Bełżec
267.5 kilometers SE of Warsaw
50°23' 23°26'
Bełżec was an extermination Camp located in the
Lublin district of southeast Poland, along the Bełżec railway line. Bełżec was a
small town in the southeast of Lublin district, located on the
Lublin-Zamossc-Rava Russkaya-Lvov railway line. Bełżec was one of 3 death
camps built by the Germans, together with
Treblinka &
Sobibor in November 1941 in Aktion
Reinhard, aimed to exterminate the 2 million Jews in the "General-Gouvernment".
600,000* Jews were murdered in Bełżec, God Revenge their Blood. The death camp
started in February 1942 and was fully operational until December 1942.
Between late 1942 and spring 1943, the mass graves were opened and the corpses
cremated to hide the crime.
Only in June 2004 a memorial was dedicated in the site of the killing fields of Bełżec.
The Web Site of the Bełżec Museum 1.1.2005: http://belzec.org.pl/
* Regarding the number of the victims - the historian Robert Kuwalek, informs that on the memorial and in the museum the information is about 500.000 victims. They acknowledge the fact it is less a number then the old one, but it is the effect of the last researches done by himself and other historians. Four years ago, the "Telegram by Hoefle" was published1), in which this SS-officer, Herman Hoefle who was responsible for the deportations to the death camps wrote to Berlin that until the end of December 1942, 434,5082) Jews were deported to Bełżec, (this number in the document is very exact). We suppose that this number could be higher and we are giving the information about 500.000 people who were killed in Bełżec but the question for it is still open and needs more research.
1) The telegram was published in "Holocaust and Genocide Studies", in USHMM, in Washington DC: Peter Witte, Steven Tyas: A New Document on the Deportation and Murder of Jews during "Einsatz Reinhardt" 1942. "Holocaust and Genocide Studies", vol. 15, No. 3, Winter 2001, p. 468-486. The original document is in Public Record Office in Kew, in England. The exhibition in Bełżec Museum had a copy of it with all explanation.
2) Sergey Romanov, a Russian Holocaust researcher, gave the exact number, from Hoefle telegram.- until 31.12.2005: L - Lublin Majdanek: 24,733, B - Belzec: 434508, S - Sobibor 101,370, T - Treblinka 713555 - total Jewish victims Aktion Reinhard until 31.12.1942: 1,274,166 (Official German Statistics)
Sergey Romanov suggested some articles in the Internet regarding this subject:
יעקב גרוסמן
קולות השכחה
(התפרסם ב"קול לובלין" מנובמבר 2005 )
הגעתי לסוף העולם ונבלעתי בתהום השכחה הקר...
חיפשתי מלים עם נר נשמה בקרקעית התהום...
בחושך... קר... צינת קבר...
מילים, מילים... היכן אתן כדי להושיעני,
לבטא תחושה, לשחרר אותי משרשראות מעיקות?
בגדתן בי. אני זקוק לכן עכשיו... ואתן היכן?... אינכן...
נעלמתן, התייבשתן, בלעו אתכם השמים...
קבר הקולות, נגמרו המילים...
אך הקולות?...
האדמה אינה יכולה לכסות אתכם, קולות העולים מהשכחה...
אדמה ועוד אדמה, סלעים, ואבנים...
הקולות מהדהדים ועולים, ומתגברים על האדמה מכסה.
ועכשיו הקולות רוצים להישמע...
האם אפשר לשמוע אתכם?
להקשיב ולהבין מה אתם אומרים...
|
בעקבות דרכך האחרונה, אמא Following Your Last Road, Mother By Ester (Stania) Manhajm née Holender, Belżec 2007
כבר עברו 65 שנה מאז נפרדנו. לא אשכח את היום הנורא הזה 28.10.1942. יום האקציה הגדולה, היום בו לקחו אותך מהרחוב. הפרידו בינך ובין ג'יג'ה, ושלחו אותך לדרך שלא חוזרים משם. אמא, את אשר כל כך אהבת אותנו, אשר לרגע לא דאגת לעצמך, רק לקרובים לך. את אשר תמיד היית מוקפת אנשים נצרכים אשר ביקשו עצתך ועזרתך. את לפתע נשארת לבד, בלי בעל, בלי בנות. לבד. ואנחנו נותרנו מיותמים, בוכים, מתאבלים, מייבבים חרש ולא מתנחמים.
