Israel came to a standstill on Monday as thousands of people stopped in their tracks for a two-minute silence to remember the victims of the Holocaust.

The ritual formed the centrepiece of the country's annual Holocaust Remembrance Day for those systematically killed by Nazi Germany and its collaborators during World War Two.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin attended an official wreath-laying ceremony at Yad Vashem, the country's national Holocaust memorial, in Jerusalem.

In Tel Aviv, traffic came to a halt as motorists stood by their vehicles in silence with their heads bowed.

Solemn ceremonies were also held in schools and community centres nationwide, with cafes and entertainment venues shut down.

Television and radio stations stopped their usual transmissions and broadcast documentaries about the Holocaust and its victims.