For decades, the Jewish cemetery in the Serbian city of Novi Pazar was overgrown and abandoned. Before World War II, the city was home to a vibrant Jewish community, which was decimated during the Holocaust. In the years that followed, Novi Pazar's Jewish history was largely forgotten. Now, a private initiative is restoring the cemetery and reviving memories of the city's Jewish community.
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00:00This cemetery is all that is left of 300 years of Jewish life in Novi Pazar.
00:06It took the Nazis just a few days to deport the city's entire Jewish population of 221 people in 1942.
00:14Few returned from Hitler's death camps, and after the war the cemetery became overgrown and forgotten.
00:21Fahruddin Kladnichenin wanted to change all that.
00:25He founded a non-governmental organization which set about restoring the cemetery.
00:30Once a year, there are historical lectures on site, and a memorial service for those who died in the Holocaust.
00:55The Jews lived here until 1942.
01:25The first documentary mention of Jews in Novi Pazar was in 1776,
01:30although it can be assumed that there were Jews in the city well before that.
01:34Novi Pazar is also known for its old bazaar, where there are a number of jewelers.
01:40Recep Shkrielje is a professor of history and a keen goldsmith,
01:45a skill he taught himself in order to keep the memory of the city's Jewish community alive.
01:55They were brought here from Kosovo and taken to the Belgrade Cemetery.
02:03That's where most of them tragically died.
02:08Fahruddin Kladnichenin travelled to Belgrade to meet Mento Mentović.
02:13Mentović is a member of the Jewish community.
02:16He was born and raised in Novi Pazar, but has been living in the Serbian capital since his student years.
02:23He is one of the co-authors of a book about the Jews of Novi Pazar.
02:28His father was among the few to return from Hitler's concentration camps.
02:33The restoration of the cemetery means a lot to him.
02:37The grave that exists now, which is being renovated, is not finished yet.
02:42It will not be an active grave.
02:46Nobody will be buried in it anymore.
02:49It will be a monument of culture.
02:52It will fit in a completely different way in the middle of Novi Pazar.
02:59We are very satisfied.
03:03In a way, we got some satisfaction in the sense that it has remained a permanent memory.
03:13There are very few traces left of the Jewish community of Novi Pazar.
03:18Nevertheless, remembering the victims is still very important.
03:22Especially for the future of a city that has remained culturally diverse despite years of war and ethnic divide.
03:29We are talking about and building a future based on the foundations where we should respect each other
03:38and where we should prevent all forms of hatred that can now explode in multi-ethnic communities such as Novi Pazar.
03:49Hatred, anti-Semitism or any form of disregard for each other in this city is not desirable.
04:08Learn about the Jewish community that once lived here and contributed to the colourful and peaceful diversity of Novi Pazar.