UK

Ceremony at Cenotaph commemorates Jewish servicemen and women

Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis speaking at the annual parade by Ajex at the Cenotaph (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis speaking at the annual parade by Ajex at the Cenotaph (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis speaking at the annual parade by Ajex at the Cenotaph (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

A ceremony has been held to mark the 102nd anniversary of the first wreath-laying by Jewish veterans at the Cenotaph in central London.

Jewish men and women who have “fought and served for freedom since World War One” were honoured during the annual Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen and Women (Ajex) parade.

Sunday’s event took place 102 years after the laying of the first Star of David wreath in 1921 by a group of Jewish ex-soldiers from the Judeans – the 38th, 39th and 40th battalions of the Royal Fusiliers.

AJEX annual parade
AJEX annual parade The Ajex parade to honour Jewish servicemen and women (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

This year’s parade marked the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the 70th anniversary of the end of fighting in the Korean War.

Participants marched from Horse Guards Parade down Whitehall to the Cenotaph, with veterans and families of fallen veterans walking together.