Kosava ghetto
| Kosava ghetto | |
|---|---|
| Location | Drahichyn District |
| Date | June 1941 – 25 August 1942 |
The Kosava Ghetto (end of June 1941 – 25 August 1942) was a Jewish ghetto established by Nazi Germany in the town of Kosava, Ivatsevichi district, Brest region, Belarus. It served as a site for the forced concentration, persecution, and eventual extermination of the local Jewish population during the Holocaust in Belarus under German occupation.[1][2]
Occupation and creation of the ghetto
Before the war, Kossovo had a significant Jewish population. According to various estimates, by the start of the German–Soviet War in June 1941, there were around 2,000–2,500 Jews in the town itself, with additional refugees from German-occupied Poland bringing the total higher.[3]
German forces occupied Kossovo on 26 June 1941. Almost immediately, anti-Jewish measures began: Jews were ordered to wear identifying badges, Jewish property was confiscated, and forced labor was imposed. Within days, a Judenrat was established to administer German orders.[3]
By the end of June 1941, all local Jews were forcibly concentrated into a ghetto on the outskirts of town. The ghetto was enclosed with barbed wire and guarded. Living conditions were catastrophic: severe overcrowding, starvation rations (often 100–200 grams of bread per day), constant abuse, beatings, and periodic looting of valuables under threat of death.[3]
Memory
Memorials exist at the main killing sites:[4]
- Monument in Merechevshchina (near the palace ruins) to the Jews murdered there.
- Memorial stone in the Yalovasto area on the edge of Kosava.
See also
References
- ^ "Архивы Беларуси" (in Russian). Retrieved 2026-01-22.
- ^ City of Kosava
- ^ a b c "КОССОВО, город". belarusenc.by. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
- ^ "Kosava, Belarus". www.jewishgen.org. Retrieved 2026-02-03.