Zagłada Żydów. Studia i Materiały | Zagłada Żydów. Studia i Materiały

ózek Kuraś “Ogień” — on the National Day of the Cursed Soldiers we recall Karolina Panz’s article ““Why did they who had suffered and endured so much have to die?” Jewish Victims of Armed Violence in the Polish Tatra Highlands during 1945–1947

2026-03-01

In 2011, the Polish Parliament established 1 March as the National Day of Remembrance of the “Cursed Soldiers.” It is a date that should also encourage reflection on the complex and often painful history of the post‑war underground.

On this occasion, we are sharing an article by Dr. Karolina Panz ““Why did they who had suffered and endured so much have to die?” Jewish Victims of Armed Violence in the Polish Tatra Highlands during 1945–1947 about the crimes committed, among others, against Jewish residents of Podhale by Józef Kuraś “Ogień” and the unit he commanded.

This article discusses the armed anti-Jewish violence and the events connected with it, which occurred in the Polish Tatra Highlands (southern Poland) during 1945–1947. The number of Jewish victims exceeded 30, including children from Jewish orphanages. Among the perpetrators of those acts of terror were partisans from the group commanded by Józef Kuraś ‘Ogień’, which is one of the most important symbols of the anti-communist resistance. This article is based on results of a few years’ research and highly diverse sources and its main purpose is to recreate those events, with particular attention given to the victims of those acts of violence.

Careful, well‑documented scholarly research is gradually changing the way we view the past — and allows us to speak about it openly and fully.

It is worth noting that, thanks in part to the research and educational work of Karolina Panz, the City Council of Nowy Targ, in its resolution of 20 February this year, emphasized that while honoring heroes, we must also remember the victims and the crimes committed by some of the “Cursed Soldiers.”

Ogłoszenie

ózek Kuraś “Ogień” — on the National Day of the Cursed Soldiers we recall Karolina Panz’s article ““Why did they who had suffered and endured so much have to die?” Jewish Victims of Armed Violence in the Polish Tatra Highlands during 1945–1947