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I will not remain in Tarnopol. My face is oriented towards Lvov. It is my hope that once I am there I will be able to obtain news about my family and meet with friends. But how does one get to Lvov? They say that a train will leave Tarnopol for Lvov in a few hours. I encountered a comrade from my home city who told me that he had found a freight truck and that he would be driving the truck to Zolkiew. The truck was brimming full, but it should be possible to find one more spot for me. The trip took two days. The engine frequently failed and a couple of times we were forced to go out of our way to get gasoline. The wrecked houses along the way bore witness that something terrifying had taken place. There were deep pits on all sides of the roads that we fell into with each step. The fields beside the map museum, next to the railroad tracks and telegraph poles, had deep pits with the appearance of the flooding around them, all of which showed the terrifying power of the explosion of the bombs. The enemy certainly did not cheat in bombing.

The autumn rains began to fall and we were wet through and through and shivering from the cold. From this point on, we had to pray for two things: that the engine would not break down, and that the truck would not be confiscated. It appeared that our prayers were heard. We were able to travel without interruptions. We saw fields and large and small villages and towns. As the rain fell, the road turned into mud and our truck was still running. We were so wet that water ran from our clothing. The driver said that we would arrive in Zolkiew in a short time, which was a relief to us, but suddenly we stopped! The engine failed again. So we went into a farmer's house, and we waited until the auto was repaired. The farmer told me that the Germans had control of the town for a few days. ‘How did they behave?’ I asked. ‘In complete order,’ he replied. ‘I am very sorry that the Bolsheviks are coming in their place.’ ‘What do you mean when you say, ‘in complete order’? Did they behave this way everywhere they went?’ They acted differently in the towns. The Jews suffered, because the Germans abused them. They did nothing bad to us. ‘Are you a Ukrainian?’ ‘No, I am Polish.’ In the meantime the auto was repaired. We traveled for somewhat longer and reached Zolkiew. We arrived at a good time and we were able to get gasoline.

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Within four days we had a taste of Nazi rule in Zolkiew. Even though the Zolkiew Jews suffered in a minor way compared to how Jews suffered in other places, the community was considerably shaken, and the chill people exhibited when they passed by was more than enough to tell the story of these last four days. Plunder, abuse, heavy work. It was a sadistic war of nerves and terror, whose purpose was to oppress the soul into dust, to denigrate, to conceal, to drive one crazy! ‘Tomorrow we will pass serious judgements on you! This evening we will hold a decision-making session! The day after tomorrow you will hear your sentences! In another couple of hours, we will teach you pigs some manners.’ The time that was set by those who threatened arrived, and nothing happened, but we were severely distressed.

I saw an empty frame decorating a wall in the home of the friendly innkeeper who took us in. I asked, why was there a frame and no picture? The woman of the house replied as follows: ‘Austrian officers lived in my house. Their behavior was pleasant, and courteous, that is to say they were Austrians and not Prussians. Some of the officers brought me butter or other foodstuffs. One day, they were attracted to the picture of Jeremiah the Prophet hanging in this frame. They attacked this picture; they removed the staples and the cardboard, took the picture out and tore it into tiny pieces. Afterwards, they placed the cardboard back in its place, put back all the staples they had removed, and hung the frame back on the wall. They took vengeance upon the Jewish faith, but did no harm to the frame.’

There is an ancient and beautiful synagogue in which the Jews of Zolkiew take great pride. I entered through the sacred room full of beauty. I saw the strong walls, the beautiful chandeliers, and also small holes in the deck of the Synagogue. I asked, ‘Who made these holes in the building ceiling?’ I was told that the Germans broke into the Synagogue, took out their revolvers and shot into the deck. One chandelier also was damaged. The Synagogue was saved by a miracle because the Germans had already intended to burn it. If they had stayed in the town they would have finished their work. When the town citizens asked why they were leaving in such disorganized haste, the Germans answered: ‘Jetzt kommen die Russische schweine.’ Now the Russian pigs are coming.

The town and its surroundings were very pleasant. The trees were starting to grow leaves, the sky was mostly blue, and the sun lit up the days to make them warm and beautiful. We took extended walks and tried to calm our hearts which were full of bitterness and sorrow, even in the splendor of autumn. The incidents of the past days, and our expectations for more, made us wonder, what would be the end of this thing? What will you do after you spend the last few zlotys in your pocket? A new stream of refugees began to flow into the area conquered by the Russians. They came in droves, and this time, they were all Jews. After the bargaining between the Russians and Germans ended with regard to the question of the division of Poland, and after they had finally settled on the borders, the Red Army withdrew and left many places they had previously conquered. At the start, the Russian newspapers said that the border was to be set along the length of the San River in Galicia, and for the length of the Vistula River in Congress Poland, but in the end, the Russians gave in. Instead of the length of the Vistula, it was the Bug River, and the Red Army was ordered to reverse course. Now, Jews fled from the places the Russians had controlled, revealing a preference for Soviet rule by Jews in the militia and also plain ordinary Jews.

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The Poles informed the Jews that they would slaughter them all once the Russians were gone. The town continued to fill with refugees who arrived hungry, half-naked and exhausted, and it was the lack of housing that was most keenly felt. There were places in which ten people were living in one room. The militia confiscated the monastery, a large and splendid building, with hundreds of Jewish refugees living in it. Because of the awful sanitary conditions in the monastery, it quickly became a nest for infectious diseases, and the Poles declared that the day would come when they would exact revenge from the Jews, who desecrated their monastery.

Terrible news that froze our blood and caused our hearts to race reached us every day from the German area of conquest. Schools were burned, Jews were shot at as they attempted to rescue Torah scrolls. A group of Jews were forced to ford a deep river where they drowned because they did not know how to swim. An elderly Jew was forced to dig a deep grave to bury all of his books, the Tanakh, the Shas and Poskim, and the like. When this work was done, the Germans placed a crucifix on the grave and ordered the Jew to guard the grave day and night and threatened his life if the crucifix were to disappear from the grave. There were children, stumbling through the forests and searching for their parents. You heard these incidents and your heart bled, and your hands suddenly spasmed into the form of a fist. We surrounded a Jewish officer to tell him how much the Jews were suffering in the area captured by the Germans, and asked why Russia remained silent and why it made friends with these murderers. As he listened it was obvious that these things surprised him and in the end he said: ‘Terrible! Terrible! We did not know a thing. I advise you to write to Comrade Stalin! Write to Comrade Stalin! And he will help. He will offer aid. Write to Comrade Stalin!’

