The Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (ŻOB, Polish for the Jewish Fighting Organization) - a World War II resistance movement, which supposedly was instrumental in engineering the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (ZZW fighters from second Jewish resistance organisation claim otherwise). This article covers the Secret State of Poland during World War II. For the earlier secret state in Poland see: January Uprising This article is part of the series: Polish Secret State Categories: Historical stubs | Polish history | World War II resistance movements | National liberation movements ... Unofficial flag of the Armia Krajowa and the Polish Secret State. ... On 1 September 1939, without a formal declaration of war, Germany invaded Poland. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... A resistance movement is a group dedicated to fighting an invader in an occupied country. ... The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, sometimes called the Warsaw Uprising 1943, was an insurrection in Polands Warsaw Ghetto against Nazi Germany during World War II. The rebellion lasted from January 18, 1943 to May 16 that year and was crushed by SS-Gruppenführer (then Brigadeführer) Jürgen Stroop. ... Żydowski Związek Walki (ŻZW, Polish for Jewish Fighting Union) was an underground organisation operating during World War II in the area of Warsaw Ghetto and fighting during Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. ...

Offshoot of Jewish Youth Groups

The seeds of the ZOB were planted on July 22, 1942, when the Nazis issued a decree regarding the fate of the Jews of the Warsaw Ghetto. “All Jewish persons living in Warsaw, regardless of age and sex, [would] be resettled in the East.” Thus began massive deportations of the Jews, which lasted until September 12, 1942. Overall some 300,000 Jews were expelled, many of whom were sent to the Treblinka extermination camp. The deportations depleted the once thriving Warsaw Jewish community to 55,000-60,000 inhabitants. July 22 is the 203rd day (204th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 162 days remaining. ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest of the Jewish ghettos established by Nazi Germany in Poland during the Holocaust in World War II. In the three years of its existence, starvation, disease and relocations to concentration camps dropped the population of the ghetto from an estimated 380,000 to 70... Deportation is the expelling of someone from a country. ... September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... A memorial built on the site of Treblinka. ... Warsaw (Polish: Warszawa, see also other names, in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: Miasto Stołeczne Warszawa) is the capital of Poland and its largest city. ...

The youth groups that were instrumental in forming the ZOB had anticipated German intentions to annihilate Warsaw Jewry and began to shift from an educational and cultural focus to self-defense and eventual armed struggle. Warsaw (Polish: Warszawa, see also other names, in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: Miasto Stołeczne Warszawa) is the capital of Poland and its largest city. ... The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or a member of the Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ...

Unlike the older generation, the youth groups took these reports seriously and had no illusions about the true intentions of the Nazis. A document published three months before the start of the deportations by Hashomer Hatzair declared: “We know that Hitler’s system of murder, slaughter and robbery leads steadily to a dead end and the destruction of the Jews.” Hashomer Hatzair (alt. ...

Because of their ability to view the situation objectively, a number of the leftist Zionist youth groups like Hashomer Hatzair proposed the creation of a self-defense organization at a meeting of Warsaw Jewish leaders in March of 1942. The proposal was rejected by the Bund who believed that a fighting organization would fail without the help of Polish resistance groups who were refusing to provide any support to such an organization. Others rejected the notion of armed resistance saying that there was no evidence of a threat of deportation. Moreover, they argued any armed resistance would provoke the Germans to retaliate against the whole Jewish community. A bilingual poster promoting a film about European Jewish colonization of Palestine, 1930s: Toward a New Life (in Romanian) The Promised Land (in Hungarian) Zionism is a political movement among Jews (although supported by some non-Jews and not supported by some Jews) which maintains that the Jewish people constitute... Hashomer Hatzair (alt. ... The word may have one of the following meanings. ...

Formation of the ZOB

The underground political factions met secretly on July 23, 1942, but failed to reach a consensus. On July 28, 1942, representatives from Hashomer Hatzair, Dror and Akiva convened separately from the political parties and established the ZOB. Yitzhak Zuckerman, one of the leaders of the ZOB described the conditions surrounding the creation of the ZOB: “At that meeting we [the youth groups] decided to establish the ‘Jewish Fighting Organization.’ Just us, all by ourselves without the [political] parties.” July 23 is the 204th day (205th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 161 days remaining. ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Hashomer Hatzair (alt. ... Rabbi Akiva (or Rebbi Akiva) is one of the most central and essential contributors to the early Oral Torah, mainly the Mishnah and the Midrash Halakha. ... Icchak Cukierman (also known by the internationalised spelling Yitzhak Zuckerman; 1915 - 1981), who used the alias Antek, was one of the leaders of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the commander of a small Jewish troop fighting in the Warsaw Uprising during World War II. Cukierman was born in Vilna to...

