Remembering the Holocaust survivor who forgave, accepted kiss from ex-Nazi guard

This story was first published on April 28, 2015.  Evar Kor has died at the age of 85, the BBC reports.  Oskar Groening was sentenced to four years in prison in July 2015. See the original story from our archives below:

It was a remarkable act of forgiveness.

Last week at the trial of former Auschwitz guard Oskar Groening, Holocaust survivor Eva Kor decided to approach and speak to the former SS officer who is accused as an accessory to 300-thousand murders. 

"I told him that my name was Eva Kor and that I was a survivor of Auschwitz and that I wanted to thank him for being willing to stand trial and bear witness to what happened."

Groening's reaction was even more surprising. 

Kor tells As It Happens guest host Dave Seglins, "Suddenly he grabbed me and pulled me toward him and gave me a kiss. I was stunned."

While she was a prisoner at Auschwitz, Kor was subjected to medical experiments — and had other family members who were killed there. But she says the kiss from the former guard was a caring and loving act.

"I prefer a loving gesture over a hateful gesture anytime."

At the trial, Groening admitted his own "moral responsibility" for what happened at Auschwitz, and did not deny that atrocities were committed there. 

Kor says he deserves forgiveness.

"I thought that this was an old man who was very remorseful for what happened," she says.

"There is no reason for a 93 year old man to go to prison."