Kiev, 29 September 1941: The Posted Notice
Kiev fell on 19 September 1941. Five days later, Soviet mines left behind by the NKVD blew apart the Khreshchatyk district where the German staff had installed itself; the fire ravaged the city centre. The occupier used it as a pretext.
On 28 September, notices are posted throughout the city: all Jews must report the next day at 8 a.m. near the cemetery, at the corner of Melnyk and Dehtiarivska streets, bringing their papers, their money, valuables and warm clothing. Rumour speaks of a "resettlement" to the east. To disobey is punishable by death; the city is sealed, the front lies far behind the German lines, and hiding requires forged papers and the help of non-Jewish neighbours.
To a family, the order seems to offer no way out: the summons resembles a labour deportation, like those known elsewhere.
Should they report to the assembly as ordered, try to hide in the city, or flee despite the German lines?
The overwhelming majority reported, believing in a transfer. On 29 and 30 September 1941, (, under ), with auxiliaries, led the columns to the ravine of Babi Yar and shot 33,771 people there in two days — one of the largest single massacres of the Holocaust. The few who hid or fled, often with help, made up the small minority of survivors. Babi Yar remained a place of execution throughout the occupation: the dead there are estimated at 100,000 to 150,000.
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