The ZOB sent ambassadors to the "Aryan" side of Warsaw, in an effort to procure arms and establish connections with Polish resistance groups like the Polish Armia Krajowa, who might help in the Jewish armed struggle. With few exceptions, the ZOB was unable to secure any firearms and Polish groups were reluctant to waste what little resources they had by giving them to untrained Jews. General Rowecki, commander of the AK, reported that: “Jews from all kinds of groups… are turning to us and asking for arms as if our depots were full.” Aryan is an English word derived from the Vedic Sanskrit and Avestan term arya, meaning noble or lord. In the 19th century, the term was often used to refer to what we now call the Proto-Indo-Europeans. ... The Armia Krajowa or AK (Home Army) functioned as the pre-eminent underground military organization in German-occupied Poland, which was active in all areas of the country from September 1939 until its disbanding in January 1945. ...

The ZOB began to issue propaganda calling for Jews to take up arms. A letter from the ZOB dated four months after the end of the deportations demanded, “not even one Jew must go to the [deportation] train.” The letter closed with the stern resolution: “Now our slogan must be: let everyone be ready to die like a man!” North Korean propaganda showing a soldier destroying the United States Capitol building. ...

Despite a serious lack of weapons, the ZOB managed to shoot and severely wound the head of the Jewish police force. The Jews living in the Warsaw Ghetto regarded the Jewish police force, which was operated by Jews but supervised by the Germans, with contempt and disgust. The ZOB considered them collaborators and issued edicts proclaiming they would execute anyone found to be working with the Nazis. Collaboration, literally, consists of working together with one or more others. ...

During the deportations, the Nazis had succeeded in capturing a number of important ZOB officials, leaving the organization in a chaotic state. Stabilization came when other Zionist youth groups such as Gordonia and Noar Zioni joined the ZOB. The most critical event in strengthening the ZOB came when the Bundists, the Communists and a number of adult Zionist political parties banded together under the ZOB banner with Mordechaj Anielewicz, The former head of the Hashomer Hatzair, as the new leader. This article is about communism as a form of society, as an ideology advocating that form of society, and as a popular movement. ... A bilingual poster promoting a film about European Jewish colonization of Palestine, 1930s: Toward a New Life (in Romanian) The Promised Land (in Hungarian) Zionism is a political movement among Jews (although supported by some non-Jews and not supported by some Jews) which maintains that the Jewish people constitute... Mordechaj Anielewicz Mordechaj Anielewicz (1919,1920?-1943) was the commander of the Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (English: Jewish Fighting Organization, also known as ŻOB) during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. ... Hashomer Hatzair (alt. ...

The ZOB immediately set out to rid what was left of the ghetto of any individuals who had collaborated with the Nazis during the deportations. Among those individuals was Dr. Alfred Nossig, a Zionist and revered man in the community who had become a Nazi informant. Although the executions were motivated by revenge, they had the secondary effect of silencing any individuals who had considered conspiring with the Germans.

ZOB Resistance to the Second Deportation

On January 18, 1943, the Nazis began a second wave of deportations. The first Jews the Germans rounded up included a number of ZOB fighters who had intentionally crept into the column of deportees. Led by Mordechai Anielewicz they waited for the appropriate signal, then stepped out of formation, and fought the Nazis with small arms. The column scattered and news of the ZOB action quickly spread throughout the ghetto. During this small deportation, the Nazis only managed to round up about 5,000 to 6,000 Jews. January 18 is the 18th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... Mordechaj Anielewicz Mordechaj Anielewicz (1919,1920?-1943) was the commander of the Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (English: Jewish Fighting Organization, also known as ŻOB) during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. ...