There was an absence of good news and there was no joy. People walked around in the streets without purpose and without the prospect of anything better. Their faces conveyed worry and fear. Every day brought more fear and troubles. And today, we learned that the agenda for cleansing would happen in any case. The pleading and efforts were of no help. A part of Zolkiew would be emptied of its residents and become residences for the families of officers. People would be uprooted from their homes and the army officers and their families would take them over to live in them, in the most beautiful quarter of the city. And where will those who were dislocated go? It was proposed that the refugees move to the monastery which was already full from end-to-end and a nest of disease. There was no joy or rest. Each day brought its unique worries, and each night, fear.

In a few places workers were grabbed from the various Zionist Histadrut organizations. The Hebrew Schools continued to be closed down. The Jewish communists cheered the honor of Stalin and demonstrated their ardor for him. But the masses of Jews were not inspired, as the lack of essentials and worries about each next day gnawed away at them. From mouths to ears, fantasies about the Land of Israel were passed along. ‘A Jewish country has been created in The Land? The authorities are Jewish, and the army is Jewish? Who is spreading such news? I do not know.’ The news traveled from city to city, from town to town. Jews swore that they heard broadcasts from Radio Jerusalem. The broadcasts reported who had been nominated as the head of the Jewish government and who to the Ministry of Defense. Lies? No! Hallucinations! Hallucinations! Jews hear and believe. If during that time you had said to them that there was a possibility to make aliyah to The Land, but the road was long and hard, all would have risen as one with their walking sticks and bags, and headed for you. Zion, Zion, you are loved!

Translator's footnote:

1. Taken from the book, A Storm on a Day of Downpour Return

Zolkiew is a small city on the horizon of ‘Ha’Re'i. Everyone who at one time or another came in contact with Zolkiew loved this city. And for me, someone who was not born in Zolkiew, but rather bound to it for almost 25 years at the peak of my professional work, I lived the life of Zolkiew with all my essence and being. I took part in all of its celebrations and festivals. And here, as I now present what happened to Zolkiew, about its generations, traditions, personalities and virtues, about the vibrant lives who streamed through her gates during the decline and terrible cessation, it is as if and old, healed wound has reopened in the passing of days after the Holocaust. These words describe what happened to me. These chapters of memorials are written in order to make sure that the events are never forgotten. By writing these memorials to the people of the city, its associates and admirers, I ask you to communicate the story of the rise and fall of Zolkiew to your children and grandchildren. Those we have lost should be etched in your memory forever. In the Zolkiew cemetery and in the environs of the Boork, we have left our relatives forever and ever. The blood of those near and dear to us was spilled for no transgression on their part, only because they were Jews and lived their lives as Jews. These words create a memorial of honor for our city, and in the hearts of all who knew it and loved it.

Katowice (Poland) March 1946

A terrifying war is looming over Poland. The optimists believe that Hitler will not implement his madness and not dare to start a war with the entire free world. Since the pessimists already see that the war is actually brewing, Zolkiew is split on this issue. We come together each evening in the Kultur Verein in the hall of the old magistrate's building, and have a discussion about the main question above all questions: will war break out or not? Even the quiet and reserved Dr. Leib Fish is seized with fear and weariness. Even the bridge-player who generally follows after him eagerly at all opportunities is not yet interested. Everyone listened attentively to the news broadcasts from radio Warsaw, Berlin and London. We were returning home at a late hour from the Kultur Verein on the night of August 31^{st, still debating between the optimists and the pessimists, and we were already at war. In an act of vengeful hate, Hitler attacked Poland!}

What will this mean for us? What will happen to the Jews? This unspoken question is on everyone's minds.

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September 1, 1939

The Germans bombed Lvov from the air during the morning hours. There were victims. One victim was Fish, a Jew from Zolkiew, the owner of a bus service between Zolkiew and Lvov. This young man was hit in the leg by shrapnel from a bomb and required an amputation. The Jews of Zolkiew were very disappointed, but still hoped that the enemy would not reach here. The Polish army will not allow Hitler's army to penetrate into the country. People felt comforted believing that the Vistula and the San were stumbling blocks in Hitler's way. Meanwhile, Hitler's troops were breaking through at lightning speed and from different directions into the middle of Poland, without being halted by any serious defense.

The Polish army retreated from our locations and the Germans entered Zolkiew. At that time only the Jews were in a panic. The Poles were seized by a passing fear and the Ukrainians were joyous and happy. Already during the first hours after the Germans entered Zolkiew, the Jews experienced what awaited them. They were beaten and seized to carry out a variety of heavy labor work: sweeping the streets, peeling potatoes, and cleaning the lodgings of the Germans. As they observed the signs of the initial pursuit against the Jews, the non-Jews adopted a position of strength and nerve. They mocked the wounded and were happy about their misfortune. Because of this we had to become accustomed to a deeper well of hate and situations that were more serious and dangerous.

At this point a change happened as if it was a miracle from Heaven. We were surprised to learn that the German army was leaving eastern Galicia and moving back across the San River to the benefit of the Soviet Union, based on the Hitler-Stalin Pact. The Nazi army left Zolkiew on September 23, and the Soviet army arrived the next day. What happened during this short period of Nazi occupation, which was ‘compassionately’ conducted only became obvious years later. There were no Jewish victims during this short time. Later, we learned an explanation for this: the first Nazi army to reach Zolkiew was actually Austrian, not German.

