American Jewish Committee Applauds Increased Support for Holocaust Survivors from Claims Conference and German Government

One billion euros slated to support home-care assistance for more than 100,000 survivors

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, welcomes today's announcement from the Claims Conference and the German government that close to one billion euros will be allocated in 2026 to provide much-needed home-care assistance for Holocaust survivors.

AJC is a founding member of the Claims Conference, which negotiated its first agreement with the German government on behalf of Holocaust survivors in 1952. In recent years, the Conference has focused on securing funding specifically for home-care assistance for aging survivors, as the most needy and infirm are homebound.

More than 100,000 survivors, with an average age of 88, receive this assistance through the Claims Conference, funded by Germany, and provided by Jewish social service agencies in the United States and around the world and the National Health Service in Israel.

"It is noteworthy that throughout these years and despite changes in government coalitions and priorities, Germany has never wavered in shouldering its responsibility to address the needs of Holocaust victims," said Rabbi Andy Baker, AJC Director of International Jewish Affairs, who has been a member of the Conference negotiating committee for the past two decades.

In addition to the home-care funding, more than 150 million euros will support Holocaust education efforts across the globe over the next four years. This is especially important at a time when Holocaust distortion is spreading, and even rudimentary knowledge is lacking among large segments of the population, as identified in recent American Jewish Committee and Claims Conference surveys.

According to AJC's State of Antisemitism in America 2024 Report, the majority of U.S. adults do not know that six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust (52%) or that Hitler came to power through a democratic political process (60%).

AJC is the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people. With headquarters in New York, 25 offices across the United States, 15 overseas posts, as well as partnerships with 38 Jewish community organizations worldwide, AJC's mission is to enhance the well-being of the Jewish people and Israel and to advance human rights and democratic values in the United States and around the world. For more, please visit www.ajc.org .

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