עד היום, אחרי כל כך הרבה שנים, מחפשת אותך, רוצה לשאול ולהתייעץ, אך אין עם מי. קשה מאד להשלים עם העובדה שאנחנו לא נפרדנו. בודדה ישבת ברכבת המוות, נטושה, עזובה, אין תומך, אין מעודד, אין מרחם. לבד, לבד. לבד. וברכבת דוחק, חנק, ייאוש, פחד, מה הלאה? מה יהיה בעוד רגע? ואז אני רואה אותך ערומה, שערך מגולח, מוטלת בתוך המון נשים ומחכה... לתור להיכנס לתא האטום. לתא הגזים. משלים אותך שואת מקלחת, אך במקום מים... ציקלון. אמא, האם נאבקת על קצת אוויר צח, קצת חמצן לנשום, או בהכנעה נשמת את הגז ונפלת? על מה חשבת ברגעים אלה, מה הרגשת? לא היה אף אחד אשר יכולת לשתף אותו בהרהוריך. אמא, הלכת מאיתנו לנצח. הלכת בלי לשוב. לא זכית לקצת נחת מילדיך. לא התחממת בחום המשפחה אשר הקימו. לא הכרת את החתנים, הנכדים, הנינים, פרחי ארץ ישראל החופשייה. עזבת אותנו ואת בת 38. יותר מדי זקנה בשביל לחיות!
היום אני סוגרת מעגל. היום אני באה לקברך אשר איננו. לזכרך אדליק נר נשמה, אפזר כאן אדמת מולדת אשר הבאתי מקברו של אבא, בעלך, אשר כה אהבת ואשר כה אהב אותך. היום אקח גם קצת אדמה מהמקום המקולל הזה, ואביא ארצה, ואקבור, במצבה של אבא, אשר בה חרוט שמך. פרידה בת יעקב אשר נרצחה על ידי הצורר הנאצי. אמא, לזכרך, ולזכר כל בני משפחתנו אשר מצאו את מותם כאן בבלז'ץ, נגיד קדיש ואל מלא רחמים.
שלום לך אמא, שלום לעפרך, את הלכת, אך בליבנו את חיה, תמיד!
אסתר (סטניה) מנהיים לבית הולנדר (בלזץ 2007) התפרסם ב"נוביני קרקובסקיה", בטאון יוצאי קרקוב בישראל, גליון 19, נובמבר 2007 חשון התשס"ח Published in "Nowiny Krakowskie", of the association of Cracowians in Israel, vol. 19, November 2007 |
Bełżec - The Destruction of the Jews in the District of Galicia (JewishGen Web Site)
Action Reinhard
Death Camp Bełżec (ARC web site)
The Hell of Bełżec
(Louis Bulos Web Site) 
Questionnaire: "Every Victim Has Its Own Name"
Bełżec Memorial Museum would like to gather information about the people who were killed in the death camp at Bełżec. It is part of our museum project and also forms part of our cooperation with the international institutions that conduct research into the Holocaust. We would like to show that the victims of Bełżec were not anonymous, as the Nazis wished them to be. Instead, we want to restore the names of the victims. The story of their lives will be also be the background for our museum’s educational activities. For this purpose, we request your cooperation and we should be grateful if you would complete this questionnaire and send it to the Museum.
