Poland marks 63rd anniversary of WWII Warsaw ghetto uprising

canada.com ^ | Tuesday, April 18, 2006

[lizol]

Poland marks 63rd anniversary of WWII Warsaw ghetto uprising Canadian Press

Radek Sikorski and religious leaders of Poland's Jewish community, flanked by Jewish Second World War veterans, laid flowers and prayed Tuesday to mark the 63rd anniversary of the doomed Warsaw ghetto uprising.

Several dozen officials and local residents also lit candles and said the Kaddish, the Jewish prayer for the dead, at the monument to the heroes of the ghetto struggle during observances held on the eve of the anniversary.

On April 19, 1943, hundreds of young Jewish fighters took up arms in the first major act of armed civilian resistance against the Nazis, who invaded and occupied Poland in 1939.

The insurgents opted to fight the Nazis in the face of the German plan to exterminate the tens of thousands of Jews remaining in the ghetto.

[Altair333]

"France had an active underground and the camps, the transportation lines to them, and their garrisons would have been under constant attack."

That is a myth. It was a year and a half after France's surrender before the FIRST German soldier was killed by the French resistance. The French munitions factories, by contrast, were going full strength building weapons for the Nazis. Sound very active to you?

[HostileTerritory]

The situation for Jews in America today is much better than it used to be in America, and can't hold a candle to the past in Europe. It's too good, that's why most of us are assimilating.

Yes, there are people who are strongly anti-Israel and often for some naive or stupid reasons. I wouldn't conflate that with anti-Semitism even though there is sometimes some crossover.

[Grzegorz 246]

"While the behavior of partisans toward Jews was often shameful, no one "deserved" what happened to Warsaw at the hands of Hitler and Stalin a year later, or to the AK for years afterward."

I agree. I may add that while the behavior of Jews was often shameful during Polish-Soviet war and Soviet occupation in 39-41, no one "deserved" what happened to Jews at the hands of Adolf.

[OldFriend]

So you think Buchanan, Zinni and a group of other 'neo-con' bashers aren't anti semitic?

Have you ever heard the crazies who call CSPIN blaming the jews for everything wrong in America and the rest of the world too for that matter.

Sadly enough, a large number of blacks hate the jews too. And they don't mind saying so.

[HostileTerritory]

No offense, but the France-Poland comparison is not that simple.

There were concentration camps in France that held Jews before they were to be deported to the death camps. These camps were staffed by both French police and Germans. Guess what, they weren't attacked by the Resistance and their train tracks not targeted for destruction.

There were 3.4 million million Jews in Poland before World War II and only 500,000 in France, the Netherlands, and Belgium, combined. Poland was north of Slovakia and Hungary, east of Germany, and linked to the rest of Europe by rail, so it made sense as the location for most murders.

The occupation of Poland was much more brutal than the occupation of France. Neither was a picnic.

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel.

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[SJackson]

Some arms might have been nice, but all they would have accomplished was to die in Warsaw a year earlier.

[SJackson]

I could be wrong but I think all the transit camps for the Jews were French run. The German's ran a labor camp at Natzweiler-Struthof in Alsace, but I don't think it was used for collecting Jews.

[dfwgator]

Every occupied country had transit camps. This is where the Jews were assembled, before going on the trains headed eastward.

[HostileTerritory]

Sure, there are people like that. They are completely marginalized in politics (this is a recent development) and their opinions are not acceptable in most parts of society.

Sure there is discrimination and lots of people who don't like Jews, but it hardly rises to a violent hatred, and in this sense Jews aren't much different from other ethnic groups or racial groups that are also stereotyped and resented in America.

[HostileTerritory]

I just looked this up--Drancy (and presumably the other French transit camps) were set up by the Vichy government and run by the French until July 1943, long after deportations to the East had started.

[HostileTerritory]

Small handguns would have enabled more Jews to flee to the forests and defend themselves, both by stretching out the battle for the Warsaw Ghetto and giving Jews a means of self-defense.

The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was doomed, but so was the Polish defense of their nation in 1939 and the Warsaw Uprising of 1944, yet no one considers those a waste of ammunition.

[Ukiapah Heep]

Mike, this is a great post!

On April 19, 1943, hundreds of young Jewish fighters took up arms in the first major act of armed civilian resistance against the Nazis, who invaded and occupied Poland in 1939.

And lets not forget, that uprising was brought to you by Guns, fighting tyranny for over 200 years.

[Lukasz]

Just curious, what do you think could have been done to save the Jews of Warsaw?

At that moment nothing. Before 1939, France, UK and Poland maybe with help of the US troops might theoretically make a prevent attack. But nobody was so far minded at that time except Pilsudski but he was not popular in the west.

[M. Espinola]

The Ghetto Uprising

Following the armed resistance in January 1943, all social institutions and the Judenrat ceased to function and even walking on the streets became illegal. Mordechai Anielewicz, at the age of 24, became the leader of the Jewish Fighting Organization (ZOB). He recruited more than 750 fighters, but amassed only 9 rifles, 59 pistols and a couple of grenades. A developed network of bunkers and fortifications were formed. The Jewish fighters also received support from the Polish Underground.

On April 19th, 1943, the Warsaw Ghetto uprising began when German troops penetrated the ghetto to begin a third round of mass deportations. The ZOB faced a formidable force of 2,000 armed German SS soldiers, yet the Nazi SS were unable to defeat the Jews in open street combat. After several days, the Germans switched tactics and began burning down houses. The ZOB headquarters on 18 Mila Street fell on May 8th, 1943; at this time Mordechai Anielewicz died in battle.

In terms of today's Islamic Nazis (Iran, Hamas, Syria, Hizballah, al-Qaida, etc., - Never Again!

[SJackson]

Small handguns would have enabled more Jews to flee to the forests and defend themselves, both by stretching out the battle for the Warsaw Ghetto and giving Jews a means of self-defense.

Yes they would.

[SJackson]

Every occupied country had transit camps. This is where the Jews were assembled, before going on the trains headed eastward.

I was referring to the French transit camps, which to my knowledge were run by the French govt rather than the SS.

[SJackson]

I just looked this up--Drancy (and presumably the other French transit camps) were set up by the Vichy government and run by the French until July 1943, long after deportations to the East had started.

That was my impression.

[JewishRighter]

Thank you for pointing out that very important historical footnote. Although there were some limited exceptions, the Polish underground was vicious to the Jews, killing them or turning them over to the nazis when they fled to the woods. The Jews begged them for just a few more guns to fight the nazis in Warsaw and got nothing.

[JewishRighter]

How said it is that there are Arab rockets falling in or near the Kibbutz named in his memory (Yad Mordechai) and the present government doesn't have one hundreth of his courage to stand up to today's nazis.