Japan's Abe Visits Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem

Jerusalem, Jan. 19 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial Monday as part of his trip to Israel and other Middle East countries. Following his visit to the memorial, Abe said he is determined to make proactive contributions to global peace and stability so that people around the world can live in peace with their human rights fully protected. He was the first Japanese prime minister to visit the memorial since Junichiro Koizumi in July 2006. "I realized how cruel humans can become through racial discrimination and hatred," Abe said. Writing in a guest book at the memorial, Abe expressed his deep condolences to Holocaust victims, noted that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the liberalization of Auschwitz and emphasized his strong determination not to repeat such a tragedy. END