The Questionnaire (File in Word)
MUZEUM - MIEJSCE PAMIECI W
BELZCU (Bełżec MEMORIAL MUSEUM)
ul. Ofiar Obozu 4
22-670 Bełżec
Poland
Bełżec: Open daily except on holidays, tel: 00-48-84-6652510, fax no.: 00-48-84-6652511
Partial List of Jewish Communities Deported to Bełżec in 1942
Source: Robert Kuwalek, Historian
Email:
robkuwalek "at" gmx.net (replace "at" by @ to avoid spam)
Majdanek Polish State Museum: Fri & Mon,
Tel.: 00-48-81-7442647
Bełżec: Tue, Wed & Thu, tel: 00-48-84-6652510, fax no.: 00-48-84-6652511
A B C D F G H IJ K L M N O P R S T U W Z
Month(s) of Extermination
October, November 1942
Badzanów
November 1942
Baligród
September 1942
Baranów
July 1942
September 1942
Biecz
August 1942
Bieździedzia
August 1942
August, November 1942
Bircza
July 1942
Biskupice
March 1942
Biszcza
September 1942
Błażowa
July 1942
Blizne
August 1942
Bobowa
August 1942
Bóbrka
August 1942
Bochnia
August, November 1942
September 1942
August, September, October, November 1942
Bolszowce
September, October, December 1942
September 1942
August, October, November 1942
September, November 1942
Brzesko
September, November 1942
Brzeszów
August 1942
Brzeżany
September, December 1942
Brzozdowce
September 1942
Brzuchowice
August 1942
September, October, November 1942
Budzanów
November 1942
September, October 1942
Bursztyn
September, October 1942
Buszcza
September 1942
Bychawa
October 1942
September, October 1942
September 1942
Chyrów
July, August 1942
Cieszanów
April, may, December 1942
Czarny Dunajec1)
August 1942
Czorsztyn
August 1942
August, October 1942
Czudec
July 1942
June, July, September 1942
Dalnicz
September 1942
July 1942
September 1942
Dobczyce
August 1942
Dobromil
July 1942
August 1942
Domaradz
August 1942
March, August, October, November 1942
July, August 1942
September 1942
August 1942
Garbatka
August 1942
Gdów
August 1942
Gdowca
August 1942
July 1942
Golcowa
August 1942
Goraj
August, November 1942
August, September 1942
Gródek
October 1942
August 1942
Grybów
August 1942
October 1942
Gwoździec
June 1942
Gwoźnica
August 1942
April, September 1942
Horyniec
October 1942
September 1942
March, April, October 1942
June, September, October 1942
Jagielnica2) November 1942
Janów Lubelski
May, November 1942
May 1942
August 1942
Jasiennica
August 1942
Jasiennica Rosielna
August 1942
August 1942
Jawornik Polski
July 1942
Jaworów
November 1942
Jaworzec
July 1942
Jedlica
August 1942
Jezierna
August 1942
September 1942
Jordanów1)
August 1942
September 1942
Kamionka Strumiłowa
September, October 1942
September 1942
Kłodno
September 1942
Knihiczyn
September 1942
Kołaczyce
August 1942
July, November 1942
April, June, September, October, November 1942
Komańcza
August 1942
Komarno
November, December 1942
November 1942
September 1942
August 1942
Koropiec
October 1942
September, November 1942
Kozłów
September 1942
Kozowa
September, November 1942
June, October 1942
Krakowiec
November 1942
Kraśniczyn
April 1942
April, November 1942
October 1942
Krościenko1)
August 1942
August, October, December 1942
Krownica
October 1942
Krynica Zdrój
August 1942
Krystynopol
September 1942
Krzeszów
November 1942
Kulików
November 1942
April, September 1942
Łabowa
August 1942
Łącko
August 1942
August 1942
May 1942
Lesko
September 1942
Leżajsk
August 1942
Limanowa
August 1942
Łopatyń
October 1942
October, November 1942
April 1942
March, April 1942
Lubycza Królewska
February, March, October, December 1942
March, August, November 1942
Madenica
August 1942
Magierów
December 1942
Majdan Górny
May 1942
Maków Podhalański1)
August 1942
Markowiec
August 1942
Michów
November 1942
Miechów
September 1942
April 1942
Mielnica
September 1942
Mikołajewo
August 1942
Mikołajów
September 1942
August, November 1942
Modliborzyce
October, November 1942
October 1942
Mościska
October, November 1942
Mosty Wielkie
October 1942
Myślenice
August 1942
Mysłowice
August 1942
September 1942
Narajów
September, December 1942
Narol
December 1942
Nawaria
November 1942
Niebieszczany
August 1942
July 1942
Niemirów
July, December 1942
Niewiarów
July 1942
Nowotaniec
August 1942
August 1942
August 1942
Nowy Wiśnicz
August 1942
June, September 1942
Olesko
August 1942
Oleszyce
November 1942
June 1942
Ołpiny
August 1942
Orzechówka
August 1942
Orzyszkowice
September 1942