The Jews of Zolkiew received the Soviet army courteously, believing with justification, that the change in control would put an end to the ethnic harassment imposed on them. In general, the Jews were not disappointed when the Soviets arrived. The Jews helped the Russians by organizing places of work and services, but they did this from a distance. They did not want to be considered bourgeois, for each person labeled as such by the Russians was liable for arrest and exile. This happened during all of 1940 and almost up to the last minute the Russians remained in Zolkiew. Lists of bourgeois Jews were compiled according to intelligence service and inquiry, and to our sorrow, especially dependent on the testimony and knowledge of Jews who were members of the Communist party. I must highlight that many of the Jewish youth who had previously belonged to Zionist organizations now joined the work of the communist party. The non-Jewish local populace did not look kindly upon this fact and hurled threats, such as ‘we will remember what is due to you when the time comes,’ which actually did come true later on. Joseph Gabbl and his wife (Joseph died in a foreign country and his wife was embarrassed to return), the Reitzfeld family (he died, but his wife and family remained alive) and two to three other families were

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arrested and exiled by the Soviets. In addition, the Russians moved several Jewish families from Zolkiew to other cities in Galicia, and among them were Ephraim Landau and family, the family of Moshe Sobl, the family of Anshel Sobl, and the Tirk family.

The Jewish population of Zolkiew continued to grow to 7,000 with the incoming flow of Jewish refugees who were pursued by the Nazis in Austria, Czechoslovakia and Western Galicia. Many feared exile to Russia, which was considered at that time, to be a great calamity. Everyone hoped that things would return to order, that the war would end, and everything would be as it once was. No one suspected or thought that Hitler would attack the Soviet Union or have the nerve to be involved in a total war with the United States, Soviet Russia, and England. There were unusual movements by the Soviet army in May and June of 1941, but most of these appeared to be signs of military maneuvers.

And then the great calamity arrived. We awakened on the morning of June 22, 1941 to find that the war of Nazi conquest was back in our city. It was a war of liquidation. At a much later date, the question was frequently asked, especially by the Aryans in the city, why did we not flee Zolkiew when the Soviets were still in the city, or at least leave together with the retreating Russian troops? But who could believe that Germany, the nation of culture, home to Goethe, Schiller, Lessing, Hauptman and so many others could implement the worst transgression, an extermination of which there was no equivalent in human history. We were connected to German culture and could not believe that what happened could happen. A few people who were exiled to the East by the Soviets thought that the German arrival was a calamity. There were some who were willing to move East with the Russians in their retreat.

After seven days of preparing its own army defenses, the Soviets were stopped by Hitler's invasion of Zolkiew on the morning of June 29. The day was Sunday. The sun was shining as if at first it did not feel the denouement of our city. Most of the residents of the city, by virtue of being tired by the impact of the previous seven days of war, and after hiding in their cellars, began to emerge. The non-Jewish residents were joyous that the Red Plague had vanished, and announced that it was all right to liquidate the Jews, those Bolsheviks. The Germans had a ready ear for this. They began to organize a hunt for Jews and received voluntary help from the Ukrainians and the Poles. The Ukrainians did not take much time to set themselves up as pro-German and pro-Nazi. Overnight they changed their skin from adherents of the Red International Proletariat to adherents of the Nazi army.

Fear and terror descended on the Jews of the city, especially since an armed Nazi unit having just reached the city, intended to burn the beautiful Zolkiew Synagogue. First, the Germans poured large cans of benzene on this sacred hall, then forced a number of Jews into the synagogue, and set fire to it, without making it possible for the arrested Jews to get out and save their lives. The same thing was done to the nearby Bet-HaMedrash. It was only

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because of the involvement of an elderly German general, who ordered the soldiers to immediately free the detained, cuffed & chained Jews, that they were saved. Moni Feder, son of Shmuel Feder, also among those detained in the synagogue, told me a few days later how their sudden rescue took place.

With my own eyes, I saw death drawing near as our group was literally engulfed by tongues of fire. The smoke was asphyxiating, and breathing became more difficult as the fire continued. I was not so concerned about my own life because I wanted to rescue my 14 year-old son, who had not even tasted a grownup's life. I prayed to the One Sitting on High to save his life, and my voice was heard. Surprisingly two of the gates to the Synagogue opened and our ears detected evil shouting: ‘Come out you accursèd Jews!’ Everyone of us who had run for our lives received punishing blows. Here and there, there were gunshots over our heads, but thank God, we were rescued.

On the same day, June 29, 1941 our Synagogue was entirely consumed by fire. One of the architectural wonders of houses of worship, our precious treasure, was torn down to the foundation of the Sacred Hall, which for generations had been the pride of the Jewish residents of Zolkiew and Poland. From that time on, only the remnants of wreckage would bear silent witness to Zolkiew's former magnificent Synagogue.

The extermination of the Jews began in Zolkiew. The Nazi authorities of the city established a commission of the Jewish community known as Judenrat. The Nazis ordered Dr. Moshe Sobl to locate volunteers who were prepared to assume the burden of the Jewish Authority. Some of these men later explained that while they first objected to this, they gave in to serving afterwards, as the captors threatened a collective financial fine to be levied for disobeying the implementation of the order.

And so the Judenrat of Zolkiew was created. Its members were: Dr. Fyvusz Rubinfeld – Chairman; Dr. Avraham Shtraich – Vice chairman; the engineer Wilhelm Lichtenberg; Dr. Philip Czyckes; Dr. Moshe Sobl; Osias Czyckes, Nathan Apfel; Shimon Wolf; Moshe Ruttle; Ephraim Landau and a number of other residents. This group changed only slightly before the end. Dr. Rubinfeld and Lichtenberg left the Judenrat committee.

After the authorities validated the composition of the Judenrat, the Jews of Zolkiew were burdened with a community-wide fine of one half-million Rubles, 50 kilograms of silver, and 5 kilograms of gold. Dr. M. Wachs was immediately detained and arrested as security to make sure the fine would be paid. A community-wide Jewish group began, with much energy, to satisfy the demands of the Nazis, and turned to the Jews of Zolkiew with an emotional plea to provide the required ransom. As is usually the case in such matters, there were not only complaints, but also appeals from a number of Jews, saying they had been saddled with a burden they could not carry. In the end, the goal was reached in its entirety. The sense of solidarity among the Jews of the city became stronger, and they recognized that one cannot flee from a decree.

