The Polish underground army launched extensive military operations against the German forces in Warsaw. The goal was to take control the city before the Red Army could enter and exact revenge against the German army for its murderous policies in Poland. The rebels expected the Soviet army, only a few miles from Warsaw, to help them. The rebels were outnumbered by the Germans and had greatly inferior armaments. Moreover, they did not succeed in taking the Germans by surprise. After three days of fighting, the German forces were reinforced and launched a counteroffensive, replete with mass terrorism and brutal combat methods. The civilian population supported the uprising. Although the Soviets had encouraged the rebels to begin the uprising, they withheld badly needed assistance. The Nazis crushed the uprising in early October, putting an estimated 2,000-4,000 to deathΓÇöincluding several members of the ZOB who had survived the Warsaw Ghetto UprisingΓÇöand wounding several thousand noncombatant Jews who were hiding in the city.
