The Red Army fought tooth and nail to secure a narrow stretch of river bank in an attempt to break the blockade. They do not stop on that. Early in the war, Amsterdam's former alderman Marieke van Doorninck called for action to get off Russian gas, which created a community-wide effort called 15% GasTerug, . They are part of a group called Exploration who have travelled for 24 hours in a cramped army truck to get to this forest near St Petersburg. We are engaged in the search and burial lost Red Army soldiers/ If we can to know their names, we looking for relatives and bury them on their native land with all the honors. It was in 1942 when people of First Lieutenant Kustovs home village got hold of the news that he went missing and suspected that he went AWOL and instead worked as a collaborator for the Germans. There is a belief that birds flying overhead transport the souls of the dead. in September that employers should guarantee volunteers jobs for when they return to civilian life. Come spring, they will resume their digging in the fields and forests where countless people were killed. Sometimes they find old coins with the soldiers, given to them by their families. Russias newly created 3rd Army Corps, for example, was made up of volunteers and given modern equipment before reportedly being. Russian War Diggers Here is another find by Russian War Diggers History Military ww2 John Ford's "December the 7th" A Docudrama" about the Bombing of Pearl Harbor WW2 How Civil War Soldiers Fought in the Battle of Gettysburg Once enlisted, volunteer soldiers have been used both to reinforce regular units and grouped into new formations. The twins' elderly mother was stunned when she heard his name - Alexander Golik - the family had searched in vain for years. , units of Cossacks and Russias so-called Special Combat Army Reserve. They are also often eligible for one-off sign-on. He instructed The Moscow Occasions from his hospital . Russias Volunteer Body Hunters and the Grave Sites theyre able to dig up. Sometimes we find messages with the soldiers name. Russian War Diggers : We found a German Dugout. Read about our approach to external linking. Many of these men apparently believe the Kremlins messaging that Moscow is battling Nazis who control Kyiv and are waging a genocidal campaign against Russian-speakers. Initials scratched into spoons and bowls are good. A bit further away, I found a Soviet helmet. While ideology likely is one motivation for these soldiers, incentives such as high salaries, bonuses and opportunities for promotion and, There are no official figures for the numbers of Russian volunteers currently in Ukraine, but they include tens of thousands of men fighting in, raised by local authorities and given names like . Nearby, Marina Koutchinskaya is on her knees searching in the mud. When Ilya Prokoviev found Kustovs body and was able to identify it, it took him months to track his family down and inform them of the discovery. Report rulebreaking comments for moderator review. The most experienced member of the Exploration team, Ilya Prokoviev, carfully pokes the ground with the use of a long spike made of metal. Alexander, who ran his own business selling food products before becoming a full-time digger, is holding a bullet case plugged with a small piece of wood. They are not buried very deep, she comments then adds, Sometimes we find them just beneath the moss and a few layers of fallen leaves. Rescuing them from anonymity is the other. Alexander has a strict set of guidelines about how the remains should be excavated, labelled and stored. "Everything seems so pointless - even my job as a journalist - and sometimes I think, 'What am I doing?' The most essential key in this is the ID tag. She views her volunteering as a digger a moral compass at times. According to an independent media site in Russia, they reported on Friday, December 14 that Russia is digging in for the long haul in occupied areas of Ukraine. Here is another Relics find from the Russian War Diggers . The soldiers are waiting for us waiting for the chance to finally go home.. They are still lying where they fell. Violators will be banned. Archaeologists complained about its methods after seeing a preview. Australia. "Sometimes we find messages with the soldier's name," says Alexander. In just less than three months, the coming German troops were able to encircle the whole city while starting to attack it through air. She employs the help of her metal detector as she scans the forest, walking slowly, carefully and thoroughly under the pine trees; only the sound her instrument makes breaks the silence of the surroundings. The relics we found were Startling! You have been unsubscribed from our newsletter. To be appointed to such post, one needed to be a staunch communist and one of the few officers Stalin trusted. The team's technician, Rafik Salakhiev, uses ultraviolet light and digital imaging to reveal the faded pencil marks. However, a tally of confirmed military deaths kept by the BBC Russian Service and independent media outlet Mediazona shows that 1,111 volunteer fighters have died in Ukraine since last February. But the key is usually an ID tag. What are the most Expensive Wars in the