In this episode, we hear the incredible stories from eyewitnesses of the persecution of Jews in Holland. We hear a testimony from the secretary of the Jewish Counsil in Amsterdam: nobody knew for certain what would happen at the end of the train transports.

Jules Schelvis was on a train just after the one our Ilse was transported in. But Jules’ story is remarkable because he managed to survive Sobibór. He was taken away to be put to work in another camp, while his wife and family were being led to the gas chamber. His testimony tells us what Ilse must have went through.

And writer Rosanne Kropman, who did years of research, tells us what it was like to be present at the moment the archeologists discovered the foundations of the gas chamber. She helped sifting through the sand at the site en found artefacts, like an earring. “It was a prolonged, sinking feeling”, she says in this episode.

The podcast 'Erased' is an Audiodroom Podcast Production, made in the Netherlands. Production: Richard Grootbod and Patty-Lou Middel-Leenheer. Advice and fact-check: Aline Pennewaard and Janny van der Molen. Music: Mark Lobenstein. Audio and studio support: Gijs Friesen and Marc Reitsma.

For all background information and how to support this production, please visit podcasterased.com