Agnieszka

„ If you are going through hell, keep going.”Winston Churchill

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

On September 17, we remember the Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939. It is also a day to pay tribute to the hundreds of thousands of Poles deported to Siberia, most of whom never returned. This painful chapter in our history reminds us that peace and sovereignty can never be taken for granted.

Especially today, remembering the past also means remaining vigilant, being aware of the threats we face, and standing together in solidarity against regimes that seek to undermine peace, freedom and the sovereignty of others.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

We were honoured to host a congressional delegation led by Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV), joined by U.S. Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose.

We were also pleased to have Anna Zielińska, a representative of the Czulent Jewish Association, and Sylwia Kędzierska-Jasik, Chairwoman of the Warsaw Jewish Community, with us for the meeting.

Together, we discussed Jewish history and Holocaust memory in Poland, the challenges facing the Jewish community after October 7, the fight against antisemitism, and the importance of the transatlantic relationship and NATO.

Thank you, @RosenforNevada and @USAmbPoland, for your engagement and for the United States’ continued support for combating antisemitism and strengthening Jewish life in Europe.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

In 1991, AJC was the first Jewish organization outside Ukraine to call on the United States to recognize Ukraine's independence. More than three decades later, our commitment remains unwavering.

Today, as Russia's brutal aggression continues, we reaffirm our support for a democratic, independent, and sovereign Ukraine, and our commitment to advocating for a just, comprehensive, and swift end to Russia's crimes and war.

The courage and resilience of the Ukrainian people continue to inspire the world.

On this Independence Day, we stand in solidarity with Ukraine and honour Ukraine's strength, sacrifice, and determination.

Slava Ukraini!

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

Yesterday, AJC was honored to participate in the commemoration at the former Nazi German extermination camp of Treblinka, joining survivors, families, and partners in remembering the victims.

Between 1942 and 1943, approximately 900,000 Jews—primarily from occupied Poland but also from across Europe—and thousands of ethnic Poles, Roma, and others were murdered there by Nazi Germany.

We also honored the extraordinary courage of the prisoners who launched the Treblinka uprising on August 2, 1943. Against impossible odds, they revolted, enabling some prisoners to escape and ensuring that the story of Treblinka would survive.

It was especially meaningful to stand alongside Ada Willenberg, whose late husband, Samuel Willenberg, was one of the few survivors of Treblinka and a participant in the uprising. Seeing Ada surrounded by her family—including her 18-month-old great-granddaughter—was perhaps the most beautiful tribute to life, resilience, and survival. Where the Nazis sought to extinguish an entire people, Jewish life continues to endure across generations.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

Today, on the anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising, we honor the extraordinary courage of those who chose to resist Nazi German occupation against overwhelming odds.

For 63 days, from August 1 to October 2, 1944, the people of Warsaw fought in the largest armed uprising against Nazi Germany in occupied Europe. The price was devastating: approximately 150,000–200,000 civilians were killed, and after the uprising was crushed, the Germans systematically destroyed most of the city.

Among those who fought were Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, including veterans of the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Having survived the destruction of the ghetto and the Nazi campaign to annihilate Warsaw's Jewish community, many chose to take up arms once again alongside the broader Polish resistance. One of them was Marek Edelman, a commander in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, who fought again during the Warsaw Uprising of 1944.

We remember the bravery of the insurgents, the suffering of Warsaw's civilians—including the Jewish survivors who continued to resist after enduring the Holocaust—and the shared struggle against Nazism.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

Last week, leaders from AJC’s Central Europe Institute were in Washington D.C. for high-level meetings with members of Congress, senior U.S. administration officials, diplomats from the Baltic states, Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, and Israel, and leading foreign policy experts.

Across these conversations, one message was clear: strong U.S. engagement is essential to transatlantic security, regional stability, and confronting the growing threat of antisemitism.

AJC is proud to convene leaders and policymakers to strengthen these critical partnerships.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

AJC welcomes the Lithuanian Court of Appeal's decision holding Remigijus Žemaitaitis accountable for inciting hatred against Jews and trivialising the Holocaust. This is an important affirmation that antisemitism has legal consequences. We stand with our partner, the Lithuanian Jewish (Litvak) Community, in welcoming this ruling and the rule of law.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

Today, on the anniversary of the Wołyń massacre, we remember the tens of thousands of Polish civilians who were murdered in Volhynia and neighboring regions during World War II in atrocities carried out by units of the Ukrainian nationalist movement.