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Rokendorf, the Nazi in command, was advised that all was carried out as ordered, and he released Dr. Wachs, the man held as security. In reality, this was only the start, a sort of first strike in the chain of harassment, denigration, pressure, wounds to the body and soul and dignity of the Jews, and to specific individuals. The next order required that everyone was to wear a white band around their right sleeve with the symbol of the Magen-David. The order made it clear that those who disobeyed could be sentenced to death.

Dr. M. Wachs and Dr. M. Spatz, a refugee from Jaroslaw, were no longer allowed to provide care for patients in the hospital, and Jewish doctors were forbidden to treat Aryan patients. The Jews were were not allowed entry to the local park and the Valley, another garden, places where Jews often met and took walks. Similarly, Jews were forbidden to walk on the sidewalks. They were restricted to walking in the road that led to the train station, and ul. Lanikvicza. Jews were no longer allowed to use the post office, and so a sort of branch for Jewish mail was opened. Jews were forbidden to be outside on the city streets after 7 PM. Jews were not permitted to travel accompanied by a group of friends, and in general, were forbidden to leave the city without permission from the authorities.

Work was generally hard labor. Craftsmen worked at their crafts, and plain workers without specific skills were used in all manner of tasks. Jewish women and girls worked in public gardens and swept the streets. A small number of Jewish adults and young men were occupied in the hard labor of repairing roads on the way from Zolkiew to Lvov. The stones used to repair the roads were uprooted headstones removed from the Jewish cemetery which the Jews themselves were ordered to destroy to the point that there was almost no memory of the ancient Jewish cemetery in Zolkiew. Elderly people and the sick attempted to obtain documentation of illness or advanced age from Dr. E. Kaplinsky, often through bribery, to avoid being pressed into hard labor.

We hoped with all of our might that because of our suffering under the burden of these decrees, the Creator of the World would bestow his generosity on us and get us through one way or another, until the end of the war. The Judenrat tried to ease the wicked decrees as much as was possible, using gifts and bribes, and occasionally it helped. We tried to delude ourselves that the Jews of Zolkiew would be saved, until, with cruel terror, the true visage of the Nazis became apparent. Some among us believed that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would guard his people. The year 1941 ended without a significant sacrifice of life.

The beginning of 1942 brought a change for the worse. The winter was difficult. The Germans had bad news about the condition of their soldiers near Moscow and Leningrad. The Führer had promised that the Nazis would celebrate victory on all fronts, but they were falling by the tens of thousands in alien land, suffering from the attacks of their enemy and the terrible cold. The heads of the Nazi authorities in Zolkiew could not promise victory, but they certainly knew how to plunder the Jews of the city. The Nazis pushed a new order through the Judenrat. The Jews had to turn over all of their furs within 48 hours. There was no choice as the punishment for disobedience was death. The Jews turned in all such items as ordered. If only this truly was the last decree.

America's entry into the war worsened our condition. Within two weeks the Germans exacted their first vengeance on the Jews. The optimists among us again believed that with the influence of

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American military strength, the Russians would be able to recapture what they lost and the Germans would be beaten and vanquished. Hence, the Jews would be saved from the talons of the Nazis.

Those who listened to Radio London in secret, heard that the end to the Nazi scourge was being prepared. Our fate however, deemed otherwise. Even though unable to conquer the Russians, the Nazis still had a free hand to kill and exterminate. In March 1942, the Landeskommissar, Rokenford, demanded a list of all the elderly and exhausted Jews who had been released from work because of medical reasons. Dr. Kolpinsky provided this list which included the names of 600 people, mostly adults. Within a few days these people were assembled in the courtyard of the Zolkiew palace where they were counted and brought to a train heading in the direction of Rawa-Ruska. Not one of us had any idea where they were taking this group. Only after a few days had passed did we learn that these Jews were first of the martyrs of the Belzec death camp, where they were exterminated by gas. A great mourning descended upon us.

After this, the Nazi Scourge called the chairman of the Judenrat, Dr. Rubinfeld, and promised that there would be no further ‘bad incidents’ visited upon the Jews of Zolkiew following this Aktion. There were actually those among us who believed this insidious promise of the Nazi ruler, the Scourge of the Jews. Their faith in this promise was short-lived, however. In a few days, several buses from the S.S. appeared outside the city. With the help of Jewish police alongside the Judenrat, the Nazis seized 60 Jews to send to the so-called Labor Camp in Lacki. The Astman brothers were seized in this group. These men were family of the appointed officer to the Starostvo who managed the books of the populace. One of the brothers was shot to death within a week. The second brother managed to return, in exchange for a bribe. He was able to flee from the camp, but he returned to Zolkiew with his fingers and toes frozen and taken to the hospital. Not many days went by before a Nazi emissary came to Zolkiew in order to forcibly return him to the camp at Lacki, where he was shot to death because of his escape. Even more terrible, the Judenrat had to send a living Jew from Zolkiew to the camp in place of the deceased. Not even one of these 60 people remained alive.

A couple of months went by more-or-less quietly. In the summer of 1942, the Germans began Aktionen for extermination in the Malopolka region which included Lvov and other cities and towns in Eastern Galicia. The first one took place in Lvov, and approximately 30,000 Jews were brought to extermination camps, and their journey took them through Zolkiew. They were transported, naked as the day they were born, like cattle to slaughter in closed-up freight trains, in the direction of Belzec. This was the beginning of an organized initiative that Satan himself could not have orchestrated any better. From there, and under guard, they passed through the Zolkiew train station, becoming part of the rumble of death-trains that moved around all parts of Galicia.

There were instances where even those who had given up bolstered themselves with courage (after all, what did they have to lose), jumped from the trains, and made their way back to Zolkiew with the last of their remaining energy. There were many instances of this sort, however most of them, like all the others, were shot to death and exterminated.

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November 22, 1942^[2]

We awakened to the sound of gunfire. What is the meaning of these shots and what did they portend? It required little time to recognize that these were not shots of rescue from the outside, but of extermination from within. This was a new Aktion from which it was not possible to flee. The Nazis had completely surrounded all the gates of the city and other entry points with the help of the Ukrainian Militia. Having no choice, the Jews of Zolkiew tried to hide in cellars and a variety of other hideouts, or to plead for mercy from their non-Jewish neighbors.

