What the Nazis did to Russian women and young girls

Residents of occupied Gzhatsk town, September 1941. Unknown photographer. Russian State Film and Photo Archives. Residents of occupied Gzhatsk town removing debris, 1941. Unknown photographer. Russian State Film and Photo Archives.

A newsreel fragment from “We Shall Avenge” documentary about atrocities of the German Nazi invaders in the Smolensk region, 1942. Directed by N. Karmazinsky, filmed by A. Krylov, V. Shneyderov. Russian State Film and Photo Archive, Central Newsreel Studio.

Report by the Political Directorate of NKVD troops “Atrocities of German Invaders Against the Prisoners and Local Residents”, not earlier than December 12, 1941. Russian State Military Archives.

From the report of the Military Commissar for the Rear-Guard of the Western Front

On October 9, Lieutenant Samoilov was seriously wounded in battle. The collective farmers of the Krasnoye village picked him up and provided medical assistance. During his stay in the territory temporarily seized by the enemy, he saw the corpse of a killed Red Army soldier, which was lying on the road, and enemy cars and carts drove over the corpse.

In the villages of Vorobyi and Maltsevo, Nazi soldiers raped girls.

In the village of Borodino, a 60-year-old man, a collective farm watchman, was shot.

The captured Red Army soldiers in the town of Gzhatsk are kept in dirty barracks. For three days, the prisoners were given only two frozen potatoes.

In front of local residents, an old teacher was hung up on being a Jew.

Under the threat of execution, the local population is forbidden to receive and provide any assistance to the servicemen of the Red Army.

In the village of Panaskovo, two boys of 14-15 years old were shot for having found in their pockets 5 rounds from a Russian rifle.”

Partial list of Sukhinichi town residents murdered during the occupation, 1942. The victims' age (from 1 to 70) is indicated in the 4th column. State Archives of the Russian Federation.

A newsreel fragment from “We Shall Avenge” documentary about atrocities of the German Nazi invaders in the Smolensk region, 1942. Russian State Film and Photo Archives, Central Newsreel Studio. Directed by N. Karmazinsky, filmed by A. Krylov, V. Shneyderov.