Selected text
In late August 1944 the amnesty and the abolishment of the laws forbidding us to study were announced. At that time we were still in Vidin. Then I, a friend of mine, who was interned from Sofia - Neli Duelias - and two more friends decided to go to Lovech where the Medical Faculty had been moved to apply to study medicine. From Lovech we went for some time to Pleven. There we got in touch with other illegal UYW members. We wanted them to arrange for our transfer to a partisan squad, not as illegal members, but as activists taking part in the struggle. They told us to wait for a while, because the Soviet army was nearing Bulgaria. We remained for a couple of days in Pleven and on 7th September we took part in the liberation of the political prisoners in Pleven prison. On 9th September weapons were distributed in Pleven and on 10th September we returned to Vidin.
Then we were told that Germans had invaded Kula and volunteers were needed for defense [Kula is situated on the border with Yugoslavia]. A friend of mine, Paulina Arie, who later left for Israel, and I decided to enroll. We met Zhivko Zhivkov, who had been in Vidin prison. We told him we wanted to be volunteers. And he said, 'what are you doing, where are you going?' At the same time a group of young male volunteers from the village of Archar arrived. They told us to join them. We got on a truck, we were given weapons and boxes with cartridges and we left for Kula.
After it got dark, they told us to get off the truck and take positions. We could hear shooting and we went to the left side of the road together with the men from Archar, carrying the heavy boxes with cartridges. At one point we realized that we were lost. The men started complaining about the heavy boxes and decided to throw them away. Then we suggested that we should open the boxes and take out the cartridges, which were arranged in cartridge belts. We put them on and we left the empty boxes. This was my first night at the front and I will never forget it. In the morning we joined the other groups.
There weren't only volunteers, but also military officers and soldiers from the 3rd Vidin Regiment. My first combat was not during the night, but on the next day. We took position near the road leading to Kula. Suddenly heavy shooting started. My friend Paulina and I were lying on the ground when they started shooting at us. Then I told her, 'If one of the shells hits me, I prefer that it kills me. I prefer to die rather than be disabled.' There were many such moments at the front later on, which I will never forget. At some point we learned that Jacques Koen was badly injured. He was the first victim of the war among us. He was a political prisoner, just released from prison. He was hit in the head by a shell during his first night at the front. Jacques was transported to hospital, but he died a few months later. There were a lot of Jewish volunteers at the front. The girls were about ten, the boys around ten too or a bit more. Some of them returned home earlier, others stayed longer. I spent a month and a half at the front. After that I returned to Vidin. We were now allowed to study and I went to Sofia.
Then we were told that Germans had invaded Kula and volunteers were needed for defense [Kula is situated on the border with Yugoslavia]. A friend of mine, Paulina Arie, who later left for Israel, and I decided to enroll. We met Zhivko Zhivkov, who had been in Vidin prison. We told him we wanted to be volunteers. And he said, 'what are you doing, where are you going?' At the same time a group of young male volunteers from the village of Archar arrived. They told us to join them. We got on a truck, we were given weapons and boxes with cartridges and we left for Kula.
After it got dark, they told us to get off the truck and take positions. We could hear shooting and we went to the left side of the road together with the men from Archar, carrying the heavy boxes with cartridges. At one point we realized that we were lost. The men started complaining about the heavy boxes and decided to throw them away. Then we suggested that we should open the boxes and take out the cartridges, which were arranged in cartridge belts. We put them on and we left the empty boxes. This was my first night at the front and I will never forget it. In the morning we joined the other groups.
There weren't only volunteers, but also military officers and soldiers from the 3rd Vidin Regiment. My first combat was not during the night, but on the next day. We took position near the road leading to Kula. Suddenly heavy shooting started. My friend Paulina and I were lying on the ground when they started shooting at us. Then I told her, 'If one of the shells hits me, I prefer that it kills me. I prefer to die rather than be disabled.' There were many such moments at the front later on, which I will never forget. At some point we learned that Jacques Koen was badly injured. He was the first victim of the war among us. He was a political prisoner, just released from prison. He was hit in the head by a shell during his first night at the front. Jacques was transported to hospital, but he died a few months later. There were a lot of Jewish volunteers at the front. The girls were about ten, the boys around ten too or a bit more. Some of them returned home earlier, others stayed longer. I spent a month and a half at the front. After that I returned to Vidin. We were now allowed to study and I went to Sofia.
Location
Bulgaria
Interview
sophie pinkas