The Einsatzgruppen (task forces or special action groups) were units of the Security Police and SD. They are sometimes referred to as "mobile killing squads." The Einsatzgruppen were a consistently brutal perpetrator of Nazi occupation policies. They are best known for their role in the massacres of Jews following the German attack on the Soviet Union.
Soldiers from unidentified units of Einsatzgruppe C look through the possessions of Jews massacred at Babi Yar, a ravine near Kiev. Soviet Union, September 29–October 1, 1941.
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Over one thousand Jews from the Ukrainian town of Lubny, ordered to assemble for "resettlement," in an open field before they were massacred by Einsatzgruppen. Lubny, Soviet Union, October 16, 1941.
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Roundup of the Jews of Lubny, shortly before they were massacred by Einsatzgruppe detachments. This photo, originally in color, was part of a series taken by a German military photographer. Copies from this collection were later used as evidence in war crimes trials. Lubny, Soviet Union, October 16, 1941.
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Ukrainian Jews who were forced to undress before they were massacred by Einsatzgruppe detachments. This photo, originally in color, was part of a series taken by a German military photographer. Copies from this collection were later used as evidence in war crimes trials. Lubny, Soviet Union, October 16, 1941.
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Site where members of Einsatzgruppe A and Estonian collaborators carried out a mass execution of Jews in September 1941. Kalevi-Liiva, Estonia, after September 1944.
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