U.S. President Donald Trump sent out a message in honor of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, which began Sunday.
"[My wife] Melania and I send our warmest greetings to our Jewish brothers and sisters in the United States, in Israel, and around the world celebrating Hanukkah," Trump said in a statement.
"Unfortunately, Jews today continue to face many different forms of violence, hatred, and bigotry around the globe."
Speaking of the mass shooting of 11 worshippers at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life Synagogue on Oct. 27, Trump said: "We remember all those from the Tree of Life-Or L'Simcha Congregation whose lives were tragically taken this past October.
"We pledge our continued love and support for the victims, their families, and the community.
"May the warming glow of each candle on the menorah help fill homes and hearts with love and happiness. Together, we reaffirm the truth that light will always break through darkness."
Meanwhile, in Germany, the first night of Hanukkah was marked in Berlin with the annual candle-lighting ceremony in front of the capital's iconic Brandenburg Gate.
Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier lit the first candle of the holiday, kicking off the eight-day celebration.
"Today we are glad for the light, the light that we will soon ignite," Steinmeier said. "We are thankful that there is again diverse Jewish life in Germany, and a diverse, self-confident Jewish community. And we are thankful that in this country we celebrate Hanukkah together again. The light triumphed over the darkness, that is the wonder of Hanukkah."
Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, said, "This political attitude for a cosmopolitan Germany must be made our own in our everyday life. Civil courage, respect, consideration. We must commit ourselves to this day to day.
"Sometimes that's not easy for us. But right now the Hanukkah story shows us that seemingly impossible things become possible if we only want them."
The Berlin menorah was lit with a live flame which will later be replaced by lightbulbs.
The ceremony was held amid mounting anti-Semitism, which remains a sensitive issue in Germany more than 70 years after the end of the Holocaust.
