Szczebra executions, Suwałki, occupied Poland

In between 1941-1944 ca. 8000 people were executed in Szczebra village in Augustów region. Mainly Soviet POWs as well as Jews and Poles were killed in mass executions.

The first execution took place in June 1941 when a group of SS headed by a SS and Police colonel Werner Fromm killed Soviet POWs. The victims were brought to the execution site in 8 groups, each consisting of 100 people. All prisoners were executed at the verge of a long pit.

About 860 people are also reported to be executed in July 1942.

Due to the Red Army's advance in May 1944, Germans started to cover the tracks of their crimes (Aktion 1005 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonderaktion_1005). Human remains were excavated by imprisoned Jews, burnt with the use of wood and oil and the ashes were dispersed over nearby fields.

Image source: https://kriegsverbrechen1939.blogspot.com/search/label/Szczebra

Read more:

Andrzej Makowski. Szczebra. Dzieje wsi od I wojny światowej do czasów współczesnych. „Rocznik Augustowsko-Suwalski”. 9, 2009. Suwałki: Augustowsko-Suwalskie Towarzystwo Naukowe. ISSN 1730-9875.

Aleksander Omilianowicz: Materiały do dziejów okupacji hitlerowskiej i ruchu oporu na Pojezierzu Augustowskim. W: Studia i materiały do dziejów Pojezierza Augustowskiego. Białystok: Białostockie Towarzystwo Naukowe, 1967, s. 545-605, seria: Prace Białostockiego Towarzystwa Naukowego.