thessaloniki's long overdue Holocaust museum and its importance for the city and Greece

At the end of last month Germany’s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visited the site of the Holocaust museum that is being built in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, a city that was home to a thriving and important Jewish community numbering in the tens of thousands before World War II. The museum has been years in the making, and, as The Guardian reported recently, is set to open in 2026. Leon Saltiel joins Thanos Davelis to break down what this means for the Jewish community of the city and of Greece, why it has taken so long, and what role this museum can play in combating worrying trends across Europe of anti-semitism, Holocaust denial, and the rise of the far-right.

Leon Saltiel is a historian from Thessaloniki and author of the award winning book The Holocaust in Thessaloniki. He also serves as Director of Diplomacy, Representative at UN Geneva and UNESCO, and Coordinator on Countering Antisemitism for the World Jewish Congress.

You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:

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