Murder Story of Orel Jews at the Kurgan Tract

Some of the best preserved bodies clearly had Jewish facial features….. Witness testimonies from residents who live on the territory of Malaya Gat, Orel County, are fully confirmed by the data collected by forensic medical examination of the bodies and the trenches. The witnesses testified that during the period from August to December 1942, on the Kurgan Forest tract, the German occupation authorities conducted mass shootings of Soviet civilians, mostly of Jewish origin, including children, women, and old people. The examination determined the cause of death to consist not only of shooting but also, apparently, of the burial [of some victims] in the trenches while they were still alive.

German Fascist troops took innocent civilians from Orel town and other villages to the Kurgan Forest tract 500 meters from the farmstead of Malaya Gat. Among those ones taken by the Germans were children, women, and old people. There they were shot. In this way on August 15, 1942 the German executioners transported as many as 70 people in two trucks. Among them were children, women, and old people. They were brought close to the trenches in groups and shot from sub-machineguns. During the shooting we heard children crying and women scream, begging for mercy. The German executioners did not pay any attention to these mothers. At that moment the children were being buried alive in the trench. ... Several other times, in November and December 1942, the German executioners took innocent civilians from Orel town. They were also shot on the Kurgan Forest tract.