🎖 On October 14, 1943, an uprising broke out in #WWII-era Nazi concentration camp #Sobibor, — the only successful mass escape from a 'death factory' during the Second World War.
The uprising in Sobibor was led by Soviet POW, Red Army lieutenant AlexanderPechersky. He performed a true feat. In just a few weeks, the officer managed to devise an escape plan, rally around him the seemingly hopeless, doomed, and exhausted prisoners, and to inspire them to take up a fight against the enemy.
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During WWII, Nazi Germany established around 14'000 concentration camps, with the so-called death camps among them, where the enemy delivered their victims with the the only purpose — to exterminatepeople.
#Sobibor, located in the southeast of Nazi-occupied Poland (near the Western Bug River and the Polish-Soviet border) was one such 'death factories'. The camp was set up along a railway line between the towns of Chełm and Wlodawa.
Prisoners were shipped to Sobibor by the trainload for one purpose only — to be killed.
The Sobibor camp was turned into a true conveyor belt of death, where people were murdered by the most brutal and inhuman methods. Every day, up to six trains arrived at Sobibor carrying POWs and civilians, including the elderly, women, and children.
The Nazis poisoned their victims with gas, starved them, and worked them to death. Inhuman medical experiments were conducted on the inmates. Prisoners were brought from Austria, Czechoslovakia, and France for further torture and abuse. In June 1943, two special so- calledchildren’s trains went from the Netherlands to Sobibor. Over the entire time of the camp’s existence, according to various estimates, up to 250'000 people were murdered there.
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⚔️ On October 14, 1943, an uprising broke out in Sobibor. At the time of the escape, there were 550 prisoners in the camp. About 100 of them refused to participate in the rebellion, hoping for mercy from the SS guards. The next day, they were all killed by the Nazis.
The rebels engaged in an unequal battle with the enemy, killed all members of an SS detachment and several guards. Having crushed the Nazis almost barehanded, the prisoners rushed towards the main gates despite machine-gun fire from the watchtowers.
❗️Nothing could stop the people striving to break free from Nazi slavery, neither the minefields around the camp, nor the barbed wire, nor the hail of bullets from the machine guns.
As a result of the uprising, about 300 people managed to escape from this inferno on earth. Many of the escapees joined the resistance and continued to fight against the Nazi occupants. Pechersky himself joined the Byelarussian partisans, and in 1944, he once again fought the enemy on the front lines as part of an assault unit.
The Sobibor uprising became a symbol of the unbending human will and spirit, in the truest sense, a symbol of the victory of good over Nazi evil. Unable to bear the shame and seeking to cover up their crimes against humanity, the SS command ordered Sobibor to be completely destroyed.
#NoStatuteOfLimitation
The atrocities committed in Sobibor became part of the charges against the Nazis at the Nuremberg Trials. In March 1962, in Kiev, 11 guards who had served in Sobibor and Treblinka were brought to trial. Alexander Pechersky himself testified as a witness. All the defendants — former Nazis — were sentenced to death.
Today, the Alexander Pechersky Foundation continues to make significant efforts to preserve the memory of the Sobibor prisoners’ heroic deed.
#WeRemember#Victory80
#NoStatuteOfLimitation
🗓 Today marks 10 years since the massacre of May 2 in Odessa took place. On that day in 2014 the Ukrainian neo-Nazis set fire to the House of Trade Unions with people inside, i.e. set... people on fire...
🕯 This barbarous act of intimidating dissenters – essentially, an act of terror, aimed at squashing any potential dissent or free-thinking, perpetrated with inhumane cynicism and cruelty – killed several dozen people. Most of them were burned alive; some died of carbon monoxide poisoning, others perished after jumping from the upper floors of the burning building. Ukrainian neo-Nazis murdered those who survived the fall, escaping fire, jumping out of the windows.
❌ Ten years following the tragedy the perpetrators of this cruel, inhuman massacre have yet to be duly punished.
We will never forget this heinous crime and will continue our efforts to make sure that all those involved in this tragedy are identified and receive what they deserve.
#WeRemember
#Victory80
🌟 On September 14, 1944, the Red Army launched the Baltic strategic offensive operation. Its primary goal was to liberate the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republics from the Nazi scourge by defeating the enemies' Army group 'North' and expelling the German troops.
The goal was achieved, although the task was arduous! Following the operation, the Nazi troops were encircled in the so-called Courland Pocket (where the enemy resisted until the vary May of 1945), and thereafter ultimately eliminated by the Red Army.
#NoStatuteOfLimitations
Having invaded the Baltic region in the summer of 1941, instead of providing the “independence” promised to the Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians, the Nazis established the occupation regime in the Soviet Baltics, which was characterized by terror and genocide. The Nazis' plan was to make the region a part of the German Reichskommissariat Ostland.