We honor the memory of the victims with respect and compassion, and express our solidarity with their families and all those who continue to preserve their remembrance.

Historical tragedies demand honesty, empathy, and accuracy. Properly commemorating the victims and acknowledging the historical record are essential to preserving the truth, honoring those who suffered, and fostering mutual understanding and reconciliation between nations.

May the memory of the victims be a blessing.

[Congressman Jared Moskowitz @RepMoskowitz]

On July 10, 1941, the Jewish residents of Jedwabne were forced into a barn and burned alive by their own Polish neighbors during the Nazi occupation. It's a dark chapter, and one we should not run from.

That's why I'm deeply troubled to see 85 years later the memorial for this atrocity being turned into a site of revisionism that dishonors the victims. That's unacceptable. I’m calling on Poland's leaders to show up for this year's commemoration and protect the site that keeps their memory alive.

At a time when Holocaust denial continues to rise, we cannot let the truth of what happened get buried.

[American Jewish Committee @AJCGlobal]

Today, we remember at least 340 Jewish men, women, and children who were burned alive in a barn 85 years ago in Jedwabne, Poland.

As confirmed by Poland’s own Institute of National Remembrance, this horrific crime was carried out by the victims’ Polish neighbors, incited by the occupying Nazi German forces. Yet in recent years, far-right extremists have sought to deny these facts.

Today, AJC stood with the Polish Jewish community to honor the victims and confront that hate—alongside Minister Wojciech Kolarski (@wkolarski) and Professor Grzegorz Berendt, representing the President of Poland (@NawrockiKn), Speaker of Parliament (@WlodekCzarzasty), Speaker of the Senate (@M_K_Blonska), Members of Parliament, Israeli Ambassador (@Yaakov_FINKLSTN), and diplomats from around the world.

The movement to deny these crimes is yet another example of why Poland must adopt a national strategy to combat antisemitism. Democratic Poland has already done the difficult work of officially recognizing what happened on July 10, 1941. Now, just as the government confronted this painful chapter of its past, it is imperative that it act against those who deny and distort history and spread antisemitism.

https://t.co/jtksaqmDrR

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

It was a pleasure to meet with U.S. Holocaust Special Envoy Ellen Germain for a meaningful discussion on protecting the truth about the Holocaust and the importance of continued education, remembrance, and sustained efforts to combat distortion and antisemitism. We deeply value our close cooperation and appreciate the unwavering commitment of @StateSEHI and @StateDept to this vital work.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

"Hooked Noses: The Behind-the-Scenes of Judaization". Read that title again.

It is staggering that a book with an outragedly antisemitic title and content—published with a foreword by notorious antisemite Grzegorz Braun—is being sold through mainstream channels. This is not “controversial” or “provocative.” It is the recycling of hateful stereotypes that have fuelled antisemitism for generations.

When antisemitic propaganda is normalized and marketed as legitimate discourse, it puts Jewish communities at risk. We condemn the publication and sale of this book and call on bookstores, distributors, and online platforms to remove it immediately.

Sign the petition below and demand its withdrawal.
https://t.co/Z4lQLfoc3B via @AkcjaDemokracja

[American Jewish Committee @AJCGlobal]

“No matter where it comes from or what form it takes, this resurgence of anti-Jewish hate cannot be allowed to become the new normal.”

In the @JewishChron, Agnieszka Markiewicz, Director of @AJC_CE, warns that Holocaust distortion and the weaponization of anti-Israel rhetoric are gaining ground across the political spectrum in Poland.

This is especially important in a country that holds a unique and deeply significant place in Jewish history, both profoundly positive and deeply tragic.

For nearly 1,000 years before the Second World War, Jewish life and culture were closely intertwined with Poland, until the devastation of the German Nazi occupation and the Holocaust.
https://t.co/a7Mpqog9vD

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

Today, the Director of Shapiro Silverberg AJC Central Europe Institute, Agnieszka Markiewicz, represented @AJCGlobal at the commemoration of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in Warsaw.

