Belarus’ Prosecutor General on investigation of the criminal case of genocide: true scales of the tragedy not yet been established
The Prosecutor General's Office has managed to almost completely recreate the tragedy occurred during the Great Patriotic War on the territory of the BSSR. At least 187 punitive operations were carried out by Nazi occupiers and their accomplices at that time. Based on the obtained facts, 12,287 settlements were completely or partially destroyed: that is, more than 3,000 previously unknown cases of burning of fully or partially populated villages, usually with civilians, have been additionally established. In total, at least 3m people were destroyed during those war years.
Speaking at a recent international round table meeting – Genocide of the Belarusian People – held at the Investigative Committee, Mr. Shved noted, “The history of mankind (we admit this openly at present) has not ever witnessed such long-lasting, intense, barbaric and bloody events. Civilians were burned, pressed by tanks, shot from guns, electrocuted, infected with various diseases (that was an element of bacteriological warfare) and poisoned with chemicals. Everything happening in our country was done not only by German special services (SS, SD, Gestapo), but also by Wehrmacht soldiers. Germany has denied this fact for a very long time, but more than two thirds of the punitive operations were carried out with the participation or directly by military personnel and officers of the Wehrmacht. Most importantly, we have established that punitive nationalist units from almost all countries of Western Europe acted on our territory since 1941, and they represented Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Poland, France, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, and many other staes. Therefore, we assert now that Nazism – the most terrible thing that happened in the history of mankind – did not die in 1945, but has reborn. It has become part of the ideology, and it is right near our borders. They are now again preparing for another campaign to the east.”
According to Mr. Shved, the Prosecutor General's Office is actively investigating the criminal case, and it will be conducted in full. The work will be completed after all facts of the civilians’ extermination on the territory of the BSSR are verified.
“To date, we have interrogated almost 18 thousand living witnesses, of whom 8 thousand are prisoners of concentration camps. Together with our colleagues from the Investigative Committee, the State Committee for Forensic Examinations, the Defence Ministry and other government agencies, more than 400 inspections of accident sites have been conducted. Unfortunately, we should openly admit: true scales of the tragedy have not yet been fully established. The numbers are scary, and they are much greater than announced in previous years. In the next few years alone, we need to explore more than 200 other places of mass destruction of people together with our colleagues. In fact, our country is one big mass grave," the Prosecutor General added.
