Murder story of Kolomyja Jews at the Kolomyja Poultry Slaughterhouse

…On a certain day in June [1942], early in the morning, we saw through the windows of our workshop several SS men enter the ghetto…. Suddenly, a devilish scene unfolded before our eyes. There was an old Jewish slaughterhouse across from our factory, on the other side of the street, beyond the ghetto fence. Jewish policemen were herding elderly people and children, whom they had caught in the streets or driven out of their houses, toward the slaughterhouse. Our “heroes” warmed up to this job, encouraged by the shouted German commands, and they were herding the people wildly, shoving them with their batons – the symbols of their power – and beating those who were lagging behind. Filled with shame and a sense of helplessness, wracked by pain, we watched the scene of the humiliation of our brethren. I happened to overhear the remarks of some Ukrainian workers from our factory: “Such beasts! They are driving their own flesh and blood into the jaws of death – instead of resisting, even at the price of their own lives. The brutes! They believe that this will convince the Germans to spare their pathetic lives. But death will not pass them by, and rightly so!” The terrible shame for my own kind forced me to keep my head low. With my eyes, I watched the failed escape attempts of the elderly people. In the meantime, an armed squad of Ukrainian policemen marched into the slaughterhouse, and soon afterward the shooting began. Four SS men stood outside, without lifting a finger, while the Jewish policemen kept herding more and more “human animals” [into the building]. This was an easy “hunt”, since the people gradually became indifferent to their fate. The elderly ones, in particular, lacked the strength to fight their inevitable fate. Only the children were yelling frightfully, breaking away from the arms of the Jewish policemen, biting and kicking them. Many were weeping, crying that they did not want to die. The hands of the policemen did not release their prey, and the SS men watched this spectacle with sadistic smiles on their faces. Suddenly, my gazed fixed on the silhouette of an eight-year old boy on the roof of the slaughterhouse, who had seemingly managed to climb up the chimney onto the roof. The little one began to slide slowly on all four down the slope of the roof, toward the opposite side, where the SS men were standing. I tensely followed every movement of the child, praying in my heart that he would manage to escape. And the most horrible thing happened. A Jewish policeman noticed the escapee and pointed him out with his finger to one of the SS men. The latter smiled with seeming friendliness, pulled out his pistol – and, without even budging from his place, aimed it at the little boy. A single shot rang out, and the small body of the murdered child rolled down and fell under the feet of the SS man. A little later, I saw my father-in-law among the people driven to the slaughterhouse to their deaths. His wife, who could barely walk, was leaning on his arms. I followed with my eyes the last earthly trek of those who loved me like their own child…. Finally, the murder operation was over. The SS men left the ghetto, taking the Jewish policemen with them; the moans of the dying could be heard from the slaughterhouse.…

…One beautiful summer day in 1942, the Gestapo brought 120 Jewish men and women to the Jewish slaughterhouse, murdered them there, [and] dragged other Jews in to take these still jerking lumps of flesh into the street, leaving it to the Judenrat to bury these victims.

On October 12, 1942, Knackendoerfer [sic for Knackendoeffel], assisted by Untersturmfuehrer Gay, gave the order to arrest 105 Jews and take them to the local slaughterhouse. There, they were ordered to lie down and shot by him and Gay….

On October 12, 1942, 106 Jews, including my sister and her two sons, were shot at the Jewish slaughterhouse in Kolomyja.

…The slaughterhouse, too, was situated near my house. I recall him [Knackendoeffel] entering the ghetto and ordering to take 100 people into the slaughterhouse. I saw him enter the slaughterhouse, and then I heard shots and terrible screams. Afterward, I saw the bodies being thrown out of the slaughterhouse onto a cart, covered, and taken away….

…Two days later, Weissman and his friend Gay carried out the infamous slaughter of women and children in the kosher slaughterhouse. It stood across from my house, and I saw the whole operation with my own eyes. On that day, I lost my aunt, the mother of Dr. Izaak Kensch, [who is now] a senior physician in Tel Aviv. I myself counted the bodies that were spread out on the floor. Only one woman, whose name I do not know, survived. She was saved by the feathers piled up under the steps leading to the attic….

At about 10 AM, Weismann, Knackendoerfer [Knackendoeffel], and Gay arrived in the ghetto. I was then standing at the window of my workshop, and I felt a sudden unease. What was the meaning of this visit? A little later, it was announced that a murder operation was taking place. After some time, I began to count the shots I heard. I jotted 106 in my notebook. Probably, there were 105 or 107 gunshots – but certainly more than 100. A few minutes later, I saw Weismann and Gay leave the ghetto with cigarettes in their mouths. It was said that Knackendoerfer [Knackendoeffel], too, had taken part in the shooting. This was an example of what was known in the ghetto as a "wild" murder operation – i.e., an operation carried out by the perpetrators on their own initiative. I went to the ghetto, to the slaughterhouse. All the murdered lay there on the floor. I saw [the body of] Mrs. Bank, the owner of a store in the central square, lying there….

…October 12, 1942: a wild murder operation that is impossible to forget. On that day, the ghetto was visited by Weismann, Knackendorfer [Knackendoeffel], and Gay. From our workplace, we saw the emptied streets and watched the men of the Order Service [Jewish Ghetto Police] herd the women and children. That was the infamous wild murder operation in the slaughterhouse. We later heard multiple shots.…

…Once, I walked through the ghetto, passing by the slaughterhouse. I saw Weisman [Weissmann], who was an Unterscharfuehrer, and Go [Gay], who was an Untersturmfuehrer, the deputy commissioner, leaving the place. After their departure, I beheld a horrible scene. There were about 100 women on the slaughterhouse’s floor with their heads down, all of them wallowing in blood. I would later learn in the ghetto that they [the murderers] demanded that one hundred women be brought to them in an hour. They then took them to the slaughterhouse, ordered them to lie down, and shot them....

…On October 12, 1942, once again 200 people, mostly elderly men and women, were rounded up – this time by the Jewish police, assisted by the SS men. They were herded into a slaughterhouse and shot there by the Germans….