Together with Holocaust Survivors, Jewish community leaders, President of Poland @NawrockiKn, Mayor of Warsaw @trzaskowski_, Speaker of the Parliament @wlodekczarzasty, other dignitaries, representatives of ministries, diplomats, and the people of Warsaw, we stood in solemn tribute to the Jewish fighters who chose resistance in the face of annihilation.

As sirens echoed across the city, Warsaw fell into a profound stillness. In that charged moment, bound by memory and reverence, we honored their courage, their defiance, and their humanity.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

On this anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, we remember not only an act of resistance, but the brutal reality that made it necessary.
The uprising took place at the peak of the Holocaust—an industrialized campaign of antisemitism that sought to erase an entire people, their culture, and their future. Inside the Warsaw Ghetto, Jewish men, women, and children were starved, deported, and murdered simply for who they were.
When the fighters rose on April 19th 1943, they did so knowing the odds were impossible. Their resistance was a final stand against a system built on hatred, dehumanization, and indifference.
Today, as antisemitism continues to exist in new and old forms, remembrance can’t be passive.
We mourn and remember the victims.
We honor the resistance.
We speak out—because silence enables hate.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

On Yom HaShoah—while the world mourns the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust—Polish MP Konrad Berkowicz’s vile stunt was not “political expression.”
It was a grotesque abuse of history and an insult to both the victims and the Polish Parliament. Comparing Israel to Nazi Germany, especially today, is beyond disgraceful—it is morally bankrupt.
Polish authorities must not remain silent. This demands a clear, unequivocal condemnation, real consequences, and long-term action. If we cannot defend the truth and dignity of Holocaust remembrance, we fail not only the past—but also our present.
https://t.co/R9PE3m2eyV

[American Jewish Committee @AJCGlobal]

We congratulate @MagyarPeterMP on his victory in Hungary’s national elections.

We look forward to working together through @AJC_CE and to Hungary continuing its support for Israel, including opposing anti‑Israel measures in the EU, and upholding zero tolerance for antisemitism.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

Last night in Warsaw, at our Abraham Accords Diplomatic Seder, the ambassadors of the U.S., Israel, and the United Arab Emirates sat at one table together — not only as representatives of their nations, but as partners choosing dialogue over division at a moment when the world feels especially fragile.

@UAEEmbassyWAR Mohamed Alharbi spoke powerfully about why strengthening ties with Israel and the United States matters now more than ever. U.S. Ambassador @TomRoseIndy and Israeli
Ambassador @Yaakov_FINKLSTN echoed that same urgency and sense of hope.

We were honoured to be joined by Presidential Minister @wkolarski, representatives of the Polish authorities, Ukrainian Ambassador @VasylBodnar, and diplomats from across Europe and beyond — a testament to the broad and growing belief in cooperation.

Amid war, rising antisemitism, and daily hardship for so many, we are grateful to everyone who helped create this moment of unity, courage, and hope.

[AJC Central Europe @AJC_CE]

We call for a thorough, independent, and transparent investigation into the incident at the judo competition in Bielsko-Biała, Poland, where serious allegations have been raised, including antisemitic chants directed at Israeli children and the intimidation of coaches. Contradictory accounts make establishing the full facts all the more essential.

This incident cannot be viewed in isolation. It occurs amid a documented and unprecedented rise in antisemitic harassment and violence worldwide, including in sporting and educational settings. Any manifestation of antisemitism — especially when directed at children — must be treated with the utmost seriousness.
https://t.co/FrJlbUh9UE

[American Jewish Committee @AJCGlobal]

2025 brought both hope and heartbreak for Israel and the global Jewish community. We’re deeply grateful that all of the living hostages have finally returned home, even as we continue to work for the return of Ran Gvili, whose body is held by Hamas.

As we continue to mourn for the victims of recent antisemitic attacks amidst surging antisemitism around the world, our mission remains as urgent and essential as ever.

Wishing everyone a happy New Year, and hoping for a brighter, more peaceful 2026.