Efraim Zuroff: Honorary doctorate at the UNIBL – the most significant recognition!

On the occasion of the 49th anniversary of successful work and development of the University of Banja Luka (UNIBL) the honorary doctorate of the University was awarded to the Director of the „Vizental“ Center office in Israel and Department for East Europe, Dr. Efraim Zuroff. 

,,The recognition I received from Banja Luka University is a great honor, but also a great obligation. This is one of my favorite and most important recognitions I received during the career.  I am sorry I could not come to Banja Luka, but I use this opportunity to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this remarkable recognition“, said Zuroff.

,,We have to fight against rewriting of history and minimizing the crimes committed during the WW2. There is no doubt that Serbs suffered the most in this area, and that is why we have to fight against every form of revisionism. I have always pointed out those anomalies and I will continue to do so“, said Zuroff in his video-address at the solemn academy for the Day of Banja Luka University.

,,Every year in the Republic of Srpska a Day of remembrance is held in Donja Gradina, in commemoration of genocide committed over Serbs, Jews, Roma and antifascists in the concentration camp Jasenovac.  One of the most important achievements of my work as a Nazi hunter is related to Jasenovac, and that is bringing the commander of Jasenovac camp, Dinko Šakić, to justice“, Zuroff pointed out.  

,,I did not chose to hunt the Nazis because I thought it would be easy, I chose it out of sense of responsibility and duty towards all the people killed during the WW2.”

In his address he also stressed that Israel very much appreciates and respects the support of the Republika Srpska President, Milorad Dodik, and the whole Republika Srpska, to the state and people of Israel in these difficult times.

„I want to send special greetings to the Republika Srpska President, Milorad Dodik, a remarkable figure and a great friend of Israel and Jewish people“, said Zuroff.

The last Nazi hunter

Efraim Zuroff is an Israeli historian of American origin and a Nazi hunter who played a key role over the last 44 years in bringing the Nazi and Fascist war criminals to trials, which is why he bears the nickname the last Nazi hunter, and for our area particularly important is his role in discovering, extradition and trial to Dinko Šakić, commander of concentration camp Jasenovac. Certainly, it is important to mention Zuroff is a member of the International Commission for determining the truth about Jasenovac.  

In recent years Zuroff held many lectures around the world about his work on

bringing the Nazi criminals to justice, and in the second half of the 1990s he dealt with issues of genocide that happened in Rwanda in 1994.

Over the years Zuroff published over 500 articles, reports and reviews to various topics that concern Holocaust and other issues of interest for the Jewish people.

He is an author of several books, and his activities as Nazi hunter were a subject to television documentary films.

For his work he has received a number of awards and recognitions. Thus, since 2009 he has been an honorary citizen of Novi Sad, and in 2010 the then President of Croatia, Stjepan Mesić, awarded him for merits in fighting against historical revisionism and neofascism. The former President of Serbia, Tomislav Nikolić, decorated Zuroff with gold medal for merits in exceptional achievements and selfless commitment to defend the truth about the suffering of Jews, Serbs and Roma, and other people during the WW2. Zuroff was also proposed for the Nobel Peace Prize.