A woman cleans the neglected Jewish cemetery in Warsaw, the largest such cemetery in Europe, in 2014. Image by Getty

(JTA) – Human remains were dug up during construction work next to a Jewish cemetery in eastern Poland.

The remains were unearthed on Tuesday, during work to modernize the power grid for the city of Siemiatycze. The ground where the remains were uncovered is adjacent to the fence of the Jewish cemetery.

The case is investigated by the District Prosecutor’s Office in Siemiatycze.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

The Chief Rabbi of Poland, Michael Schudrich, said he believes that this is “the worst desacralization of the Jewish cemetery” that he has seen since assuming his post 17 years ago.

“There are no words to describe how this is possible today in a free, democratic Poland,” Schudrich said.

The mayor of Siemiatycze, Piotr Siniakowicz, told the Polish Press Agency that the bones should be respected, but that the rabbi has made too strong of an accusation, since the town does take care of the Jewish cemetery.

The ground on which the bones were found is not owned by the city. The bones were handed over to the rabbinical commission for Jewish cemeteries.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount