Mokry Jegiel Forest near Sadowne – September 7, 2022 |
In Mokry Jegiel Nature Reserve, the Lasting Memory Foundation commemorated the burial place of 50 Jews, including 15 children, murdered by the Germans on 8 January 1943. The memorial plaque unveiling ceremony was attended by the locals as well as invited guests who altogether paid tribute to the dead. Among the participants of the ceremony were: the Chief Rabbi of Poland Michael Schudrich, representative of the Chancellery of the President of Poland Jakub Beczek, Member of the Polish Sejm Maciej Górski, president of the Lasting Memory Foundation Zbigniew Niziński, mayor of Sadowne, local parish priest, local authorities, students of two local schools along with their teachers and principals, scouts and local residents. During the ceremony, an outline of the history of Jews in Sadowne Commune was presented and the tragic events which had taken place there during World War II were reminded. Back in 1941, 265 Jews lived in Sadowne. In December 1941 the Jews from Sadowne were transported by the Germans to Łochów and other towns, from where on 22 September 1942 they were moved to a Nazi German extermination camp in Treblinka. The ones who managed to flee deportation hid in dug outs created within a sandy hill of Jegiel forest. On 8 January 1943, the German military police organized a manhunt for the hiding Jews. Men who were being shot at started running out of the dug outs. Women and children remained hidden. The Germans threw in smoke candles and grenades. People were dying in great suffering in smoking pits. Afterwards the dug outs were buried. 15 men, 20 women and 15 children were murdered. After the unveiling of the memorial plaque, the Rabbi and the Parish Priest prayed together and flowers were laid at the grave. |