An exhibition about John Rabe and his family's friendship with China opened in the Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders in Nanjing on Sunday.

Photo: Xinhua

With the theme of shared destiny, the exhibition shows John Rabe's touching story of sharing his fate with Chinese people during the Nanjing Massacre, and the friendship between the Rabe family and China that has continued to this day.

Photo: Xinhua

Sunday marks China's seventh National Memorial Day for the Nanjing Massacre Victims, and people across the country, especially those who lived in the city when it witnessed the pain and inhumanity of the killings, commemorated the day by reflecting on history and remembering international friends who offered help, including German John Rabe.

Regarded as the "Oskar Schindler of China," Rabe, a businessmen, helped set up the Nanjing Safety Zone, which sheltered over 200,000 Chinese civilians from the Japanese army during the Nanjing Massacre in 1937.

Photo: Xinhua

The exhibition held at the memorial hall displayed more than 70 pictures and over 40 other items centering around Rabe's life and his family's friendship with China, including many photos that were made public for the first time.

Photo: Xinhua

When COVID-19 swept through Europe earlier this year, the Chinese Embassy in Germany received a message asking for help from Thomas Rabe, the grandson of John Rabe who is a doctor at the hospital of Heidelberg University. After learning about the difficult situation, the Nanjing government collected masks, protective outfits and anti-virus medicines, and entrusted the embassy to send the supplies to Heidelberg in April.

Photo: Xinhua

The exhibition will last until April 2021.

(Compiled by Zhu Yurou)