Remains of Polish citizens discovered among other victims in mass grave in Odessa

Archeologists researching the territory of former NKVD special facility "Tatarka" in Odessa, south Ukraine, have found 29 mass graves of victims of communist terror since the start of August. Poland's Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) estimate that this might be one of the biggest mass graves in that country.

Ołeksandr Babicz was one of the initiators of research at that location. He told Polish Press Agency (PAP) that some time he had been asked for his opinion by new owners of a plot of land which was part of the former NKVD facility. The said people were supposed to move garages there from a place that would be used by Odessa airport. They also said that they heard about mass executions that had once taken place there and that mass graves were likely to be found.

"I had to alert the media and ask local authorities to launch archeological mission there," Babicz said. Finally, a working group has been formed, including historians, representatives of Polish, German and Romanian consulates, archives directors, as well as local authorities and people who have been researching the area.

As part of the research, documents from Odessa archives have been collected, including lists of people arrested and killed during the great terror, as well as execution orders. "We're determining the number and identity of the victims," Babicz said.

The researchers also have access to testimonies of more than 20 residents of Odessa, who had worked on the location in the past, laying wires for instance. When digging the ground, they used to find human bones and skulls with gunshot holes. Then - Babicz explains - KGB officers would arrive at the scene and ordered the workers never to mention this to anyone.

Apart from browsing through archives, the researchers are also exploring the site itself. So far, since the beginning of August, 29 mass graves have been located, from which a layer of waste was removed. According to the historian, the perpetrators used to cover the bodies with a layer of ground and later dump waste on the top.

The researchers "find the first bones, clothes, shoes and halt their work". "They mark the grave, write it down in the protocol and move further," Babicz said. In his opinion, the graves contain multiple layers of human remains. Apart from the remains, shoes, bullet casings and coins are often found in the ground. Babicz says marking of the graves should last until mid-autumn.

The historian also told PAP that remains of 5,000-6,000 people might lay at the territory of the former NKVD facility. In total, between 8,000 and 10,000 people were sentenced to death in 1937-1938. "They were regular people devoured by the Stalinist death machine" Babicz said. "When reading the interrogation protocols, it's clear that they were people of various professions - engineers, railway workers, librarians, teachers," he said. "Among the dead are also victims of operations aimed against nationalities: Poles, Germans, Ukrainians, Romanians, Greeks," Babicz added.

He also mentioned that one exhumation was already carried out in 2008. Remains of 1,086 people were found at the time. "They were all victims of 1937-1938 executions, they were all killed in the same way - with a shot in the back of the head. Items from 1930s were found along with the remains," he explained.

Asked when exhumation of the remains could possibly begin, he said that permit has not been issued yet and the granting process was not an easy one. "It's possible it will begin early next year and will last many years," he added. "The overall surface of the Odessa grave is 4.7 ha, whereas in Bykivnia, near Kiev - where works have been going on for 11 years now - 5.3 ha," Babicz said. He did not rule out that IPN experts could be involved in exhumation work.

Babicz stressed that this was one of the biggest mass graves in Ukraine. "Odessa is one the biggest cities in Ukraine. In the times of the great terror, brigades of local NKVD units were operating in the area. People were being arrested and taken to local headquarters, where some show trials were being launched. Shortly after followed death sentences. Odessa was one of the biggest centres of this operation," he said.