One night in late October 1942, the Jews were driven out of their houses in the ghetto, loaded onto carts, and taken under guard to the military zone near the Yarmolintsy railway station. There, they were held in the former military barracks, along with Jews from the surrounding towns. Shortly after their arrival, apparently in late October or early November 1942, the Jews of Frampol were shot dead in pits near the railway station. During the murder operation, which was directed by the Gebietskommissar (regional commissar) Emil Mertes, the Jews managed to kill several Ukrainian auxiliary policemen and Germans.
Soviet prisoners of war were also shot and buried at this site.
Related Resources
Written Testimonies
Written Accounts
From the article "Resistance in Yarmolintsy":
…In Yarmolintsy [in the military barracks], the Jews resisted for two days. Weapons had been brought along with household items. These [weapons] had been prepared in advance. The following events took place in the cantonment: Jews killed the first policeman who came in to select a group of victims, and threw his body through the window. An exchange of fire took place, in the course of which several other policemen were killed. The next day, trucks arrived with policemen from the nearby areas. They were not able to get into the cantonment until evening, when the Jews' supply of ammunition gave out. The execution lasted three days; sixteen [Ukrainian auxiliary] policemen were killed during this resistance, among them the chief of police and five Germans. There were instances of suicide in other buildings of the cantonment. A father threw his two children from the window, and then he and his wife plunged to their deaths together. One girl stood in the window and shouted: "Long live the Red Army! Long live Stalin!".
Information provided by E. Lantsman
Ehrenburg, Ilya and Grossman, Wassili. The black book : the ruthless murder of Jews by German-Fascist invaders throughout the temporarily-occupied regions of the Soviet Union and in the death camps of Poland during the war of 1941-1945 . New York : Holocaust Library, 1981, pp. 26-27.
Yarmolintsy Area
military barracks
Murder Site
Ukraine (USSR)
49.166;26.566
Photos
The building where Jews from Frampol and other towns where held before their execution. Photographer: Eugene Shnaider, 2013.
Genesis Philanthropy Group project, Copy YVA 14616125