1 Execution site(s)
Maria Ch., born in 1925: "When the Soviets left, my mother and I were arrested by local activists. At that time the Romanians hadn’t arrived yet. When the Soviets were still here, my mother worked for them as a secretary. She was accused of being a traitor to the nation and was arrested and put in prison. There were Jews in the prison as well, but they were kept in separated cells. We could hear them talking. They were tortured and beaten before being taken away to be killed." (Witness n°2299U, interviewed in Banyliv, on September 22, 2017)
"All the Jews in the village were locked up in the gendarmerie. They were informed that they were going to be killed. Then they formed a group of about 40 people, only men and boys aged from 10-12 years old. They were taken to Anenahora (Mount Anne) and killed. In the meantime, a Major arrived in the village to stop the executions." [Serviciul Român de Informații Archives; 25.00M, Reel 15, p. 550]
Vashkivtsi is located in the historical region of Bukovina, 40 km (25mi) west northwest of Chernivtsi. Before 1918, the city was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. From 1918 to 1940, it was integrated into Romania, and in 1940 was taken over by the Soviet Union until 1941. The first record of the Jewish community dates back to the second part of the 15th century. The community had a synagogue and a cemetery. In 1890, 790 Jews lived in Vashkivtsi, comprising 16.5% of the total population. The majority of Jews lived off small scale trade, agriculture and handicraft. With the development of the railway station many Jews moved here to make commerce. Hasidism was the predominant religion within the community. In 1930, there were only 820 Jewish inhabitants in the city, making up 13% of the total population. Many relocated to bigger cities or immigrated for economic reasons.
Vashkivtsi was occupied by the Romanians in early July 1941. There was a period anarchy, after the Soviet retreat but before the arrival of the Romanians. During this time, according to the Romanian archives, some 40 Jewish men and boys were rounded up, put in the prison, beaten, tortured and then murdered. The pogrom was carried out by a couple of local activists. To justify the pogrom, the activists spread the rumor that the Jews were coming to massacre the local non-Jews. When the Romanians occupied the village, the remaining Jews were put in a transit camp, and then deported to Transnistria, an area under Romanian control.
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