Article written by Coventry Association for International Friendship (CAIF).

“Stalingrad Star of David” is a project that combines an exhibition and educational events to mark the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II and the restoration of Peace on Earth. It is dedicated to the Jews who brought the victory over Fascism closer, and is intended to preserve historical justice about the events of the last century.

The contribution of representatives of the Jewish people to the victory over fascism and the restoration of World Peace is widely known but these are usually the stories of scientists who created new types of weapons, intelligence officers and diplomats and, less often, the front-line doctors.

The exhibition will be about the soldiers and officers who fought directly on the battlefield – infantry, tankers, pilots, etc. – participants in the Battle of Stalingrad, as survivors of the hell of battle who gave their lives in the cause of Peace on Earth. With, in addition, of course, those who supported them from the rear.

This project was successful in the competition for grants from the President of the Russian Federation for the development of civil society and was planned to open in Netanya – 30 kms north of Tel Aviv – and be part of the events of the National Day of Remembrance and mourning in Israel, the day of the disaster. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, public events have been postponed until the Autumn. Consequently, on 21 April 2020, a video conference will be held with representatives of Rossotrudnichestvo, including in Israel, authors and project participants from Netanya, other cities in Israel and Volgograd.

The exhibition and lecture programme which tells the story of the battle of Stalingrad – the defense of the city, the tragedies suffered by the civilian population, the street battles and the counteroffensive and victory has been prepared by researchers from two organizations – the Institute of Regional Economics and Social Design in Volgograd and the State Historical and Memorial Preserve The Battle of Stalingrad.

The speciality of the exhibition is its emphasis on the Jewish world. It is believed that in the ranks of the Red Army more than 501,000 Jews fought against Hitler’s fascism, 1.78% of the total population – those who had “Jew” in the “nationality” column of their passport though, of course, there were also those who hid their nationality.

The exhibition consists of three sections. The first is dedicated to soldiers of Jewish nationality, the second tells about the Holocaust – which did not bypass the civilians of Stalingrad – and the third about the 60,000 thousand parcels sent to Stalingrad from the Jewish Autonomous region with 500 thousand rubles for the construction of a tank column.

More information: http://isr.rs.gov.ru/%20%09/news/66267