First light lit on the Hanukkah candelabra at the Brandenburg Gate

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• Kai Wegner (CDU), Governing Mayor of Berlin, speaks at the traditional central Hanukkah lighting ceremony at the Brandenburg Gate.

• Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal (2nd from right), Chairman of the Jewish Education Center Chabad Lubavitch Berlin, and Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD, right) light the middle light at the traditional central Hanukkah lighting ceremony at the Brandenburg Gate.

To mark the beginning of the Jewish Festival of Lights, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz lit the first candle on the Hanukkah candelabra in front of the Brandenburg Gate on Thursday.

Scholz called for solidarity and compassion for the Jews in Germany. "This is particularly important these days," said the SPD politician. "This is how each and every one of us can give meaning to the words 'Never again'." The Chancellor said that it was exactly right for this candelabra to stand in the heart of the German capital - "as a symbol of hope and confidence and as a symbol of the inseparable affiliation of Jewish faith and Jewish fellow citizens to our country".

Kai Wegner: "They are not alone. Berlin stands firmly by their side"

Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) gave a welcoming address at the traditional start of the Hanukkah Festival of Lights. He emphasized: "Our thoughts are with the people of Israel. Especially with those who are still being held hostage and with all those who lost loved ones in the brutal terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7." This year's event is also a sign of solidarity and a sense of community to the Jews who are being threatened and intimidated by anti-Semites. Numerous people watched the ceremonial lighting of the candle at dusk at the Brandenburg Gate.

Numerous anti-Semitic attacks in recent weeks

The host of the event, Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal, praised Germany and Chancellor Scholz as a beacon of democracy. The message of Hanukkah is "light over darkness, democracy over tyranny", said Teichtal. He called for "more light, more joy, more Jewish awareness, that is our answer." Hundreds of anti-Semitic incidents have been recorded in Germany in recent weeks. Many Jews report feelings of anxiety. Strict security measures were put in place for the ceremony and Pariser Platz was cordoned off over a wide area.

Hanukkah 2023 until December 15

Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the second temple in Jerusalem after an uprising against the Greeks in 164 BC and the "miracle of light" of a candelabrum burning for eight days. The festival also lasts eight days, this year until December 15. Every day, another light is lit on the candelabrum known as the Hanukkia.