A LOCAL MP has pledged her commitment to Holocaust Memorial Day by signing the Holocaust Educational Trust’s Book of Commitment.

Kirsten Oswald MP signed the book this week and paid respect to the victims of the Holocaust.

She also acknowledged the untiring efforts of those survivors who continue to educate the youth today.

Holocaust Memorial Day takes place annually on January 27 which is the anniversary of the liberation day of Auschwitz-Birkenau, one of the former Nazi concentration and death camps, in 1945.

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The upcoming Holocaust Memorial Day will include numerous commemorative events organised by schools, faith groups, and community organisations nationwide.

These events aim to remember and honour all the victims of the Holocaust and the subsequent genocides.

This year, organisers have chosen the theme 'Fragility of Freedom'.

The events also aim to highlight the impact of genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur.

After signing the Book of Commitment, Ms Oswald said: "Holocaust Memorial Day is an important opportunity for people from East Renfrewshire to reflect on the darkest times of European history.

"Today, I pledge to remember the six million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered in the Holocaust and speak out against all forms of antisemitism, which in recent months has risen exponentially and which needs to be tackled head on."

Karen Pollock CBE, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said: "On Holocaust Memorial Day, we remember the six million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators, and we honour those who survived.

"When the concentration camps of Europe were liberated, the reality of the Nazi attempt to eradicate world Jewry became clear.

"In newspapers, cinema and radio broadcasts the atrocities were laid bare.

"The phrase ‘Never Again’ was coined, reflecting the hope that the Holocaust would forever represent the ultimate result of anti-Jewish hatred; a warning signal for generations to come of where unchecked antisemitism could lead.

"This Holocaust Memorial Day, as antisemitism once again sweeps across the globe, it is more important than ever to remember the six million Jewish victims and remind ourselves that anti-Jewish racism did not begin nor end with the Holocaust."

The Holocaust Educational Trust whose book of commitment was signed by MP Kirsten Oswald was founded in 1988 with a mission to raise awareness and understanding in schools and amongst the wider public of the Holocaust.