Koniuchy Massacre - Massacre

Massacre

A small local self defence unit was created to defend the village against repeated Soviet partisans' raids. The village of about 60 households and 300 inhabitants was not fortified but the villagers were armed with a few rifles. On January 29, 1944, the village was attacked by Soviet partisan units under the command of the Central Partisan Command in Moscow. The raid was carried out by 100–120 partisans from various units including 30 Jewish partisans from the 'Avengers' and 'To Victory" units under the command of Jacob (Yaakov) Prenner. Men, women and children were massacred indiscriminately and most of the households destroyed. According to the findings of the Institute of National Remembrance (investigation still in progress), at least 38 people were killed and about a dozen injured, although earlier reports stated higher numbers of deaths. Notified about the assault, the 253rd Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft battalion soon arrived at Koniuchy but did not find any Soviet partisans.

The attack was carried out by the Soviet partisan units 'Death to the Fascists' and 'Margiris' from the Vilnius Brigade of the Lithuanian Partisan Staff and 'Death to the Invaders' of the Kovno Brigade. Following the attack, a message sent from Genrikas Zimanas (Henoch Ziman), head of the 'South' Partisan Brigade, to Antanas Sniečkus, communist leader and chief of Headquarters of the Lithuanian Partisan Movement, read as follows: "On January 29, a joint group of Vilnius and Kovno partisans, as well as a special group from General Headquarters burned down the most ardently resistant village of the Eišiškės County, Kaniūkai."