Gestapo men entered Jewish homes and fired shots without discerning their targets. Whomever they did not murder, the Nazis gathered, took them to the Zolkiew palace, and ordered them to sit on their knees for 36 hours. Those who were unable to survive this test were shot on the spot. Following this, the remaining people were loaded onto trains headed to the death-camp at Belzec. About 300 people were killed in this Aktion, and about 1,200 were forced to go to Belzec.

Among those condemned to this bitter fate were six young children under the age of five, whose mothers separated from them in the hope that as solitary children, the Nazis might extend some good will toward them. The head of the local S.S., Aufsturmführer Papa, who was about 70 years old and who came from Bielfeld, near Hannover in Germany, came over to the group of children and asked about their parents. No one answered. The Nazi became enraged. He said he would count to three, in which time the parents had to appear beside their children. After his count, he murdered all six children. And that is the way it was, using his revolver, he killed them one-at-at-time in front of their parents.

Among the Zolkiew Jews murdered in those days of the Aktion, I remember the tailor S. Fleischer, Dr. Otto Schlusser and his wife, Karolina Fertig from the Dadlatz pharmacy, Dr. Meir Wachs (who committed suicide) the lady Tauba (who was shot to death during an attempted escape), Y. Bendel, his wife, daughter, son-in-law, who were discovered in the aftermath of a malevolent disclosure made by a non-Jewish neighbor, and sent off to Belzec.

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A sense of helplessness struck us all. We did not know to whom it would happen tomorrow, and at what hour. For whom did the bells of a cruel death chime?

Nechama Purta was on the radio news from London. Victory was coming closer there, and the bitter end of Hitler was certain. But the initiatives taken to exterminate Jews did not stop, but rather, continued with greater strength.

The Zolkiew ghetto was created on December 1, 1942, and became the place in which the Jews of the city were to be confined. The presumed reason for this was that due to the spread of Typhus among the Jews, they had to be isolated and distanced from the rest of the population. The area of the ghetto included the streets of Turinycka from the Dalatz pharmacy to the square of the Dominicans. The left side was derived from the road leading to Mosty', Ginzso, Sznicraska up to the corner of the house of Letzter the carpenter, further on to the direction of ul. Bazilanska through ul. Piekarska, beside the house of Shimshon Sobl up to the house of Manusz, including the street of Sobieski and Dr. Reich. This narrow boundary was supposed to absorb the local Jews, and with them, the Jews of Kulikovo and a portion of the Jews from Mosty' and nearby settlements. It was estimated that about 4,500 people were crammed into the Zolkiew ghetto.

A labor camp was created nearby in Mosty'-Wielki, and many Jews of Zolkiew, especially the youth, hoped that their salvation would come through work. As a matter of fact they were not saved. The only benefit was a sort of delay of their death by a month or two. It was forbidden for anyone to leave the narrow ghetto, under threat of death, except for the president of the Judenrat, his members, and those in the militia, The Jews of the Ghetto lived as many as ten to a room, in unhygienic conditions, in filth and in hunger. As diseases spread and worsened the situation, the number of the dead reached 20 souls a day. The two Jewish doctors, Dr. Wachs and Dr. Margalit, were literally bent under the weight of the medical work to be done. I must note here especially, the boundless commitment of Dr. Margalit who remained the only doctor caring for the diseased, particularly typhus, after the death of Dr. Wachs, who died with our other brethren on March 25, 1943.

January, February, and March were the sunset months for us, and the anticipation of the end to our existence. Life lost all of its taste. Some died with the will to be rid of all this, and were envied for having reached liberation from the suffering. Despite this, some struggled with their last bit of energy, with brave effort and a lofty heart, in the hope of experiencing the privilege of being saved, liberated, and set free. Once again we depended on Radio London's transmission of encouraging news. The Red Army was resolutely pursuing Hitler's army, which was retreating and confused. With feelings of sweet illusions, we followed the battles on a map, since in every hour and minute, death for us lurked in ambush. Some thought that if we could hold our ground and live another 17 to 20 months, we would be free.

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Once again the Gestapo men spread malevolent news: ‘it was absolutely certain’ that there would not be an Aktion before April 15, 1943. They had already fooled us once, twice, and three times with this kind of talk, and despite this we were seduced by the illusion that maybe this time it was true. Perhaps the Nazis were retreating from their stance on the total extermination of the Jews in the face of impending defeat and a judgment day that awaited them. Opposed to those with illusions were a few who made a strong effort, every way they could, to flee for their lives and to get over to the Aryan side of the city. Most were caught, but there were some who succeeded in attaining this magic goal, thanks to a number of non-Jews who hid Jews among them until the end of the war. There were Aryans who saw the Jews as equals, human beings, worthy of being rescued, and they endangered their own lives as they helped Jewish people. It is my desire to remember the humanity of their deeds, at least those whom I know. They are Emil Luzhinski, a retired railroad employee who rescued my wife, my daughter and me; the sergeant of the Polish Army, who came to Zolkiew from Wolhyn, went to Bak, and saved the families of Michael Melman, Mundek Patrontacz, Berisz Schwartz and his wife and children, and the owner of the pharmacy. E. Sztekl and his wife – altogether 18 lives; the lady, Sokolova who saved Hecht and his sister Charlotta Wolf, the dentist Mandel, and Blumenfeld in the environs of Rawa-Ruska.

Also, almost unbelievably, another rescuer of Jews was the German (Volksdeutsche), the secretary of the head of the Gestapo in Zolkiew, whose name I did not know. I also recall a stranger, not from Zolkiew, who saved the daughter of Zisha Waldman. These honorable people deserve to have their names remembered and recorded in glory.

