Polish Terrorists Attack Train Carrying Jewish Repatriates; Kill Repatriation Leader

A train carrying repatriated Jews from the USSR to Poland was attacked twice by anti-Semitic bands after crossing the Polish border, it was reported here today. Three Jews were dragged from the train and killed.

The first attack was made when the train arrived at Tiraspol, the first station after the Russian frontier. Men dressed in Polish military uniforms jumped into the cars and began assaulting the Jews. Encountering resistance, they left the train dragging away with them 50-year old Joseph Lapidus, a member of the repatriation commission, whom they shot in the neighboring woods.

As the train neared Lukow, the second attack took place. This time the armed anti-Semites abducted two Jews and shot them in nearby woods. The transport of Jewish repatriates was one of the last due to arrive from the Soviet Union.

A delegation of the Jewish Central Committee visited Transportation Minister M. Rabanowski and complained to him concerning the frequent attacks on Jews in trains. The delegation also submitted to the Minister a list containing the names of numerous Jews who have been dragged from trains by terrorists and shot during recent days. The Minister assured the delegation that all possible measures are being taken to prevent such occurrences.

A delegation of Jewish representatives also visited Security Minister Gen. Radzkiewitcz and received from him assurances that steps will be taken to protect Jews. Other members of the Polish Cabinet have also been appealed to by Jewish leaders to provide greater protection for Jews


The Jewish Central Committee is receiving reports from various parts of the country indicating that murder of Jews by organized anti-Semitic terrorist groups continues unabated. The terrorists are usually dressed either in military or in police uniforms and are well armed, the reports say. Two Jews who recently returned from Russia were found murdered on a road near Lublin after they had been dragged from a train at a neighboring station. Another Jew was found murdered near Yedlinsk, after he had already sold his house and was preparing to leave the town.

An attempt to assassinate Mark Edelman, one of the three surviving leaders of the anti-Nazi revolt in the Warsaw ghetto, was made in Lodz. He was fired upon in front of his home, for the second time within several weeks. One of the bullets struck him in the leg which, doctors say, will have to be amputated. None of the assailants was captured.