Peczeniżyn
April 1942
March, April 1942
Pieczychwosty
September 1942
Pielnia
August 1942
July, August 1942
Pistyn
September 1942
Piwniczna
August 1942
Podbuż
August 1942
September, October 1942
October 1942
Pomorzany
September 1942
Potylicz
December 1942
September 1942
Proszowice
September 1942
July, Ausgut, November 1942
Przemyślany
September, December 1942
Rabka1)
August 1942
April, July 1942
Radymno
August 1942
Radziechów
September, October 1942
Rawa Ruska
March, July, December 1942
April, September, December 1942
July 1942
Rozdół
September 1942
Rożnów
April 1942
July 1942
Rudki
November 1942
Ryglica
July 1942
Rymanów
August 1942
July, November 1942
Sądowa Wisznia
October 1942
August, September, October 1942
September 1942
Sasów
July, August 1942
Schodnica
August 1942
July 1942
Siennica Różana
March 1942
September 1942
April, August, September, October, November 1942
Skalbmierz
September 1942
Skawina
August 1942
Skole
September 1942
Słomniki
September 1942
April, October, September 1942
September, October 1942
July 1942
Stanisławów
April, September, October 1942
Stary Sącz
August 1942
Stary Sambor
August 1942
Stebnik
August 1942
Steniatyn
September 1942
November 1942
September, October, Novemberr 1942
Strzeliska Nowe
August 1942
Strzyłki
August 1942
July 1942
September 1942
Szczawnica1)
August 1942
August, October 1942
August, November 1942
July 1942
August, November 1942
Tarnopol
August, September, October, November 1942
Tarnów
June, July, September, November 1942
September, October 1942
November 1942
July, August, October 1942
Tokarnia
August 1942
December 1942
November 1942
Trawniki
March 1942
Trembowla
August, November 1942
Truskawiec
March, Ausgut 1942
Tuchów
September, November 1942
Turka
August, September, October 1942
July 1942
May 1942
Uhnów
July, October 1942
July, October 1942
Urzędów
October 1942
Ustrzyki Dolne
September 1942
Wesoła
August 1942
Wieliczka
August 1942
November 1942
July 1942
Witków Nowy
October 1942
Wola Jasienicka
August 1942
September 1942
Żabie
September 1942
Zabłotów
April, June, September, October 1942
Żabno
November 1942
Zagórz
September 1942
Zakliczyn
September, November 1943
November 1942
Zakopane1) Deported to Nowy Targ and from there to Belzec Zakrzówek
October, November 1942
October 1942
April, May, August, October 1942
Zasław
August 1942
Zawichost
October 1942
August, September, October, November 1942
Zborów
August, September 1942
Żeldec
September 1942
August, November 1942
Żmigród
August 1942
Żółkiew
March, November 1942
August 1942
Żurawno
September 1942
Zwierzyniec
August, October 1942
Żydaczów
September 1942
Żydanów
September 1942
276 Communities
1) Stephanie Weiner (email:
laguna "at" sciti . com ) informs in
an email from September 1st 2004:
The Nowy Targ yizkor book deals not only with Nowy Targ, but also its environs.
One of the articles it contains deals with events in several towns during the
Nazi takeover: Rabka (p. 66), Jordanow (Yordanov) p. 68, Szczawnica
(Shchavnitza) p. 69, Czarny Dunajec (Charni Dunaietz) p. 70, Kroscienko (p. 69),
and Makow Podhalanski (p. 70). You may wish to highlight these towns with a
referral to the page(s) on which the text appears. Included in the Nowy Targ
yizkor book is the town of Zakopane (p. 64) and events that took place there --
although this town does not appear on your partial list. The article "Nowy Targ
on the eve of the German takeover," by Dr. David Yacobovitz, begins on p. 56
2) Jagielnica added by Susana Leistner Bloch.
A B C D F G H IJ K L M N O P R S T U W Z
Kolbuszowa Region Research Group (KRRG)
Suchostaw Region Research Group (SRRG)
I express my gratitude to Susana Leistner Bloch for commemoration of many communities of the Galicja on the web in JewishGen site and her help extended to this web site.
Letter from Bełżec
By David A. Harris
Executive Director American Jewish Committee (AJC)
Bełżec, Poland June 3, 2004
We stand in a place that is at once sacred and accursed.
We bow our heads in loving memory of the hundreds of thousands of Jews whose lives were destroyed here over a ten-month period in 1942.
We recoil in horror and, yes, incomprehension, even after all these years, at the systematic annihilation of the Jewish people by the Nazis and their collaborators.