Most of the members of the Judenrat died, mainly from typhus. The remaining members continued to assist Dr. Rubinfeld who was weakened after falling ill with typhus. On March 15, 1943, Nathan Apfel, Dr. Leib Fish, and perhaps another two or three who remained in the Judenrat, received an order to gather all the adult men, both working and non-working, up to the age of 50, on the Sokol soccer field, in order to organize them into a new work unit and camp. In addition, all of these men would not be seized during an Aktion. Dr. Rubinfeld believed the Gestapo (for the last time!) and directed the Jewish militia to assemble the men as required, and to forcefully bring resistors from their homes as well. The men were to appear shaved and clean on the Sokol field at the behest of the Gestapo. About 600 men came to the field, waiting impatiently to be organized into a work camp, unaware that their destination was actually an extermination camp. The men were not given much time to wait. To their surprise, an armed German gendarmerie entered the field, escorted by the Ukrainian militiamen (known to carry out pogroms) and like a chain, surrounded all those gathered in the field. It was not necessary to explain to the hundreds of surrounded Jews what awaited them, especially when the Auftstrumbanführer Wilhaus arrived at the place. He was the officer in charge of the Janowska camp in Lvov, remembered in disgrace and dishonor, leading a group of murderers. Wilhaus ordered all of the 600 Jews into freight trucks ready to take them to an anonymous place. The Jewish militia was compelled to take part in this expulsion. Through great efforts, Dr. Rubinfeld was able to save several exhausted and weak people from the field. This Aktion was called the Dry Pogrom. The Judenrat participated in its completed implementation.

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I had an opportunity to meet the head of the Judenrat on the following day. The broken man, worn out from his own weakness, admitted that he attempted to justify his actions by saying that had Wilhaus not assembled hundreds of Jews on the field of Sokol, Wilhaus would have taken them one at a time from their houses. In addition, he would have seized hundreds of Jews of all ages, for extermination. There was some bitter truth in this.

About 3,500 people remained in the Zolkiew ghetto after this Aktion. Most of them were the elderly, women and children who did not know when their time would come. When I spoke to these remaining Ghetto people, they all uttered the same words of desperation and agreed on one question: when is our end coming? There was no salvation, only a sense of desperation in this understanding.

It was 5:30 AM on the fifth day and the sound of gunshots awakened us. As we learned through past bitter experiences, it was clear to us what the sound of these shots meant. The end has come! And it was only the day before yesterday that the Auftstrumbanführer of the S. S. Papa and his secretary said that in all cases there will not be a renewal of an Aktion until April 15. Folks like us continued to place faith in lying promises such as these. We still believed that Nazi promises were real.

It was very cold outside, as it would be in the month of March. The wind blew and the sun was concealed. We hurried to the windows, and once again we saw Jews assembling. They were exhausted, lacked warm clothing, and were cruelly pushed along the length of ul. Lvovska. We saw an elderly man, Mr. Fertig and his wife, and the Glassgalls (the in-laws of Dr. Wachs) in the first line as they faced forward in silence without screaming, as if they were pleading for their rapidly-approaching end. After some time passed, I learned that Fertig had been shot along the way before they reached the Boork, only because his pace was too slow.

We were living in the first non-Jewish house outside of the ghetto, which was owned by a Ukrainian. We quickly ducked away from the window in order not to be seen by the Gestapo. We ran for our lives and hid in an attic as the sound of the shooting got stronger and came from the house near to that of Orla Zubl. Were they looking for her family there, or perhaps they had already been found. Suddenly I heard a loud question in German coming from the courtyard of our house: Who lives here? The answer: Me! An additional question: Who are you? The additional answer: this is an Aryan pharmacy! The steps receded and we could breathe again, but until when? We were stunned and struck dumb. We heard upsetting cries of pain from people being pursued, like cattle going to the slaughter. We plugged our ears and cried. How were we to stand all this? How could we maintain our sanity and not lose our minds? The sun slowly set and darkness and night descended. As we came down the staircase from the attic where we were hiding, the owner of the house greeted us like an enemy: ‘You must flee from here immediately. The head of the Ukrainian militia discovered that you are hidden here and who knows if he will come for you and take you.’ It was eight o'clock at night. My wife and daughter and I surrendered to our fate. We left the house and walked down side streets in an attempt to reach the house of the non-Jewish man, Emil Luzhinski, who lived near the Jewish cemetery. We

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suspected that perhaps the Nazis or Ukrainians would sense our presence as a group, and so we walked separately, as if we did not know one another, in the direction of the Rynek to the length of ul. Bazilanska, and we arrived safely at our desired destination. We knocked on the door softly so that the neighbors would not hear, but nobody responded. Having no other recourse, we hid in the open synagogue and hoped that they would not investigate its interior overnight. Close to this place Ukrainians were shooting Jews who were revealed in various hiding places. Despite the fact that a long time had passed since we last ate, we didn't feel hungry because our digestive system had stopped working. Only the cold oppressed us. Finally, the yearned for hour arrived, and the man who saved us returned to his home.

We explained our situation to him. He agreed to lodge us for a time, but fate toyed with us. We remained there, hidden primarily in the cellar until the end, when we were liberated by the Red Army after 16 more months. We carried the name Luzhinski on our lips with sacred glory, as the name of one of the Righteous Gentiles of the World. Not only did he hide us, thereby sacrificing his own personal safety, but he also suffered a great deal on our behalf.

The Jews assembled at the Boork, across from the Catholic Church, were liquidated. The martyrs were brought there in freight trucks and then forced to spread out and kneel at the edge of pits that were dug in advance while the Ukrainian militia, largely intoxicated, shot at them with machine guns.

The slain martyrs fell into the pits which were then covered with dense earth. The murderers did not ascertain if there were any living or wounded people buried in this fashion, or just those who were actually killed. Three-thousand Jews of Zolkiew found their eternal rest in these large mass graves. On that same day, March 25, 1943, the men of the Judenrat and the Jewish militia were also liquidated. Dr. Rubinfeld and his assistants were brought to the Boork where they were told they would be taken to the Janowski camp in Lvov. A number of them were taken away to that location. The Judenrat Chairman, Dr. Rubinfeld, strongly maintained that his place was here and he had no intention of being liquidated in any other place. The Gestapo fulfilled his wish. They took him out to be killed on the spot along with the other members of the Judenrat. The fates of Mira Zimeles, Klara Apfel, and the militia man Wolf, who were transported to Lvov, were the same as the rest of the Zolkiew Jews. They were exterminated.

