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For a long time, nothing happens in Sighet. For this reason, the citizens of the town did not expect anything to happen. Perhaps they were in denial. But slowly things began to change, and the citizens began to lose their rights.
The first edict stated that Jews were prohibited from leaving their residences for three days. If they did leave, they could be killed.
According to Elie, the same day the police broke into homes and began stealing valuables. Here is a quotation on this:
The same day, the Hungarian police burst into every Jewish home in town: a Jew was henceforth forbidden to own gold, jewelry, or any valuables. Everything had to be handed over to the authorities, under penalty of death. My father went down to the cellar and buried our savings.
After this ghettos were formed. So, in this way, the Jews were sequestered. And in some ways, they became easier prey. The next step was when Jews were made to wear the yellow star. Again this was to point out the Jews in a crowd.
The final step was the Hungarian police crammed the Jewish citizens of Sighet into cattle cars to be transferred to concentration camps. Here is another quote:
And then, one day all foreign Jews were expelled from Sighet. And Moishe the Beadle was a foreigner. Crammed into cattle cars by the Hungarian police, they cried silently. Standing on the station platform, we too were crying. The train disappeared over the horizon; all that was left was thick, dirty smoke.
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