Novi Sad’s Raid

I found this photo in museum of Vojvodina in Novi Sad. From there I made this copy. It was taken in January, 23 1942, it was the third day of the Raid in Novi Sad. This is Mileticeva street were I used to live, where my family was killed that day.

The Raid in Novi Sad lasted three days from January 21-23, 1942. From our house, during the Raid all its residents were killed and that was done in front of the house. Only two little babies were saved, Aleksandar Kerenji and  Djurika (Hungarian Gyurika) Goldstajn. Servants hid them in pillows and so saved. Later, relatives took them. Djurika has gone to relatives in Novi Sad and then to Budapest to my uncle Miska. Here he had lived till 1956 when he moved to America. There he got sick and died, I don't know what year. 

During those three days of Raid in Novi Sad any kind of gathering, in public or in houses, was forbidden. All shops were closed; there was no traffic in the city, telephone lines were cut off and it was forbidden to listen to radio. During first two days around twenty people were killed. Unfortunately, the number of victims wasn't high enough for the Hungarian authorities and they ordered a new approach. So on the last day, Raid started from Mileticeva Street, street where we lived. My whole family was killed just outside the house where we lived as well as all the inhabitants of that street. After killing people on the streets, Hungarian soldiers took bodies and threw them into the river Danube. That day it was -30°C in Novi Sad and the Danube was frozen. Most of the people were taken away from their homes and killed at beach 'Strand' on the Danube. They had to stand in rows of four: men, women and children. They were ordered to take their clothes off, and then forced to come to the big hole made in the ice by Hungarians soldiers. Then, they were shot and their bodies thrown under the ice. Today, there are 828 known Jewish victims of the Raid in Novi Sad.