During the conquest of the area by the Russian Empire in the First World War, Cossacks carried out attacks on the Jewish residents, including acts of robbery, rape, and murder.

Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Bircza and its environs were part of Polish territory under Soviet occupation, but in June 1941, the Nazi Germans invaded and placed local control in the hands of the Ukrainian Auxiliary Police, which quickly killed sixteen Jewish community notables.

Soon, various restrictions were placed upon the Jews of Bircza and its surrounding villages, including the requirement of wearing a yellow star of David and participating in forced labour, and much Jewish property was looted.

In July 1942, the German police carried out a violent operation in which the Jews of the surrounding villages were brought to the market square and forced to bend on their knees for hours.

[4] A cross was set up on Kamienna Górka and, in 2018, following an effort by Bircza high school students, a sign was placed at the location of the second (and larger) killing site on Górze Wierzysko.