Just past the wooden wall leads to the Umschlagplatz. The sorting process has already begun, with many women and children on the right and older men on the left. Some will be sent on trains to labor camps, while others will go to Treblinka.
SS troops escorted Jews to this location, where they were sent by train to labor camps or where they boarded a train for the Treblinka extermination camp. Officer with many decorations and black gloves is Jürgen Stroop.
There is a map for every day of the fighting, as the operation was very fluid with no set battle lines. These maps are for April 27 and April 28, 1943. In addition to the points of fighting, the areas of the Ghetto that the Nazis set afire are shown.
The round has just exploded against the building, near the roof, in front. These are German Army – not SS – troops, likely from the Light Alarm Flak Battery 3/VIII.
Given the stance of the SS soldier at left, the group is probably in the small factory area of the Ghetto. The SS wanted to liquidate the Ghetto; the German Army wanted the factories to continue production of small goods they needed.
The photograph was taken in April or May 1943. Carrying their belongings, these people will probably be put on a train to Treblinka and will be dead by noon the day after this photo was taken.