Imagine: Nearly one in ten Jewish victims of the Holocaust was murdered in the gas chambers of this tiny space, which measures less than fifteen acres.
We are here, above all, to declare that we have not forgotten, we cannot forget those who perished here, despite the meticulous Nazi attempt to erase every last vestige of this killing field.
We have not forgotten, we cannot forget, first, how our fellow Jews were murdered. But just as important, we have not forgotten, we cannot forget, how they lived their lives, contributed to world civilization, practiced their faith, and yearned for better times to come.
And we are here to declare that we shall never forget, we dare never forget.
We owe it to the martyred. We owe it to ourselves. We owe it to future generations.
We take to heart the searing words of Job (16:18) inscribed on the memorial wall here: "Earth, do not cover my blood. Let there be no resting place for my outcry."
This extermination camp, now finally demarcated, protected, and memorialized after decades of neglect and desecration, stands as a stark and permanent reminder of man's seemingly limitless capacity for inhumanity.
Let no one ever seek to ignore, deny, trivialize, or underestimate that capacity for inhumanity. The fate of the world may hang in the balance.
But our presence here today, hundreds of Jews and non-Jews alike, including the Polish president and other leading dignitaries, also serves as a reminder, I trust, of man's capacity for humanity—for compassion, solidarity, and remembrance.
It stands as an object lesson in the unexpected and hopeful possibilities of history, against the backdrop of unparalleled tragedy.
Could anyone sixty years ago have imagined that three years after the war's end the sovereign Jewish state of Israel would be established, and that state would serve as home and haven to millions of Jews from around the world?
Could anyone sixty years ago have imagined an Israeli embassy in Warsaw, whose ambassador is with us for this auspicious occasion?
Could anyone sixty years ago have imagined that the Jews, defenseless in the Shoah, would create a military force in Israel, proudly represented here today by 150 officers who have come as a sign of homage and respect, that time and again would show unimaginable courage and determination defeating those bent on destroying the state?
Could anyone sixty years ago have imagined a Poland free of occupation, at peace with its neighbors, now linked organically to twenty-four other democratic European nations, including Germany, and serving as a vital bridge between Europe and the United States?
And could anyone sixty years ago have imagined a Jewish community—only a tiny fraction of its former self, but proud and vibrant nonetheless there in Poland, having reemerged from the ashes of the Shoah, followed by decades of communist oppression, to carry on the rich Jewish tradition that has been an essential part of the Polish landscape for more than 800 years?
No, none of these striking developments can fill the void created by the Shoah. None can bring back the six million. None can return a childhood to the millions of youngsters denied one.
But they do underscore for us what is possible if only we dare to dream dreams, unite in common purpose, and match our strength to our convictions.
Let us never forget that it is we—governments, civic institutions, faith communities, and individuals—who must remain vigilant in defense of the precious gift of liberty and united in opposition to any form of tyranny.
Bełżec reminds us why.
It is we who must educate others, especially our youth, about the frighteningly short distance from dehumanizing a people to destroying that people.
Bełżec reminds us why.
It is we who must affirm Israel's importance to the Jewish people worldwide as a beacon of hope and oasis of freedom.
Bełżec reminds us why.
And it is we who must sound the clarion call about the danger of contemporary antisemitism, which demonizes the Jewish people and justifies violence against Jews and Jewish institutions, wherever they may be.
Bełżec reminds us why.
We would not be here today dedicating this memorial site and museum were it not for the single-minded vision of one man, Miles Lerman, son of Poland, citizen of the United States. He made it his mission to create this memorial. He was ably assisted by the staff of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. He deserves our everlasting gratitude.
This historic project was implemented through an agreement between the government of Poland and the American Jewish Committee. We were honored and humbled to be asked to assume this historic responsibility. I especially wish to acknowledge the role of AJC's Rabbi Andrew Baker in bringing this project to fruition. And our Polish partners could not have been more cooperative, dedicated, and sensitive to our concerns. The results speak for themselves.
In the Jewish tradition, we are commanded to remember, zahor.
We do so today—enveloped by haunting memories, excruciating pain, and overwhelming loss.
But we also do so, I hope, affirming an unshakable resolve to build and defend a more humane world. Let this be our enduring legacy to those whose lives we mourn in this sacred and accursed place.
Last Updated November 21st, 2007