The pursuit and murder of individuals continued after this Aktion. Those few, who by a miracle remained alive, created a sort of assembly of the remnants called Bloc Yehudi, in the home of Mr. Match. Here, about 60 women and men were spared to do a variety of work, such as cleaning the streets, organizing the effects left behind by the murdered, etc. With fine detail, the Gestapo people and Ukrainian militia combed the cellars of the houses they had burned, thinking that perhaps some Jews were still in hiding. Whoever was found, was shot on the spot. In a like manner the Gestapo people and Ukrainian militia looked for treasures. In one of these investigations they uncovered the hiding place of the Zaft family, and as was later related, they cracked the skull of the father of the family with an iron bar. According to a report, Zaft killed his two grandsons with his own hands so they would not fall into the hands of the sadistic Germans, but it was hard to ascertain the truth of this news. Among the remainder of those under pursuit were several additional Jews who hid in the Zvoyzhinski Gate. The young Leiner (son of the glazier Leiner) was uncovered in the wreckage of the destroyed synagogue. He was brought to the Janowski Camp in Lvov. From there he succeeded in fleeing to reach the ranks of the Russian partisans in the Carpathian Mountains. He returned to Zolkiew, in sound body and in good health after the liberation.

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The head of the Bloch Yehudi was Dr. Leib Fisz, who later succeeded in fleeing with his brother, Yuzhu, and hiding with a farmer familiar to them. I remember Joseph Pust, Bina Rauchfleisch (the wife of Henryk Tzippor) and the limping watchmaker, Berner, all part of this group. They too were able to flee but were not saved. A few of them were seized immediately, and like the others, they were murdered by Ukrainian farmers. These various escapes diminished the number of remaining members of the Bloch Yehudi. The Bloch was completely liquidated on July 10, 1943, when the Gestapo removed the last 40 occupants. They were taken to the Boork, shot to death, and buried there. The names of the people seized by the Gestapo during various periods of time are etched into my memory: Manek Apfel, son of Nathan Apfel, was seized on April 20 and shot in the Jewish cemetery; Bina Reichfleisch, sister of Ephraim Landau's wife and who worked in the pharmacy, was turned over to the hands of the murderers by farmers from Soposzyn and shot in the cemetery on July 15; Young Yegor, son of the shoemaker, also met his end in the cemetery; Dr. Leib Fisz and his brother Yuzhu, who initially had found a place to hide with a farmer after their escape, were forced to return to the city where they were seized and shot on October 5, 1943; Dr. Yaakov Czaczkes and the wife of Dr. Philip Czaczkes were seized in the city at the end of November upon their return from the forests of Mosty'. Both were exiled to Lvov, where Dr. Czaczkes worked for a time in the Death Brigade but they shot him too. Segal, the wood merchant, was turned over to the murderers on Christmas Eve, the night of December 24, by Kana Golgowska, when he came to her house and asked for a bit of food. The following day he was shot to death.

The murders were carried out in the Jewish cemetery until the end of 1943. Sometimes non-Jews appeared during the process of burying the Jewish martyrs. Some of these were the Polish, People of the Group, and intelligentsia, who came to see how the Jews were being liquidated. I must note that these were Aryans of an entirely different type. They participated with good intentions and recognized the sorrow, suffering and calamity of the exterminated Jews, but they were few in number. Among them were the Polish priests, Zamura and Risz. The general Polish citizenry were split in how they viewed the unfortunate circumstances of the Jews. There were the uncivilized people, who would loudly broadcast to others: ‘We are Polish people who were against Hitler but we owe him gratitude for the liquidation of Polish Jewry forever. We would have been unable to succeed in resolving the Jewish question on our own.’ And there were instances where Poles, allegedly friends of the Jews, took their belongings for safekeeping, ‘until the great anger passed.’ Even when the Soviets returned to Zolkiew after Hitler was defeated, the Poles lied by saying that at no time were they given the belongings from the Jews for safekeeping. In a number of instances, the Soviets became involved in order to force the Poles to return the plunder, but by that time there was practically no one to whom to return anything. In the meantime, thousands of our brethren went onto the altar. Cursèd be the Poles and Ukrainians and may their memory be cursed. But along with this, we have to recall with admiration, those who were normal and humane people to the end, the few who maintained integrity and risked their lives to save Jews from extermination.

A fire broke out on ul. Lvovska during the Christian holiday in April, 1943. The strong winds strengthened the flames and carried the fire to the houses along the length of the left side of the street, touching the school of the Palintziakas and the buildings owned by Patrontacz and Melman, the oil manufacturers. The fire spread to Melman's residence, where 18 Jewish souls (as I remember) were hiding, including the families of Melman, Patrontacz Schwartz and Sztekl (the owner of the Lvov pharmacy). The situation was dangerous, but thanks to the sublime actions of the Volksdeutsche Bak and a number of neighbors, the fire was extinguished.

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The people, and a Torah scroll which was being safeguarded there, were rescued. Unfortunately, the daughter of Berisz Schwartz could not withstand exposure to the nearby asphyxiating smoke, so she ran outside, where she was seized. Even while being tortured, she did not reveal the facts that would have led to finding the rest of the Jews hidden in the building, but she was taken out to be executed. A miracle of all miracles, it was a German who saved Jews.

Days, weeks and months passed by. We remained hidden for a prolonged time in the depths of pits without a ray of light and practically no air. A weak hope of survival enveloped us. The Germans were being beaten on all fronts, but who can prophesy and know if we would reach the moment of rescue. Even in the trail of their downfalls, and under the influence of their military defeat, the Germans, along with their Ukrainian accomplices, exacted vengeance on the remnants of the liquidated Jews. Even the Poles were beginning to get a taste of what it meant to be pursued by the Ukrainians and they also fled toward the west in the vehicles of the retreating Germans.

On April 12^th, we heard that the family of Brenner, the watchmaker (the limping one) was found in the house of a Ukrainian woman on ul. Zhiluna, beside the Catholic Church, either because of a lack of vigilance or due to an informant. The Brenners (except one daughter who was previously taken away before the Aktion) were sent to Lvov together with the Ukrainian woman. The Ukrainian woman returned to Zolkiew two weeks later, but not with the Brenner family, who completely vanished.

