1941 Jewish massacre commemorated in Poland as far-right groups protest

Poland commemorated the 85th anniversary of the Jedwabne massacre, in which some 300 Jews were burned alive in a barn by their Polish neighbors in 1941. Right next to the memorial, far-right groups held protests rejecting Polish responsibility.

Scraper SystemJuly 10, 2026, 09:27 PM

1941 Jewish massacre commemorated in Poland as far-right groups protest

Poland's Jewish community, political leaders and ordinary citizens gathered on Friday to commemorate the murder of hundreds of Jews killed by their Polish neighbors 85 years ago. Right next to the memorial, far-right activists held a protest.

AFP reporters reported that heavy police measures were visible at the site of the former barn where the 1941 Jedwabne massacre took place. Local Polish farmers had locked about 300 Jews, including women and children, in this barn and set it on fire.

Right next to the ceremony, around 1,000 people attended demonstrations organized by far-right parties and a Catholic mass. These groups refuse to accept the responsibility of Polish villagers for the massacre.

Some attendees at the memorial wrapped themselves in Israeli and EU flags and observed a moment of silence in front of the monument erected in 2001. Poland's Chief Rabbi Michael Schudrich called for unity as protests continued outside and invited participants to read together the names and professions of the Jews killed in Jedwabne.

Official investigation points to Poles

An official investigation completed in 2003 confirmed that the massacre was carried out by Poles from Jedwabne, not by Nazi German occupiers. This finding contradicts long-held historical narratives in Poland, and far-right nationalist groups continue to challenge the investigation's results.

These groups are demanding the resumption of the exhumation of the victims, which was halted in 2001 at the request of the Jewish community on religious grounds. Elzbieta Rybarska, carrying a Polish flag, told AFP: "As long as we don't know the truth, there will be divisions. If someone weren't afraid of the facts, the exhumation would have been done long ago."

Among the organizers of the protest was the far-right Confederation of the Polish Crown party, led by Grzegorz Braun. Braun previously caused a scandal by spraying a fire extinguisher on a menorah in the Polish parliament to disrupt a Jewish religious ceremony.

Around 40 more Jews in Jedwabne were killed by villagers in other ways outside the burned barn. There were also other massacres of Jews in the region during Germany's occupation of Poland in World War II.

Jerzy Orlos, 68, who attended the memorial with an EU flag, told AFP he came "to experience how terrible the nation's division is." Orlos added: "Such a ceremony is of course proof that we remember the dead."

A lesson in national conscience

Center-right Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who did not attend the ceremony, said the 85th anniversary of the massacre should be "a lesson in national conscience." Tusk said: "I would like all Poles to take responsibility for the things we are proud of... But also to be able to take responsibility for the things that do not bring us honor."

The history of the Jews of Jedwabne resurfaced when Polish-American historian Jan T. Gross highlighted the role of Polish villagers in his 2001 book "Neighbors." These revelations about the village's history sent shockwaves through the country and led then-President Aleksander Kwasniewski to formally apologize to the Jewish community. Kwasniewski said: "As a human being, a citizen and the president of the Republic of Poland, I ask for their forgiveness in my own name and on behalf of those Poles whose consciences are shaken by this crime."

After the ceremony, Chief Rabbi Schudrich pushed back against the divisive narratives surrounding the massacre's history. Schudrich, a dual Polish-US citizen, told AFP: "This has nothing to do with an attack on Polish identity. When you are honest with yourself, you can be much more honest about the future."

In Poland, the epicenter of the Nazi genocide of millions of Jews, thousands of Jews were also killed by Poles, especially in rural areas. However, many in Poland risked their lives to save Jews. More than 7,000 Poles have been recognized by Israel as "Righteous Among the Nations," more than any other nation.

1941 Jewish massacre commemorated in Poland as far-right groups protest