▪️ When the Nazis occupied Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, the local radical nationalists and pro-fascist organisations raised their heads there and swore allegiance to Hitler. Doing the dirty job for their Nazi masters, the Baltic collaborators carried out atrocities with extreme cruelty, executing civilians, burning villages, and organising massacres. With their involvement, more than 100'000 people were annihilated in concentration camps, such as Salaspils and Klooga.
👉Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian collaborators also took part in the mass executions in the neighbouring regions of the Soviet Union (including in Belarus). They were also involved in the Nazis' campaign to exterminate Jews. The blood of hundreds of thousands of civilians and POWs is on the hands of those criminals.
Today, unfortunately, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania glorify those Nazi criminals on the governmental level, with monuments unveiled in the honour of the Nazi Baltic henchmen and gatherings held in the Baltics to commemorate Waffen-SS legionnaires, other Nazi collaborators, and their adherents.
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During #WWII, the Baltic region was of crucial strategic importance to the Reich on the Eastern front. The control over the region allowed the Nazis to rule over the Gulf of Finland from the south and the eastern Baltic, and to ensure uninterrupted deliveries of Swedish and Norwegian raw materials critical for the Nazi war machine, such as iron ore, coal, and others.
The Nazis extracted agricultural resources from Latvia and Lithuania, while Estonia alone provided Nazi Germany with nearly half a million tonnes of oil products annually.
❗️ Furthermore, the Baltic region shielded the way to East Prussia — the stronghold of German militarism. So, the Nazis were seeking to retain the Baltic bridgehead at any cost.
The Nazis installed in the Baltics powerful fortifications, designed for long-term defence, including the so-called Tannenberg Line — a complex of heavy fortified lines and trenches stretching for more than 50 km long and 25-30 km deep, located about 20-25 km west of Narva — on the isthmus between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Peipus (Chudskoye).
⚔️ On September 14, 1944, the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Baltic Fronts of the Red Army launched the strategic offensive towards Riga. Within just three days, the Soviet forces advanced up to 50 km. On September 22, Tallinn was liberated, followed by Riga on October 13.
The final stage of the operation was the liberation of the Moonsund archipelago in northwestern Estonia: by November 24, the Nazi troops were expelled from the islands of Ösel (today’s Saaremaa) and Dago (Hiiumaa).
As a result of the Baltic strategic offensive operation, the Red Army inflicted a crushing defeat to the enemy. The Nazi army group 'North' was mostly destroyed, with its remnants trapped on the Courland Peninsula, unable to engage further in Germany’s eastern defences in 1945.
🎖 112 Red Army soldiers were awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union. More than 332,000 received orders and medals.
#WeRemember
🔥Congratulatory message by H.E. Mr Anatoly Borovik, Russian Ambassador to Cambodia, addressed to compatriots residing in the Kingdom on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory:
🗣️ Dear Compatriots!
These May days, when Russia, from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok, celebrates the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory, our hearts are beating in unison – even here, far away from our Motherland, in hospitable Cambodia.
🔥 May 9th is not just a holiday – it is a sacred day that unites all citizens of our country, no matter where we are. Through years, through distances, through generations, we carry the memory of the heroic deeds of our ancestors who paid a terrible price for our freedom and independence.
❗️I want to say a special word to those who bring up their children far from their Motherland. Tell your children about the heroes of the Great Patriotic War, read books about the war with them, watch movies, take part in events to perpetuate the memory of our heroic ancestors. Your children should understand that they are successors of the victors who liberated the world from fascism.
Today we are once again facing manifestations of Nazism. Our enemies are incubating plans to defeat our Motherland. No matter what, Russia will defend its interests and will do everything to ensure its own security.
Let this holiday serve as a reminder that together we are able to overcome any difficulties and challenges.
❤️🔥 Dear friends! Happy Great Victory Day!
#Victory80#WeRemember
🇷🇺 On May 7, the Embassy of Russia in Cambodia hosted a reception dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory.
Russian Ambassador H.E. Mr Anatoly Borovik addressed the audience with opening remarks: “This Victory made it possible to build a new world order, the concrete expression of which was the creation of the United Nations and the adoption of its Charter. Having realized the horror of a total war of annihilation, the Allies, despite their differences, were able to lay the foundation for a lasting and just peace based on respect for international law. The defeat of fascism also gave a powerful impetus to anti-colonial struggles around the world, and Southeast Asia was no exception”.
❤️🔥 H.E. Mr. Ly Thuch, Senior Minister in Charge of Special Mission, First Vice-President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, was the Guest of Honor at the event. The reception was also attended by state officials of the Kingdom, representatives of scientific and cultural institutions, heads of diplomatic missions accredited in Phnom Penh, and Russian diplomats.
