International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust observed on 27 January

Key facts

• The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 60/7 designated 27 January as the annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust in 2005.
• The date marks the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz Birkenau German Nazi Concentration and Death Camp on 27 January 1945.
• The Holocaust led to the adoption of foundational documents by the United Nations (UN) in 1948, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
• The UNGA established the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme in 2005 to mobilize outreach for combatting antisemitism and defending human rights.
• Key UNGA resolutions related to this observance and the prevention of Holocaust denial include A/RES/60/7, A/RES/61/255, and A/RES/76/250.
• The annual observance is held at the UN Headquarters in New York and through the global network of United Nations Information Centres (UNICs).