Józefów is a small town near Lublin, where on July 13, 1942, the German Order Police (Ordnungspolizei) rounded up 1500 Jews and took them to a forest outside of town to be executed. Before the massacre, many of the victims were forced to dig their own graves, a cruel and inhumane act that added to the psychological torment of the moment. They were systematically shot, often in groups, by the police. Many victims didn't die right away. The ground is said to have moved for three days after mass shootings and burials. This was part of Operation Reinhard, which aimed to exterminate the Jewish population in occupied Poland. The massacre was part of a larger pattern of mass killings that took place throughout the region, with many similar atrocities occurring in other towns and villages.