Międzyrzec Podlaski

Międzyrzec Podlaski is a town in powiat Bialski in the Lublin Voivodeship in Poland. It has about 17,000 inhabitants and an area of 19.75 km ².

History

The first mention of Międzyrzec Podlaski as a city comes from the 1477. Since the 16th century there was a Jewish population in Międzyrzec Podlaski. 1795, the city was occupied by Austria, since 1809 it belonged to the Duchy of Warsaw and went to Congress in 1815 over Poland. In 1867, the city was connected to the railway network.

End of the 30s of the 20th century included the Jewish community with about 12,000 members, about three-quarters of the population. Late September 1939, the Red Army occupied the city, but they admitted because of German -Soviet Border and Friendship Treaty in early October again; about 2,000 young Jews followed them into the Soviet- occupied zone.

As of August 1942, the Hamburg Reserve Police Battalion 101 was built there, the largest passage ghetto in the former district of Lublin. The Holocaust survivor Moshe Brezniak (1917-2003) in his book " Birkeland " about it. It was used until 1943 as a transfer ghetto was overcrowded with up to 20,000 imprisoned. In the summer of 1943, the ghetto was cleared; on July 17, 1943, the last 160 to 200 residents were shot and Międzyrzec Podlaski declared " free of Jews ". The end of Nazi rule experienced less than one percent of the Jewish population.

Attractions

Among the attractions of the city include the market place from the 15th century and the church of St. Nicholas ( kościół Sw. Mikołaja ) from 1477. The city hospital was built in the years 1846-1850, the train station is from the year 1867.

Economy

Of the total of approximately 4,900 employees of the city about 36 % work in the industry, about 19 % in commerce and about 11 % in the education sector. The unemployment rate was over 22% in October 2005.

Traffic

In the city, the streets Biała Podlaska - Międzyrzec Podlaski - Białystok - Warsaw - Lublin - Rzeszów Międzyrzec Podlaski cross.

Through the town the railway line Warsaw - Moscow runs.