#Victory80#WeRemember
❤️🔥 On May 5, the Club of the Russian Embassy in Cambodia hosted a concert dedicated to Victory Day.
In his welcoming speech, Russian Ambassador to Cambodia H.E. Mr Anatoly Borovik emphasized the importance of preserving the memory of this sacred holiday. “We have never and will never divide the common Victory over Nazism into ‘ours’ and ‘other's’. To our great regret, today the vaccination against the Nazi plague made in Nuremberg does not always help. The heirs of Hitler's executioners, ideologists of national exclusivity and Russophobia, who have not learned the lessons of history, are already raising their heads without disguise,” said the Head of the Diplomatic Mission.
🔥 Students and teachers of the Embassy School told the audience the history of the Great Patriotic War through poems, songs and dances. The guests honored the memory of the perished with a Minute of Silence.
#Victory80#WeRemember
🎥 On April 24, on the eve of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory, the Embassy of Russia in Cambodia hosted "Panfilov's 28 Men" movie screening.
Russian Ambassador H.E. Mr Borovik opened the event. “Today we screen the movie “Panfilov's 28 Men”, which tells about the legendary deed of the fighters of the 316th Infantry Division under the command of General Ivan Panfilov. In the fall of 1941, when the enemy was rushing to the heart of our Motherland, Moscow, the Red Army soldiers stopped the advance of German tanks at the cost of their lives. Their feat became a symbol of unparalleled heroism and love for the Motherland”, stated the Head of the diplomatic mission in his welcoming speech.
Senior officials, scientific and cultural activists of the Kingdom, representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in the host country, as well as the diplomats of the Embassy attended the event.
#Victory80#WeRemember
🏃♂️ On April 12, the Embassy of Russia in Cambodia hosted the “Victory Run”. Employees of the diplomatic mission had to reach a total distance of 80 kilometers in a collective run or walk.
93 people took part in the event, including H.E. Mr Anatoly Borovik, Russian Ambassador, and his spouse. Overall, the athletes covered 360 kilometers, surpassing the target figure by 4 times!
#Victory80#WeRemember
⭐ The School by the Embassy of Russia in Cambodia continues to hold events dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory.
On March 24-28, “The Hero's Name is My Name!” patriotic action took place. Throughout the month pupils collected materials and prepared an information stand dedicated to people who performed heroic deeds during the Great Patriotic War, whose names coincided with the names of the pupils. The children decided to extend the action – at the moment they are preparing a video about war heroes.
Within the framework of the International “Victory Bouquet” flash mob, origami master classes on making red carnations were held at the school. During the session, students learnt why this flower is one of the Victory symbols.
📃 On March 28, pupils of all grades took part in the recitation contest “Their Lines Were Rhymed by War...”. Poems by Alexander Tvardovsky, Konstantin Simonov, Olga Bergholz, Alexey Surkov, Bulat Okudzhava and other poets were performed from the stage. The jury announced the prize winners and awarded them with certificates at the school assembly.
#Victory80#WeRemember
“I did everything possible to fulfill my duty...”
🏅 On December 1, 1896, Georgy Zhukov was born – the legendary Marshal of Victory and four-time Hero of the Soviet Union, who played a pivotal role in the Soviet Union’s Victory over Nazi Germany.
Born into a peasant family, he joined the army in 1915 and fought in the First World War. He served in the Red Army from 1918, rising from platoon commander to Army General, and during the Great Patriotic War, in 1943, was awarded the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
He won his first major victory in the Battle of Khalkhin Gol in 1939. Thanks to Zhukov’s decisive actions, the Japanese army was encircled and destroyed, that became a key factor in Japan’s decision to abandon plans for a large-scale invasion of the USSR.
Zhukov’s strategic talent was displayed in full during the Great Patriotic War (World War II). He commanded the forces that defended Leningrad and Moscow, fought in the Battle of Kursk, crossed the Dnieper River, participated in the Byelorussian and Vistula-Oder offensives, and stormed Berlin. It was he who commanded the 1st Byelorussian Front during the final assault on Berlin, accepted Germany’s surrender, and took the first historic Victory Parade.
🎖 Marshal of the Soviet Union since 1943, three times Hero of the USSR, and two times Cavalier of the Order of Victory. In the postwar period, Georgy Zhukov was First Deputy Minister of Defence and later USSR Minister of Defence; he carried out sweeping reforms in the Soviet Army.
✍️ From Georgy Zhukov's memoirs: “The main thing for me was to serve my Motherland and my people. And I can say with clean conscience: I did everything possible to fulfill my duty… I was living my life with awareness that I worked for the benefit of my people, and this is the principal thing for any life.”
#Victory80#WeRemember