U.S. History? A number of volunteer fighters have described problems or delays with payments and other benefits and some said they did not know with whom they had signed contracts. By Julia Malunga, 6th May 2022. Here, the teams technician,Rafik Salakhiev, employs digital imaging and ultraviolet light to bring faded pencil marks to light. In the van sat his crew of six diggers and a flatulent 150-pound Italian mastiff named Bagram, all of them violently jostling back and forth on the bumpy road while Rebecca Black's song Friday. The incident was just one of the most recent examples of violence . @russianwardiggers3815 2.64K subscribers Subscribe Home Videos Playlists Community Channels About Videos Play all 27:02 Found incredible german stuf, Searching WW2 relics 2.6K views1 year ago 23:27. Brought to you by the Premier Content Network. The most experienced digger has been in this business for almost 30 years already. This claim was supported by the interesting historical argument that William the Conqueror had 'turned the English out of their birthrights; and compelled them for necessity to be . "In just three months the German death machine covered more than 2,000km (1,250 miles) of our land. The History Channel for an in-depth view of the Past. We just had to come to this reburial service to visit the place where he died and accompany him to his final resting place.. This work connects us to our past. One month later, he was badly injured by artillery fire near the Ukrainian village of Makiivka amid intense fighting in the east of the country. An eternal flame may burn at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Moscow but for these volunteers, the best means to honor those who have fallen during WWII is to give them back their identities. One other thing about digging up WW11 relics is the danger from shells and grenades that have been buried, and lain there slowly deteriorating and becoming more dangerous over the past 70 or so years. Of the supposed 70 million deaths it suffered during the war, 26 million were killed on the Eastern Front and over 4 million of that number are treated as missing in action. For seven decades, the only link she had with him was a black and white photo of their former family home. last summer, the diggers were able to dig out a mass grave. Heziel Pitogo is one of the authors writing for WAR HISTORY ONLINE. "The principles are very clear, we do not support war in any way as government. "If you lost your job in those days you were a non-person - you didn't exist. RaRe. She recently unearthed a helmet and in order to find its owner, the team had to uproot two nearby trees. When, in 1942, people in First Lt Kustov's home village heard he was missing, they suspected him of deserting and collaborating with the Germans. At that time, individuals who didnt have jobs in Soviet Union were non-persons living as if they didnt exist; nobody wanted to be like that, thus, they were forced to go through with the job. . Watch popular content from the following creators: ripped Lincoln(@ripped_lincoln), kgi(@ikg0x), Valerie Browne(@valerie_browne), Freedom(@i_love_freedom_peace), Kaisers_Finest(@kaisers_finest), Daniel14909(@based_militarysupportrr), Jadon_Kenobi(@jadon_kenobi), Stacy(@wicked_hoolie2.0), cthulhu113(@cthulhu113), Julia Nak(@juliaaanak) . There will definitely be work for our grandchildren," says Marina. "Near a naked flame it's still dangerous, even though it has been lying in the ground for 70 years," she says. Nobody will convince me they planted trees for ecological reasons.". Diggers from other groups elsewhere in Russia have lost their lives. The workers had endured far worse horrors, he says. "When you call the relatives, before telling them the news, you try to prepare them. "The more data we can collect from the spot, the better the chance we have to identify a soldier," says Alexander Konoplov, the leader of the Exploration group. "My mother remarried some years later and everyone told me to call my stepfather Daddy. "Sometimes you need to know that you are doing something which is important, that you are not just a piece of dust in this universe. When they were unable to trace his family, the group put out an appeal on the evening news. Being a volunteer body hunter has its dangers, too. One of the largest volunteer groups is Russia's Special Combat Army Reserve known as BARS (snow leopard in Russian) was set up in 2015 but only actively promoted by the authorities in late 2021 in the run-up to the invasion of Ukraine. But here, on the dig, I feel we are doing something which is needed.". The grave appeared to be hastily prepared by the Russian soldiers, villagers or even the German troops in a move to prevent an epidemic from occurring with the dead just thrown in unceremoniously. Sometimes you need to know that you are doing something which is important, that you are not just a piece of dust in this universe. However, many aspects of a volunteers legal status are unclear. Four layers of people one on top of the other," says Olga, as she sits by the campfire. Here you have a head there a leg She pauses and gazes at the fire. Countless of the Russian troops, used as mere cannon fodders, were killed within the area. So many