On 1 July 1940, in the town of Dorohoi in Romania, Romanian military units performed a pogrom against the local Jews, during which, according to an official Romanian report, 53 Jews were murdered, and dozens injured. According to the town's Jews, the number of fatalities was between 165 and 200. These acts were committed before Romania entered the Second World War, before it became Germany's ally, and before a single German soldier set foot on Romanian soil. There are many famous Holocaust survivors who survived the Nazi genocides in Europe and went on to achievements of great fame and notability. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This is a list of people who helped Jewish people and others to escape from the Nazi Holocaust during World War II, often called rescuers. The list is not exhaustive, concentrating on famous cases, or people who saved the lives of many potential victims. ... Holocaust resources for main article The Holocaust. ... Book cover The Destruction of the European Jews is a three-volume work published in 1961 by historian Raul Hilberg. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Functionalism versus intentionalism is a historiographical debate about the origins of the Holocaust as well as most aspects of the Third Reich, such as foreign policy. ... 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... Dorohoi is a town in the Botosani county, Romania, on the right bank of the river Jijia, which broadens into a lake on the north. ... Pogrom (from Russian: ; from громить IPA: - to wreak havoc, to demolish violently) is a form of riot directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious or other, and characterized by destruction of their homes, businesses and religious centers. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Background

The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (August 1939) gave the Soviet Union a green light to take back Bessarabia in June 1940 (see June 1940 Soviet Ultimatum, and Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina), and in August 1940 Germany and Italy's mediation of Romania's disputes with Hungary about Transylvania (resulting in the Second Vienna Award), and with Bulgaria about Dobruja (resulting in the Treaty of Craiova), caused large areas of Romania to be transferred to Hungarian or Bulgarian control. Molotov signs the German-Soviet non-aggression pact. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full year calendar). ... 1927 map of Bessarabia from Charles Upson Clarks book Bessarabia or Bessarabiya (Basarabia in Romanian, Besarabya in Turkish, Бесарабія in Ukrainian) is a historical term for the geographic entity in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the East and the Prut River on the West. ... 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... The June 1940 Soviet Ultimatum was issued by the Soviet Union to Romania, regarding the Soviet territorial requests. ... Map of Romania with Transylvania in yellow Transylvania (Romanian: or ; Hungarian: ; German: ; Serbian: / Transilvanija or / Erdelj) is a historical region in central and western Romania. ... The Second Vienna Award was the second of two Vienna Awards. ... Map of Romania with Northern Dobruja highlighted in orange and Bulgaria with Southern Dobruja highlighted in yellow. ... The Treaty of Craiova was signed on September 7, 1940 between Romania and Bulgaria. ...

The Romanian people, traumatized and frustrated by giving up these areas without a war, scapegoated the Jews. During the Romanian Army's withdrawal from Bessarabia, some of the local residents, including ethnic Romanians,^[1] demonstrated their joy. Attacks on the soldiers by locals are also documented. The reports defined all of these as "Jews", although among them were Ukrainians, Russians, pro-Communists, and newly-released criminals.^[1][2] Communism is an ideology that seeks to establish a classless, stateless social organization based on common ownership of the means of production. ...

The incited Romanians, and especially the Romanian soldiers, looked for ways to take revenge on the Jews. In 1930 the population of Dorohoi was 15,866, 5,788 of them Jews. Although local Jews had long suffered from Antisemitism, it was greatly increased by the passing of Romanian refugees, who were spreading tales of Jews' scheming against the Romanians. Year 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link is to a full 1930 calendar). ... It has been suggested that Antisemite (epithet) be merged into this article or section. ...

Preparations for the pogrom

On 30 June, soldiers from the two brigades stationed in the area went from door to door warning the Romanian residents of the "revenge" about to take place against the Jews. The Christians placed religious icons in their windows, drew crosses on their homes, or raised Romanian national flags, to let the rioters know not to harm them. In the town the rumor spread that harming the Jews would be allowed for 24 hours. Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ... The Savior Not Made By Hands (1410s, by Andrei Rublev) An icon (from Greek εικων, eikon, image) is an artistic visual representation or symbol of anything considered holy and divine, such as God, saints or deities. ... A Greek cross (all arms of equal length) above a saltire, a cross rotated by 45 degrees A famous khachkar at Goshavank (Notice the cross). ... The national flag of Romania is a vertical tricolor of blue, yellow and red. ...

The pogrom

In an incident between Romanian and Soviet military men in Herţa, neighboring Dorohoi, the Soviets killed a Romanian officer, and a Jewish-Romanian soldier, Iancu Solomon, who was trying the defend the officer. The two were laid to rest in separate funerals. A firing squad was sent to Solomon's funeral, comprised of 10 Jewish soldiers from the battalions stationed nearby. Some local Jews also participated in the funeral. Right after the coffin was lowered into the grave, many shots were heard, and the local Jews ran and hid in the local cleansing room. The Jewish soldiers, turning to the cemetery gates, were surrounded by soldiers from the 3rd Border Patrol battalion, commanded by a Colonel. The Jews, peering from the cleansing room, saw the Jewish soldiers disarmed and stripped of their uniforms. They were put up against the cemetery's back wall and shot by the Romanian soldiers. Seven were killed instantly, and three injured. The Romanians placed a submachine gun in the hands of the already dead Emil Bercovici, the senior Jewish soldier, to stage the notion that he had started firing on the Romanians. An especially strong downpour begun, stopping the killing for a while, and allowing some of the Jewish crowd to slip away. Many Romanian soldiers, commanded by a Lieutenant, removed the Jews from the cleansing room using violence and threats. They were led to a ditch outside the cemetery. Two old men and one child managed to escape before the shooting began. The soldiers continued hunting the Jews hiding in the cemetery with the help of the place's Romanian keeper. HerÅ£a (from German Herzog, meaning duke) is the southern region of the Chernivtsi Oblast in south-western Ukraine. ... Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO military graphic symbols A battalion is a military unit usually consisting of between two and six companies and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel. ... Colonel (IPA: or ) is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with the corresponding ranks existing in nearly every country in the world. ... The MP5, a famous submachine gun, sees widespread use amongst those that can afford it. ...

