Over the course of two days at the end of September 1941, in a ravine known as Babyn Yar (Babi Yar) below the Ukranian city of Kyiv (Kiev), Germans and Ukranians shot and killed 33,771 Jews, mostly women, children and elderly. Over the course of the next two years, 70,000 more people (Jews and non-Jews alike) were murdered there. The Nazis, later trying to hide their crimes, exhumed and burned the bodies. Later, in the name of "national unity," the Soviets filled in the ravine and built a park on top, in order to cover up the killing site of one particular group. For 80 years its precise location was lost - until now.
"Martin Dean, a former Scotland Yard investigator who specializes in Nazi war crimes," along with the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center, created a 3-D simulation of the massacre site using aerial photos and historical records and testimonies. To see how they were able to find it, watch the short video below:
This was the height of Holocaust by Bullets, the Nazi shooting spree in 1941, which killed 1.5 million Jews. The massacre at Babi Yar was the greatest number of Jews killed in one place prior to the construction of the death camps. Within days the world knew about what happened, and it is believed that their indifference at the time is what emboldened the Nazis to take their next step in creating the Final Solution.
Now, an incredible memorial site and museum have been planned for the site, which are on track to open in 2026. It is being mostly funded by Russian-Jews and amazingly, has the support of the Ukranian government. For more on this incredible discovery as well as the absolutely amazing memorial center, click here: https://www.timesofisrael.com/mystery-solved-babyn-yar-massacre-location-pinpointed-after-79-years/
On a related note, Yad Vashem is having financial difficulties due to the corona situation and Israel's government inability to pass a budget. For more on that, click here: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/yad-vashem-facing-financial-difficulties-due-to-the-coronavirus-pandemic-644559
Please join me, your Israel tour guide, in making a donation to Yad Vashem: https://forms.yadvashem.org/donation
And finally - in breaking news - just as I finished writing this post - Facebook finally decided to ban the denial or distorting of the Holocaust on its platform. https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2020/10/12/facebook-bans-holocaust-denial-in-major-reversal/#5a4b1518167d
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