In Munich, Germany, the state memorial ceremony will be held tomorrow to mark the 50th anniversary of the massacre at the Munich Olympics, in which 11 Israeli athletes were murdered. The ceremony will be held in the presence of President Yitzhak Herzog, German President Frank and Walter Steinmeier, the 11 families, Minister of Culture and Sports Hili Troffer, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and representatives of the state of Bavaria and the city of Munich.
Before the ceremony on Facebook, the chairman of the Israeli Olympic Committee, Yael Arad, wrote: “We will stand in Munich – at the memorial site in the Olympic Park and at the airport where the members of the Israeli delegation were murdered while being beaten and forced inside two helicopters. It will be an unbearably difficult, chilling, painful situation, but we arrive there as winners with our 11 heroes living in our hearts, with the closing of many circles and Israeli sports living and breathing on winners’ stands and a legacy that we will carry in our hearts forever.”
The participation of the families of the 11 martyrs in the ceremony was made possible following an agreement signed with the German government, according to which the compensation for the families of the Munich martyrs will amount to 28 million euros – approximately 1.2 million for each of the 23 eligible families.
At the same time, the German government announced that it recognizes its responsibility, and will establish a joint committee of German and Israeli historians to investigate the incident and open the files of the athletes’ massacre for review.
In preparation for the ceremony, the German Olympic Committee decided to paint the Olympic Tower in Munich in blue and white for three days, in memory of the horrific murder that befell the Olympic Games in 1972.
Meanwhile, Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel, who participated in the launch of the “Munich 72” series on Friday, mentioned at the event the role of Palestinian Authority Chairman Abu Mazen in responsibility for the Munich massacre.
“It is no secret that Abu Mazen, whom many Israeli politicians, including some of my government colleagues, see as a legitimate leader for the discourse, was one of the planners of the massacre of the Israeli athletes. Abu Mazen was also the one who took care of the financing of this terrorist act. I don’t forget, therefore I don’t forgive and I don’t see him as a legitimate partner in anything. Neither for a meeting nor for building a future of peace. The State of Israel requested to send Israeli security forces to lead the rescue operation of the Israeli athletes, but its requests were denied. This is also an important lesson. Israel will always be obliged to protect its citizens at any point in the world, and we must not depend on the goodwill or specific interest of other countries.”
“Munich 72” – a new docu-drama series about the massacre of athletes in Munich – was produced by Westbrook Media, owned by Will Smith, in collaboration with HOT 8 and Tammor Entertainment.