The year 2016 marked the 70th anniversary of the Kielce Pogrom – the deadliest outbreak of violence against Jews in Poland after the Second World War.
The event was incited by a false claim that a Polish boy called Henryk Błaszczyk had been kidnapped by Jews. Soldiers accompanied by local residents surrounded a building of the local Jewish Committee on 7 Planty Street, killing and violently beating those found inside after hearing a shot being fired by an unidentified person. By day's end, 42 Jews had been killed and 40 more injured. In the aftermath of the pogrom, 39 people were put on trial, nine of which were later sentenced to death. The event sparked fear among Jewish community, prompting the first mass flight of Jews from Poland after the war.
To mark the anniversary, an event dedicated to the Kielce Pogrom was held in Kielce on 4 July 2016. ENRS was represented by Prof. Jan Rydel, chairman of the Steering Committee of ENRS.