The deportations lasted four days during which the Germans met other acts of resistance from the ZOB. When they left the ghetto on January 22, 1943, the remaining Jews regarded it as a victory, however Israel Gutman, a member of the ZOB who subsequently became one of the leading authors on Jewish Warsaw wrote, “It [was] not known [to the Jews] that the Germans had not intended to liquidate the entire ghetto by means of the January deportations.” However, Gutman concludes that the “[January] deportations… had a decisive influence on the ghetto’s last months.” A resistance movement is a group dedicated to fighting an invader in an occupied country. ... January 22 is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ...

Final Deportation and Uprising

The final deportation began on the eve of Passover, April 19, 1943. The streets of the ghetto were vacant; most of the remaining 30,000 Jews were hiding in carefully prepared bunkers, many of which had electricity and running water, however they offered no route of escape. Passover, also known as Pesach or Pesah (פסח pesaḥ), is a Jewish holiday (lasting seven days in Israel and among some liberal Diaspora Jews, and eight days among other Diaspora Jews) that commemorates the exodus and freedom of the Israelites from Egypt; it is also observed by some Christians to... April 19 is the 109th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (110th in leap years). ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... A bunker is a defensive warfare fortification to protect oneself. ...

When the Germans marched into the ghetto, they met fierce armed resistance from fighters attacking from open windows in vacated apartments. The defenders of the ghetto utilized guerrilla warfare tactics and had the strategic advantage of not only surprise but also of being able to look down on their opponents. This advantage was lost when the Germans began systematically burning all of the buildings of the ghetto forcing the fighters to leave their positions and seek cover in the underground bunkers. The fires above consumed much of the available oxygen below ground, turning the bunkers into suffocating death traps. Guerrilla (also called a partisan) is a term borrowed from Spanish (from guerra meaning war) used to describe small combat groups. ...

By May 16, 1943, the German Police General Jürgen Stroop, who had been in charge of the final deportation, officially declared what he called the Grossaktion, finished. To celebrate he razed Warsaw’s Great Synagogue. The ghetto was destroyed and what remained of the uprising was suppressed. May 16 is the 136th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (137th in leap years). ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... Jürgen Stroop in custody for war crimes Jürgen Stroop, September 26, 1895 - March 6, 1952, was an SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS und Polizei, who served as the SS and Police Leader of the Poland-Warsaw area during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943. ...

Epilogue

Even after the destruction of the ghetto, small numbers of Jews could still be found in the underground bunkers, on both sides of the ghetto wall. In fact, during the last months of the ghetto some 20,000 Jews fled to the Aryan side. Some Jews who fled, including youth group members and leaders Kazik, Yitzhak Zuckerman and Marek Edelman, would participate in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising against the Nazis. Aryan is an English word derived from the Vedic Sanskrit and Avestan term arya, meaning noble or lord. In the 19th century, the term was often used to refer to what we now call the Proto-Indo-Europeans. ... Icchak Cukierman (also known by the internationalised spelling Yitzhak Zuckerman; 1915 - 1981), who used the alias Antek, was one of the leaders of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the commander of a small Jewish troop fighting in the Warsaw Uprising during World War II. Cukierman was born in Vilna to... Marek Edelman Marek Edelman (b. ... 1944 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Warsaw Uprising (Powstanie Warszawskie) was a controversial armed struggle during the Second World War by the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw from German occupation and Nazi rule. ...

While many members and leaders of the youth groups may have perished in the Warsaw Ghetto, the youth movements themselves are still alive and thriving all over the world. One can still find the leftist youth groups Hashomer Hatzair and Habonim Dror in countries like South Africa, United Kingdom, Argentina, Chile, Italy, the United States, Israel, Mexico and Australia. The rightist youth group Betar enjoys a large following as well but mostly in Western Europe and the United States. A Youth organization is a formal organization aimed at children and adolescents for education and socialization. ... The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest of the Jewish ghettos established by Nazi Germany in Poland during the Holocaust in World War II. In the three years of its existence, starvation, disease and relocations to concentration camps dropped the population of the ghetto from an estimated 380,000 to 70... In politics, left-wing, political left, leftism, or simply the left, are terms which refer (with no particular precision) to the segment of the political spectrum typically associated with any of several strains of socialism, social democracy, or liberalism (especially in the American sense of the word), or with opposition... Hashomer Hatzair (alt. ... The Habonim Dror סמל (Semel, which means Symbol) Habonim Dror (alt. ... The Betar Movement (ביתר, also spelled Beitar) was founded in 1923 in Riga, Latvia, by Zionist leader Zeev Jabotinsky. ...