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Polohy is located on the left bank of the Konka river, at the intersection of several railways, making it a significant railway junction.[2] The Polohy railway station [uk] is located there.
Across the Konka river is a village, also called Polohy [uk].
History
Founding and the Russian Civil War
Polohy was established in 1887 after the construction of a railway that connected Berdiansk with Yekaterinoslav.[3] The city specifically celebrates 17 September as the date of the city's founding.[4]
By 1890, houses for workers had been built in the area. In 1894, the railway station was built, contributing to the growth of the village. By 1904, when a second railway line was built that crossed through the village, Polohy became a railway hub. In 1905, there were "about a hundred thatched huts and dugouts" in the village, and it had a total population of around 700.[2] The population of the village took part in the Russian Revolution of 1905, demonstrating for workers' rights and going on strike.[2]
The Bolsheviks took over the village in January 1918 during the Russian Civil War. However, in March the same year, Polohy was easily captured by the Central Powers during the 1918 Central Powers invasion of Ukraine. Local partisans resisted the occupation, and the occupying forces left the village in November 1918. It was captured by the anti-communist White Army in late December, before being recaptured by the Red Army on 5 February 1919. Continued fighting took place over Polohy throughout the war, involving Makhnovites, the Army of Wrangel, and South Russia, until an eventual Bolshevik victory in August 1920.[2]
During World War II, Polohy was occupied by Nazi Germany beginning 5 October 1941. Oppressions against the local Jewish population - who had comprised 3.2% of the population prewar - began immediately.[3] In December 1941, a large number of Jews - either 70 families or 100 Jews, according to different reports - were murdered at Polohy as part of the Holocaust. There are some reports of subsequent mass killings of Jews and non-Jews at the same site over the following months.[7] Polohy was liberated by the Red Army on 17 September 1943.[3]
A cannery was opened in Polohy in 1967, which processed agricultural products.[2]
On 3 March 2022, Polohy was captured by Russian forces during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[8] The city was shelled with Grad rockets and other weapons, heavily damaging many houses. Locals have accused Russian forces of deliberately destroying the city's critical infrastructure. Eyewitness reports from the city have also detailed accounts of Russian soldiers murdering civilians, sacking, abducting local activists, and torturing people in the city.[8] Water and electricity infrastructure has stopped working, as well as internet access and cellular communication. Food insecurity has become a problem for residents. While exact population estimates are uncertain, the Ukraine Crisis Media Center said that it was certain at least half of the pre-invasion population had fled by May 2022.[8]
Russian forces heavily fortified areas near the city in anticipation of the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive.[9] In May 2023, reports from ordinary residents of Polohy as well as the exiled mayor Yuriy Konovalenko said that Russia was forcibly removing civilians from the city to be transferred to Berdiansk, deeper within Russia-controlled territory.[10] In July 2023, a three-man Ukrainian drone team used an explosive-carrying drone to blow up a Russian electronic warfare system mounted on a tower in Polohy.[11]
On 8–10 September 2023, the 2023 Russian elections took place in the occupied Ukrainian territories,[12] which Melitopol mayor Ivan Fedorov described as "hellish pseudo-elections". During this period, on 9 September, Fedorov reported that the headquarters of United Russia - the Russian ruling party - in Polohy had been blown up.[13] Fedorov alluded to casualties among the occupation authorities, stating on Telegram that "Some went to the hospital, and some went straight to the morgue".[13]
