Israeli Holocaust Memorial Denounces Polish Plaques That 'Distort' History

Yad Vashem, the Israeli Holocaust museum, said on Thursday (10) that new plaques installed near the memorial to the Jedwabne massacre in World War II represent a “desecration of historical truth”.

Eighty-four years ago, Polish farmers from Jedwabne, in northeastern Poland, locked hundreds of their Jewish neighbors in a barn and burned them alive. Among the victims were women and children.

“Yad Vashem is deeply shocked and concerned by the desecration of historical truth and memory at the Jedwabne monument, where new plaques have been installed in a clear attempt to distort the history of the massacre of the Jews,” the institution said.

The signs question the official findings and claim that “the crime was committed by a German peacekeeping unit” and not by Poles from the region.

According to the Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza, the new installation consists of seven stones with plaques in English and Polish, located on private land near the memorial.

Polish journalist Wojciech Sumlinski claimed to be responsible for the installation, which was paid for through a crowdfunding campaign.

“Yad Vashem calls on the competent Polish authorities to remove this offensive installation and ensure that the historical significance of the site is preserved and respected,” the Israeli memorial added.

Jan Tomasz Gross, a Polish-born American historian, highlighted the role of the citizens who carried out the massacre in his book “Neighbors,” which shocked Poland and led to a presidential apology in 2001.

A Polish commission of inquiry concluded in 2003 that the 1941 massacre was committed by Poles from Jedwabne, instigated by the Nazi occupation, and not by the latter, contrary to what had long been claimed.

Thousands of Jews were murdered by their Polish neighbors during the war, especially in rural areas. But thousands of Poles also risked the death penalty to save Jews.

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