Historical Division

Interrogation, Arrest and Condemnation of German Prisoners of War in Soviet Russia Historical Division

According to its official statement of May 1950 the Soviet Union has concluded the repatriation of the German prisoners of war. The fate of hundreds of thousands of German soldiers is thereby left uncertain. The greater part of these men have succumbed from hunger, extremely heavy labor, mistreatment and physical and spiritual torment. They are silent forever and are buried somewhere in the endless expanses of Russia, However, their relatives continue to hope and will suffer until they have some positive knowledge. Another smaller number of them have "vanished," or have been "deported" or condemned to "silence." Among these latter are probably included all those who are not permitted to see the western world again because their knowledge of the Soviet system and the infinite number of crimes committed under it might perhaps be dangerous to Communism. An additional number have been condemned to severe penalties which probably none of them will survive, in view of their age and their physical and mental condition.