The 11th International March of Life Conference in Tübingen was filled with joy over the release of the Israeli hostages and, at the same time, determination to take a stand in the face of growing hatred of Jews worldwide. Under the motto “Remembering means Responsibility. For Jewish Life and against Hatred of Israel”, thousands of people will take to the streets again in 2026. The moving conference, which included a public “Night to Honor Israel” from February 13 to 16, was the kickoff.
“Your Prayers Reached into the Tunnels”
One of the first things said at the opening event on Friday evening was: “Our prayers have been answered.” Ilan Dalal attributes the rescue of his son Guy from the Hamas terror tunnels to the unwavering efforts and prayers of the March of Life movement. “Guy had divine protection, and you all played an important role in that. Your prayers were the spiritual shield over Guy. I believe that your prayers reached into the tunnels of Gaza.”
As he spoke, images of marches and vigils around the world in which the March of Life community stood up for Guy Gilboa-Dalal played in the background. When Ilan first came to Tübingen, the chances of him seeing his son alive again werevery slim. Ilan says of this first encounter with March of Life: “You gave me back my faith, and from then on I was convinced that Guy would come back.” At the time of the conference, Guy was participating in an important therapy program and was therefore unable to attend in person.
„We will dance again!“
Luis Har is the personification of the survivors’ defiant promise: “We will dance again!” The statement refers to the murder of nearly 400 young people who were dancing at the Supernova Succot Festival near the Gaza border on the night of October 6-7, 2026. “We will dance again” also became a motto for survivors from the kibbutzim. It encourages them not to give in to the experiences of terror and death and to celebrate life again. But for 72-year-old passionate dancer Luis Har, it means more. Dancing is his therapy.
At the March of Life conference, Luis recounted his 129 days in captivity and his rescue by a special operation carried out by the Israeli army. He and his translator repeatedly struggled to hold back tears. “Men don’t cry,” Luis had been taught. Sohe and his brother-in-law Fernando looked down at the floor during their captivity and told each other that something was wrong with their eyes when they were separated from the women who were also being held captive. At that point, Luis did not know whether the terrorists would free or kill his partner.
It was not until many weeks later that special forces made their way to the small group of hostages. During the dangerous rescue operation, Luis heard the soldiers say over the radio: “The diamonds are secured.” “I am a diamond,” he says. From the helicopter, someone pointed out the lights of Palmachim below. This is a kibbutz right on the Mediterranean Sea, near an airfield and missile base of the same name. “This is the moment when we inform your families.” When Luis talks about this, he has to hide a rush of tears behind a fit of coughing. The entire March of Life community cried and rejoiced with him – unaware that Luis is working on a surprise for them alongside the program. At the closing ceremony, young members of the dance team YC Dance talked about their families’ involvement in National Socialism and their own antisemitic heritage. Immediately afterwards, Luis Har performed an expressive dance with them. The powerful visualization of the central March of Life message of “Remembering – Reconciliation – Taking a Stand” appeared prominently in the newspaper the next day.
“I thought I had paid the price.”
Another guest of honor and highlight of the conference was Holocaust survivor Irene Shashar, who shared her moving story and gave an inspiring presentation. As a little girl, she had fled the Warsaw Ghetto with her mother and her doll through the sewers. The stench, she says, still haunts her 80 years later. She spent the war huddled up, clutching her doll, hidden in various closets. If she was nice and quiet, her mother kept promising her, the war would soon be over. “But it didn’t end. What had I done wrong?” asks Irene.
When the war finally ended, Irene’s mother died. Irene was just ten years old at the time. Despite everything, Irene grew up to be a cheerful woman who enjoyed a successful career as a professor in Jerusalem and started a family. She didn’t tell her children about her past until they were grown up. She proudly shows pictures of her children and grandchildren. “Hitler didn’t win,” she says again and again. But new clouds are gathering in the sky. “I hoped and believed that I had paid theprice so that my children and grandchildren could live freely in a Jewish state,” she explains. “But the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7 showed us that antisemitism has never disappeared.” Her descendants now have to risk their lives in war to protect the Jewish state from its neighbors’ desire for destruction. “I need you to be my voice,” Irene Shashar said to the descendants of the Nazi perpetrators.
Revital Krakowski, CEO of the Israeli survivor organization March of the Living and Irene’s companion, confirmed this. When descendants of the perpetrators tell their stories, no one can deny the Holocaust anymore. “Your movement shouldbecome stronger and bigger,” she urged. “It is the answer to hatred of Jews and the answer for humanity.” Revital, herself a descendant of Holocaust survivors, made a very personal statement: “I have to tell you that we Israelis are not used tolove. Our modus operandi is survival. Here we feel accepted, loved, and protected.”
“Silence is not an option”
Heinz Reuss, international director of March of Life, gave an impressive presentation on the increase of antisemitic incidents in almost every country since October 7, 2023. Of last year’s marches, he particularly remembered an event in Budapest. While a survivor was recounting the shooting of Jews at the site of the former events, the first reports of the terrorist attack on a Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach, Australia, reached them.
Jobst Bittner spoke about the responsibility of Christians then and now: “The church, including all denominations, could have played an important role after 1945,” he said. “It could have broken the silence, confessed its guilt, and redefined its relationship to the election of Israel. Instead, it remained stuck in ancient, theological, antisemitic stereotypes and remained silent.“ Reinhardt Schink, General Secretary of the Evangelical Alliance Germany, emphasized this with the words: ”When we as churches remain silent for fear of coming under fire, we condemn ourselves to judgment.”
Shelly Tal Meron, Knesset member and member of the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus, thanked the March of Life movement for its commitment. “The fight against antisemitism calls on us to take responsibility for our shared heritage. Jews and Christians alike—and to defend the history, values, and biblical foundations that unite us.”
Daniel Neumann, chairman of the Regional Association of Jewish Communities in Hesse, described his view of the events on and after October 7: “Jewish people were hunted, slaughtered, and burned, were helpless in their own homes. The horrors we believed were a thing of the past have caught up with us.” After the massacre, the Jewish community expected “shock waves of solidarity,” but the opposite happened. “Experiencing the lack of solidarity and encouragement was deeply disorienting for us.”
“Voices Need Hands and Feet”
“If our voices do not have hands and feet,” says March of Life President Jobst Bittner, “then the many words about antisemitism and hatred of Jews, the many promises and ‘never again’ statements, have no value whatsoever.” Around 600 participants from 24 nations had come to the conference in Tübingen to be these “hands and feet.” The organizers and directors then spent an additional day together, during which they refined plans, encouraged one another, and received practical training.
Reports from everywhere indicate that the March of Life movement continues to grow despite all resistance and security risks. In Peru, small annual events have developed into marches with 15,000 participants. In Paraguay, marches are taking place in all 16 states. The vision is to mobilize six million people on the streets for Israel.
