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Marcu
The Holocaust in Romania Under the Antonescu Government

by Marcu Rozen
Page 15 of 25
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Historical and Statistical Data About Jews in Romania, 1940 --1944
V. Transnistria Place of Suffering and Death
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[Continuation --4]

Some Romanian officers and soldiers helped and saved from death deported Jews to Transnistria.

This is the case of lieutenant Ioan D. Popescu, police officer in the city Tiraspol, who in the evening of August the 18th 1941 received from the colonel the order to kill with machine guns about 4,300 Jews gathered in the barracks.

The lieutenant refused, risking his life, to execute this diabolical order, and so, the life of these innocents was saved. 1)

The mayor Orasanu from the gendarme legion Moghilev, being informed about the desperate situation of the Jews confined in the camp at Capusterna (in cattle stables and pigsties which belonged to a state farm), went personally to the site, dissolved the camp, and housed the Jews at local Ukrainian peasants, saving the life of the 347 Jews.

After numerous interventions and persistence, especially by the Queen Mother Elena, and by other Romanian personalities, the Antonescu government accepted that assistance should be sent to the Jews deported to Transnistria.

Thus, under the direct leadership of Dr. Alexandru Safran, Chief Rabbi of Romania, together with other personalities, an important aiding action was organized.

In spite of all difficulties encountered, collective and individual aids in money, food, medicine, clothes, footwear, etc. were sent to Transnistria.

These aids brought the deported Jews relief from their suffering and in many cases saved human lives.

Thousands of orphans remained in Transnistria on the roads, hungry, naked, and doomed to death. Due to the aids sent from Romania, the possibility occurred to organize some orphanages, where a part of these children were gathered and saved from death.

The aids in money, from Jews who remained in the country, were sent to Transnistria, through different Christian inhabitants, citizens of high humanity, who risked their life and liberty, to help the suffering Jews in Transnistria.

This is for instance the case of second-lieutenant Vlad Beiu, and sergeant Petru Moraru, who after returning to Dorohoi were denounced, tried and convicted.

Also from Dorohoi has to be mentioned the lawyer Panait Panaitescu, who as officer in reserve, brought money and medicine to the Jews from Moghilev, being backed in all his activity by the teacher Nae Nemteanu.

Colonel Alex Marino came by his own initiative, into the ghetto Moghilev, where he distributed to known and even unknown Jews, a big amount of money, from his own pocket, and such cases were numerous.

In the second half of the year 1943, the Antonescu government, getting aware, that the war is lost, began negotiating with the leadership of the Jewish Center of Romania, and with other Jewish leaders, to bring back some categories of deported Jews.

As a result of these difficult negotiations, at the end of the year 1943 and the beginning of 1944, the surviving Jews from Dorohoi were brought back, (over 6,000 persons), also about 1,850 orphans, and several thousands from the Old Kingdom, totally about 10,000-12,000 persons.

The rest of about 50.000 survivors who remained in Transnistria were liberated after the 20th of March 1944 by the soviet troupes, and returned home under the hard conditions of the front, in the followings months.

 

How many Jews (from the former Greater Romania) disappeared in Transnistria?

According to a report drawn up at the beginning of September 1943, by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, based on the registering made by the General Inspectorate of Gendarmerie, (in districts and localities), in Transnistria 50,741 Jews (from them 13.980 Basarabian and 36,761 Bucovinian) remained alive. 2)

The census of colonel Radulescu shows 61,000 survivors. On the other side, Dr. W. Filderman indicates about 70,000 survivors and I. Stanculescu's report, 75,000 surviving Jews. 3)

So it can be estimated that about 60-70.000 Jews survived at the end of 1943.

It results that from the total number of 150,000 deportees, about 80-90,000 Jews were exterminated in Transnistria.

This number contains also the Jews who were killed or died en route, which amounts at least 5,000 victims.

The extermination rate of the deported Jews was about 54-60%.

The highest rate of extermination was registered with the Basarabian Jews, (about 90%), followed by the Jews from Dorohoi (nearly 50%). Bucovinian Jews lost was between 35-40%.

 


1) See, Ilisei Ilie, Popescu D. Ioan: "The Dossiers of Pain and Suffering"
Editorial Group Musatinii, New Bucovina, 1999.

2) See, M. Carp: "The Black Book," vol. 3, pp. 455-458, Diogene Publishing House, 1996.

3) See, M. Carp: "The Black Book," vol. 3, p. 511, Diogene Publishing House, 1996.

 

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