United States President Barack Obama visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem on Friday morning.

“Here on your ancient land, let it be said: The state of Israel doesn’t exist because of the Holocaust, but due to the state of Israel, the Holocaust will never happen again,” Obama declared.

The victims of the Holocaust will never be forgotten, said Obama. He noted that he has visited Yad Vashem before, but said that it would remain heart-breaking even after 1,000 visits.

“We see how evil can, for a moment in time, triumph,” he said. “We see the barbarism that enfolds when we begin to see other human beings as less than us.”

There is no place for racism or anti-Semitism, he declared.

Obama had previously caused upset by stating that the state of Israel was reestablished because of the Holocaust.

Obama also visited the tombs of Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin and of Theodore Herzl. He placed stones on each grave, in line with Jewish tradition, and spoke with Rabin’s children and grandchildren.