Red Army units were killed, wiped out or surrounded how could anyone think about burials, let alone records of burials, in such conditions? Kudinsky pointed out. salaries and take part in regular military training while retaining their civilian jobs. Detroits Tragic Downfall | The Rise and Fall of Detroit Michigan, Why Abandoned New York Ruins Remind us of more Peaceful Times (1964 Worlds Fair), Witch Hunt: The Brutal And Bizarre World Of Jacobean Britain | A Century Of Murder |, The Great Irish Famine documentary (1996), The Entire History of Viking Britain Medieval England Documentary. There are no official figures for the numbers of Russian "volunteers" currently in Ukraine, but they include tens of thousands of men fighting in regional battalions raised by local authorities and given names like "Tiger," units of Cossacks and Russia's so-called Special Combat Army Reserve. MD4030 https://ali.ski/ZpXE4 https://ali.ski/EV6L6 https://ali.ski/xAPMd https://vk.com/gonchar452 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgq394dLhg-PdS7Ao4tlGMgInstagram https://www.instagram.com/gagarin_archeology/Telegramm yuriy_gagarin https://t.me/yuriy_gagarin . I am not surprised that Peter Schumann and the Bread and Puppet Theater cannot bring themselves to blame the obscene genocidal Russian attempt to destroy Ukraine as a nation . In times of war, they can be deployed. We are engaged in the search and burial lost Red Army soldiers/ If we can to know their names, we looking for relatives and bury them on their native land with all. In just three months the German death machine covered more than 2,000km (1,250 miles) of our land. A former army officer with a droopy blonde moustache, he found his first soldier 30 years ago while walking in the countryside. Our country allowed volunteers to participate in hostilities for the first time, Sergei Fomchenko, a military commander who fought in Ukraine in 2014 and set up the high-profile BARS 13 unit earlier this year, a law recognizing volunteers as war veterans mandating generous pensions and. Experts said that coverage of volunteer battalions has also been used by the Kremlins propaganda machine to create the impression that ordinary Russians are willing to fight and die in Ukraine. The death toll from a weekend Russian missile strike on an apartment building in southeastern Ukraine climbed to 41 on Tuesday after the body of a child . "Once you've seen that, you'll never forget it. The question is, how could the workers go through and plough through a land with a tractor when they could visibly see it littered with the bodies of the dead, unburied soldiers? So many Red Army units were killed, wiped out or surrounded - how could anyone think about burials, let alone records of burials, in such conditions?". Home; Ancient History. In an area nearby, MarinaKoutchinskaya bends on her knees and searches through the mud. But how could anyone - farmers or workmen - get on a tractor and plough over land littered with human remains? By Callum Hoare 10:30, Thu, Jan 9, 2020 . But nature is working against us. Ukraine's capital came under one of the biggest attacks of the war as Russia's invading forces fired dozens of missiles across the country. 11 March 1899. Crossing Continents is broadcast on Thursdays at 11:00GMT. "It has become the meaning of our lives. They had managed to restore historical truth and honour their fathers memory. Yet as machine guns roared overhead at troops unable to advance over no man's land, the only remaining way to undermine the enemy was by digging extensive tunnels beneath their trenches - and filling them with explosives. The standing belief about this tradition was that if the family loaned him a few coins, he certainly would come home to repay the money. She only remembers the shape of her fathers hands but she had memories of a kind, good man, Tatiana also comments. They successfully brought a sense of semblance of order into a picture of moral chaos in Russias history and were able to pay homage to those who lost their lives to WWII. The soldiers are waiting for us - waiting for the chance to finally go home.". Meanwhile, Marina found something and held it up it looked like a box of soap, only it was not, it was TNT. KYIV, Ukraine. "There are so many unburied soldiers, it will take decades to find them. RAYNALDO, 61, from Illinois, USA, met his partner Ronyea Keyaira, 27, online. According to Valery Kudinsky, the defense military official tasked with the war graves, there was no time to bury the fallen soldiers while at the heat of the battle. Tweet. In the spring they will resume their searches in the forests and fields where so many were slaughtered. Among the crowd of relatives, also, wereTatiana Uzarevich and Lyudmila Marinkina, twin sisters in their 50s who have traveled for nine hours via plane from the remote area of Kamchatka into the site to pay their last respects to their grandfather. Ilya adds up that the digging has become embedded in their souls, that they need to continue doing it to find peace for themselves it has become the meaning of their lives. They are also often eligible for one-off sign-on payments and bonuses for destroying enemy aircraft or tanks. These unknown soldiers are what these