Liberation anniversary: 80 years since end of Leningrad siege

Eighty years ago, the city of Leningrad, now known as St. Petersburg, was liberated from a Nazi siege. In January 1944, a Soviet offensive forced the Germans to retreat from the outskirts of the city and brought relief to those who had suffered under hostile military encirclement for years. Russian President Vladimir Putin visited St. Petersburg to lay a wreath at the Mother Russia Monument and to honor the victims. Others around the world are also observing the anniversary of the siege of Leningrad. In Jerusalem, for example, locals also paid their respects at the ‘Candle of Memory’ monument.