December 22: Resistance in the Krakow Ghetto

Jewish fighters in the Krakow Ghetto, united under the command of Zvi “Heshek” Bauminger and Aharon “Dolek” Liebeskind, carried out a series of attacks on German forces throughout the city on this date in 1942. Members of the Jewish Fighting Organization threw grenades into three cafés where Nazi officers congregated, sabotaged military vehicles, distributed anti-Nazi leaflets, and raised Polish flags on bridges over the Vistula River. At the Cyganeria café, the fighters killed at least seven German officers and wounded many more. Two days later, the Gestapo located Liebeskind’s hiding place and killed him in a shoot-out; Bauminger survived the manhunt until March, 1943. To view a short film of Jews moving into the Krakow Ghetto, click here. “Though its membership had been decimated by arrests and its leaders killed or captured, the JFO continued to fight on, carrying out sabotage, distributing anti-Nazi materials, and urging Jews to resist and flee to the forests.” —United States Holocaust Memorial Museum