Yad Vashem's response concerning the decision of a German court to sentence Oskar Groening

The decision of the German court today reiterates the principle that regardless of the role a person played in the murder process, he or she was still an accomplice to the murder and bears responsibility. Unfortunately, Groening represents a large number of people who took part in the genocide of the Jews during the Holocaust and have never stood trial for their actions.

Undoubtedly, the most important aspect of the trial was that it raised the discussion not only of the events of the Shoah, but also that of individual and societal responsibility concerning the horrors perpetrated during that period, and that there is no statute of limitations regarding the crimes of the Nazis. Finally, it should be remembered that Groening was a member of the SS who volunteered to join its ranks in order to take part in the German extermination apparatus.