StudyGuide - Courses

Uncovering the Holocaust by Bullets

Watch the testimony video, read accompanying documents and answer related questions.

Access to accompanying documents

Witness

Iossif P.

Country

Ukraine

Birthdate and Birthplace

1927, Bibrka

Year of video recording

2009

InEvidence link (YahadMap)

Know more

Bibrka, UKRAINE

Bibrka is a village 30km south-east of the regional capital, Lviv. Before the war, 2,000 Jews lived in Bibrka and there was a synagogue. The German occupation stared on June 30, 1941. In August 1942, 1,260 Jews were deported to Belzec death camp. On December 1, 1942, a ghetto was opened in the town. Quickly after, on April 13th, 1943, it was liquidated. More than 1,000 Jews were shot near the neighboring village of Volove. Iossif dug one of the two ditches. After, he hid in order to watch the shooting. The precise date of the brickyard shooting is not clear or indicated anywhere. Nonetheless, in August 1943, the Germans dug up the bodies in order to burn them, most likely during Operation 1005.
There is no monument at the site of the brickyard shooting.

Iossif P. born in 1927 © Erez Lichtfeld - Yahad-In Unum

View of Bobrka, 1930s © Taken from the Kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/Bobrka

Glossary

‘Aktion’ against the Jews
In the context of the genocide, the German term ‘Aktion’ refers to a mass liquidation of the Jews. There may be many ‘Aktionen’, spread over time, to murder the entire Jewish population of a village, city or region.

Police / Local police
Under the Soviet system, local police did not exist. Denunciation to the central administration was the rule. The creation of a local police force was the only German administrative reform in the occupied Soviet territories. This police force received no training, and could be likened to a militia.

Bojnitsa
A western Ukrainian term denoting a synagogue.

Operation 1005
In spring 1942, the Nazis launched ‘operation 1005’ with the objective of destroying the bodies buried since the killings began in the summer of 1941. The graves were opened up so and the bodies removed before being burned on pyres.

Questionnaire

1.- How old was Iossif at the time of the events ?

2.- In the Bibrka ghetto, where did the Jews hide to escape the roundup ?

3.- What exactly happened to the Jews after their arrival at the site of the pits ?

4.- Who dug the pits ? Was Iossif implicated at this stage ? Who ordered the digging of the pits ?

5.- How was Iossif able to see the shooting ?

6.- Who shot the Jews ? Who exactly were the victims ? Why can we conclude this to be a crime of genocide ?

7.- After the shooting, where were the Jewish belongings taken ? Why were the belongings taken ?

8.- What did the shooters do after the killing ? .- Did Adolf know that the Jews were going to be shot ?

9.- Why do you think the witness is willing to testify almost 80 years after the fact ?

10.- Why do you think it is important to collect and make known this kind of testimony ?

Additional Resources

Access supplementary materials, including articles and further reading suggestions, for a comprehensive learning experience.

Historical notes

Bibrka is located 30 km from Lviv. The town was founded in 1469. In the late 17th century the town began to prosper and at the beginning of Austrian rule weaving was an established cottage industry and the well made products found their way as far as Gdansk (Dansig) and Vienna.
It seems that the first Jews arrived in 1661. During the Kingdom of Poland period they were generally tradesmen and inn-keepers, with a few professionals, among them a goldsmith whose work was sought after in the entire region.

Once the Austrian Empire aquired Galicia, the Jews were subject to special taxes and were even assessed for "back taxes" from the Polish period.[1]
Before the German’s arrival , there were 2,000 Jews living in the village. The Jews of the village were merchants. There was a synagogue. Bibrka was occupied on June 30, 1941.

[1] https://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/Bobrka/history.htm

Memorial Stone on Mount Zion, Jerusalem bears the inscription : "In Memory of the Martyrs of BÓBRKA and surroundings (Lvov district) exterminated by the vile Nazis and their henchmen - may their names be blotted from memory - in the years of the Shoa 5699 – 5704 May their Souls be gathered up among the living." © https://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/Bobrka/shoa.htm

PICTURES GALLERY

YIU TEAM with Iossif P.