The Holocaust
An in depth report by Jallal Khaled
What was the Holocaust?
The Holocaust is the slaughter on a mass scale. The Holocaust was an event evolving between 1933 and 1945. It began with discrimination. Jews were separated from their communities and persecuted; and finally they were treated as less than human beings and murdered. It took place in the Nazi-controlled Germany and other Nazi-controlled territories lead by Hitler (refer to source 1).
In what ways did the Jews get murdered?
The Nazis used the most terrible methods of murdering Jews, gypsies, black people, lesbian and gay people. In the attempt to carry out the Final Solution as effectively as possible, different methods of mass murder were tested. The Nazis began by using mass shootings, then used gassing trucks, and ended up by constructing large concentration camps (refer to source 3) and killing Jews by gas chambers. A total approximation of 6 million Jews were killed.
Source 1 Hitler
Hitler was an anti-Semitic dictator who lead the Nazi party, killing over 6 million Jews. He used manipulation of media and propaganda to earn popularity, he promoted anti-communism and anti-Semitism using very convincing speeches in all charisma.
Source 2 The Ghettos
For centuries, Jews had faced persecution, and were often forced to live in designated areas called ghettos. Hunger, disease and overcrowding killed tens of thousands. The Germans deported Jews from all over occupied Europe to these Ghettos.
Source 3 Concentration Camps
A concentration camp is a camp in which people are imprisoned, usually under harsh conditions and without regard to legal norms of arrest and imprisonment that are acceptable in a constitutional democracy. In Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945, concentration camps were used to deport Jews in to conclude the Final Solution and finish off the Jewish race.
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht also called Night of Broken Glass, the night of November 9-10, 1938, was a night where German Nazis attacked Jewish persons and property. The word Kristallnacht refers to the sight of broken glass left on the streets after this event. The trigger was the shooting of the German diplomat Ernst vom Rath by a Polish-Jewish student. In two days and nights, more than 1,000 synagogues were burned or otherwise damaged. Rioters ransacked and looted about 7,500 Jewish businesses, killed at least 91 Jews, and vandalized Jewish hospitals, homes, schools, and cemeteries. 30,000 Jewish males were arrested. To accommodate so many new prisoners, the concentration camps were expanded.
The Ghettos
Part of the final solution included deporting Jews to ghettos (refer to source 2 and 4). The ghettos were extremely crowded and often lacked basic electrical and sanitary infrastructure. The food rations were not enough and left the inhabitants starving. Starvation increased and worsened in the ghettos and many of the inhabitants became ill or perished.
Source 4
A ghetto in Germany.