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| Abbreviation | ZK |
|---|---|
| Formation | July 1, 1945; 80 years ago (1945-07-01) |
| Founder | Dr. Zalman Grinberg, Rabbi Abraham Klausner |
| Dissolved | December 17, 1950; 74 years ago (1950-12-17) |
| Type | Non-profit organization |
| Legal status | Defunct |
| Purpose | Representation and advocacy for Jewish displaced persons |
| Headquarters | Deutsches Museum, Munich |
| Location | |
Chairman | Zalman Grinberg (1945-1946), David Treger (1946), Abraham Treger (1946-1948) |
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TheCentral Committee of the Liberated Jews (ZK) was an organization which representedJewishdisplaced persons in theAmerican Zone of the post-World War IIGermany, during 1945–1950.[1]
The organization was founded on July 1, 1945, through the efforts of Dr.Zalman Grinberg, former director of theKovno ghetto hospital; rabbiAbraham Klausner, a chaplain of the US Army; and others. On September 7, 1946, the committee was recognized as "the legal and democratic representation of the liberated Jews in the American zone" by theAmerican military government in Germany.[1]
The first chairman was Zalman Gringberg, succeeded by David Treger (in 1946) after Grinberg's emigration toPalestine[1] and then by Abraham Treger.[2] Abraham Treger served as the committee's chairman between 1946 and 1948 and then emigrated with his wife Ida to Haifa, Israel.
In the American sector, the Jewish community across manyDisplaced Persons camps organized itself rapidly for purposes of representation and advocacy. Working committees were established in each DP camp, and on July 1, 1945, the committees met for a founding session of a federation for Jewish DP camp committees inFeldafing. The organization for this meeting was facilitated by US Army Chaplain Abraham Klaunser, as movements between the DP camps were not always possible, as the US armed forces were controlling the movement of survivors. The session also included representatives of theJewish Brigade and the Allied military administration. It resulted in the formation of a provisional council and an executive committee chaired by Zalman Grinberg.[3]
The Central Committee declared its dissolution on December 17, 1950, at its headquarters, theDeutsches Museum inMunich. Of the original group that founded the committee, only rabbiSamuel Snieg remained for the dissolution. All the others had already emigrated, most of them to Israel. Rabbi Snieg had remained to complete the first full edition of theTalmud published in Europe after the Holocaust, the so-calledSurvivors' Talmud.[4]
