A Swedish diplomat who saved thousands of Hungarian Jews from Nazi gas chambers during World War II was posthumously made an honorary citizen of Budapest on Monday.

Raoul Wallenberg was honored for showing exemplary bravery for saving tens of thousands of Jews in the final months of the war by issuing them Swedish passports and securing diplomatic protection for entire neighborhoods in Budapest.

"It is important to us to show Raoul Wallenberg as an example to coming generations," Budapest Mayor Gabor Demszky said at a small ceremony beside a statue commemorating Wallenberg in a city park.

Prime Minister Peter Medgyessy also praised Wallenberg´s courage.

"I bow my head to a person who showed us how to behave in times of danger," he said.

Wallenberg´s half-sister, Nina Lagergren, who attended the ceremony, told The Associated Press she had persuaded the city to name a school after her brother next year.

"I feel so moved," Lagergren said. "The school will mean so much to our endeavors to bring Raoul´s message to young people."

Around 600,000 of Hungary´s 1 million Jews died during the Holocaust. An estimated 100,000 Jews live in the country today.

Wallenberg was arrested by Soviet troops as they took control of the city in February 1945 and is believed to have died in a Soviet prison. (© 1995-2003, The Jerusalem Post 11/17/03)