July 19, 1941: Nazis occupied the Belarusian village of Ostrovno

On July 19, 1941, Nazis occupied the Belarusian village of Ostrovno.

👉The invaders established a ghetto. Jews were ordered to sew yellow stars onto their clothes, relocate to ten houses on the right side of the central street, and not leave the area, although there was no fencing.

On the morning of September 30, machine gunners transported about 350 prisoners on trucks to the Jewish cemetery northeast of the village and shot them.

"On the eve of Rosh Hashanah, all Jews were gathered near a store. Trucks arrived and took them to the area of the Jewish cemetery in Ostrovno, where they were shot. Local residents heard women's and children's screams,"

– recalled Matrena Semashko, a relative of an eyewitness, during the investigation by the Vitebsk Region Prosecutor's Office into the criminal case concerning the genocide of the Belarusian people.

🤬The wounded were buried alive – the earth "moved", but the Germans ordered the grave to be guarded. After the massacre, the occupiers together with policemen held a feast.

🕯Today, an obelisk stands at the site of the tragedy.

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