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<\/a><\/p>\nIsraelis observe a two-minute to mark Yom HaShoah at Azrieli junction on April 14, 2026 in Tel Aviv. (Alexi Rosenfeld\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The two-minute siren was the one sounded annually on Yom HaShoah, Holocaust memorial day. In keeping with a national tradition, Israelis stopped whatever they were doing for a moment of silence to remember the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust. Drivers exited their cars on the streets; shoppers froze in grocery store aisles; and people strolling the streets paused where they were.<\/p>\n
Even for seasoned Israelis, the dissonance was strong this year. Hillel Fuld, an Israeli influencer, wrote that he was initially unnerved to see so many people failing to follow the guidance about what to do when a missile is incoming.<\/p>\n
\u201cI exited my car and was about to lie down when I realized, that\u2019s not a siren warning of a missile. That\u2019s a siren remembering the six million!\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt that emotional confusion that every Israeli knows too well. Sadness. Devastation. Hopelessness,\u201d Fuld continued. \u201cAnd at the same time, tremendous pride, optimism, and unity.\u201d<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s Yom HaShoah is the first since all Israeli hostages taken on Oct. 7, 2023, were freed from Gaza. Some of the freed hostages, including Eli Sharabi, participated in small remembrance gatherings known as Zikaron Basalon. Others posted symbols of Jewish survival, including Sagui Dekel-Chen, whose wife posted pictures of him alongside his grandfather, a Holocaust survivor, and Elkana Bohbot, who with his wife announced that he is expecting a child.<\/p>\n