The Russians were approaching at lightning speed. They captured Tarnopol, Zabarzh, Brody, Czortkow, Stanislawow and other cities. On May 1, 1944 Soviet aircraft bombed Lvov. Our house shook from the bombs which were dropped all over the city. There was no guarantee that any building could withstand the powerful blasts. We were full of joy and hope, and the Germans were seized by hysteria and chaos. The front was close, only 70 kilometers away from us. Another day, two days, the front was even closer, but rescue was still distant.

We were informed of a frightening piece of news that occurred on June 13. The Germans found Adek Lichtenberg and his friend in the area of the Batyaruvka, which is a passage to the Catholic cemetery. Both men argued that they had come from the forests, and were sent to Lvov, escaped, and

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remained alive. On July 6, they brought the younger Orlander and his wife to Zolkiew who had been apprehended in Vinzuwa. From here, they were taken to Lvov and there they liquidated the last of the Jewish martyrs of Zolkiew.

Time increased the pressure on the frightened Germans. They decided to flee westward, fearing that the Bolsheviks would exterminate them all. There were no functioning anti-aircraft defenses, so the Soviet Air Force was able to carry out the incessant bombing of Lvov and its surrounding areas. The Nazi authorities and the Ukrainian militia left Zolkiew as the Russians conquered city after city and got closer to us. The rail line from Lvov-Zolkiew-Rawa Ruska was disabled by the Soviets. In place of the fear of death, hope found its way into our hearts. If it was fated that we were to be killed in the aftermath of the war, it was better than suffering a cruel death at the hands of the Germans. And despite this, we so much want to live, to remain alive, to experience liberty after such a long period of the torture of our bodies and souls.

Zolkiew became part of the war front on July 22. The Germans retreated very rapidly. We heard the sounds of gunfire closing in, which hit several places in the city. Our house was heading toward destruction as large amounts of shrapnel fell beside our hiding place. Pictures fell off the wall and the closet crumbled. The Basilian printing house was hit. Fire was sparked near us and spread along the left side of ul. Zolkowska, from ul. Reich to the pharmacy engulfed in flames.

We learned on Saturday that the Soviet Army had already reached the outskirts of the city. To our surprise the fighting stopped the next day. To our good luck, this was the silence of liberation. Our dear Mr. Luzhinski had saved us, and in the afternoon hours, brought us news that we were liberated by the Soviets who were already located in a nearby building. The Soviet officer advised us to remain in our houses to avoid being wounded. We all burst into tears, kissing and hugging one another, wondering whether this was real, or just a dream? We came out into the streets in the evening hours, without fright and fear after a long 16 months. Nobody assaulted us. There was understanding and smiles in place of enmity and liquidation. We fell asleep liberated! The next day we went out to see our city, and toured the streets that were so well-known to us: the streets of Piekarska, Reich, Sobieska, Lvovska. Destruction was everywhere. It was one great wreckage. We did not see even one Jew along our way. Are we then the only ones left alive?

Here and there we encountered non-Jewish city residents who looked at us in astonishment and curiosity, as if asking: how did you remain alive? I came to the pharmacy from which I had fled to our final hideout. Plunder and destruction of everything! It no longer concerned me. The essential mission was to search for any remaining Jewish brethren. And lo, a miracle! We encountered Sztekl and his wife, and from him we learned about the success of 18 people who were hidden with a group in the house of the Volksdeutsche Beck. After this we met Prof. Fundik and he told us about 5 Jews who were saved in a secret place on Sokolov Street, and about Edelman's daughter who was rescued. Together we were 26 rescued Jews, and thank God, we had a prayer quorum. As we returned to our rescuer, Mr. Luzhinski, we encountered familiar Aryans along the way who expressed their great joy

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on seeing that we were saved. Some of them kissed us. There was truth and falsehood in their reactions. Still on that same day, we left our savior, close to tears, and went to our old house in order to try to renew our lives.

The next day more saved people, Zolkiew natives and Jews from other places, ventured out into the city: Hochner's son and the two Reimann sisters, who hid in the village with farmers, Adek Lichtenberg, who escaped from the camp, Miszko Ehrenwert and his sister, Mrs. Astman Wassner with the daughter of her brother, the driver Lerner, and the younger Lerner. There were two Jewish women from Zolkiew who hid the entire time with Ukrainian farmers: the Wassner girl and Mrs. Regina Orlander, who immediately converted back to Judaism from the Greek-Orthodox faith of the Ukrainians. Mrs. Orlander had for some time fallen into the hands of the illegal fascist Ukrainians, whom she called Banderovtsii. The oldest daughter of Hszau Brenner who hid with Mrs. Spivak, daughter of Goldenzweig, also openly re-embraced her Jewish faith, and remained in Zolkiew. In the spring, the widow of Dr. Wachs, and her daughter Mrs. Antonina Shtraich, and her daughter Bash'eh came to Zolkiew. Dr. Hanoch Wachs and his wife returned as well.

The two Meister brothers returned from the Soviet Union. Avraham Falafer, Prubler, the younger Ingber, Dr. P. Rauchfleisch, Sztriker, the husband of the guardian of the gate area, the Griss family, Hamerling, the elderly Mrs. Reitzfeld and her son, Berger the wagon driver and a number of other people from Zolkiew were found to have survived.

According to the final count, 600 residents of Zolkiew were saved, including those who had fled to the Soviet Union. That is the remnant of the Jews of Zolkiew. How terrifying and frightening is an end like this!

Translator's footnotes:

1. A Translation from Polish in the hands of Shimon Samet Return
2. The Wannsee Conference, described below, was the ignition point for the eventual extermination of a large part of European Jewry. Here is a summary:
   The Wannsee Conference was a meeting of senior government officials of Nazi Germany and S.S. leaders, held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee on 20 January 1942. The purpose of the conference, called by the director of the Reich Security Main Office SS-Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich, was to ensure the co-operation of administrative leaders of various government departments in the implementation of the Final Solution to the Jewish question, whereby most of the Jews of German-occupied Europe would be deported to occupied Poland and murdered. Conference participants included representatives from several government ministries, including state secretaries from the Foreign Office, the justice, interior, and state ministries, and representatives from the SS. In the course of the meeting, Heydrich outlined how European Jews would be rounded up and sent to extermination camps in the General Government (the occupied part of Poland), where they would be killed. Return

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