In 1941, the most powerful and numerous group of Nazi troops, the Center, advanced through Belarus in the direction of Moscow. The Nazis seized the territory of the republic in a few weeks. On the occupied Belarusian lands were about 8 million civilians and 900 thousand prisoners of war of the Red Army. From the first days the Nazis pursued a brutal repressive policy in Belarus.

At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, a powerful underground partisan movement was deployed in the republic. The first groups were created by the Communist Party and the NKVD. Soon the civilians and Red Army soldiers leaving the encirclement began to join the partisans. In 1943, the number of units of the people's avengers in the BSSR approached a thousand, and the number of partisans increased to 153 thousand people. They restored the Soviet power in entire areas in the rear of the Germans and controlled over 100 thousand square meters. km territory.

The Nazis regularly carried out punitive operations against partisans and civilians. Most of it, according to the plan, was subject to destruction or eviction to the east.

In the summer of 1943, a radical change occurred in the war. The Nazi troops began to retreat, but the command set the task for them at any price to gain a foothold in the territory of Ukraine and Belarus.

Operation "Cormorant"

Military historian Yury Knutov noted in a conversation with RT that the large-scale offensive of the Soviet troops in Belarus was inevitable. The Nazis understood this and were afraid to get into ticks between the Red Army at the front and the partisans in the rear.

"In the spring of 1944, the Nazis prepared a series of punitive operations aimed at clearing the rear of the partisans and civilians, who were considered the pillar of resistance," the expert stressed.

  • Children and old people are hiding in the forest from the Nazis in Belarus
  • RIA News

In turn, the writer and historian Ivan Kovtun told in an interview with RT that the Hitlerite command was very concerned about the activities of the partisan formations in the territory of Belarus.

"From Berlin, the commander of Army Group Center", Field Marshal Ernst von Bush and General Commissar of Weissruthenia (as the Nazis called Belarus. - RT ) SS Kurt von Gottberg ordered to conduct large-scale operations - primarily against the Polotsk-Lepel zone, " The expert emphasized.

He noted that, on the basis of this order, several operational-tactical measures had been prepared to destroy and push the partisans out of the front line, to clear the main communications from them.

According to Kovtun, “subsequently during the operations“ Drizzling rain ”and“ Spring holiday ”the Nazis liquidated the Polotsk-Lepel partisan zone”.

Then, the Wehrmacht High Command decided from May 25 to June 17 to conduct a large-scale military operation "Baklan" in a number of districts of Minsk, Vitebsk and Vileika regions. The main goal of the Nazi invaders was the destruction of the Borisov-Begoml resistance zone.

"The operation itself was a logical continuation of the strategy of a full-scale stripping of the rear areas of the 3rd tank army and Army Group Center from Soviet partisans, who in the autumn of 1943 - in the winter of 1944 threatened the rear communications of the Wehrmacht on this sector of the Soviet-German front “- explained Kovtun.

The historian told in a conversation with RT that in the Borisov-Begoml partisan zone there were more than 20 brigades of people's avengers. About 80 thousand people were involved in their destruction. In particular, units of the 3rd tank and 4th field armies, security and field training units of the Wehrmacht, Kurt von Gottberg combat group participated in the operation.

  • Gruppenführer SS Kurt von Gottberg
  • © Wikimedia commons

According to Kovtun, the partisan district was completely blocked. According to him, "all the settlements were fired from self-propelled artillery and mortar shells, many villages were wiped off as a result of aerial bombardments."

"Part of the settlements burned by the SS and police forces during the combing of the terrain, in particular the units of the 26th police regiment," said Kovtun.

Knutov, in turn, noted that “the operation was accompanied by savage atrocities and the massive destruction of civilians. People, according to the practice already established by the Nazis and collaborators, were burned alive. ”

As Kovtun points out in the book “Partisan Hunters. Brigade of Dirlewanger "(written in collaboration with Dmitry Zhukov)," the Germans quickly managed to block the partisans and drive them to the area of ​​Lake Palik, around which a solid ring was created, consisting of three strongly fortified lines. "

“The forces were too unequal, although about 20 thousand popular avengers acted here. Around the area where the Soviet patriots concentrated, there were three rings of encirclement that were constantly shrinking, ”Mr Kovtun stressed.

The book notes that “on June 2, 1944, the brigade of them. Frunze, "Bolshevik" and "Storm" in the area of ​​the village of Trumps tried to break out of the environment, but the breakthrough was unsuccessful. "

According to the historian, “by June 13, the losses of the partisans numbered 3,703 people, of whom 1986 were killed, 968 were taken prisoner, 43 ran to the side of the enemy”.

  • Belarusian partisans, 1944
  • RIA News

“In fact, the occupiers were close to achieving the main goal of the operation. But on June 16 the partisans went for a decisive breakthrough. Having suffered heavy losses, they escaped from the encirclement and managed to avoid total destruction, ”Kovtun stressed. - The Borisov-Begoml partisan zone was eliminated. However, it fulfilled its task, since the enemy also suffered heavy losses. ”

"Driven into slavery"

Kovtun points out in his book that “according to the partisans, German troops lost about 2,000 people killed and wounded, eight tanks, 12 vehicles, two armored vehicles, 16 ammunition wars” to the people's avengers.

In this case, the calculations of the command of the Wehrmacht are significantly different from the information of the Soviet side.

“According to German documents, the people's avengers lost 7697 people killed, 5286 of them were captured. At the same time, the Germans estimated their irretrievable losses at 110 soldiers and officers, ”the historian noted.

Knutov, for his part, stressed that German statistics always distorted the facts. For propaganda purposes, the Hitlerites underestimated their losses, kept records of those who died of wounds separately, and, if possible, did not advertise the data on the victims and missing persons. In his opinion, one should not trust the German data.

“As for the increased casualties of the partisans, here it is still easier and more terrible. The Nazis wrote down the guerrillas of all civilians killed and detained by them. In addition to stripping the rear, the Germans were pursuing another goal - providing free labor to their decaying industry. By declaring ordinary peasants as partisans, they were driven into slavery, ”said the expert.

According to Knutov, the people's avengers inflicted a “blow to the morale of the Nazis” and caused great damage to the enemy’s personnel and military equipment.

“The Germans threw tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, aircraft into battle, but they still suffered painful losses and could not prevent the partisans from breaking through. By June 23, the beginning of the offensive operation "Bagration", the detachments escaped from the encirclement were able to recover and deploy active hostilities in the rear of the Hitlerite group, "the expert emphasized.

According to the State Archive of Belarus, during the occupation the Nazis conducted more than 140 punitive operations on the territory of the BSSR. During the war years, 2.5–3 million inhabitants of Belarus were killed, about 400 thousand Nazis were driven into slavery. 209 of 270 cities and regional centers, as well as 9,200 villages were completely or partially destroyed. The expulsion of the Nazis from the republic ended July 28, 1944 with the liberation of Brest.