volunteer body hunters are looking for. Sometimes some samples are deactivated directly in the forest for subsequent transfer to museums.We do not sell the finds.If we find German soldiers, we transfer the remains or their location to an organization that is looking for German soldiers in Russia.This is not our job. In times of war, they can be deployed. and bonuses for destroying enemy aircraft or tanks. We [just] wanted to go and join our guys.. Olga and Marina are working in an area near the town of Lyuban which is just 80 kilometers away from St. Petersburg going south. There are no official figures for the numbers of Russian volunteers currently in Ukraine, but they include tens of thousands of men fighting in regional battalions raised by local authorities and given names like Tiger, units of Cossacks and Russias so-called Special Combat Army Reserve. It's our Hobby. Olga Ivshina walks slowly and carefully through the pine trees, the beeps of her metal detector punctuating the quiet of the forest. But that does not explain why later the battlefields weren't cleared and the fallen soldiers not identified and buried. When we cleaned away some clumps of earth from the roots we saw two hands tangled up in them. Hundreds of thousands of troops, used as little more than cannon fodder, were slaughtered. Soviet Naval Dagger W/Sheath In Box. Menu. Then we found a pelvis and some ribs between the roots. 1952: Britains BICYCLE Industry NewsReel, 1993: Make your own THUNDERBIRDS TRACY ISLAND | Blue Peter, 1989: PHILOSOPHY of the TUBE Workers | 40 Minutes | World of Work, 1989: LEONARD NIMOY on Spock and STAR TREK | Wogan | Classic Celebrity Interviews | BBC Archive, 1973: INVISIBLE Fighting FISH Do You See Them? He was one of the soldiers buried in the mass grave as the diggers found his ID tag in the location. After that there were more and more and more, and we realised these bodies were to be found everywhere - and on a massive scale.". January 16, 2023 2:48 AM. Of the estimated 70 million people killed in World War Two, 26 million died on the Eastern front - and up to four million of them are still officially considered missing in action. Two civilians. There must have been 30 or 40 soldiers in there. Over 50.000 collectables have changed hands at ratisbon's since the auction house was founded in 2015. $450.00. Thirty-five people have been killed in a missile attack on an apartment building in Dnipro; a Russian national who is reportedly a former high ranking member of the Wagner Group is seeking asylum . At no point did we hear any fire from the "Ukranian Side", all fire was from them shooting out into nothing. In addition, hundreds of Second World War artefacts are gathered. She feels estranged whenever her Moscow friends talk about not having enough to buy a new car or a set of designer clothes. She has spent most of her holidays being a volunteer body hunter far away from her home, business and her young son for the past 12 years. The Associated Press. Joining BARS is one way to join the fight if you dont fit the Defense Ministrys criteria for enlistment, three volunteer soldiers told The Moscow Times. Alexander lets his team follows through a strict set of protocol when it comes to every discovered remains how they must be excavated, labelled and stored. But this second mission is not that easy especially since as much as seventy years have passed since the war. Now there is a group of \"Black Diggers\" that illegally dig up the remains of German and Russian soldiers to sell the military artifacts they find.Up Next: The Celebrity Millionaires of Competitive Gaming - http://bit.ly/eSports-P1China's Elite Female Bodyguards - http://bit.ly/Elite-Female-BodyguardsWatch more stories from the global VICE family: http://bit.ly/VICE-INTL-Click here to subscribe to VICE: http://bit.ly/Subscribe-to-VICECheck out our full video catalog: http://bit.ly/VICE-VideosVideos, daily editorial and more: http://vice.comMore videos from the VICE network: https://www.fb.com/vicevideosLike VICE on Facebook: http://fb.com/viceFollow VICE on Twitter: http://twitter.com/viceRead our Tumblr: http://vicemag.tumblr.comFollow us on Instagram: http://instagram.com/vice $390.00. Every spring, summer and autumn I get this strange sort of yearning inside me to go and look for the soldiers. We are the ones who made him unknown, declares Ilya. In this location, measuring just a mere 10 square kilometers, about 19,000 soldiers were killed in a span of days in 1942. Ilya Prokoviev, the most experienced of the Exploration team, is carefully poking the ground with a long metal spike. Because of these suspicions, his young son and daughter were branded as children of a traitor and his family was forced to leave the said village. His disappearance had left his wife and children destitute. Alexander was quickly deployed to the frontlines in Ukraine after he joined a Russian unit for volunteer soldiers in October because he wanted to "defend his motherland." . The remains are decomposing and it is getting harder to find the bones, ID tags and army kit.. It's amazing to see such rare items found in remarkable condition. Jan 15 2023, 6:10 AM. Skip to content. 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