Concurrently, soldiers led by officers and sergeant majors burst into the town shouting "the Bolsheviks are coming". The soldiers raped, robbed, tortured and murdered Jews for 24 hours. The lives of many were saved due to the great attention the soldiers gave to the robberies. Many acts of cruelty were committed, among them: Bolshevik Party Meeting. ...

• Avraham Calmanovici was shot after his testicles were cut off.
• An old couple named Elli and Fiega Rizel were murdered after their ears were cut off.
• Rivka Croitoru had her breasts amputated.
• Hershko Croitoru had petrol poured on his beard, which was then lit up.

The head of the local Jewish community, Axler, was saved after he managed to prove to the soldiers stopping his carriage that he had been discharged from the Romanian military with the rank of Colonel, and was awarded two medals of valor. Gasoline, as it is known in North America, or petrol, in many Commonwealth countries (sometimes also called motor spirit) is a petroleum-derived liquid mixture consisting primarily of hydrocarbons, used as fuel in internal combustion engines. ...

Jews walking in the streets was stopped by officers, had their papers checked, and when their Jewish identity was confirmed, murdered.

At this point the local 29th infantry brigade, who were not privy to the murder plot, stepped in. The brigade sent a company to patrol the town and restore order. After local Romanians shouted at the soldiers and told them that Jews were firing at soldiers, Lieutenant Vasile Isăceanu took "precautionary measures" - he ordered ten Jewish soldiers, disarmed of their weapons, to march in front of the unit. Soon the unit's soldiers joined the persecution of the Jews, arresting them under false charges of firing at soldiers. The battalion's vice commander, Stino, prevented the soldiers from executing the detained Jews, and saved from certain death 20 Jewish soldiers, who were already stripped bare, waiting to be executed. Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. Infantry are soldiers who fight primarily on foot with small arms in organized military units, though they may be transported to the battlefield by horses, ships, automobiles, skis, or other means. ... In military science a brigade is a military unit that is part of a division and includes regiments (where that level exists), or (in modern armies) is composed of several battalions (typically two to four) and directly attached supporting units. ... A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 100-200 soldiers. ... Lieutenant is a military, naval, paramilitary, fire service or police officer rank. ...

A downpour stopped the killings, but not the looting. Some local Roma (sometimes called "Gypsies") joined this activity, stole as much as they could from Jewish homes and thanked the soldiers with song and dance. Tzigane redirects here; for the composition by Maurice Ravel, see Tzigane (Ravel). ...

The pogrom was stopped by order of General Constantin Sănătescu, who discovered the events by accident, seeing injured Jews. He ordered Colonel Ilasievici to investigate the matter. A General is an officer of high military rank. ... Constantin Sănătescu (1885 - November 8, 1947) was a Romanian statesman that was the first Prime Minister of Romania after the 23 August 1944 coup. ...

The "cover up"

On 2 July, the day after the pogrom, the Romanian military's Chief of Staff reported that the 3rd brigade "took revenge" on the Jews because of the difficulties they had had with the Jews of Bessarabia. According to his report, the soldiers killed four Jews, injured 15, and plundered several shops.

The military prosecutor of the 8th Corps headed a committee to investigate the events, with the participation of doctors and the town's representatives. On 3 July the military prosecutor found 50 unidentified corpses, among them 11 women, five children and six non-local Jewish soldiers. The prosecutor did not determine the identity of the murderers, and only determined that the deaths were the results of gunshot wounds. The bodies were buried quickly by a company of troops, due to the advanced stage of decomposition they were in. Officially it was determined that 53 Jews were murdered, but the Jews claimed, according to the community's records, that the number of victims was between 165 and 200. The bodies in the ditch outside the cemetery were not exhumed from their mass grave, and were not counted. A corps (a word that migrated from the French language, pronounced IPA: , but originating in the Latin corpus, corporis meaning body; plural same as singular) is either a large military unit or formation, an administrative grouping of troops within an army with a common function (such as artillery or signals...

The local head of police, Gheorghe Pamfil, composed a report about a "skirmish event", resulting in the death of a few Jews.

The officers of the 3rd brigade were transferred to other positions, and the brigade left the town with its carriages filled with loot. Among the pillaged goods were cans of paint, which were not properly sealed, and the convoy's trail was marked with paint stolen from the Jews. This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

References

1. ^ ^{a b} The report of the International Commission on the Holocaust in Romania (in English and Romanian). Retrieved on 2007-03-11.
2. ^ Ancel, Jean (2002). History of the Holocaust - Romania (Hebrew). Israel: Yad VaShem. 

• The Nizkor Project
• (Romanian) Matatias Carp, Cartea Neagră, volume 3, p. 46-48, 2nd edition, Editura Diogene 1996.

2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 11 is the 70th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (71st in leap years). ... An exterior view of the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial museum in Jerusalem. ...

Further reading

• Radu Ioanid, The Holocaust in Romania: The Destruction of Jews and Gypsies Under the Antonescu Regime, 1940-1944, Ivan R. Dee, 2000, ISBN 1566632560.