German Finance Minister Christian Lindner and Mayor of Berlin Franziska Giffey were among notable figures who attended a ceremony to mark the start of Hanukkah celebrations in the German capital Berlin on Sunday evening.

A large menorah set up in front of the iconic Brandenburg Gate, one of 55 set up across Berlin was lit up during a candle lighting ceremony by the chief rabbi of Berlin Yehuda Teichtal to signal the beginning of 8-day celebrations across the country.

“For the 18th time, we will light the Hanukkah lamp at the Brandenburg Gate. The message of Hanukkah is ‘Light over Darkness, Democracy over Tyranny’,” said Teichtal before lighting the menorah alongside Lindner.

Hanukkah is a Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and the subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century B.C.