A panic-stricken Jewish population sought to evacuate the town of Olszany following a riot which ensued when a stone hit a banner of a religious procession as it was passing through the Jewish quarter, it is revealed here today.
The Christian religious procession was held in the town with the participation of peasants from neighboring villages. When a stone hit a Sacred Heart banner, the cry was raised that it was thrown from the house of a Jew, Isaac Kopelovitch.
Hundreds of participants rushed upon the house, smashing doors and windows and creating such a panic among the Jewish community that they began to evacuate the town.
Fifty policemen who arrived on the scene succeeded in quelling the riot and restoring a semblance of calm.
The Polish papers suggest the stone was throne by a Communist atheist, but the Jews believe that the stone was deliberately thrown in order to provoke riots against them.
This viewpoint is supported by the revelation made in the pro-government paper, “Slovo,” which in an article devoted to the situation in Olszany, states that persistent efforts were made to compel Kopelovitch to give up his house adjoining a church.
The ostensible reason for the efforts to expel him was that he disturbed the services.
The efforts to invoke the aid of the authorities in the expulsion of Kopelovitch failed, while efforts to raise a sum sufficient to purchase the house also fell short of success. This is at the bottom of the attack, asserts the “Slovo.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
