INVESTIGATION INTO THE CRIMINAL CASE ON THE GENOCIDE OF THE BELARUSIAN PEOPLE DURING THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR IS ONGOING

In April 2021, the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Belarus initiated a criminal case regarding the genocide of the population of the Republic of Belarus during the Great Patriotic War and the post-war period.

The basis for this decision was information about the deaths of millions of Belarusians and other persons as a result of the atrocities committed by German invaders and their accomplices.

The initiated criminal proceedings are aimed at identifying specific individuals among the German invaders and their accomplices who managed to evade responsibility for the murder of civilians, abuse and torture in concentration camps and ghettos, and mass deportation of the civilian population into slavery.

During the years of Nazi occupation, more than 3 million civilians were exterminated on the territory of Belarus, and more than 3,777 thousand people were deported into German slavery, many of whom died as a result of unbearable working conditions and torture. 209 cities and 9,200 villages and settlements were destroyed and burned down.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Miory district suffered significantly: more than 5,000 people were killed, and a large number of villages were burned down, which have not been restored to this day.

In the course of investigating the criminal case of genocide of the population, the Miory District Prosecutor's Office interrogated more than 30 victims, witnesses, and their relatives, conducted inspections of incident sites (military burials, monuments, and studied archival materials).

Currently, the investigation of the criminal case on the genocide of the population of Belarus is ongoing. New, previously unknown burial sites of soldiers, the names and surnames of punishers, and the damage caused to the economy are being established.

Information from the criminal case will allow raising the issue with international organizations regarding the recognition of Belarus as a victim of genocide and to prevent attempts to devalue historical truth.