Prozoroki

According to the Russian "May Laws" of 1882, the village of Prozoroki was off-limits to Jewish settlers. The only Jews permitted to live there were those who made their living solely from agriculture. In 1903, the village was opened for Jewish settlement, and the local community began to grow. In 1921, Prozoroki, which was now part of Poland, was home to 134 Jews; five families practiced agriculture. There were about 40 Jewish families in Prozoroki in 1939, on the eve of World War II, while the nearby village of Ziabki was home to about 20 Jewish families. In September 1939, Prozoroki was annexed to the USSR. In June 1941, the Soviet-German War broke out, and the village was occupied by the German army on July 3. The Nazis issued anti-Jewish decrees – in particular, forced labor was imposed on Jews over the age of 12. On December 6, 1941, Jews from Prozoroki, Ziabki, Zahacje, and some other villages were shot by Nazis and local collaborators in the Marusino Forest. Prozoroki was liberated by the Red Army on June 30, 1944.