Britain's Prince Charles, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron and German President Frank Walter-Steinmeier were among dozens of world leaders who converged on Thursday to mark 75 years since the Auschwitz death camp was liberated in 1945. 

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"Hatred and intolerance still lurk in the human heart, still tell new lies, still adopt new disguises and still seek new victims," Prince Charles told the Forum's 800 attendees, including 30 Auschwitz survivors, in Jerusalem. 

Prince Charles was one of four guest speakers representing WWII Allied countries – the U.S., France, England and Russia – who fought Axis forces in WWII, eventually liberating the German-controlled camps. 

Germany's Steinmeier accepted Germany's responsibility for the atrocities committed during WWII in his address.

Fighting present-day hatred 

Themed "Remembering the Holocaust-Fighting Antisemitism," the Forum was specifically relevant to the current global climate as antisemitism and xenophobia are rising steadily. 

The Organization for Security and Cooperation (OSCE) in Europe 2018 Hate Crime Report shows that of documented hate crimes committed against a broad range of ethnic and religious groups, most crimes were anti-Semitic in nature. 

At a state dinner hosted by Israel's President Reuven Rivlin on the eve of the Forum, Rivlin appealed to guests to wield the influence of their roles as world leaders in combating growing anti-Jewish sentiment. 

Spain's King Felipe took up Rivlin's appeal, telling dinner guests, "Remembrance alone is unfortunately not enough."

The forum

The World Holocaust Forum was held on the grounds of Yad Vashem, the world's Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem.  

Yad Vashem is the world's premier center for Holocaust education, documentation, commemoration and research, aiming to safeguard and impart the memory of the millions of Holocaust victims. 

Attendees also laid wreaths at Yad Vashem to honor the memory of Holocaust victims. 

Eighty-two-year-old Holocaust survivor and former Chief Rabbi of  Israel Meir Lau said he was a child when he went into the Nazi concentration camps and a mere eight-years-old when he was liberated. 

"I came especially to tell you I cannot forgive," he said, "because I am not authorized."

On the sidelines 

The very somber tone of the Forum did not stop intrigue from coming into play – Poland's President Andrzej Duda canceled his participation after organizers declined his request to address participants at the event. 

Broadly accepted speculation is attributed to Duda's backtrack to ongoing friction between Warsaw and Moscow over historical accounts of each country's respective role in WWII and the Holocaust, Putin told Forum attendees.

During bilateral meetings in Jerusalem, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence announced his invitation to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White Party Leader Benny Gantz to "talk peace" in Washington the following week.