HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE – 80 years ago, 300 Jews deported from Rome

On January 4, 1944, around 300 people were deported from Regina Coeli, the prison in Rome where they had been incarcerated during World War II. “They were political prisoners and therefore considered ‘undesirable elements.’ Twelve of these individuals were Jewish,” Andrea Di Veroli, the president of the National Partisans Association – ANED, recounted in an interview with Pagine Ebraiche. “This shows how, even in that tragic situation, Jews were part of society.” Marking the 80th anniversary of this deportation, Di Veroli, along with representatives from various institutions and associations, including councilwoman Livia Ottolenghi of the Union of the Italian Jewish Communities, gathered at the Verano Cemetery in Rome to pay tribute to the monument memorializing Roman deportees. “This is a date that should more widely known and participated,” Di Veroli stated. “In any case, we are here, as we are every year. We will always fulfill our duty to remember those 300 lives and celebrate them.”