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Raoul Wallenberg centennial

marked in Moscow and all over the world

The representatives of the Raoul Wallenberg Foundation went to Moscow on 28 May to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Swedish diplomat who rescued thousands Jews during Second World War in Budapest to be then arrested and killed in the Soviet jails. 

During the conference entitled "Raoul Wallenberg - the humanitarian of the 20th century", "100,000 euros were offered to any person or institution that provides credible information leading to scientific identification and repatriation of Raoul Wallenberg back home".

At the same time the Russian authorities were urged to open the KGB archives in order to shed light on the abduction and killing of Raoul Wallenberg and his driver Vilmos Langfelder who disappeared on 17 February 1945 and weren't seen anymore. 

The Raoul Wallenberg Foundation also criticized Sweden for failing to present the Soviet with a clear demand to know the truth. Some Swedish businessmen including cousins of Raoul Wallenberg provided the Nazis with raw materials useful for their war effort.  

How Heads of States remember Wallenberg's rescue deeds
The life and work of Raoul Wallenberg is being remembered all over the world. Recently the President of the Australian Parliament Michel Dreyfus has officially honoured the brave diplomat by remembering the story of Ervin Forrester, a Holocaust survivor now living in Australia whom he contributed rescuing. 

"Ervin’s story is one of incredible personal bravery", Mr. Dreyfus recalled. "As a young Hungarian boy he was forced by the Nazis into the Working Army in 1944. He escaped and fled to Budapest where he was sheltered by the Red Cross. But Budapest was not an easy place in which to hide, and Ervin was recaptured and sentenced to death for his desertion. He told the Nazis he was a Swedish citizen. The authorities contacted the Swedish embassy and Raoul Wallenberg came to him in his prison cell and said “I’m going to save your life”. He issued Ervin with a Swedish passport and protection of the Swedish nation".

This year's centennial was marked also by the President of the United States Barack Obama in a televised message. 

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