The Isle of Man’s National Holocaust Memorial Service will be held this year at St Mary’s Church, Hill Street, Douglas at 3pm on Sunday 24th January.

The annual service, which is co-ordinated by the Office of the Council of Ministers, was first held on the Island in 2001 in line with national commemorations in the United Kingdom.

The service is supported by schools and churches from across the Island and the readers will include His Excellency the Lieutenant Governor Vice Admiral Sir Paul Haddacks KCB and the Chief Minister Tony Brown MHK.

Many of the readings this year will come from the diary of Anne Frank, written when she and her family were in hiding from Nazi persecution in wartime Amsterdam.  The Anne Frank Exhibition is due to visit the Island in March.

All are welcome to attend the Holocaust Memorial Service, which is a time to remember all the innocent victims of persecution.